Hey, it's Jeane 👋

Quick one that'll change how you think about your Google reviews. It's not how many you have. It's how fresh they are.

300 reviews from 2022 won't save you

Picture two businesses. One has 300 reviews and not one from the last year. The other has 40, with 6 that came in this month. In 2026, the second one wins. It ranks higher in Google's local pack and gets recommended more often by AI, while the first one quietly fades.

Here's why. Recency is now a stronger signal than volume, and it isn't just the algorithms. 73% of people only trust reviews written in the last 30 days. A wall of five stars from three years ago reads like a business that peaked and coasted.

In the client reports we run, the number that predicts whether a local business moves isn't total review count. It's how many came in the last 90 days.

So reviews stopped being a trophy you earn once. They're a fire you have to keep feeding. The good news: feeding it is one simple habit, and almost nobody does it.

Three more things worth knowing

1. Reviews carry real weight. They're about 16% of what decides Google's local ranking, the third-biggest factor. And a business with 50 or more recent reviews is roughly three times more likely to get named when someone asks AI for a recommendation. Slip under 4.0 stars, or under about 10 reviews, and you start getting filtered out of both.
2. The reason your flow stalls is that you're waiting instead of asking. Reviews almost never just happen. Most happy customers will leave one if you ask, and most need two or three gentle nudges. Waiting is why the pile goes stale.
3. Bad reviews aren't the enemy, silence is. A few 4-stars actually make your 5-stars believable, and a calm public reply to a rough one wins over the next person reading it more than the complaint ever cost you.

Your one move this week

Grab your Google review short link (your Business Profile will make you one) or a little QR code. Then send it to your last five happy customers, one at a time, with a personal line, while the good feeling is still warm. That's the whole system: ask at the win, make it one tap, and do it every week. Fresh beats big.

Want my exact "can you leave us a review?" text, the one that gets a yes without feeling needy? Reply and I'll send it over.

See you next Tuesday,
Jeane (sounds like Genie) Sumner
Website HQ + Findability OS

P.S. We built a quick quiz that tells you your website archetype, and the one thing quietly holding yours back. Two minutes, a little addictive. Find out which one you are: https://websitehq.com/quiz

P.P.S. Know a business owner sitting on stale reviews? Forward this. They can subscribe here: https://websitehq.kit.com/findable-email