Review Requests in HighLevel

Updated: February 6, 2026  | 
Author: Bill Stilwell

This post covers what review requests are, the difference between manual and automated requests, how to write a message that converts, the timing that produces the best results, how to run a bulk re-engagement campaign for past customers, and the exclusion logic that prevents over-requesting from the same contacts.

Reading time: about 6 minutes.

What Are Review Requests in HighLevel?

Review Requests in HighLevel are outbound messages – sent via SMS or email – containing a direct link to the business’s Google review page. The message asks the customer to leave a review.

The link opens the Google review interface immediately when tapped – no searching, no navigation required.

Review requests are part of the broader Reputation Management feature in HighLevel. They are the action layer – the mechanism for actually generating new reviews rather than just monitoring the ones that exist.

The Reputation dashboard shows where the business stands. Review requests are what moves that standing forward.

They are sent manually from the Reputation section in the sub-account, or automatically through Workflow Builder when a trigger event fires.

Why Asking Systematically Changes the Math

Most satisfied customers do not leave reviews spontaneously. Not because they are unwilling – most people, when asked directly and given an easy path to follow, are happy to leave a review for a business they had a positive experience with.

They simply do not think of it unprompted.

The businesses with 200 reviews did not get there because 200 customers spontaneously decided to write one. They got there because they asked, consistently, at the right moment, with a frictionless path to act.

Review requests are what make that asking consistent.

Consider the math: if a business serves 30 customers per month and 20% of those who receive a review request leave a review, that is 6 new reviews per month. Over 12 months, that is 72 new reviews – potentially doubling or tripling a starting review count.

Without asking, those same 30 customers per month might produce 1 to 2 reviews organically. The gap between asking and not asking is the gap between 12 reviews per year and 72.

Manual vs. Automated Requests

HighLevel supports both manual and automated review requests. Understanding when each is appropriate clarifies how to use them together effectively.

Manual requests from the Reputation section are best for targeted, one-off scenarios: following up with a specific customer who mentioned they had a great experience, sending a request to a long-term client who has never left a review, or testing the review request process before automating it. Manual requests require someone to actively decide to send them – which means they rely on someone remembering.

Automated requests via Workflow Builder are best for ongoing, systematic review accumulation. A workflow that fires after every completed job sends a request to every qualifying customer without requiring anyone to remember.

Automation is what removes the human memory variable from the equation – and that variable is consistently where manual review programs fail.

The Direct Review Link

The most important element of a review request is the link. Specifically: the link must go directly to the Google review interface for the business, not to the business’s Google Maps listing where the customer then has to find the review button.

Google provides a direct review link for every Business Profile – a URL that opens the five-star rating selector and the review text field immediately. When a Google Business Profile is connected to the HighLevel sub-account, HighLevel generates this direct link automatically for use in review requests.

The friction difference between a direct review link and a link to the general listing is significant. Customers who tap a direct review link and see the rating stars immediately have the lowest friction path to leaving a review.

Customers who have to navigate from a listing to find the review option have enough friction that a meaningful percentage abandon before leaving the review.

SMS vs. Email for Review Requests

For most local service businesses, SMS outperforms email for review request conversions. SMS messages are opened much faster – most text messages are read within minutes, while emails may sit unread for hours or days.

The tap-and-act pattern for SMS is more natural than the open-an-email-and-click pattern for email.

That said, email has a role. Some customer demographics are more email-oriented – B2B contacts, professional service clients, older demographics.

Email review requests can also include more context and a more elaborate CTA format than SMS allows in a short message. For businesses unsure which performs better, testing both channels and comparing response rates over 30 to 60 days produces data-driven clarity.

The practical recommendation: SMS as the primary channel for review requests, email as a follow-up for contacts who did not respond to the SMS, or email as the primary channel for audiences where email is the dominant communication preference.

Writing a Review Request Message That Converts

The review request message has one job: to motivate a satisfied customer to tap a link and leave a review. Everything in the message should serve that job.

Effective review request SMS formula: greeting with the customer’s name, brief acknowledgment of the recent service, a direct and specific ask, the review link. Keep the total message under 160 characters if possible.

An example that works: “Hi [First Name], thanks for choosing us for your roof repair. We’d love your feedback – it takes just 30 seconds: [Review Link]” That message is personal, specific, honest about the time commitment, and gets to the link quickly.

What to avoid: vague requests (“Let us know what you think”), pressure tactics (“We really need more reviews”), lengthy backstory before the ask, and any wording that could be interpreted as offering incentives for reviews (Google explicitly prohibits this). Keep it simple, personal, and direct.

Timing – The 1-4 Hour Window

Timing the review request is as important as writing the message. The goal is to reach the customer at their satisfaction peak – when the service is fresh, the outcome is positive, and their goodwill toward the business is at its highest.

For most service businesses, that peak occurs in the 1 to 4 hours after service completion. The customer is still thinking about the service.

They have not yet moved on to the next thing in their day. The request feels timely rather than an afterthought.

Sending too soon – within minutes of job completion – can feel mechanical and impersonal. The customer is still in the middle of their post-service experience.

Sending too late – the next morning or several days later – means the peak satisfaction moment has passed. The customer has moved on, the experience is less vivid, and the motivation to leave a review has faded.

The Wait action in Workflow Builder sets the delay. A 2-hour Wait after the job completion trigger is the practical default for most home services and appointment-based businesses.

Test timing variations to find what works best for a specific business type and customer base.

Setting Up the Automated Workflow

The automated review request workflow has a straightforward structure: trigger, wait, send. The trigger is the event that indicates service completion.

The wait is the 1 to 4 hour delay. The send is the SMS (or email) with the review request message and link.

Common triggers for different business types: appointment status changed to “Completed” for appointment-based businesses, pipeline opportunity moved to a specific closing stage for project-based businesses, invoice marked as paid for billing-based services, or a custom tag applied when a team member marks a job as finished.

The trigger selection matters because it determines which customers receive the request and when. A trigger that fires too broadly – all invoice paid events – might include partial payments or deposits, not just final payments.

A trigger that fires too narrowly might miss some customers. Review the trigger logic carefully to ensure it captures the right service completion events.

Exclusion Logic

Without exclusion logic, the review request workflow sends a request to every customer every time they complete a transaction – including long-term repeat clients who have already left a review. Sending a review request to a customer who left a 5-star review last month is unnecessary and slightly annoying.

Add a condition to the workflow that skips the review request for contacts tagged or marked as having already left a review. One approach: when a new Google review comes in and can be matched to a contact, add a “Review Left” tag to that contact.

The workflow condition checks for this tag and skips the request for tagged contacts.

Alternatively, limit the review request workflow to first-time completions rather than every completion. A condition that only fires for contacts who have had exactly one appointment or job completion prevents repeat requests to the same customer on subsequent visits.

Bulk Re-Engagement Campaigns

When the automated review request workflow is first set up, it only captures customers going forward. All past customers who were served before the workflow existed – who may be perfectly happy customers who would leave a great review if asked – have not received a request.

A bulk review request campaign reaches those past customers in one send. Create a Smart List: contacts tagged as past customers, with no “Review Left” tag, whose last service date was within the past 12 months (or whatever timeframe feels appropriate).

Send a bulk SMS campaign to that Smart List with the review request.

This one-time bulk campaign can rapidly close the gap between where the review count is and where it should be given the actual volume of customers served. A business with 500 past customers and only 40 reviews likely has hundreds of satisfied customers who would leave a review if asked.

One bulk campaign reaches them all at once.

What Can You Do With It?

• Ask every qualifying customer for a review without anyone having to remember to do so: The automated workflow fires after every service completion – consistent, reliable, no manual oversight required.
• Reach customers at their peak satisfaction moment: The timing configuration puts the review request in front of customers when they are most likely to act – not days later when the experience has faded.
• Remove the friction of finding and navigating to the review interface: The direct Google review link opens the rating interface immediately. Customers tap once and see the stars – the path from request to review is as short as it can be.
• Rapidly build review count for a new or review-light business: A bulk campaign to past customers combined with an ongoing automated workflow can move a business from 20 reviews to 80 within a few months – a significant ranking and conversion signal improvement.
• Generate review volume data for agency reporting: Monthly review count growth is a concrete, visible metric that demonstrates the value of the automated review system to clients – easy to understand and compelling to show.

Key Definitions

Use Cases by Industry

Landscaping – Seasonal Post-Visit Requests

A landscaping company tags customers when a visit is completed in their field management system. The tag syncs to HighLevel and triggers the review request workflow.

The SMS arrives 2 hours after the crew leaves: “Hi [First Name], the team just wrapped up at your property. We hope everything looks great!

We’d appreciate a quick review: [Link]”

The seasonal nature of the business means review requests are concentrated in spring and summer – the peak service periods. The company consistently adds 15 to 25 new reviews per month during peak season, building a substantial review advantage over competitors who rely on spontaneous reviews.

Result: Review accumulation tracks service volume. During peak season, the business adds more reviews than any individual competitor because every customer receives a request at the right moment. The review count becomes a compounding advantage in local search.

Dental Practice – Post-Appointment Request via Text

A dentist’s practice sends a review request 90 minutes after each appointment is checked out. The SMS reads: “Hi [First Name], thanks for coming in today!

If you had a good experience, we’d be grateful if you took a moment to leave a Google review – it really helps our practice. [Link]”

The practice tracks which patients leave reviews using the “Review Left” tag and excludes them from future review request sends. Patients who have already reviewed are never asked again.

The practice grows from 62 reviews to 147 in the first year of the automated workflow.

Result: Consistent review growth without any team member needing to remember to ask. The exclusion tag prevents the same patients from receiving repeated requests. The practice’s rating stays high because requests only go to patients who had positive experiences based on post-appointment satisfaction signals.

Cleaning Service – Bulk Campaign to Past Clients

A house cleaning service has operated for 4 years and has 28 Google reviews despite having served over 400 customers. The owner sets up the automated review request workflow, then runs a one-time bulk campaign to past customers.

A Smart List is created: contacts tagged “Past Client,” no “Review Left” tag, last service date within the past 18 months. The list contains 230 contacts.

A bulk SMS campaign goes to the entire list over one weekend. Over the following two weeks, 61 new reviews come in – moving the business from 28 to 89 reviews and from 4.3 to 4.7 stars as several older negative reviews are now outnumbered by recent positive ones.

Result: One bulk campaign recovers years of missed review accumulation in a matter of weeks. The automated workflow ensures the review count continues growing from that improved baseline. The jump in review count and rating produces a visible improvement in local search ranking within 30 days.

Auto Repair Shop – Post-Repair SMS Request

An auto repair shop triggers the review request when an invoice is marked as paid. The SMS fires 3 hours after payment: “Hi [First Name], thanks for trusting us with your [Vehicle] today.

If everything went smoothly, we’d love a quick Google review – means a lot to a local shop. [Link]”

The personal tone – “means a lot to a local shop” – outperforms a generic “please review us” message in A/B testing. The shop adds 8 to 12 new reviews per month and reaches 4.8 stars with 95 reviews in 10 months.

Local competitors average 30 to 40 reviews. The shop’s review advantage makes it the obvious choice in local search results.

Result: Message personalization – referencing the specific vehicle and the “local shop” context – improves conversion rate. Review volume creates a visible local search advantage that generates new customers who specifically chose the shop because of its review count and rating.

Who Is This For?

How to Set Up Automated Review Requests

Step 1: Connect the Google Business Profile

Settings, then Integrations. Connect the Google Business Profile via OAuth if not already connected.

Step 2: Verify the review link

Navigate to Reputation. Find the review request tool and confirm the Google review link is present and works.

Step 3: Write the review request message

Draft the SMS message – short, personal, direct. Use the first name merge tag.

Reference the specific service. Keep it under 160 characters if possible.

Step 4: Identify the trigger event

Decide what event represents service completion for this business – appointment completed, pipeline stage change, invoice paid, or a specific tag applied.

Step 5: Build the workflow

In Workflow Builder, create a workflow with the identified trigger. Add a Wait action (1 to 4 hours).

Add an SMS action with the review request message and the Google review link from the review link variable or the Reputation settings.

Step 6: Add exclusion logic

Add a workflow condition that skips the send if the contact already has the “Review Left” tag. This prevents repeat requests to customers who have already reviewed.

Step 7: Test with a personal number

Trigger the workflow manually with a test contact. Verify the SMS arrives after the Wait period.

Tap the link to confirm it opens the Google review interface for the correct business.

Step 8: Activate

Activate the workflow. Review requests now fire automatically after every qualifying service completion.

Step 9: Run the bulk campaign to past customers

Create a Smart List of past customers who have not yet been asked. Send a bulk SMS campaign to the list.

Monitor the Reputation dashboard for the resulting review influx over the following weeks.

How Does It Connect to HighLevel?

• Reputation Management: Review requests are part of the broader Reputation Management feature. The Reputation dashboard shows the results of the requests – new reviews, updated rating, and response status. The review request is the action that feeds the dashboard’s metrics.
• Workflow Builder: Automated review requests are Workflow Builder actions. Workflow Builder handles the trigger logic, the timing delay, and the send action. Every automated review request is a workflow operating in the background.
• Two-Way SMS: SMS review requests are sent through Two-Way SMS via LC Phone. If a customer replies to the review request SMS – with a question or comment – that reply appears in the Conversations Inbox for follow-up.
• Smart Lists: Smart Lists are the audience definition tool for bulk review campaigns. A Smart List filtering past customers without the “Review Left” tag defines exactly who should receive the one-time re-engagement campaign.
• Google Business Profile Integration: The Google Business Profile integration is what provides the direct review link used in every review request. Without the GBP connection, the review link cannot be auto-generated.

Common Questions

What are Review Requests in HighLevel?

Outbound SMS or email messages with a direct Google review link – sent to customers to ask for a review with minimal friction. Manual from Reputation, automated via Workflow Builder.

Where do I send Review Requests from in HighLevel?

Manual: Reputation section in the sub-account. Automated: Workflow Builder with a service completion trigger, Wait action, and SMS send action.

Can I automate review requests in HighLevel?

Yes. Workflow Builder triggers on the appropriate service completion event, waits the configured time, and sends the review request SMS or email automatically.

Should I send review requests via SMS or email in HighLevel?

SMS generally outperforms email for review request conversions – faster open rates and lower friction for tapping a link and acting. Use SMS as the primary channel for most local service businesses.

How do I get the Google review link for my business in HighLevel?

Connect the Google Business Profile in Settings, then Integrations. HighLevel generates the direct review link automatically.

It appears in the review request tools in the Reputation section.

Can I customize the review request message in HighLevel?

Yes. Edit the default message or write a custom message in the workflow SMS action.

Use the first name merge tag for personalization. Keep messages short and direct.

Can HighLevel send bulk review requests to a list of past customers?

Yes. Create a Smart List of past customers who have not yet been asked.

Run a bulk SMS campaign to that list. One send can rapidly build review count from the existing customer base.

What is the ideal timing for sending a review request in HighLevel?

1 to 4 hours after service completion – when customer satisfaction is highest and the experience is freshest. Configure with a Wait action in the review request workflow.

Can I send review requests to customers who previously left negative feedback?

Only if the issue was resolved and the customer’s experience genuinely improved. Sending to unresolved complaints risks generating a negative public review.

Some businesses use a pre-review internal feedback step to gauge sentiment first.

To Wrap It Up

Review requests are one of the highest-ROI automations in a local service business’s HighLevel setup. The cost is minimal – one workflow, one SMS per customer, a few cents each.

The return – consistent review accumulation, improved local ranking, better conversion from search to lead – compounds over months into a genuine competitive advantage.

The businesses that win on Google reviews are rarely the ones with the highest service quality. They are the ones who ask consistently.

Quality is table stakes. The asking system is the differentiator.

A business that asks every customer via automated SMS will consistently outpace a better-quality business that relies on spontaneous reviews.

Three details that determine whether a review request program succeeds or fails: the message quality (personal, specific, short), the timing (within the peak satisfaction window), and the exclusion logic (so repeat customers are not pestered). Get all three right and the program runs effectively for as long as the business serves customers.

Here is how to get started:

1. Connect the Google Business Profile in Settings, then Integrations
2. Navigate to Reputation and confirm the review link works
3. Write the review request message – first name merge tag, specific service reference, direct ask, review link, under 160 characters
4. Identify the service completion trigger event for this business
5. Build the workflow in Workflow Builder: trigger, 2-hour Wait, SMS send
6. Add exclusion logic for contacts with the “Review Left” tag
7. Test with a personal phone number
8. Activate the workflow
9. Create a Smart List of past customers and run the bulk re-engagement campaign

Run the bulk campaign to past customers within the first week of activating the automated workflow – not as an afterthought months later. The bulk campaign and the automated workflow working together produce the fastest review count growth.

The automated workflow sustains the growth going forward. The combination is what moves a business from the back of the local search pack to the front in a matter of months.