How Do I Get Reviews on a Direct Booking Site?

Ask at the right time and make it easy

The key to reviews is timing. Most hosts wait too long after checkout, by which point the guest has moved on with their life. Instead, send your review request within one hour of checkout if possible. This is when the stay is still fresh, when they are still feeling good (they just had a nice holiday), and before they disappear into their travel day. If you are sending an automated message from your booking system, set it to trigger immediately after the guest checks out or after a one-hour delay. If you are reaching out manually, send a short, warm follow-up message that thanks them for staying and invites them to share their thoughts.

Never ask a guest to review without giving them a direct, clickable link. If they have to search for your site, navigate to it, find a review form, and figure out how to submit, most will give up. Include the link in your checkout email and in any follow-up message. If you have a Google Business Profile for the property, include the Google review link. If you have a direct-booking website, link to the review page there. You can even include links to multiple platforms (Google, TripAdvisor, your site) so the guest can choose where to leave feedback. The easier you make it, the higher your review rate. One click is ideal. Three clicks and half your guests will give up.

Send a personal thank-you follow-up

A generic automated email feels cold. Instead, send a short, personalized follow-up message: 'Hi Sarah, thank you so much for staying at Cedar Bach last weekend. I hope you had a lovely time and the weather was kind to you. If you get a moment, I would love to hear what you thought of the place. It really helps me know what is working and what I can improve.' Follow up with the review link.

Personal touch does not mean long. Keep it to two or three sentences. The goal is to make the guest feel valued and to make asking for a review feel like a genuine request, not a marketing tactic. Guests who feel they had a personal, attentive experience are far more likely to leave a positive review.

Make leaving a review part of the house manual

Include a note in your welcome pack or house manual asking guests to leave a review. This is a gentle, non-intrusive way to plant the idea during their stay. Some hosts include a small printed card with logos of platforms they use (Google, TripAdvisor, your own site) and a QR code linking to the review page. This gives guests another prompt during their stay in case they forget after checkout. Place it somewhere visible like the kitchen or living room.

Some hosts also include an incentive note: 'If you leave a review, we would love to offer you a 10 percent discount on your next stay.' Be cautious with incentives in reviews though, as some platforms have policies about incentivizing reviews. Make sure whatever you do complies with the terms of the platform where you are asking for reviews. Generally, offering a discount for simply leaving a review is acceptable, but requiring a five-star review in exchange is against most platforms' terms.

Build momentum with early reviews and feedback

A property with no reviews faces a chicken-and-egg problem: guests are hesitant to book something untested. Your first reviews are crucial. Get aggressive about asking the first ten to fifteen guests to review, even if you are not yet asking every guest. After your property has four or five solid reviews, other guests will feel more confident booking, and the reviews start coming more naturally. This is an investment in your future bookings.

Early reviews also give you feedback to improve the property. If multiple guests mention 'the kitchen is small,' you know where to focus next. If everyone raves about the deck or the view, you know those are your strongest selling points to emphasize in future descriptions. Use this early guest feedback to make small improvements or adjust your marketing language.

Do not get discouraged if the first few guests do not all leave reviews. Most will, but not all. Keep asking politely. After two or three bookings with reviews, you will have enough social proof to attract more bookings, which in turn makes it easier to collect more reviews.

Respond to every review you receive

Responding to reviews serves two purposes. First, it shows future guests that you read feedback and take it seriously. Second, it is your chance to respond to criticism or clarify misunderstandings. If a guest leaves a three-star review saying the heater was broken, respond warmly: 'Thank you for the feedback. We are sorry to hear the heater was not working as expected. We have since serviced it and it is now running perfectly. We would love to welcome you back and make sure everything is comfortable next time.'

Respond to five-star reviews too, with a genuine thank-you. This builds a sense of community and shows that hosting is personal to you, not just a transaction. Guests who feel appreciated are more likely to return and recommend you to friends. A quick, warm response to every review also signals to potential guests that you are attentive and responsive.