How to Get More Reviews for Your Escape Room (Easy to Expert)

If you run an escape room, you already know reviews matter. What most owners get wrong is how reviews actually happen.

Reviews are not the result of asking louder or more often. They are the result of stacking small, low-friction systems that align with how guests already move through your experience.

Escape rooms have a unique advantage most entertainment businesses do not: you escort guests through a defined exit process. When used correctly, that single operational detail can dramatically increase review volume without feeling pushy or awkward.

Below is a practical, Easy-to-Expert breakdown of review strategies that work best for escape rooms, and how to layer them together.

Easy: Post-Experience Signage

The simplest way to increase reviews is also one of the easiest to misapply.

Signage only works when it appears after the experience and before guests mentally disengage. That narrow window matters more than most escape room owners realize.

Placing a review sign at the entrance is ineffective because guests haven’t done anything yet. They have no emotional context, no outcome, and nothing meaningful to review. At best, the sign is ignored. At worst, it becomes visual noise that guests subconsciously tune out before the experience even begins.

Placing signage only on the exit door also underperforms. By the time guests are physically leaving the building, their mental focus has already shifted. They are thinking about what’s next: dinner plans, traffic, the rest of their day. Even if they notice the sign, they are far less likely to stop, scan, and follow through.

The highest-performing placement is somewhere post-experience but pre-departure. A debriefing area, front desk, or any space where guests naturally pause after the game works best. The key is that they have finished the experience, are still emotionally engaged, and are not yet in “exit mode.”

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Wording should be simple and direct. Clever copy doesn’t necessarily  increase conversion here. Something as straightforward as “We’d love to hear your feedback” paired with a clear QR code is enough.

Signage alone will not create a flood of reviews. Its real role is to normalize the idea of leaving feedback and remove friction when combined with other methods. Think of it as the foundation, not the solution.

Medium: The Verbal Ask

Most escape rooms underperform on reviews for one reason: they don’t ask.

This usually isn’t laziness. It’s discomfort. Game masters worry about sounding pushy or transactional. Ironically, that hesitation often makes the moment more awkward than it needs to be.

The best time to ask for a review is during the natural close of the experience, when guests are being escorted out of the room or through the building. Escape rooms are uniquely positioned here. Unlike theaters or arcades, guests don’t just wander off. There is a built-in point of contact.

The ask should come from whoever welcomes them out of the experience. Not immediately. Not abruptly. It should feel like a continuation of hospitality, not a demand.

Most guests have just had a positive, high-energy experience. They are far more willing to share it than owners assume. The mistake is waiting for them to think of it on their own.

Medium-Plus: Physical Takeaways That Trigger Follow-Through

One of the most effective upgrades to a verbal ask is pairing it with a small, free physical takeaway.

Stickers work particularly well for escape rooms. They are inexpensive, require no equipment, and feel like a souvenir rather than a marketing tactic. When handed out during the exit process, they create a natural moment to mention reviews without making the request feel forced or transactional.

Including a QR code directly on the sticker is a simple but important improvement. It reduces friction by giving guests an immediate path to leave a review without needing to search later. The fewer steps involved, the more likely they are to follow through, especially while the experience is still fresh.

This approach works because of reciprocity. You are not paying for a review. You are giving guests a small token to commemorate the experience, and then inviting feedback. That distinction matters, both psychologically and from a compliance standpoint.

It is critical that:

• Everyone receives the item
• It is not conditional on leaving a review
• It is not given selectively to guests you believe will leave positive feedback

Anything else risks violating Google’s Terms of Service or drifting into FTC gray areas.

An added benefit many owners overlook is word-of-mouth marketing. Stickers don’t just live in a pocket. They end up on water bottles, laptops, notebooks, and phone cases. Every time someone asks “Where did you get that?” you’ve created another touchpoint for your escape room with zero ongoing effort.

If your escape room already provides free printed photos, that handoff moment can serve a similar purpose. If guests have to pay for the photo, the reciprocity effect largely disappears. The value comes from the gesture being freely given, not bundled into another transaction.

Expert: Automated Follow-Up

Even when guests fully intend to leave a review, life gets in the way. They get busy, forget, or tell themselves they’ll do it later. Automated follow-up exists to capture those good intentions, not to nag people into compliance.

In theory, an owner could manually follow up with every group. In reality, most escape room owners are too busy running games, managing staff, handling bookings, and solving day-to-day problems to consistently do this well. That’s why follow-up either happens inconsistently or not at all.

For escape rooms, both email and text can work. Text tends to convert better, but only if the business already has the ability to send and manage messages reliably. Email is more accessible and generally seen as less invasive, which makes it a solid option when resources are limited.

Timing matters, but it doesn’t need to be complicated. If guests came in the morning, following up later that day works well. If they came in the afternoon or evening, the next morning performs best. Many owners overthink this. In practice, one well-timed next-morning follow-up captures most of the available value.

That simplicity is important because it highlights the real issue: consistency. The difference between escape rooms that steadily grow reviews and those that don’t is rarely intent. It’s execution over time.

The goal with follow-up is restraint. Two to three total messages is enough. Beyond that, reminders turn into annoyance and start to erode goodwill.

Automated follow-up works best when guests already remember being asked in person. When stacked correctly with signage and a verbal mention, it feels like a helpful reminder rather than a solicitation. And because it runs in the background, it solves the biggest problem owners face: not knowing they should follow up, but not having the time to do it consistently.

How to Stack These Without Annoying Guests

Each method on its own has limitations. Together, they compound.

Signage introduces the idea.
The verbal ask provides context.
The physical takeaway anchors memory.
Automation captures follow-through.

When the in-person experience is respectful and unforced, the follow-up does not feel intrusive. In fact, most guests appreciate the reminder because they already intended to help.

The mistake is relying on any single tactic. The escape rooms that consistently grow reviews are not more aggressive. They are more systematic.

Conclusion

Getting more reviews is not about pressure. It’s about alignment and consistency.

Escape rooms already create memorable experiences and natural exit moments. The businesses that capitalize on that reality, instead of fighting it, win long-term.

Start with the easy wins. Layer in the human touch. Then add systems that scale without sacrificing the guest experience.

That combination is what actually works.

Want reviews to run in the background? Learn more about our Reputation Management services or schedule a strategy call.

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