QR Code Reviews Drive - Guide to Increase 5 Star Reviews Follow
QR Code Reviews Drive
Use this guide to roll out and manage a QR code-driven review push. Aim to increase your Google and social review volume by tapping customers while the ZL thrills are still pulsing through their veins.
Reviews fuel trust, drive bookings, and capture the emotional afterglow of the Zero Latency experience.
When to use
Use this framework when:
You want to lift your venue’s Google My Business (GMB) or other review rating
You need QR code review collateral for your venue
You want to train and incentivise your staff to prompt customers for reviews effectively
Contents
1. Overview: QR Code for Reviews Drive
Online reviews are an integral part of a customer’s decision making process - seeing those 5 star reviews when searching online and viewing ads can make a big difference to your bottom line.
Zero Latency venues globally have a stellar average of 4.8 / 5 star Google My Business (GMB) ratings, with many maintaining a perfect 5 star rating.
Providing easy access QR codes for your venue is a great way to ensure your customers are exposed to the opportunity to provide a review, when the excitement of their positive experience is still fresh.
2. Why Use QR Codes
Each venue receives venue-specific and GM-specific QR codes via ZL HQ. Note: GM codes are tied to your Portal user accounts
You can:
Link your QR Codes to Google My Business and Meta (Facebook) review sections
Add other review or directory links as required (eg. Trip Advisor)
- QR Code Posters – Give guests an easy, self-serve way to leave a review before they even leave the venue
- QR Code Lanyards – Empower Game Masters (GMs) to connect personally and guide guests to leave a review, leveraging their influence and rapport
- Access the templates on Brandfolder, with editable working files provideed
3. Why Reviews Matter
Online reviews influence nearly every customer’s decision to book. They don’t just build credibility - they fuel conversion.
- 93% of people read reviews before choosing a local business
- 76% trust online reviews as much as personal recommendations
- 74% check at least four reviews before booking
The Customer Decision Path
Let's take a simplified look at why people buy and how reviews fit into their decision making process:
Need recognition (Awareness) - The first and most important stage of the buying process, because every sale begins when a customer becomes aware that they have a need eg. need an upcoming date night activity
Search for information (Research) - Customers are looking for options that meet their need - external searches is where reviews coming into play including online reviews, word of mouth from peers and ‘social proof’ (eg. leveraging the influence of other people's actions and opinions to encourage potential customers to engage with a brand or product) on social media
Evaluation of alternatives (Consideration) - Next they'll compare the options to make the best choice - and how you show up in the research phase will greatly impact your chances - if you don’t make it into the consideration set, they’re not converting with you
Purchasing decision (Conversion) - Now buying behaviour turns into action (booking)
Post-purchase evaluation (Refer / Repeat) - After purchasing, consumers consider whether it was worth it - will they recommend Zero Latency to others? We ideally want word-of-mouth referrals, online and social reviews as well as return visits, bringing new customers with them
4. How Reviews Boost Performance
Increasing your volume of 5 star reviews can help many areas of your business, including:
Google Ads Integration
Link your Google My Business (GMB) account to your Google Ads account as a Location Asset
Requires at least 100 reviews and a 3.5+ star average
Enables star ratings and location data in eligible ad campaigns
SEO Benefits
Reviews help your venue's Google My Business (GMB) listing appear in the Local Pack (top three map listings)
Higher review scores improve click-through rates and conversion once you’re there
Brand Amplification
Use top review quotes in social posts, ads and your venue’s landing pages
5. Case Study
Brisbane - APAC
Brisbane has tracked reviews and staff mentions monthly since 2022, maintaining one of the strongest 5-star averages across the network.
Always On Strategy
Added their Google My Business and Meta (Facebook) review links to the game results email via Portal (see below)
Use QR Code Review posters are displayed year-round
Game Master (GM) lanyards are used (but not 'pushed' - see below) all year to encourage reviews that mention GMs by name - building pride and recognition
Customers are not incentivised to provide Google review ratings (using incentives is against Google's policy)
Push Periods
Brisbane tracks staff mentions in the reviews and regularly runs staff incentives (2 - 4 times per year) around the overall volume of reviews (Team Based) or how many reviews can be attributed to each GM (Individual Based)
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Team Based Incentive Example (measured by the volume of players and volume of reviews during push period) -
Maintaining a 2% Google Review Engagement for 'x' period will add $X to budget for a staff party (works well if it's near end of year / Xmas party time)
And / or every 100 reviews adds $X to the event budget
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Individual Based Incentive Example (measured by the number of reviews that mention a specific game master during push period) -
$X bonus for every Google Review that mentions a Game Master by name
And / or $X to the Game Master that can get the most name mentions over the course of a month
Brisbane's Benchmarks
On average, 1% - 2.5% of players will leave a Google Customer Review
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This can jump to 3.5% - 6% during peak periods including:
when running a staff incentive for reviews
during content launches and global campaigns
in high seasonality periods where there are naturally more players and the venue has a higher utilisation
Their volume of Google Reviews has increased an average of 30-40% yearly since 2022
- Brisbane recommends keeping your ‘push periods’ and staff incentives to short bursts
- Realistically you’ll have some game masters (charismatic, high performing) that will likely draw higher volume of reviews - the pressure to achieve a high KPI regularly can burn out your most valuable assets
Game Result Template Example
Brisbane's Google and Facebook (Meta) review links added to the Game Result Email Template via Portal:
6. Getting Started
Step 1: Prepare
Make sure your Game Masters (GMs) are set up in the Zero Latency portal under Users (this is where the QR code system will pull the GM names from)
Set up your Review QR codes and download an .eps or large size .png version of the General Template and each staff member template
Step 2: Customise Assets
Use the QR Code Poster and Lanyard Card templates in Brandfolder and customise details as required
Print the posters in your required size to display in your venue - see here for some tips
Print the lanyard cards and ensure you have Zero Latency branded lanyards (available in the Zero Latency store) and plastic holders (buy from an office supplies retailer)
Step 3: Roll Out
Brief your team before high-traffic periods (holidays, new content launches)
Encourage organic use - GMs should invite, not pressure
Keep messaging fun and genuine: “We’d love your review - tell us how epic it felt!”
See here for some tips on increasing QR code driven reviews via GM interations
7. Tracking Your Results
Set Goals
Record your current GMB rating and total review count
Define a target - eg. X.X as your overall review rating or to add X reviews per period (weekly, monthly, quarterly, yearly)
Track weekly and monthly changes
Run Incentives
Decide if you're running a staff incentive for the upcoming period and set the parameters including required staff member KPI’s
Reward top-performing GMs and teams when they reach key milestones
Mix tangible rewards (bonuses, team lunches) during incentives with social ones (public shoutouts during Weekly Team Reviews) outside of incentives
Review and Repeat
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Review what worked each period by calculating and tracking per platform eg. Google My Business (GMB) or Meta (Facebook):
Overall review eg. 4.9 stars is the overall rating
Engagement Rate ie. ((X reviews / X players)*100)%
Volume of reviews
Volume of reviews that mention specific GMs
Refresh your QR codes, posters and messaging seasonally or as needed
Where possible, align push periods to take advantage of key campaigns and peak times BUT avoid when your staff will be too busy to participate effectively eg. during an experience launch or Halloween but not bang in busiest part of Christmas
8. Best Practices for Success
Make sure your Google My Business (GMB) profile, Meta (Facebook) page info and other review sites (eg. Yelp, Tripadvisor) are up to date and optimised before starting a push for more reviews.
Stay current: Regularly update your GMB images, hours and profile content (including experience list)
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Post regularly: Keep your GMB and Meta (Facebook) profiles alive with posts about new experiences, events and customer highlights
Didn’t know you could post on GMB? Read more here
Not sure what to post? Seasonal, promotional and FAQ / educational content is a great place to start
Engage actively: Respond quickly to reviews - both positive and negative - with an authentic tone, not automated replies
Handle negatives gracefully: Respond respectfully, clarify any issues and offer next steps where appropriate
9. Expected Outcomes
By following this framework, your venue will benefit through:
Higher visibility in Google Search and Maps (for Google My Business ratings) or Search Results in other platforms eg. Meta (Facebook), Yelp or Tripadvisor
Sustained review growth and improved average rating
Increased bookings driven by social proof and customer trust
Stronger team morale with pride and ownership of customer satisfaction
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