# What is Review management?

> Review management is the ongoing work of asking happy customers for reviews, responding to all reviews, and keeping your online reputation accurate and current.

- Source: https://nerdsharks.com/glossary/review-management
- Publisher: Nerdsharks (Exeter, Devon, UK)
- Updated: 2026-09-26

Also called: reputation management, online reviews, Google reviews, review requests.

Review management means treating reviews as a regular job rather than something that happens by accident. That covers asking customers for reviews after a job, making it easy with a direct link, replying to reviews, and dealing calmly with negative ones.

Google reviews matter most for local search, but Facebook, Trustpilot, Checkatrade and industry-specific sites can matter too, depending on where your customers look.

Reviews must be genuine. Fake reviews, buying reviews, or only asking customers you know are happy while hiding the process from others can breach Google's policies, and under UK consumer protection law fake reviews are banned outright.

## Why it matters for a small business

Reviews are often the deciding factor between you and the business listed next to you, and they are part of how Google ranks local listings. A steady trickle of recent reviews, with polite replies, looks far more trustworthy than a handful from years ago.

**Example:** A groomer texts every customer a direct Google review link the evening after their dog's appointment, and replies to every review within a day, including the occasional grumpy one.