Most restaurant owners have an avoidant relationship with Google Reviews.
And it’s no wonder—The bad reviews can feel like an attack.
One that publicly hurts your business, reputation, and ability to generate future sales.
All while you’ve assumed tons of risk to build a business that serves the community.
(And what have they done? Just fired up Google, click some buttons, and ruin your day).
So, I get WHY restaurant owners tend to avoid reviews.
But today, I’m going to show you why review generation is the most potent marketing activity you can do to grow your restaurant—and how to do it like a boss.
Why Restaurant Reviews Matter (They’re “Word Of Mouth” On Steroids)
If I had a nickel for every restaurant owner who said the way they grow is through “Word Of Mouth,” I’d be rich!
That’s like saying your car runs on ‘good vibes’ instead of gas—sure, it might feel good to say, but it’s not going to win the race.
But Word Of Mouth IS the most effective marketing message that can be delivered.
According to Invespo, 92% of consumers trust recommendations from friends and family over any other form of advertising. And we’ve all experienced this in our lives—when a trusted friend suggests we try something, we almost always do!
Now take a consistent, steady stream of new Reviews being shared about your business. What does it say to those who find you?
- “People love this place—and I probably will, too!”
- “This restaurant is crushing it right now.”
- “If all these people trust it, I can trust it.”
- “It’s not just hype—this spot delivers every time.”
- “Why haven’t I been there yet?!”
Now, you probably had a sense that reviews make a big impact on the perceived sentiment of your restaurant, but there are two forces you may not have considered:
1. More Google Reviews Helps Your Restaurant Rank Higher in Local Search & Maps
One of the more important ranking factors Google looks for at the local level is Review Velocity.
Review Velocity = How consistent and frequently your Google Business Profile receives real, authentic reviews.
Think about it from Google’s perspective—they’re in the business of serving the most relevant, accurate results for whoever is searching. If your business is getting a lot of reviews from happy customers, it means that people are having a good experience with your business.
So of course Google will want to show your business more often—because it ultimately wants people to have a great experience with its platform!
So remember: The more reviews you get, the more visibility local search engines will reward your business with.
2. More Google Reviews Increases Your Conversion Rate (And Makes All Other Marketing Efforts More Effective and Efficient)
As your restaurant gets more attention, higher ratings from more reviews also converts more of that attention into new guests.
So getting more reviews means that ALL your marketing efforts work better.
For example:
- If you’re running Google Ads to your Google Business Profile, more of those clicks will turn into orders because of your restaurant’s improved reputation
- If you’re building awareness using Meta Ads, when prospective guests go to look up your restaurant to confirm whether they think they’ll have a good experience, more of them will be compelled by your restaurant’s reputation
- Each review that comes in is a marketing asset that you can share on your website and in your social media, which will lead to the perception that you have raving fans (because you do)—leading to more guests because of your restaurant’s improved reputation
Now that there’s no doubt that reviews are important, let’s get into the meat of HOW to generate tons of reviews (like a BOSS):
How do I get more reviews for my restaurant—without annoying my guests?
Just ask.
That’s it. Getting more reviews is simply a function of asking for them as often as possible (ideally systematically and automatically).
So how do we ask? Let’s get into it.
1. Prioritize collecting guest information
Most restaurants don’t collect guest information.
This is a big problem—If you don’t capture guest information, you can’t communicate with them.
Here are the places we make sure we’re collecting guest information:
- Reservations
- Online Ordering
- In-House Birthday Program
- Digital Loyalty Program
- Website
Once you have their information from these sources, in many cases you can trigger a Review Request automation.
Many restaurants already have Online Ordering and/or a Reservation system in place—so this could be as simple as ensuring there’s a marketing opt-in step in the process.
I recommend keeping Birthday and Loyalty Programs nice and simple.
Begin by thinking about what your big offer is and what your in-house collateral will look like:
2. Automate Review Requests
Since we can’t always rely on ourselves to get things done, we build simple “machines” to do it for us.
These messages shouldn’t be the “canned” messages most POS / reservation tools send out automatically. They should feel personal and like they’re from the owner.
3. Train your team on WHY reviews matter
Most restaurant employees don’t understand why, exactly, reviews are so important to the health and growth of the business.
Once they understand, and are given the tools + training to ask for reviews, we always see a significant upswing in new 5 star reviews coming in!
Here’s a simple script you can use to get the ball rolling:
4. Make it EASY for servers, bartenders, and baristas to ask for reviews
Far away the most simple and effective “Review Enablement” tool is a QR code card like this:
The QR code takes guests right where they can leave a review:
This method is powerful because it leverages the built-in rapport that servers / bartenders have with guests.
5. Get More Restaurant Reviews by Giving a Gift First, Followed by the Ask
The most effective review ask I ever experienced went like this:
- We had great service throughout
- When the server dropped the bill, he also dropped this little doughnut hole covered in chocolate sauce and said, “It’s been great to serve you tonight. If you could scan this QR code and leave us a review and mention my name, Pedro, I would be so grateful. I also just might win a prize if you do.”
My girlfriend and I both left reviews right away.
6. Build a Review Reactivation Campaign
If you have a list of past guests, you can send all of them an email asking for feedback.
You may not know when they last visited, in which case, sending them to a Feedback Form is a good idea.
You can then choose to ask those who filled out the survey to go ahead and also leave their feedback on your review platform of choice.
Of course, you can always simply send them directly to your Google Review link.
7. Embrace Transparency (Avoid “Review Gating”)
Many restaurants will ask what guests would rate their experience and ask for the review only if they say they’ll give 5 stars.
This is “Review Gating” and is against Google’s Terms of Service.
Based on research by GatherUp, businesses looking for authentic feedback and valuing ALL experiences saw a 31% greater review conversion than those trying to “game” the system.
8. Reply to Every Online Review
Whether positive or negative, respond promptly to every review.
This does a few things you may not have considered:
- It’s a positive sentiment signal that Google will reward with better rankings, over time
- It shows prospective guests that you care
- It gives you an opportunity to address negative feedback
Turn Your Online Reviews into a Guest Magnet
As a restaurant owner, you know that word-of-mouth drives traffic. The same principle applies online—your reviews can make or break a first impression. Take control of your reputation, attract more guests, and keep them coming back.
