Why Fresh Reviews Matter More Than Ever (and How to Get Them)

As the Director of Customer Marketing at G2, I know I’m biased, but my not so hot, hot take is that with the barrage of AI-written content buyers are being served today, the voice of your customers is still the best way to break through the noise.

Reviews aren’t just a great way to capture customer voice at scale, they’re key to showing up where your buyers are. 

So let’s talk about why reviews are definitely worth your time, how to actually get them (without annoying your customers), and what’s working for some of the most successful teams we work with.

Why reviews are still (and always will be) a big deal

Let’s start with the obvious: reviews build trust. Prospects want to hear from people who have walked in their shoes, not just from your brand.

But here’s what’s changed – buyers are increasingly starting their software buying journey through Large Language Models (LLMs) like ChatGPT, Perplexity, or Google’s AI Overviews. In G2’s 2025 Buyer Behavior Report, 79% of B2B buyers said AI search has changed how they conduct research – and that peer review sites were influencing their shortlist more than almost any other source. 

Reviews now power the answers buyers are seeing before they ever land on your website – and G2 is a number one source for genAI search of software comparisons, beating out all other software marketplaces.

What this means for your brand:

• Fresh reviews = better visibility
• More reviews = stronger buyer signals
• Better reviews = better sales enablement

So where do you start?

How to get reviews

One of the biggest myths I hear from customers is that review generation needs to be a huge, manual lift. And don’t get me wrong, I’ve been there, review generation can be hard. 

But it doesn’t have to be. In fact, the best programs are built into your existing customer journey. 

Here are a few of the places I’ve seen review asks work best: 

Lifecycle touchpoints

• After onboarding, when excitement is high
• Post-support ticket, especially after they’ve submitted a CSAT response
• During QBRs or renewals
• After an NPS or other survey response
• Following a webinar or event

In-app, automated review collection

• Use G2’s in-app widgets or review collection API
• Integrate with tools like Pendo, Delighted, or Medallia

Campaigns and contests

• Run quarterly review campaigns to your most engaged customers
• Try a team competition or a CSM Spiff for reviews 
• Use G2 Gives, gift cards or Sendoso to incentivize reviews

Low-lift tactics that add up

• Add a “Review Us on G2” link to email signatures
• Include a review CTA in your newsletter
• Add a review ask as your customers hit your sign-in screen 

Review refresh campaigns

• Send a request to past reviewers, asking them to update their review – keep your reviews current and show up stronger in "Most Recent" filters. 

What works for real customers

I wouldn’t be a good customer marketer if I didn’t use real examples from our customers to prove that reviews matter – and that review generation doesn’t have to be hard.

Here are four of my favorites from conversations with customers who are driving more reviews, and seeing some pretty awesome results. 

• Xactly: By using the G2 + Pendo integration, Xactly was able to automate their review collection and saw a 150% increase in leads.

• Reputation: Reputation partnered with G2 on a review campaign and saw a 600% increase in reviews, leading to a 33% boost in ARR.

• Vecteezy: Vecteezy used the G2 Review API to collect over 1,100 high-quality reviews in less than 6 months.

• FloQast: FloQast ran a multi-channel review campaign and collected over 200 reviews – a 312% increase.

Final thoughts

Generating reviews isn’t just a customer marketing tactic – it’s a full-funnel growth strategy. It supports your brand, your buyers, your SEO and GEO, your category rank, and ultimately your revenue.

So if you’re not already making reviews a core part of your marketing motion, now is the time. Start small. Start scrappy. Just start.

Already a G2 customer? Reach out to your account team to learn more.