Google, Yelp, BBB, and Other Review Sites: Handling Reviews Platform by Platform

Start with where your clients look

Before learning every platform's rules, figure out which ones matter to you. Search your name and business name, plus your trade and city. Note which review sites appear on the first page. Ask new clients where they found you and what they read.

For most local owner-operators, Google is the most visible. Depending on your field, Yelp, the Better Business Bureau, Facebook, or an industry-specific site may also matter. Medical, legal, and home services each have specialized review sites. You do not need a presence everywhere, but you should know what is said about you on the sites clients actually see.

Google

Why it matters. Google reviews appear in Maps and in local search results, often right next to your name.

What is allowed. Google's Maps content policy says reviews should reflect a genuine experience. It prohibits fake engagement, incentivized reviews, conflicts of interest, harassment, hate speech, certain personal information, and off-topic content. It allows naming public-facing professionals who do business under their own names.

Asking for reviews. Google allows merchants to solicit reviews that represent a genuine experience, as long as they do not offer incentives, try to influence the rating or content, discourage negative reviews, or selectively ask only happy customers. Google's Business Profile help describes a review request link or QR code you can share.

Replying. After verifying your business, you can reply to reviews. Google reviews replies against its content policies before posting. Your reply appears as the business, not under your personal name.

Reporting. Flag a review from your Business Profile or the Reviews Management Tool. Google says evaluation typically takes several days. If no violation is found, you get a one-time appeal. Full steps are in how to report a fake Google review.

Yelp

Why it matters. Yelp is prominent for restaurants, personal services, and some home services, and Yelp pages often rank well in search.

What is allowed. Yelp's Content Guidelines say reviews should focus on the reviewer's own consumer experience with the specific location they visited or contacted. Yelp's guidance for business owners says not to write reviews of your own business or competitors.

Asking for reviews. This is the biggest difference from Google. Yelp's business support center says not to ask anyone to review your business, including customers, mailing list subscribers, friends, and family, and that staff should not compete to collect reviews. Yelp's guidance suggests telling customers to "Find us on Yelp" instead. Yelp also uses recommendation software, and Yelp has said this software targets reviews that were solicited.

Replying. Yelp lets claimed businesses respond publicly or by private message. The same calm approach applies. Our review response templates work here too.

Reporting. Yelp's support center says you can report a review by finding it on the business page, opening the More Options menu, and choosing Report review. Moderators evaluate the review against the Content Guidelines.

Better Business Bureau

Why it matters. Some clients, especially for home services and larger purchases, check the BBB. BBB profiles can show up in search results for your business name.

How reviews work. The BBB says that, just as with complaints, it confirms that a marketplace interaction took place between the reviewer and the business, and gives the business an opportunity to respond. It validates reviewers' email addresses or phone numbers, lets the business confirm an interaction, scrubs inappropriate language and personal information, and does not allow anonymous reviews or reviews in which the consumer was compensated.

Limits. The BBB says that even with these steps, it cannot guarantee the accuracy or truthfulness of a review.

Responding. If your business receives a BBB review you disagree with, the BBB asks you to provide a response explaining your position. The BBB's business tips also encourage responding to negative reviews and monitoring reviews consistently.

Facebook and social media

Facebook pages may show recommendations or reviews depending on your page settings. Social media posts about your business are governed by each platform's community standards. Reply to legitimate complaints with the same calm formula, and report harassment or impersonation through the platform's tools. See reporting impersonation of you if someone creates a fake page in your name.

Industry-specific sites

Many professions have specialized directories and review sites: medical provider directories, legal directories, home services marketplaces, and wedding or event vendor sites. Each has its own content and reporting rules. Before you sign up or pay for anything, read the site's terms, how reviews are verified, and whether you can respond.

Be wary of any site that offers to hide or remove negative reviews for a fee. Our guide to Ripoff Report and complaint sites covers sites with unusual policies.

What applies everywhere

Fake reviews are prohibited. Every major platform prohibits fake reviews, and the FTC's 2024 rule prohibits businesses from writing, buying, or knowingly using fake reviews, from paying for reviews conditioned on a particular sentiment, and from using undisclosed insider reviews.

Review suppression is prohibited. The FTC rule prohibits using groundless legal threats, intimidation, or certain false public accusations to stop or remove negative reviews.

Honest reviews are protected. The Consumer Review Fairness Act makes it illegal to use standard form contracts that bar customers from posting honest reviews or penalize them for doing so.

Calm replies help. On every platform, a short, professional reply helps future clients more than a defensive one.

Keeping your listings consistent

Clients often see several platforms at once, so small inconsistencies stand out. Make sure your business name, phone number, address or service area, hours, and website match across Google, Yelp, the BBB, and any industry sites. If you changed your phone number or moved, update every listing the same week. Inconsistent details can confuse clients and make it harder for them to trust that the reviews they are reading are about you.

Use the same short description of your services everywhere, and the same photo of yourself if you show one. When your personal name is part of how clients find you, list it consistently too, so a search for your name connects to the right profiles. Google's guidance for Business Profiles asks that information represent your business as it is known in the real world, which is a good standard for every platform.

Keeping records

For each platform, keep a simple record of reviews you reported, the reason you chose, the date, and the outcome. If you appeal a Google decision or contact a platform's support team, those notes make your request specific and credible. They also help you spot patterns, such as a cluster of reviews from new accounts in the same week, which can be worth mentioning when you report.

Prioritizing your time

You do not need to manage every platform equally. A simple approach:

1. Google: Claim and verify your Business Profile, reply to every review, and ask satisfied customers for reviews in a neutral way. 2. Your top industry site or Yelp, if relevant: Claim your page and reply to reviews. Follow that site's rules on asking for reviews. 3. BBB: Make sure your profile is accurate and respond to any reviews or complaints. 4. Everything else: Check quarterly for new reviews and respond when needed.

A simple weekly routine

Pick a time each week, say Monday morning, to check your priority platforms. For each new review:

This takes most owner-operators fifteen to thirty minutes a week.

• Read it twice.
• Decide whether it breaks a rule.
• Report if it does.
• Reply calmly either way.
• Log it in a simple spreadsheet.

When reviews mention you by name

On many sites, reviews of an owner-operator mention the owner personally. Those reviews may rank for your personal name, not just your business name. See responding to reviews about you personally and when clients search your name, not your business.

Common questions

Sources

1. Prohibited and restricted content (Google Maps User Generated Content Policy)
2. Report inappropriate reviews on your Business Profile (Google Business Profile Help)
3. Manage customer reviews (Google Business Profile Help)
4. Guidelines for representing your business on Google (Google Business Profile Help)
5. Content Guidelines (Yelp)
6. Don't Ask for Reviews (Yelp for Business)
7. How BBB Customer Reviews are Handled (Better Business Bureau)
8. BBB Business Tip: How to handle negative reviews (Better Business Bureau)
9. Federal Trade Commission Announces Final Rule Banning Fake Reviews and Testimonials (Federal Trade Commission)
10. Consumer Review Fairness Act: What Businesses Need to Know (Federal Trade Commission)