You’ve just reached 20 reviews, and it felt like a milestone. Then you looked up the physio two streets away and saw 380.
It’s fair to wonder how far you have to go, and how hard to push to get 5 Star Google Reviews in Australia. There’s no fixed number. You have enough when your profile looks credible to a stranger, sits in the same range as the businesses on the map for your main search, and keeps growing. We find it easier to think of that as three stages.
At BuyReviews we use these stages with clients, because “as many as possible” isn’t a plan anyone can follow.
How many Google reviews does your business really need?
Enough to pass three tests. A stranger should trust your rating. You should look comparable to nearby competitors. And your newest review should be recent.
How many that takes depends on your suburb and your trade. A country-town mechanic and a city dentist are playing different games.
What are the three stages?
Stage 1: How many reviews make you look credible?
At this stage you’re protecting yourself from a single bad review. The sums show why it matters.
Using a simple average, a business with four five-star reviews drops to 4.2 after one one-star review. A business with 19 five-star reviews drops to 4.8. With 49, it stays at 4.9.
So the first goal is to have enough honest reviews that one unfair one can’t define you. For most small businesses, that means getting past the first couple of dozen.
Stage 2: How many make you competitive?
Now you’re comparing yourself with the businesses a customer sees next to yours. Search your main service and suburb, and look at the three on the map.
Your target is the lowest review count of those three. Match it, and a customer weighing up their options no longer rules you out on numbers alone.
Stage 3: How many make you the obvious choice?
Here you aim for the middle of the three, then the top. At this stage, pace starts to matter more than total.
In our experience, once you’re in range of the leaders, a steady run of recent reviews does more than a big number. Customers scroll to the newest ones first.
Does more always mean better?
More honest reviews help, up to a point. Google says review count and review score both factor into local ranking, and that more reviews and positive ratings can improve it.
Reviews aren’t the only factor, though. Google also weighs relevance and distance, so a huge count won’t win a search from the other side of town. And Google says there’s no way to pay for a better ranking.
We’d put it like this. Chase the next stage, not the biggest number you’ve ever seen.
How do you check your competitors’ numbers?
It takes ten minutes, and it’s worth repeating every few months.
- Open a private browser window so your own history doesn’t skew the results.
- Search your main service plus your suburb, such as “physio Newcastle”.
- Note the three businesses in the map results.
- Write down each one’s review count and rating.
- Open their reviews and note how recent the newest ones are.
- Record your own count beside theirs.
Step 5 is useful. If a competitor has 200 reviews but none from this year, they’re easier to catch in customers’ eyes than the number suggests.
How many new reviews should you add each month?
Work it out from your customers, not from a wish. Count how many people you serve in a month, ask every one of them, and see how many respond.
That gives you your real monthly pace. If the gap to your Stage 2 target is 30 reviews and you’re adding 5 a month, you’re six months away, assuming your competitor stands still. They won’t, so keep asking after you get there.
Can you skip the stages by buying reviews?
No, and trying to can set you back. Google can remove fake reviews, hide all of a profile’s reviews for a set period, and show a public warning.
There’s a legal side in Australia too. The ACCC says creating fake reviews, or arranging for others to, is against the law. It also lists a spike of reviews over a short time as a sign of fakes, and customers notice the same thing.
How do you reach the next stage?
By asking real customers, every time. This is how to get more Google reviews at a pace you can keep up.
- On a computer, open your Business Profile, select Read reviews, then Get more reviews, then Copy. Google provides the link, so there’s no need for a Google review link generator.
- Ask each customer in person on the day the job is done.
- Text the link within the hour, or send a short review request email template.
- Send one reminder a week later.
- Reply to every review within a day or two.
- Recheck your count against your target on the first of each month.
Replies help at every stage. When you respond to negative Google reviews calmly, the odd low rating does less damage. If a review is from someone who was never a customer, select the three dots and Report review, which is the proper way to remove fake Google reviews.
If you’d like help with the asking, that’s what BuyReviews does. You share your customer list, we send the requests and reminders, and your customers write their own words. It’s how we help clients get Google reviews stage by stage and improve Google reviews without shortcuts. Setting a realistic target is where online reputation management in Australia should begin.
Frequently asked questions
What is a good number of Google reviews for a small business?
There isn’t one number that fits every business. A good count is one that looks credible to a stranger, sits close to the businesses shown on the map for your main search, and keeps growing each month. Check your three nearest competitors’ counts and use the lowest as your first target.
How many 5-star reviews cancel out a 1-star review?
It depends on the average you want to hold. Using a simple average, one 1-star review among 19 five-star reviews gives 4.8. Among only four five-star reviews, it gives 4.2. So the more honest reviews you have, the less any single bad one moves your rating. That’s a strong reason to keep asking.
Do I need more reviews than my competitors?
Not necessarily more, but you want to be in the same range. A customer comparing three businesses will notice if one has a fraction of the others’ reviews. Google also says review count factors into local ranking. Aim to match the third business on the map first, then work towards the second.
Should I stop asking once I reach my target?
No. A target is a checkpoint, not a finish line. Competitors keep collecting reviews, and customers look at how recent yours are. A profile that stopped at 100 two years ago looks neglected. Keep asking every customer, and treat your monthly pace as the number that matters once you’ve caught up.
How many reviews before customers trust my rating?
There’s no official figure. In our experience, customers start to trust a rating once there are enough reviews that it couldn’t just be friends and family, and enough detail to show real jobs. The ACCC also suggests showing how many reviews a rating is based on.
What should you do next?
Do the ten-minute competitor check today and write down which stage you’re in. Then set a date to reach the next one.
If you’d like to get there faster with real customers, send BuyReviews your customer list and we’ll help you get Google reviews one stage at a time.
