More transparent and fair review landscape

As one of the largest review companies in the Netherlands, Feedback Company strives daily to make the review landscape more transparent and fair. The fact that this is also high on Google’s agenda is shown by a recent change in review policy.

What is an incentive?

Google uses the word incentive as meaning a form of reward. An example could be a discount code on the next order or a gift card in exchange for writing a review. A free sample of a certain product is another example of an incentive. Incentives are purely rewards that are used to receive (in this case) a review.

Why are incentives no longer allowed?

Google has abolished incentives because they want reviews that are written from completely of the writer’s own accord. It happens that people are rewarded when they review the service with a high rating. This is manipulative and incorrect.

Putting rewards against a review makes the value of the average grade less real. For this reason, Google has taken the decision to no longer allow any form of reward.

As an Official Google Review partner Feedback Company complies with this decision. This means that all customers of Feedback Company who use the Google Seller Rating (yellow stars in the search results) module must also comply with these regulations.

What will change in the tool of Feedback Company?

Feedback Company no longer allows incentives which has some consequences. The discount code feature offered in the tooling will be disabled and removed. As a result, the review writer will no longer receive a discount code in the invitation. The removal of this functionality will be effective March 1, 2021.

Further ‘incentives’ are also no longer allowed in Feedback Company invitations. No reward may be offered for emails sent outside of Feedback Company’s system or reviews collected offline (via a tablet in-store).

Any reward offered for writing a review is no longer allowed. This is to comply with Google’s guidelines.

What if a review is written using an incentive?

Reviews that are written using an incentive are no longer allowed by both Google and Feedback Company. If incentives are used, the result may be that the review(s) will be removed from Google. Moreover, when using incentives Feedback Company can choose to not send reviews to Google anymore.

How can I receive reviews without incentives?

While it is a good addition to offer customers a reward for writing a review, it is not necessary and dependent on a reward whether a review is written.

When it is difficult to collect reviews Feedback Company recommends looking at your invitation text and formatting, the time of sending your invitation, the way of collecting and the questionnaire. By optimizing these points, profits can be made so it does not become more difficult to collect reviews.

What if I don’t comply?

Due to the amount of active users of Feedback Company, it is simply not possible to check all emails for incentives. However, the check is indeed performed. If there is still a form of incentive in your invitation text, Feedback Company will contact you with the request to remove any form of reward from the invitation.

When this is not complied with, the communication to Google will be deactivated, so the reviews you collect will no longer count for the Google Seller Rating. It is also possible that certain reviews will still be removed, but it depends on the situation whether this step should actually be taken.

Do you have questions?

Do you want to know if you comply with these new regulations? We are honored to help you. Send an e-mail to helpdesk@feedbackcompany.com or call 085-273 6320.