What counts as gating
If the path to a public review depends on the customer's answer to a satisfaction question, that is gating. Common examples include a 'How did we do?' screen that shows the Google link only for four or five stars, or routing unhappy customers to a private form instead.
Why it backfires
Besides the policy risk, gating hides the feedback you most need. Unhappy customers who never get heard are more likely to post elsewhere, and a profile of uniformly perfect ratings reads as less trustworthy to future customers.
A compliant way to ask
The goal is more honest reviews, not only more positive ones.
- Ask every customer after a completed service, not a selected few.
- Show the same public review link regardless of rating.
- Offer private feedback as an addition, never as a replacement.
- Never offer incentives for reviews or ask people to change a rating.
- Respect opt-outs and limit reminders.
How Versabot handles review requests
Versabot's review requests start from a completed service (a pipeline stage, form, job-system webhook or a confirmed send), show the same public review link to everyone, reject incentive or positive-only wording, collect optional private feedback, send at most one reminder, and stop immediately if the customer opts out.
Frequently asked questions
Can I still collect private feedback?
Yes, as long as every customer can still reach the public review link. Private feedback should be an extra option, not a filter.
Published by the Versabot team.