What a review stand is and how the business works

After this lesson you can explain the whole business in two minutes: what the stand is, why a shop pays for one, how the sale happens, and whether this course is for you.

What a review stand is

A review stand is a small acrylic sign that sits next to the register. It gives a customer two ways to open the shop’s Google review form:

• A printed QR code they scan with their camera.
• A chip inside the stand (NFC). They hold their phone near it and the same page opens.

There is no app, no account and no monthly fee. The stand points at a link Google gives every business for free. Google’s own help page tells businesses to share that link and to print and display the QR code in their store.

Why shops want reviews

BrightLocal’s Local Consumer Review Survey 2026 asked 1,002 US adults and found:

• 97% read reviews for local businesses.
• 68% will only use a business with 4 stars or more.
• 47% will not use a business with fewer than 20 reviews.
• 74% look for reviews written in the last three months.
• 83% of people who were asked to leave a review went on to leave one.

The last figure is why the stand exists. When somebody asks, and the page is one tap away, most people do.

How a sale works

1. You buy stands. They cost from a few dollars to about $13 each, depending on where you buy and how many.
2. Before you visit a shop, you look up its review link and write it to the chip with a free phone app.
3. You walk in, ask for the owner, and hold their own phone to the stand. Their own review page opens. That demo is the pitch.
4. If they want it, they pay once. Online sellers list these stands to businesses at about $25 to $40 each. You set it on the counter and show the staff when to ask.

You are not selling a chip. An owner can buy one online. You are selling a finished thing: the right link, a stand that looks like it belongs in their shop, tested on both kinds of phone, and staff who know when to ask.

What the course covers

• Start here. The honest math, the kit, and the rules.
• The product. Stand types, the chip, where to buy, and how to design the printed face.
• Setup. Finding the link, making the QR code, writing the chip, testing and locking.
• Selling. Choosing a street, the walk-in, pricing, objections, payment and follow-up.
• Doing it right for the shop. When staff should ask, the handout you leave, replying to reviews.
• Beyond the first sale. Repeat business, records, local rules, and a 14-day plan.

Who should not buy this course

• You need monthly income from the first week. A shop buys once. Repeat business exists, but it is slow.
• You will not walk into shops and talk to strangers.
• You cannot put roughly $50 to $150 into a first batch of stands on top of the course.
• You want an income figure. We publish none, because we have no verified ones.
• You plan to promise shops five-star reviews, or to pay customers for them. That breaks Google’s rules and it is not taught here.

Do this now

Open Google Maps and look up three shops you use. For each one, write down the number of reviews and the date of the newest one. Notice which good shops have only a handful of reviews, or none from this year.