Reviews Playbook

The rules (non-negotiable)

Online reviews are regulated in the US. The Federal Trade Commission's rule on consumer reviews and testimonials (in force since October 2024) allows large penalties for each violation. Review sites have their own policies and can remove reviews or penalise a business's listing. Narqix follows the strictest version of these rules for every client.

1. Ask everyone

Every customer with a completed job gets the same request, whether the visit went perfectly or not. Asking only the customers you think are happy is called selective soliciting or review gating, and it breaks review site rules.

2. No incentives for reviews

• Never offer anything of value in exchange for a review: no discounts, gift cards, free services, raffle entries or credits.
• Offering a reward tied to a positive review (for example "5 stars and get 10 percent off") is illegal under the FTC rule.
• Major review sites also ban incentives for any review, positive or negative. So Narqix's rule is simple: no incentives, ever.

3. No fake, insider or edited reviews

• Never write, edit or post a review for a customer, even if they ask you to "just type what I said".
• Never ask employees, owners, their family or friends to post reviews without clear disclosure, and Narqix does not run such requests at all.
• Never buy reviews or use review services that post them.

4. No suppression

• Never discourage a customer from leaving a negative review.
• Never ask a customer to remove or change a review in exchange for anything.
• Never threaten a reviewer.

The request process

Step 1: Send within 2 hours of completion

Send the request by text (or email if the customer prefers), inside allowed contact hours. If the job finishes late in the evening, send the next morning after 9 AM their local time.

Request text example

Hi (CUSTOMER FIRST NAME), thanks for choosing (COMPANY NAME) today. If you have a minute, we'd really value your honest review of (TECH FIRST NAME)'s visit: (REVIEW LINK). Reply STOP to opt out.

Step 2: One reminder after 2 to 3 days

Hi (CUSTOMER FIRST NAME), just a quick reminder from (COMPANY NAME). If you have a moment, your honest feedback on (TECH FIRST NAME)'s visit helps us a lot: (REVIEW LINK). Thank you!

Then stop. No third message.

Step 3: Handle replies

Reply	What you do
"Done, happy to help!"	Thank them warmly. Log it
A complaint	Thank them, apologise, tell them a manager will contact them, route the same day. Do not discourage a review
A question about the bill or a warranty	Answer only from the record if clear, otherwise route to office
"Stop" or any opt-out wording	Confirm once, opt out across all channels the same day

Complaint reply example

I'm really sorry to hear that, (CUSTOMER FIRST NAME). Thank you for telling us. I've passed this to our manager, (MANAGER NAME), who will call you today to make it right.

Replying to public reviews

Draft a reply to every new review within 24 hours. The client approves before anything is posted, unless the client has given written permission for you to post approved templates directly.

Positive review reply (3 parts)

1. Thank them by first name.
2. Mention one specific detail from their review.
3. Invite them back.

Thank you, (CUSTOMER FIRST NAME)! We're glad (TECH FIRST NAME) got your AC running again before the heat wave. We're here whenever you need us.

Negative review reply (4 parts)

1. Thank them and apologise for their experience (without admitting fault on details you do not know).
2. Show it matters.
3. Move it offline with a named contact.
4. No details, no blame, no argument.

(CUSTOMER FIRST NAME), thank you for sharing this, and we're sorry your visit didn't meet your expectations. We take this seriously. Please call (MANAGER NAME) directly at (OFFICE PHONE) so we can understand what happened and make it right.

Never in a public reply

• Prices, invoice amounts or payment status
• Addresses, phone numbers, job details or equipment details about the customer
• Blame ("the customer refused our recommendation")
• Arguments or corrections of the reviewer's story
• Anything that sounds like a copy-paste template

Weekly reputation report

Send to the client every week using the template in the shared drive.

Item	This week	Last week
Completed jobs
Requests sent (and percent of completed jobs)
Reminders sent
New reviews received
Average rating of new reviews
Replies drafted and posted
Complaints routed and status
Technicians mentioned by name (positive)

Check yourself

1. Why is "Were you happy? Reply YES for a review link" not allowed?
2. Is a raffle entry for "anyone who leaves a review" allowed? Why or why not?
3. What are the four parts of a negative review reply?
4. A job finished at 8:40 PM customer time. When do you send the request?
5. The client owner asks his brother to post a review. What do you do?

Answers

1. It is review gating: only happy customers get the link, which breaks review site rules on selective soliciting.
2. No. Narqix allows no incentives for any review, and major review sites ban them even when not tied to a positive rating.
3. Thank and apologise, show it matters, move it offline with a named contact, and no details or blame.
4. The next morning, after 9 AM their local time.
5. You do not help with it. Tell your Narqix team lead the same day so Narqix can advise the client, since undisclosed insider reviews are banned.

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