How to get more Google reviews without breaking the policies

What Google does allow

The help page says you can remind customers to leave a review, with a Google link or a QR code: https://support.google.com/business/answer/3474122?hl=en. You create the link in the profile. Google describes putting it on the receipt, in a thank-you email, at the end of a chat, or printed in the shop. It also says you can send the request by email, a WhatsApp message, or a Facebook post: https://support.google.com/business/answer/16816815?hl=en.

The reviewer needs a Google Account. They can create one with an email that is not Gmail. The review has to be a real experience.

Replying to the reviews you already have is part of the same tips. A profile that answers looks different from one that does not. That is not a promise of more reviews: it is what the page recommends.

The link and the QR code, step by step

Google says the QR code, for now, is generated in a computer browser, not on a phone. The help-page steps are these:

1. Open the profile. Go to your Business Profile.
2. Get the link. Select Read reviews, then Get more reviews.
3. Copy or download. For the link, select Copy. For the QR code, right-click and choose Save image as.
4. Share it where you already talk to the customer. The receipt, a thank-you email, the end of a chat, WhatsApp, a Facebook post, or the QR code printed in the shop.

A WhatsApp message that fits

A fictional example, for a taquería in Mexico. “Hi, this is Luis from Tacos del Ejemplo. If you want to say how it went today, here is the Google link I copied from the profile. It is fine if it went well or if something failed. Thank you.”

It has no reward, it does not ask for 5 stars, and it does not dictate the wording. The link is the one you copied. This page does not invent a short URL.

What the policy prohibits

The prohibited and restricted content policy says not to offer incentives — payment, a discount, or free goods or services — in exchange for posting a review, changing one, or removing a negative one: https://support.google.com/contributionpolicy/answer/7400114?hl=en. The page on incentivized or biased reviews repeats that point: https://support.google.com/contributionpolicy/answer/16597558?hl=en.

It also does not allow discouraging or prohibiting negative reviews, or asking only for positive ones. When you ask, you do not pressure the person to review on the premises, and you do not require specific wording. You do not ask staff to collect a set number of reviews, or reviews that name someone on the team.

A message that says “leave us 5 stars and the dessert is on us” is an incentive. One that says “only ask people who left happy” is selective solicitation. One that says “have them name the server” requires specific content.

If Google restricts the profile

The restrictions help page says that if Google determines a fake-engagement violation, it may stop new reviews for a period, unpublish existing ones, or show a notice that fake reviews were removed. It emails the owner. There is an appeal: https://support.google.com/business/answer/14114287?hl=en. This page does not publish a number of days: Google describes a period that it sets.

Asking for a review of a real experience, with no reward and no star filter, is the path those pages leave open. It is not a quota.

Can I ask for the review on WhatsApp?

Yes. The help page for the link or QR code says you can send the request by email, a WhatsApp message, or a Facebook post. The message cannot include an incentive or ask only for positive reviews.

Is a discount code in exchange for the review allowed?

No. Google treats it as an incentive, the same as payment, a free good, or a discount in exchange for posting, changing, or removing a review.

Can I ask only the people who left happy?

No. The policy says not to discourage negative reviews and not to solicit only positive ones. The ask is to describe the experience, however it went.

Can I make the QR code on a phone?

The help page says that, for now, the QR code is generated in a computer browser, not on a phone. You can forward the link afterward on WhatsApp.