At Riley Summers, we manage the reviews that customers see before they call, running a review request system that asks customers for Google reviews and responding to every review as it comes in. We measure results by the number and quality of new reviews, and charge a flat monthly fee.
On this page
- Who Reputation Management Is For
- What's Included in Reputation Management
- One Review, Many Jobs
- What We Usually Find
- How Reputation Management Starts
- What's Separate From Reputation Management
- Related Resources
Who Reputation Management Is For
Picture yourself in a new city, wanting to order a pizza. You search "best pizza near me," look at the businesses in the map results, and then do what almost everyone does: check the reviews. Your customers do exactly the same when their AC fails or a pipe bursts.
Reviews matter because they connect real-world experience to a listing online. Writing one takes time and effort, so each review shows that someone trusted the business enough to hire it, and felt strongly enough about the result to say so. Google treats them as important too. Space in the map results is limited, yet Google gives star ratings a prominent place, in bright yellow, right beside every business name.
Reputation management is for businesses that want that work handled for them, rather than on the owner's own time. It works best for businesses that complete a steady volume of jobs and can send us an up-to-date customer list regularly.
Not every business needs it as a separate service. Review guidance is included in our Local SEO, Local Services Ads and AI & Search Visibility services, so an owner can choose the level of help that fits.
Your reviews
Every review lives on your own Google profile.
Your customer list
Used only to send your review requests.
One flat fee
A fixed monthly fee, with no setup fee.
12-month term
Billed monthly.
What's Included in Reputation Management
Every engagement covers the business's Google reviews, from asking for them to answering them.
Review request system
We set up and run a system that texts and emails the business's recent customers, with a direct link to leave a Google review. We can also set up a review QR code for staff to share at the job, with the account kept in the business's name.
Customer uploads
Once a month, the business sends us its list of recent customers, and we upload it so the requests go out. In line with Google's review policies, we advise sending every customer with a completed job, not just the ones expected to leave a good review.
Review monitoring and alerts
We watch for new reviews as they come in, with immediate alerts for one-star reviews.
Pre-approved responses
We agree response templates with the owner in advance, so we can reply as soon as a review arrives.
Responses to every review
Good and bad, we aim to respond to every review within a business day.
Negative review escalation
Serious issues, such as claims of damage, injury or legal action, go to the owner before any public reply. We advise having someone senior call the customer to resolve it, after which the customer may choose to update or remove the review.
Reporting
Total reviews, average rating, review activity over time and customer sentiment, so the owner can see the reputation improving month by month.
One Review, Many Jobs
A single Google review does several jobs at once, which is why we treat reviews as part of the business's whole marketing, not a separate task.
- Map results: Reviews are part of how Google evaluates a business's prominence, one of the factors it uses to rank local results.
- Local Services Ads: Google now connects LSAs with the business's Google profile, so the same reviews carry across. Reviews are also one of the three R's at the core of how we manage LSAs.
- Paid search: With the profile linked to Google Ads, ads can appear in the map results alongside the business's rating, so its reviews support its paid search too.
- AI answers: When AI tools recommend local businesses, reviews are often among the signals they draw on.
- The next customer: Whatever brought them to the listing, most customers read the reviews before they call.
In our experience, review volume, average rating and how often new reviews arrive all affect who appears in the top three map results. The businesses with the most reviews are usually at or near the top. They're often doing other things well too, but the pattern holds across nearly every set of map results we review.
We encourage a steady flow of new, positive reviews, ideally two to four a week depending on the business's job volume, that describe the specific service the customer received, with every review answered within a business day. A steady flow matters more than an occasional burst, because recent reviews show customers the business is active today.
For more, see Online Reviews.
What We Usually Find
These are the problems we most often find when we review a home services business's Google reviews.
Reviews that stopped coming in
A good rating, but the most recent review is months, or even a year, old.
What we do instead
We upload the business's customer list each month so requests go out regularly, and can set up a review QR code for staff to share at the job.
Fewer reviews than the competition
A strong rating, but far fewer reviews than the businesses at the top of the map results.
What we do instead
A steady flow of new reviews closes the gap with market leaders over time.
Reviews left unanswered, or answered late
Customers take the time to write a review, and nobody replies.
What we do instead
Pre-approved responses let us reply to every review within a business day.
No system for asking
Requests depend on busy staff remembering, so most customers are never asked.
What we do instead
The business sends its customer list each month, and requests go out automatically.
How do your reviews compare with your competitors'?
We'll compare your Google reviews with the businesses in your local map results and show you where the gap is.
Request a free review auditHow Reputation Management Starts
- Free review audit. We compare the business's Google reviews with those of the businesses in its local map results: volume, rating, how recent they are, and how they're answered.
- Discovery. We learn how many jobs the business completes, who currently handles reviews, and how it would like negative reviews escalated.
- Setup. We set up the review request system and QR code, and agree the pre-approved responses with the owner.
- First upload. The business sends its first customer list, and the first requests go out.
- Ongoing management. Monthly uploads, monitoring and responses, escalation of serious issues, and monthly reporting.
Engagements are billed at a flat monthly fee, with no setup fee, on a 12-month term.
What's Separate From Reputation Management
Every agency defines reputation management differently, and many never discuss what's left out. We set it out plainly. Reputation management covers the business's Google reviews. A few things sit outside it:
Google Business Profile management. Profile setup, optimization and posting are part of our Local SEO service. See Local SEO.
Other review sites. We manage Google reviews only.
Resolving the customer's complaint. We escalate serious issues to the business's owner or designated contact and advise on handling them, but refunds, repairs and disputes are the business's to resolve.
Review removal. We can't guarantee the removal of a review, but we have a process. The business contacts the customer to resolve the issue, after which the customer may update or remove the review. If it's still unresolved, we can report the review to Google through several channels.
Connecting to the business's job software. Sending requests automatically from the business's own systems is additional work, available where those systems allow.
We don't buy, write or incentivize reviews, and we advise against asking only the customers expected to leave good ones.
Related Resources
Find out how your reviews compare.
We'll compare your Google reviews with the businesses in your local map results, covering volume, rating, recency and responses, and show you what it will take to close the gap.
Request a free review audit