Engagement6 min read

Where to Put Your Review QR Code

Almost nobody refuses to leave a review. They just never get round to finding you on Google, and by the time they are home the moment has passed. A QR code removes that gap - but only if it is somewhere the customer is already standing still, with a free hand, feeling good about what just happened. Most codes fail on one of those three.

Get your code first

1

Generate it

Open the review QR generator and paste the link to your business on Google Maps. On Maps: open your business, tap Share, then Copy link. No signup and no Google login.

2

Pick the format for where it is going

The table below covers the realistic spots. You can download as many formats as you like - they all carry the same code.

3

Print at 100%

In the print dialog, set scale to 100% rather than Fit to page. Fit to page is the one setting that silently shrinks the card, and a code that is 20% too small is the most common reason a printed one scans badly.

Where it actually works

SpotWhy it worksFormat
Beside the card readerThe single best spot in most shops. Paying is dead time, the phone is often already out, and the interaction has just finished well.Counter card
On the tableFor anywhere people sit: cafes, restaurants, waiting rooms, salons. They have time, and a tent reads from either side of the table.Table tent
Inside the window or doorWorks while you are closed, which nothing else on this list does. Catches people who just walked past and liked the look of the place.Window sign
On the invoice or receiptFor trades and services with no counter at all. The customer sees it at home, after the job is done and they are pleased with it.Just the code
In your email signatureFree, permanent, and costs nothing to try. Use the plain link rather than the code - nobody scans a QR on the screen they are reading.The link itself
A post or storyYour followers already like you enough to follow you. They are just nowhere near your counter.Social post
Tip: Put one code in one good place before you print twenty. A single card by the till will tell you within a fortnight whether your customers scan things at all, and that answer is worth more than covering the shop.

Size it for the distance

The rule of thumb is about 1cm of code for every 10cm the customer stands back. At a counter that is arm's length, so the A6 card is comfortable. A window is read from the pavement, a metre or more away, which is why the window format is A5 and the code on it is much larger. Printing the counter card and taping it to the glass is the usual mistake.

What to write next to it

The card already says “Leave us a review” and carries the Google mark, which matters more than it sounds: people are wary of scanning anonymous codes, and knowing where it goes removes the hesitation. What you add out loud is what actually moves the number. A staff member saying “if you have got ten seconds, the code on the counter puts you straight on our Google page” outperforms any amount of signage on its own.

Warning: Do not offer anything in exchange for a review, and do not filter who you ask. Google's policies prohibit incentivised reviews and review gating - routing happy customers to the review form while steering unhappy ones elsewhere. Ask everyone who had a real interaction. If you want private feedback too, run a survey separately.

Find out whether it is working

A printed code gives you no feedback at all by default, so it is hard to tell a bad spot from a bad idea. With an account you can turn on scan counting in Google Business → Review QR code, which routes the code through a link that forwards straight to Google and shows you scans per day. Print a different placement each fortnight and you will know within a month which spot earns its space.

If you would rather not print and cut things yourself, the same artwork comes as a proper weatherproof sign at /signs. Printing your own stays free either way.