Automate Your Review Requests at Job Completion

"On that job finish text, we're going to include a link to your Google review site and ask for a review."

This was me during an onboarding call, explaining one of the most important automations we set up for service businesses.

It's simple. It's obvious. And almost nobody does it consistently.

The 24-Hour Window

Here's what the research shows: 96% of customers are willing to leave a review if asked at the right moment.

That moment has a shelf life. After about 24 hours, response rates drop 40-60%.

Think about why this makes sense. Right after a job is done, the customer remembers everything. The problem they had, the fix you provided, how professional your tech was, how clean they left the workspace. The experience is fresh.

A day later? They're onto the next thing. The emotional peak has passed. Leaving a review feels like homework.

Two days later? They barely remember you came.

The window is short. If you're relying on remembering to ask—or asking whenever you "get around to it"—you're missing most of your opportunities.

Why Manual Requests Fail

Most business owners know they should ask for reviews. The problem is consistency.

You finish a job. The customer is happy. You think: "I should ask for a review." But you're already heading to the next call. Or you're tired. Or you'll "do it later."

Later never comes.

Even when you do remember, you might not have the link handy. Or you send a text that's awkwardly worded. Or you ask some customers but not others based on whether you remember.

Inconsistency kills your review velocity. And review velocity—the rate at which new reviews come in—is one of the signals Google uses for local search ranking.

The businesses that dominate local search aren't necessarily better. They're more systematic about asking.

The Automated Solution

Here's what automated review requests look like:

A job is marked complete in your CRM (House Call Pro, Jobber, ServiceTitan, whatever you use). Automatically—within hours—the customer receives a text message.

The message is short, friendly, and includes a direct link:

"Thanks for choosing [Your Company]! If you have 30 seconds, we'd really appreciate a review: [link]"

The link goes directly to your Google review page, pre-opened to leave a review. One click. Minimum friction.

That's it. No human intervention required. Every single completed job triggers the same request.

The Direct Link Matters

Don't ask customers to "find us on Google and leave a review." That's too many steps.

Instead, get your direct Google review link and use it everywhere. Here's how:

1. Search for your business on Google
2. Click "Write a review" on your own listing
3. Copy that URL

Or use the Google Place ID finder to construct a direct link. The format is: https://search.google.com/local/writereview?placeid=[YOUR_PLACE_ID]

When customers click that link, they land directly on the review form. The easier you make it, the more reviews you'll get.

Timing and Frequency

Best practice is one primary ask, and one reminder if they don't respond. Two touches total.

The first message goes out within 24 hours of job completion. If no review comes in after a few days, send one follow-up: "Just wanted to make sure you got our message—we'd love to hear how we did."

After that, move on. Pestering customers for reviews damages the relationship you built doing good work.

For timing of day, research shows 2-5 PM tends to work well for text messages. People are wrapping up their day, have a moment to spare, and are more likely to act on quick requests.

What Not to Do

Google and the FTC have both gotten serious about review manipulation. Here's what will get you in trouble:

Don't offer incentives. No discounts, no gift cards, no entries into drawings. Paying for reviews violates Google's policies and can get your reviews removed—or your listing suspended.

Don't gate reviews. Some systems try to filter unhappy customers away from Google by asking "how was your experience?" first and only sending happy customers to the review page. Google specifically prohibits this. Every customer should have equal opportunity to review.

Don't fake reviews. Obviously. But also: don't have employees write reviews, don't ask family members, don't write reviews for customers even if they tell you what to say.

Keep it simple and honest: ask every customer, make it easy, and let the chips fall where they may.

The Compound Effect

Here's what happens when you automate review requests and run them consistently for a year:

Month 1: Your review velocity increases immediately. Instead of 1-2 reviews a month, you're getting 8-10.

Month 3: You've tripled your review count. Your Google Business Profile starts ranking better in local searches. New customers mention they chose you because of your reviews.

Month 6: You've got a genuine competitive advantage. When someone searches "HVAC repair near me," your listing with 150+ reviews stands out against competitors with 30.

Month 12: Reviews are just part of how your business operates. You don't think about it anymore. It happens automatically.

The businesses that win local search didn't do anything fancy. They just asked consistently, at the right time, for a long time.

Start Today

If you're not automatically requesting reviews, set it up this week.

Most service business CRMs support this natively. Look for "automations" or "workflows" in your settings. Create a trigger that fires when a job is marked complete, and have it send a text with your review link.

If your CRM doesn't support it, third-party tools like Podium, Birdeye, or NiceJob can connect to your system and handle review requests.

The setup takes an hour. The payoff lasts as long as you're in business.

Every completed job is a review you didn't ask for. Start asking.