Google reviews quietly became one of the most important inputs into local search. They influence Maps rankings, click-through, conversion and the trust gap between you and your competitors.
Quantity, recency and quality all matter. A profile with 80 reviews from 2021 looks worse than 20 reviews from this year.
Always respond. Even one-line responses to five-star reviews tell future buyers — and Google — that this profile is actively managed.
Build a system to ask. Most owners ask irregularly and inconsistently. The businesses winning Local SEO have a calm, repeatable way of inviting reviews after every job.