A: Hey Justin,

Fair question. I went back and read Google’s current policy pages before answering rather than relying on assumptions.

On the AI-generated draft:
There’s no rule in Google’s current policies that prohibits AI-assisted reviews. I checked both the Business Profile and Maps policies, and the key requirement is that a review reflects the customer’s genuine experience.

That’s exactly how we designed Spokk. We don’t provide a generic template or invent content. The draft is generated only from what that specific customer tells us through the feedback form — their ratings, their own words, the services they selected, etc. The model is also explicitly instructed not to invent staff, products, or experiences that weren’t provided.

So the AI is really just helping someone who had a genuine experience but doesn’t want to spend five minutes writing a paragraph. The customer sees the result in an editable box labelled “AI Generated Review” and decides whether to edit it and post it themselves from their own Google account.

People already use ChatGPT to write reviews themselves. Blocking all AI reviews just does not make sense because people don't write anymore, Spokk just does it better and easier than ChatGPT.

On the reward:
Google’s policy prohibits offering incentives *in exchange for posting a review*. In Spokk, the reward is tied to submitting feedback, not leaving a Google review.

The reward is triggered as soon as the customer submits their feedback, regardless of their rating, before the Google review step is even shown. They can take the reward and close the page without ever visiting Google.

The important part is the wording. You should say something like **“Share your feedback and get X”**, rather than **“Leave a review and get X.”** The latter would create a policy issue with both Google and the FTC.

On the referral path:
I couldn't find anything in Google's policies that treats the customer's click path or referrer as a policy signal. Spokk sends customers to `search.google.com/local/writereview`, which is Google's own review URL — the same destination used by the review link and QR code Google provides through Business Profile. The reward is for the feedback, this is just an additional ask without any incentive for the user.

What actually seems to cause problems:
The bigger risks are unusual review velocity and soliciting reviews while customers are physically on your premises.

For example, Sterling Sky published data in February showing a business that went from roughly 72 reviews per month to 235 and subsequently lost 342 of 595 reviews and received a posting block.

So our recommendation is straightforward: send the request **after the visit**, via SMS or email, rather than asking customers to review while they're at the counter. And don't suddenly go from your normal review volume to 10× that amount.

Have we seen reviews deleted?
None so far. Infact most of the reviews generated from Spokk have been showing up at the top in the recommended section because it's just well written and the customer's real experience. This can change but if it does, we will adapt.

And if you’d rather not use the AI feature:
That's completely fine. You can turn off AI drafts in your form settings and use Spokk purely for review-request automation with your direct Google review link. This would be identical to other review platforms like Birdeye.

You'd still get the automation, timing, and click tracking, so you'd know how many customers actually clicked through to Google. If you send the Google link yourself from your own phone or email, you don't get that visibility.

I hope that answers all your questions.

Best,
Samesh