Fair review collection
Why does HejSpoko not gate reviews?
It is not simply a policy choice. Review gating is technically impossible in HejSpoko. Customers see both the private feedback option and the public review option before their rating even exists.
Review gating means using a customer's rating to decide who is invited to leave a Google review. Google prohibits discouraging negative reviews or selectively soliciting positive ones. HejSpoko makes this flow technically impossible: private feedback and public review options are shown to every customer before a rating exists.
Start with the principle
What is review gating?
The important part is not the name of the feature. It is what happens after the customer gives a rating.
A typical flow starts by asking the customer for a star rating or whether they were satisfied. Only after that answer does the system decide what to show next.
A satisfied customer may receive a Google review link. An unhappy customer may instead see a private form, a thank-you message or another path that does not lead to a public review.
The result is that the opportunity to leave a public review is not offered equally to everyone. It depends on the rating the customer selected.
Google's rules
Does Google prohibit review gating?
Yes. Google explicitly prohibits discouraging negative reviews and selectively soliciting positive reviews.
Google expects reviews to reflect genuine and unbiased customer experiences. A business should therefore not choose only customers from whom it expects a positive rating.
Policy violations can lead to reviews being removed and restrictions being placed on a Business Profile. Google may temporarily prevent new ratings, hide existing reviews or display a warning on the profile.
Asking customers for an honest review is not the problem. The problem begins when access to the public review option depends on whether the customer's earlier rating was positive.
The short-term temptation
Why is review gating tempting for businesses?
The logic can look attractive: send satisfied customers to Google and ask unhappy customers to contact the business privately. The public rating may then look better.
But this means building review collection around a practice Google prohibits. It also means customers are offered different options depending on what they say about the business.
A better approach is to keep the public review option open to everyone and add a second door beside it: a direct private channel to the business. That is the missing part HejSpoko provides.
One screen, different principle
How does review gating differ from HejSpoko?
The difference appears before the customer ever reaches Google.
How a gating tool works
It first captures the customer's rating. It then uses that result to decide whether to show a public review link. A positive answer may lead to Google, while a negative answer may lead only to a private form.
How HejSpoko works
Private feedback and public review options are displayed equally on the same screen before the rating is submitted. The customer's available choices therefore cannot change according to the number of stars selected.
Technically without exceptions
Why can't review gating be enabled in HejSpoko?
There is no switch, rule or setting that can turn it on.
Both options are rendered from one field through the same component and use the same presentation. They appear when the screen loads, before the customer's rating exists.
The system therefore has no rating result it could use to hide one option and keep the other. There is nothing to condition the choice on.
HejSpoko does not merely discourage or prohibit review gating. Its implementation makes review gating technically impossible.
Questions and answers
Frequently asked
Does Google prohibit review gating?
Yes. Google's policies prohibit businesses from discouraging negative reviews or selectively soliciting positive reviews. This includes flows where a Google review link is shown only after a positive rating while customers who give a negative rating are directed somewhere else.
Can I still ask customers for a Google review?
Yes. Google allows businesses to ask customers for honest reviews and provides its own review link and QR code. The important point is to offer the opportunity without selecting customers based on satisfaction and without providing an incentive for posting, changing or removing a review.
Does HejSpoko show Google to unhappy customers too?
Yes. The public review option is available regardless of the number of stars selected. Customers can also send private feedback directly to the business. Both choices are displayed before the rating is submitted, so the rating cannot be used to change which option the customer sees.
Why use HejSpoko instead of a direct Google QR code?
A direct Google QR code offers only the public review path. HejSpoko keeps that option and adds a private path to the business beside it. When something went wrong, the business can receive the customer's message directly, respond to it and continue the conversation.
Related pages
Read next
- Is a Google QR code enough?A free Google review QR code makes sense. HejSpoko adds private feedback, fast alerts and a direct way to respond when something goes wrong.
- Where to put the QR codePlace the QR code where customers naturally pause: on a table, receipt, reception desk, room, counter or document they use before leaving.
- How to get more reviewsA practical guide to getting more Google reviews honestly: improve your profile, ask at the right time, respond consistently, and never filter customers.
Give every customer both options from the start.
Keep the public review path and add a direct private path to your business.