Try something for me. Open Google right now and type in "plumber in [your town]." Just like that. The way your customers do it every single day without thinking.
See that map that comes up? The three businesses in the box at the top? Those are the ones getting called. Not the listings below them. Not the ones buried on page two. Those three at the top of the map — they're sharing the majority of the local enquiries for your trade, in your area, today.
Now look at how many reviews each of them has.
I'd put money on the fact that if you're sitting on 8 reviews, or 15, or even 25 — the businesses in those top spots have 40, 60, sometimes 80 or more. Not because they're better plumbers than you. Not because they've got newer vans or fancier uniforms. They're there because they've collected more reviews — and Google rewards that with visibility.
That's the thing that genuinely frustrates me about this industry. I speak to plumbers who've been doing the job for fifteen years, who are brilliant at what they do, who come highly recommended by everyone who's ever used them — and they're invisible online. Meanwhile someone who's been trading for two years is ranking above them because they've cracked the reviews habit. It's fixable. That's the point of this.
Why reviews matter more than you think
Google's whole job is to show customers the most trustworthy local business for their search. And since Google can't come round and inspect your pipework, it uses signals it can actually measure. Reviews are one of the biggest.
More reviews means more trust signal, which means higher ranking. That's the simplified version and it's the part worth holding onto.
But here's the part most people miss: Google also looks at recency. A profile with 70 reviews — 55 of which are from 2021 and 2022 — is being quietly beaten in the algorithm by a competitor who has 30 reviews, all from the last six months. Fresh, ongoing reviews matter. Which means this isn't a one-time job you do and forget about. It's a habit. A small, consistent one — but a habit.
Quick test: search your trade and town right now. If you're not in the top three on the map, look at the review count of the ones who are. That number is your target — and it's usually more achievable than it looks.
Why most plumbers aren't doing this
Before I get into the how, I want to be honest about something. Because I don't think most plumbers are lazy or indifferent when it comes to reviews. I think they're just busy — and asking for a review at the end of a job can feel a bit uncomfortable. Like you're pushing your luck after someone's already paid you.
You've just sorted someone's boiler, or tracked down a leak they've been living with for three months, and they're grateful. Standing there asking them to then go home, open Google, find your listing and write a few sentences about it feels like too much. So most plumbers don't ask. Or they mean to but forget. Or they ask once and don't hear back and stop trying.
Which is exactly why the plumbers who are doing it consistently are pulling away from the ones who aren't.
What the top-ranked plumbers in Yorkshire are actually doing
Here's what I've found when I look at trades businesses sitting at the top of local searches across Yorkshire and compare them to the ones who aren't — five things that come up time and again.
They ask at the right moment — not when they're packing up
The best time to ask for a review isn't when you're loading the van. It's about ten minutes before you finish, when the customer is standing there, relieved, pleased the problem's sorted. That's the moment. "Any chance you'd leave us a quick Google review? It genuinely helps small businesses like mine." Said naturally, not as a script. Most people say yes without hesitation — because they're in a good mood and they like you right then.
They send a link that removes all the friction
Following up with a text that has a direct link to your Google review page removes almost every obstacle between "yes I'll leave one" and it actually happening. The customer doesn't have to remember, search for your business, find the right button — they just tap the link. Set it up as a saved text on your phone so you're sending it in ten seconds, not typing it out every time. This single habit is probably responsible for more reviews than anything else on this list.
They ask after every job, not just the big ones
There's a tendency to think reviews should come from the impressive work — the full bathroom refit, the new central heating system. But the customer whose dripping tap you fixed in 40 minutes? If they had a good experience, their review counts exactly as much. The plumbers with 60+ reviews didn't get there by being selective. They asked everyone. Every job. Consistently.
They respond to every review they get
This one surprises people. Taking a couple of minutes to reply to your Google reviews — even just a short, genuine thank you — tells Google your profile is active and tells potential customers you actually care about the work you do. Look at the businesses ranking at the top of your local search right now. Most of them will have responses on their reviews. The ones lower down, usually not. It's a small thing that adds up.
They don't wait until it goes quiet to start
This sounds obvious when you say it out loud, but it's worth saying. Collecting reviews isn't something to start when the phone stops ringing — by then it's too late. You need the reviews to make the phone ring more in the first place. The plumbers who've built a strong Google presence did it steadily during the busy periods, not as a panic measure when things dried up.
What a realistic timeline looks like
I want to be straight with you here rather than promise something unrealistic. If you're starting from 10 or 12 reviews and you ask after every job, you could realistically be at 30 to 40 reviews within six to eight weeks. In smaller towns and suburbs across Yorkshire, that's often enough to see meaningful movement in your local rankings.
In bigger cities like Leeds or Sheffield, you might need 50 to 70 or more to compete for the top spots. But you don't need to be at number one to get more calls. Moving from nowhere on the map to the bottom of the top three is a significant difference in how often your phone rings. That's achievable inside two or three months if you're consistent.
What won't work is doing it in bursts. Ten reviews in a week, then nothing for a month, then another five. Google notices the pattern — or the lack of one. Slow and steady wins this one.
The thing that trips people up
Getting reviews manually — asking at the job and sending the link — works. The evidence is all around you in the businesses that are doing well locally. But it's also the thing that slips first when life gets busy. You do it for three weeks, you get a run of big jobs back to back, and suddenly it's been a month and a half since your last review and you've lost momentum.
The plumbers I've seen sustain it either build in a physical reminder — a note on the job sheet, a step in their invoicing routine — or they have something automated doing the follow-up for them so they don't have to remember at all.
That second option is a big part of what we set up at BackCraft. Not because the manual approach doesn't work, but because consistent execution is always the hard part — and taking it off your plate means it actually happens.
Where to start today
If you've read this far, here's the one thing I'd suggest before anything else: do that Google search right now, see where you appear, and look at the review count of whoever's above you. Write the number down.
That's your target. And it's usually more reachable than it looks when you first see it.
If you want me to take a proper look at your Google presence — your profile, your ranking, how you compare to your top local competitors — I do free 15-minute audits for Yorkshire tradespeople. I'll tell you exactly what I find and what I'd fix first. No pitch, no obligation. Just honest, useful information you can act on whether you work with us or not.
Get a free Google Presence Audit
I'll look at your Google Business Profile, your review count vs local competitors, and where you actually appear when customers search. Takes 15 minutes. No sales pitch — just useful findings you can act on straight away.
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