Online Business Card Reviews: Ask Honestly, Stay Legal
By Online Business Cards Editorial Team | Published | Updated | Online business cards for local businesses
How to use the reviews link on your online business card: when to ask, wording that asks for honest feedback, the UK rules on incentives and filtering, and showing testimonials with permission.
For a local business, reviews do a job no advert can. They are other customers saying, in their own words, what it was like to deal with you. The hard part is not getting good service right. It is remembering to ask, and making it easy for busy customers to leave a review before they forget.
The reviews link on an online business card helps with both. It is a button on your card that sends customers straight to your review page, so asking is one sentence and one link. This guide covers when to ask, wording that asks for honest feedback, the rules you must follow in the UK, and how to show testimonials on your card properly.
The reviews button comes with the online business card that collects reviews and leads, our Business Plan at £90, paid once. Testimonials are on both plans, including Brand Presence at £45.
How the reviews link works
You add the address of your review page to your card, for example your Google review link. The card then shows a clear button. When a customer opens your card and presses it, they land on the page where they can write a review.
You choose where it points. Most local businesses point it at Google, because that is where new customers see reviews next to your Maps listing. A trade on a directory may point it at that directory instead. Google explains how to get your review link in its help article Tips to get more reviews.
Which review platform to use
Pick the one platform your customers actually look at, and send everyone there. Splitting customers across several sites leaves you with a handful of reviews on each.
Platform | What it is for | Who it usually suits | Worth knowing
Google Business Profile | Reviews shown with your listing on Google Search and Maps | Almost any local business with customers in an area | Customers need a Google account to leave a review
Trustpilot | An open review site for businesses and websites | Service and online businesses with customers across the UK | Check Trustpilot's own guidelines on inviting reviews
Checkatrade | A directory of trades with customer reviews | Trades who are members | Membership-based; check its terms before you join
Facebook | Recommendations on a Facebook Page | Businesses with an active Page their customers follow | Only useful if you keep the Page up to date
Tripadvisor | Reviews of hospitality and attractions | Cafés, pubs, restaurants, holiday lets and attractions | Built for visitors and tourists
We have left out ratings and numbers deliberately. Look at each platform for your own trade and town before you choose.
When to ask
Ask when the customer has just had a good result, not before.
- Trades: when the job is finished and you have walked the customer round it, or when you send the final invoice.
- Appointment businesses: at the end of the appointment, or in a thank-you message later that day.
- Shops and cafés: at the counter for regulars, or on a QR code next to the till.
- Online or remote services: when the work is delivered and the customer has said they are happy with it.
Ask everyone in the same way. Ask once, and send one reminder at most. More than that feels like pressure.
Do not stand over them
Google's policy says businesses should not require or pressure customers to leave reviews while they are on the premises. Mention it, hand over the link and let them do it in their own time.
Wording that asks for honest feedback
The safest and most effective request asks for an honest review, not a good one. Here are three you can adapt.
In person:> "If you have a minute later, we'd really value an honest review. The link's on our card."
By WhatsApp or text:> "Thanks for choosing Hartley Heating today. If you have a moment, we'd be grateful for an honest review of how the job went. It helps other people in the area choose a heating engineer. [your card link]"
By email, with the invoice:> "Thank you for your business. If you're happy to, please leave an honest review using the button on our card. We read every one, and we reply."
Notice what they do not say: "five stars", "a good review" or "if you're happy with us". Asking only happy customers, or asking for a particular rating, is where businesses get into trouble.
The rules you must follow
No incentives
Do not offer anything in return for a review: no discount, no prize draw entry, no free extra. Google's Maps user-contributed content policy treats reviews given in exchange for payment, discounts or free goods or services as fake engagement, and removes them.
UK law is strict on this too. Since April 2025, the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 makes fake reviews, and incentivised reviews that hide the incentive, a banned practice. The Competition and Markets Authority's fake reviews guidance (2025) explains what businesses must and must not do.
Do not filter out unhappy customers
Some review tools ask "Were you happy?" first and only send happy customers to Google. Do not do this. Google's policy says businesses must not discourage negative reviews or selectively ask for positive ones. The CMA guidance also warns against suppressing genuine negative reviews or cherry-picking positive ones in a way that misleads customers.
Point your reviews link straight at the review page, and ask every customer.
Never write or buy reviews
Do not write reviews for your own business, ask friends and family to review work they did not receive, or pay anyone to post reviews. All of these count as fake reviews.
Showing testimonials on your card
Both plans include a Testimonials section. Customers read it on the same page as your prices and contact buttons, so it is worth doing well.
- Ask permission. Use a testimonial only if the customer has agreed to it being shown. Keep a note of when they agreed.
- Use their words. Do not rewrite a testimonial to change its meaning. Trimming for length is fine if the meaning stays the same.
- Name them as they agreed. First name and town, such as "Sarah, Otley", is usually enough.
- Do not present them as a rating. A few chosen quotes are not your overall score, so do not label them as one.
- Keep them current. Swap in recent ones every few months.
Example: a reviews section on a card
This is an Example for a made-up plumbing business, not a real customer.
- Button: "Leave us an honest review on Google".
- Line above it: "We read and reply to every review."
- Testimonials: three short quotes about different jobs (a boiler service, an emergency leak, a new bathroom), each with a first name and town, shown with permission.
- Below: a link to their Google reviews page, so visitors can read all reviews, not just the chosen ones.
Reply to every review
Reply to good reviews with a short, specific thank-you. Reply to bad ones calmly, once, with what you have done or will do. New customers read your replies as closely as the reviews.
Reviews are one part of being found locally. Our explainer on online business card local SEO covers the rest. If you go to your customers, see our guide to an online business card for mobile businesses. More guides for local businesses are in the journal.
Frequently asked questions
Which plan includes the reviews button?
The Business Plan, at £90 paid once. It adds the reviews button to everything in Brand Presence, along with bookings, enquiries, leads and a CRM. Testimonials are included on both plans, including Brand Presence at £45.
Can I offer a discount for leaving a review?
No. Google removes reviews given for payment, discounts or free goods. Under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024, hiding an incentive behind a review is a banned practice. Ask for honest reviews and offer nothing in return.
Can I only ask happy customers for reviews?
No. Google's policy says businesses must not selectively ask for positive reviews, and the CMA warns against cherry-picking reviews in a misleading way. Ask every customer, in the same words, for an honest review.
Which review site should my reviews link point to?
The one your customers look at. For most local businesses that is Google, because reviews show next to your Maps listing. A trade directory or Tripadvisor may suit some businesses better. Pick one and send everyone there.
Can I put customer reviews on my card?
Yes, as testimonials, if the customer has agreed. Use their words without changing the meaning, name them as they agreed, and do not present a few chosen quotes as your overall rating.
How should I reply to a bad review?
Calmly and once. Thank them, say what you have done or will do, and offer a way to talk it through offline. Do not argue or share private details. Future customers read your replies as closely as the review.