Google Now Bans "Mention My Name" Review Requests — What to Change
What happened
Google has updated its Maps review policy to explicitly ban two common review-collection practices: asking customers to mention a staff member by name in their review, and setting review quotas for staff.
The changes, spotted on 17 April 2026 by Google Diamond Product Expert Amy Toman, add two new items to the platform's existing "Rating Manipulation" section. Businesses may no longer direct staff to solicit a set number of reviews, and reviews should not mention the staff member's name or identifying information at the customer's prompting.
Google is already enforcing the new rules at scale using automated filtering. Reports suggest that businesses where a high proportion of reviews mention employee full names — some accounts put the threshold at around 90% — are seeing those reviews flagged or removed. Google removed over 292 million policy-violating reviews in 2025 alone.
Crucially, customers can still mention staff unprompted. If a homeowner writes "Jake did a brilliant job" off their own back, that review is perfectly fine. The violation is in the asking — not the mentioning.
What this means for tradespeople
This hits home services hard. Many plumbers, electricians, and builders have review processes that say something like "if you were happy with the service, please mention Dave in your Google review." Some trades even have cards or follow-up messages with the technician's name pre-filled.
That entire workflow is now a policy violation. If Google's automated systems detect a pattern of staff names appearing across your reviews, you risk having those reviews stripped — or worse, seeing a warning on your Business Profile.
The rules on review incentives remain unchanged too: no discounts, no prize draws, no loyalty points in exchange for reviews. And you still cannot gate reviews by only asking customers you think will leave positive feedback.
What to do about it
The fix is straightforward: keep asking for reviews, but change how you ask.
Instead of "please mention Sarah," try: "If you have a moment, we'd really appreciate an honest Google review." Keep it general. Let customers write what they want.
If you have review cards, follow-up texts, or WhatsApp templates that include a technician's name, update them now. Remove any staff review targets or league tables tied to named mentions.
And if you're using an automated review tool like TapReview, you're already compliant — the request goes out after the job with a direct link to your Google profile, with no scripted content or staff prompts.
For more on asking for reviews the right way, see our guide on how to ask customers for reviews without being pushy.
Source: Search Engine Roundtable