How to ask your fans for reviews without breaking the rules
Every review platform starts empty, and the only honest way to fill it is creators asking their own subscribers. That is allowed, and we encourage it.
What is not allowed — and this is law, not house style — is asking selectively, or offering anything in return. This page is the line, and templates that stay on the right side of it.
The rule, in one sentence
Ask everyone, ask for the truth, and offer nothing.
If your invitation would read badly to someone who had a poor experience, it is the wrong invitation.
What is allowed
- Asking all of your subscribers, in the same words, at the same time.
- Putting your review link in your bio, a post, or a broadcast message.
- Asking again later. Reminders are fine as long as they go to everybody.
- Saying you would appreciate honest feedback, positive or negative.
- Replying publicly to reviews once they arrive — including the critical ones.
What is not allowed
- Asking only subscribers you know are happy, or filtering by sentiment before you ask. This is "review gating", and it is prohibited.
- Offering anything in exchange — a discount, free content, a tip refund, extra messages, a shoutout. Anything of value makes it an incentivised review.
- Asking for a specific rating, or implying that five stars is what you are hoping for.
- Writing reviews of yourself, or having friends, staff or an agency write them.
- Offering to remove or "sort out" a bad review. We could not do it anyway — there is no removal reason in our database that means the subject asked.
Why gating is worse for you than it looks
Filtering for happy subscribers produces a profile of uniform praise, and buyers in this industry have learned to read that as bought. A wall of five stars with no detail converts worse than a mixed profile with specifics.
It also makes your genuine praise worthless. The reason a good review here means something is that a bad one could have appeared next to it and did not.
Templates that are safe to send
All three share the same properties: they go to everyone, they ask for honesty rather than positivity, and they offer nothing.
- Broadcast: "I’ve added my account to a review site where subscribers rate the service. If you’ve subscribed, I’d appreciate an honest review — good or bad. I can’t delete the bad ones, which is exactly why the good ones count."
- Bio line: "Reviewed by real subscribers: <your link>"
- After a custom delivery: "Thanks for the order. If you have two minutes, an honest review helps other people decide — whatever you thought of it."
What to do about a review you think is unfair
Reply to it. A calm, specific reply persuades readers far more than the absence of criticism would, and it is free.
If the review is factually wrong rather than merely negative, flag it and tell us what actually happened. We ask the reviewer for evidence, and if they cannot produce it the claim does not stand.
Frequently asked
- Can I offer a discount to anyone who leaves a review?
- No. Anything of value offered in exchange makes it an incentivised review, which must be disclosed and which we do not accept. This applies whether or not you ask for a positive one.
- Can I ask only my long-term subscribers?
- That is a grey area we would rather you avoid. If the selection correlates with satisfaction — and loyalty usually does — it is gating in practice. Ask everyone.
- Can my agency or assistant send the request?
- Yes. They must not write the reviews, and the request must go to all subscribers with no incentive attached.
- What if a subscriber asks what to write?
- Point them at what makes a review useful — dates, what was ordered, what arrived, how communication went. Never suggest a rating or supply wording.
Related guides
The argument for putting your account somewhere it can be criticised — and the honest version of the risks, including the ones we cannot remove.
Exactly how a review gets published here: identity checks, evidence requests, the moderation ladder, and the things we refuse to do — including selling deletions.
How code-in-bio verification works, what claiming gives you, what it does not give you, and how to request removal of your profile entirely.