Key takeaways
- Time the review request to when the patient can see the result: the same day for a facial, at the follow-up for many injectables, near the end of a laser series.
- Trigger requests from your booking software so every patient is asked, and register your texting before you send.
- Reply to every review as if health privacy rules apply: never confirm someone is a patient or mention a treatment they did not name.
- No discounts, credits or raffles for reviews, and no asking only the happy patients. Both break Google's rules.
To get more Google reviews for a med spa, ask every patient at the moment they can see their result, by text, with a direct link. For a facial that is the same afternoon. For many injectables and laser series it is later. Get the timing right and reviews arrive steadily without awkward asks at the front desk.
When and how to ask
- Ask in person first, lightly. At checkout, the provider or front desk says something simple: "If you are happy with how this turns out, we would love a Google review. We will text you the link." No pressure, and the same words for every patient.
- Send the link when the result shows. Use the direct review link from your profile (Google's guidance) and send it at the point in the table below, not on a fixed day for everyone.
- Send one reminder, then stop. A second text a few days later is fine. A third feels like chasing.
- Let the patient decide what to share. Never ask them to mention a treatment, a provider or a result. Plenty of patients are glad to praise the experience and prefer to keep the treatment private.
| Treatment type | When patients judge it | When to ask |
|---|---|---|
| Facials and light skin treatments | Walking out the door | Same day, a few hours after the visit |
| Injectables | When your provider's usual follow-up happens | With the follow-up message or after the check-in |
| Laser series | Over several sessions | After the session where they book the next one, or at the end of the series |
| Body contouring | Over a longer course | At the end-of-course check-in |
| Memberships | Over months of visits | Once, a few visits in |
If a patient raises a concern at follow-up, call them about it first. Their review link still goes out on the normal schedule. Holding it back only from unhappy patients would be review gating, which Google prohibits.
The review loop
- Visit finished
- Ask every customer Same time, same way, no filtering
- They leave a review
- You reply Thanks and specifics, no private details
- The next customer reads it
Then the next customer
Automating requests
Automate the request from your booking system, so it goes to every patient without anyone remembering. Boulevard, Zenoti and similar tools know when an appointment is checked out and when a follow-up is due. Trigger the review text from those events, either in the booking platform or through a CRM connected to it.
Three things have to be in place first:
- Registered texting. Business texts from a ten-digit number need A2P 10DLC registration through The Campaign Registry (registry). Unregistered messages are often blocked by carriers.
- Consent and STOP. Patients must have agreed to receive texts, and every message must honor a reply of STOP.
- One rule for everyone. The automation must send to every completed appointment, with no rating filter in front of the Google link.
If you run reactivation or rebooking texts from the same system, keep review requests separate so a patient never gets three messages in a day. The marketing automation guide for med spas covers that setup.
Responding to reviews
Reply to every review, but write each reply as if health privacy rules apply to it, and ask your medical director or compliance advisor how they apply to your practice. A reply that confirms someone is your patient, or mentions their treatment, discloses something they may not have shared.
The reviews in this table are made-up examples of common patterns, not real reviews.
| An example review says | Avoid writing | Write instead |
|---|---|---|
| "Loved my lips, my injector is amazing!" | "So glad your filler turned out well, see you in four months!" | "Thank you for the kind words. We will pass them on to the team." |
| "Front desk was rude and I waited 30 minutes." | "We checked your appointment and you arrived late." | "We are sorry to hear this. Please call our practice manager directly so we can look into it." |
| "My laser burned me." | Any detail about a treatment, a device or a chart | "We take every concern seriously. Please contact our practice manager so our medical team can follow up with you." |
| A review from someone who was never seen | An accusation in public | Report it in the profile as a policy violation, and post a short neutral reply |
Keep replies short, warm and generic. The detail belongs in a private phone call.
What Google prohibits
Google bans incentives of any kind for reviews, and bans asking only patients you expect to leave good ones (Google's review policy). The FTC's rule on consumer reviews adds legal weight: fake reviews, AI-written reviews, buying reviews and suppressing honest ones are all prohibited (the FTC rule).
For a med spa that rules out:
- A discount, a membership credit, free add-ons or a raffle entry in exchange for a review.
- A "rate us first" screen that only sends high scores to Google.
- Reviews from your providers, staff or their families.
- Review swaps with the salon or boutique next door.
- Pressuring a patient to remove an honest negative review.
A steady, honest pace of reviews also helps your Maps ranking, which the Map Pack guide explains.
How VETS Growth Marketing helps
We set up med spa review requests that fire from your booking software at the right point for each treatment, with registered texting and consent built in, and we draft privacy-safe replies for your approval. The profile, the CRM and the message history stay in your name. We report review pace alongside consultations booked from Maps, on a dated plan. Book a growth consultation and we will show you where your review timing is costing you reviews.
Sources
- Tips to get more reviews, Google Business Profile Help
- Prohibited & restricted content (Maps user-generated content policy), Google Maps Help
- 16 CFR Part 465: Use of consumer reviews and testimonials, Electronic Code of Federal Regulations
- The Campaign Registry (A2P 10DLC brand and campaign registration), The Campaign Registry