Think in customer moments, not arbitrary minutes
The right trigger follows the experience lifecycle.
Service starts
Too early to judge.
Service completes
The natural trigger appears.
Customer can judge
Value is now visible.
Request
Recent, relevant, respectful.
There is no universal “best hour”
Advice that says every business should send a review request exactly 30 minutes or exactly 24 hours later sounds precise, but the customer experience is not that uniform. A haircut can be judged immediately. A roof repair may deserve time. A hotel stay has a natural completion point at checkout.
Use the experience-complete test
Ask three questions: Has the promised service actually been delivered? Has the customer had enough time to judge it? Is the interaction still recent enough to be recognizable? Send when the answer to all three is yes.
| Business type | Natural trigger | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Restaurant / café | After the visit | The experience is complete quickly. |
| Salon / spa | After the appointment | The service has just been experienced. |
| Home service | After job completion | A completed-job status is clearer than an arbitrary clock. |
| Auto repair | After pickup / service completion | The customer should have the vehicle back first. |
| Hotel | After checkout | The stay can be judged as a whole. |
| Longer-term service | After a meaningful milestone | Immediate requests may arrive before value is visible. |
Avoid awkward hours
Even a legitimate request feels intrusive at the wrong time. Configure sending windows around the customer’s local time rather than your server’s time. If a job closes late at night, queue the request for a reasonable daytime window.
How many reminders?
Our conservative starting point is one initial request and, where permitted and appropriate, no more than one reminder. Measure response and opt-out behavior before adding pressure. A customer who ignores two messages has already given you useful information.
Do not optimize timing in isolation
A perfectly timed message with an unknown sender, vague wording or a broken link will still perform badly. Treat timing as one part of a system that includes recognition, trust, message clarity and destination friction.