Review guide · Salons and med spas

Salon and Med Spa Reviews: Ask After Every Visit

How salons, barbers and med spas get more Google reviews: asking after each visit, getting reviewers to name the stylist, templates and replies.

By Plaudit Team · Updated October 1, 2026

People pick a salon the way they pick a stylist: by looking at the results and reading what others said. A salon with fifty recent reviews, several naming the stylist who did their colour, will get the new-client booking over one with six.

You already have a record of every client who walked in. This guide covers how to turn that into reviews without chasing anyone.

When to ask for a review in a salon or med spa

Salons and spas have what most businesses want: customers who come back, a booking record of every visit, and a result they can see in the mirror. The challenge is asking after the right visit, and in a way that credits the right person.

Regular appointment

Two to four hours later, or the same evening

A new haircut looks best on the day. By the time the first wash-and-style at home has gone wrong, the glow has gone.

Big change or colour

The next day, once they have lived with it

Colour and big cuts get judged in daylight, in the bathroom mirror and by friends. A next-day request captures the reaction you actually want.

Treatment with delayed results

At the follow-up appointment

For skin or injectable treatments where results take days or weeks to show, a review sent on the day describes the room, not the outcome. Ask when the result is visible.

Loyal client

After the second or third visit

'Been coming here for two years' carries more weight with strangers than a first impression, and loyal clients are usually happy to say it.

Which review sites matter for salons and med spas

Google Business Profile

This is where 'hair salon near me' searches land, so it should get most requests.
Facebook

Useful for salons with an active page and local clientele. Keep Google as the primary link.
Yelp

Yelp's own guidance is that businesses should not ask for reviews, and it may filter ones that appear to have been requested. Do not include Yelp in your request.

Review request templates for salons and med spas

Swap the bracketed parts. In Plaudit these merge in automatically from your contact list.

Subject: Loving the new look, [First name]?

Hi [First name], It was lovely to see you at [Salon name] today. If you're happy with how things turned out, a short Google review helps other people find us, and it's lovely for [Stylist name] to read. Leave a review: [Review link] If anything isn't right, reply to this email and we'll fix it. [Name]

Text message · 168 characters

Hi [First name], loved seeing you at [Salon] today. If you're happy with your visit, a quick Google review would mean a lot to [Stylist]: [link]. Reply STOP to opt out.

Only text customers who agreed to receive texts from you. See SMS review request rules.

Credit the stylist, and handle treatment privacy carefully

Two things set this industry apart: reviews are about people, not just the business, and some treatments are medical.

A Google review attaches to your business profile, not to an individual stylist, so mention the stylist's name in your request. Asking guests to say who looked after them is a harmless prompt, and it makes the review more useful to the next customer.
Do not guide the star rating or the wording. Google's policy prohibits discouraging negative reviews or selectively soliciting positive ones, so send the request to every client.
Med spas that provide medical treatments may hold information about clients that is confidential, and in some places, regulated. If this applies to you, read our guide for dentists on replying safely, and keep replies free of any detail about treatment.

Sources: Google Maps contributed content policy.

General information, not legal advice. Ask your adviser how privacy rules apply to your treatments.

Replying to salon reviews

Salon reviews are warm, visual and about people. Replies can be too, as long as you leave out anything about treatments.

Positive, names the stylist

“Maya gave me the best cut I've had in years. So relaxed in there.”

That's lovely to hear, thank you. I'll pass this to Maya, it'll make her day. Thank you for coming in, we'll see you at your next appointment.

Negative, colour not as discussed

“Asked for a soft honey blonde and got something much brassier. Felt rushed.”

I'm sorry the colour wasn't what you had in mind, and that you felt rushed. Please call us on [phone] and book a time to come in, so we can look at it together and put it right.

Negative, late and double-booked

“Waited 30 minutes. Clearly double-booked.”

We're sorry for the wait. That was a mistake with our scheduling and we shouldn't have kept you. We've changed how we check bookings. Please email [email] and I'd like to make it up to you.

Negative, a treatment result

“Not happy with the results of my facial. Skin is worse.”

I'm sorry to hear you're not happy. I can't discuss treatments in a public reply, but I'd like to hear from you directly. Please call [phone] and ask for [manager], and we'll arrange a follow-up.

Want a draft for a real review? Use the free AI review response generator, and edit before you post.

Setting this up in Plaudit

Salons usually do best on the Growth plan, because text works well for appointment-based businesses and automatic follow-ups catch the clients who meant to review but forgot. Email-only on Starter is still a fine start.

At the end of each day or week, export appointments from your booking software as a CSV (first name, email, mobile), or paste them in.
Put your stylist's name into your message wording so clients know who they are thanking.
Send a few hours after the visit, and add one follow-up for people who haven't replied.
Keep anyone with an open complaint off the list by adding them to the do-not-contact list.

Plans: Starter $19 (email, 1 platform), Growth $39 (adds SMS, integrations, follow-ups), Pro $79 (multiple locations). See pricing.

Frequently asked questions

Can I get a review for each stylist? +

Google reviews attach to your business, so the practical approach is to ask clients to mention who looked after them. Reviews that name a stylist help future clients choose, and they are good for team morale.

Is it okay to give a discount on the next visit for a review? +

Not as an exchange. Offering discounts for reviews is on Google's prohibited list. If you run a loyalty offer, keep it completely separate: available to every client whether or not they write anything, and never tied to a review.

What if a stylist works as a freelancer in my salon? +

The review is about your business, so it still belongs on your profile. Agree with your self-employed stylists how you handle reviews and replies, so no one is surprised by a public response.

How do I get reviews from clients who rarely give an email address? +

Collect a mobile number at booking and ask for consent to text them. SMS gets read quickly, and consent is easiest to collect at the point of booking.

Review guides for other industries

Also useful: SMS review request rules and templates, Review QR code generator

All industries →

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