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Reviews Feed – Add Testimonials and Customer Reviews From Google Reviews, Yelp, TripAdvisor, and More / 2.10.0
Reviews Feed – Add Testimonials and Customer Reviews From Google Reviews, Yelp, TripAdvisor, and More v2.10.0
2.11.0 2.10.0 2.9.0 2.8.0 2.7.0 2.6.7 2.6.8 2.6.5 2.6.4 2.6.3 2.6.2 2.6.0 2.5.5 2.5.4 2.5.3 2.5.2 trunk 1.0 1.0.1 1.0.2 1.0.3 1.1 1.1.1 1.1.2 1.2.0 2.0 2.1.0 2.1.1 2.4.0 2.4.1 2.4.2 2.4.3 2.4.4 2.4.5 2.4.6 2.5.0 2.5.1
reviews-feed / readme.txt
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readme.txt
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1 === Reviews Feed – Add Testimonials and Customer Reviews From Google Reviews, Yelp, TripAdvisor, and More ===
2 Contributors: smashballoon, craig-at-smash-balloon, am, smub
3 Tags: Google reviews, reviews, testimonials, yelp, Google business
4 Requires at least: 4.1
5 Tested up to: 7.0
6 Stable tag: 2.10.0
7 Requires PHP: 7.4
8 License: GPLv2 or later
9 License URI: http://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-2.0.html
10
11 No API key required. Display Yelp and Google reviews for any business in a clean, customizable feed on your site.
12
13 == Description ==
14
15 Display Yelp and Google business reviews on your site, either in the same single feed or in multiple different ones. Provide social proof through real customer testimonials that will turn site visitors into paying customers.
16
17 https://vimeo.com/1166356273
18
19 If a Google business listing has a physical location, you can display your latest reviews for it in an attractive feed. You can also enter the website address of any Yelp business and instantly create a feed of your Yelp reviews as well. Business ratings are an important part of social proof to increase customer confidence in your online business. Website visitors will instantly increase their trust in your business if they can see real customer reviews from real customers.
20
21 Showing Google rating and Yelp reviews on your website is one of the best ways to convince site visitors to do business with you and boost your conversions. Customer testimonials are crucial to building positive brand trust for online businesses.
22
23 Our plugin makes it easy to set up an automatically updating feed of Yelp and Google reviews. After installing the plugin, create a feed by visiting the Reviews Feed menu item that appears in your dashboard. Configure a source of reviews for your feed, customize the look and feel, then use a shortcode to display your reviews feed anywhere on your site. It takes less than a minute to get started.
24
25 In our free version, an API key is required only if you would like ongoing updates to your reviews feed. If you don't have an API key, you can still display up to 10 of the latest reviews for a single business without needing an API key. Simply verify your email address to unlock this feature!
26
27 = Features =
28 * Super **simple to set up**
29 * Display reviews from **multiple Google and Yelp accounts** in the same feed or in separate feeds
30 * Completely **responsive** and mobile ready - layout looks great on any screen size and in any container width
31 * **Completely customizable** - Customize the width, height, number of reviews, number of columns, text size, background color, review spacing and more!
32 * Display **multiple reviews feeds** on the same page or on different pages throughout your site
33 * Customize the length of the review text with the ability to show the entire text with a click
34 * Choose to show your Google reviews translated in many supported languages or show them without translation
35 * Display the reviewer's name, date and start rating of each Google review or Yelp review
36 * Show the **overall star rating** of your Google or Yelp listing in a customizable header at the top of the feed
37 * Prompt site visitors to leave a review on Google or Yelp with a button in the header
38 * Display your Yelp and Google reviews in chronological order or reverse chronological order.
39 * Automatically show new reviews, collected daily when you enter you own API keys (free and easy to get)
40 * **New!** Display up to 10 of the latest **free Google reviews** or **free Yelp reviews** for a single business without needing an API key. Simply verify your email address to unlock this feature!
41 * Handy block for easily adding your reviews feed to posts and pages using the block editor
42
43 = Benefits =
44 * **Build Brand Trust** - Customer reviews are essential to building trust with customers
45 * **Social Proof** - Real customer reviews, proven to increase sales.
46 * **Display Your Reviews Your Way** - Customize your Google review and Yelp review feeds to look exactly the way you want, so that they blend seamlessly into your site or pop out at your visitors!
47 * **Keep Your Site Looking Fresh** - Show your latest Yelp and Google reviews and Yelp reviews updated automatically every day.
48 * **Super Simple to Set Up** - Once installed, you can be displaying your Yelp and Google reviews within a minute! No confusing steps or special account needed.
49
50 = Pro Version =
51 In order to maintain the free version of the plugin on an ongoing basis, and to provide quick and effective support for free, we offer a Pro version of the plugin. The Pro version allows you to:
52 * Include Trustpilot, TripAdvisor, WordPress.org and Facebook reviews in your feed
53 * Filter reviews by star rating
54 * Create and add reviews manually to feeds
55 * Create custom collections of specific reviews to display anywhere
56 * Show reviews in a carousel slider
57 * Show images from Yelp reviews that open in a large popup lightbox
58 * Show avatar images for all reviewers
59 * Filter customer reviews by keyword or phrase
60 * Moderate your review feeds with a visual moderation mode, select specific reviews to display in the feed
61 * Choose from several attractive preconfigured templates
62 * Highlight a specific Google review or Yelp review
63 * Even more advanced customization options than the free version
64 * Block reviews by specific users
65 * Integrate with WPML (WordPress Multilingual) to show translated Google reviews in the chosen site language
66 * **Unlock more reviews and automatic updates without API keys!** The Pro version allows you to display up to 50 initial reviews from Google and Yelp and receive weekly automatic updates from multiple sources - all without needing to add an API key.
67 * **Collect and display user-submitted reviews!** Seamlessly integrate with WPForms and Formidable Forms to collect customer reviews directly through your forms and display them in your review feeds.
68 * **NEW! Display WooCommerce product reviews!** Showcase reviews from your WooCommerce store by selecting individual products, categories, or tags.
69
70 [Find out more about the Pro version](https://smashballoon.com/reviews-feed/?utm_source=reviews-free&utm_medium=readmefile&utm_campaign=readme-pro-upsell&utm_content=FindOutMore).
71
72 = Featured Reviews from Smash Balloon Products =
73 "The plugins created by Smash Balloon are absolutely solid! I’ve used them all on various websites. But recently, there was a code conflict caused by another plugin. I reached to Smash Balloon’s customer support, and they went over and beyond to help me resolve the issue." - walterhnry
74
75 "The guys @smashballoon are the bomb! thank you! I’ve been looking for an Instagram plugin like yours forever! Thank you Thank you Thank you!" - ApisCera
76
77 = Feedback or Support =
78 We're dedicated to providing the most customizable, robust and well supported Yelp and Google reviews feed plugin in the world, so if you have an issue or have any feedback on how to improve the plugin, then please open a ticket in the [Support forum](http://wordpress.org/support/plugin/reviews-feed 'Reviews Feed Support Forum').
79
80 For advanced review moderation by star rating or curated list, to display Yelp review images, display reviews in a carousel slider + more, check out the [Pro version](https://smashballoon.com/reviews-feed/?utm_source=reviews-free&utm_medium=readmefile&utm_campaign=readme-pro-features&utm_content=MoreAdvanced).
81
82 == Installation ==
83
84 1. Install the Review Feeds plugin either via the WordPress plugin directory, or by uploading the files to your web server (in the `/wp-content/plugins/` directory).
85 2. Activate the Reviews Feed plugin through the 'Plugins' menu in WordPress.
86 3. Navigate to the 'Reviews Feed' settings page to connect your Google business or Yelp account.
87 4. Use the shortcode `[reviews-feed feed=1]` in your page, post or widget to display your reviews.
88 5. You can display multiple reviews feeds by using shortcode options, for example: `[reviews-feed feed=2]`
89
90 For simple step-by-step directions on how to set up the Reviews Feed plugin, please refer to our [setup guide](http://smashballoon.com/reviews-feed/free/?utm_source=reviews-free&utm_medium=readmefile&utm_campaign=readme-setup&utm_content=SetupGuide).
91
92 = Display your Feed =
93
94 **Single Reviews Feed**
95
96 Copy and paste the following shortcode directly into the page, post or widget where you'd like the Yelp and Google reviews feed to show up: `[reviews-feed feed=1]`
97
98 **Multiple Reviews Feeds**
99
100 If you'd like to display multiple review feeds, then you can set different settings by creating another feed using the customizer: `[reviews-feed feed=2]`
101
102 You can display as many different Yelp and Google reviews feeds as you like, on either the same page or on different pages, by just using the shortcode options below after creating multiple reviews feeds in the customizer. For example:
103 `[reviews-feed feed=2]`
104 `[reviews-feed feed=3]`
105 `[reviews-feed feed=4]`
106
107 = Setting up the Free Reviews Feed WordPress Plugin =
108
109 1) Once you've installed the Reviews Feed plugin, click on the Reviews Feed item in your WordPress menu
110
111 2) Click on the "Add New" button. Then add a source by clicking the "Add New" button on the source selection page.
112
113 3) Select either "Yelp" or "Google" as the review provider. For Yelp reviews, enter the URL of the business page on yelp.com. For Google reviews, use the provided link to find a place ID for the business.
114
115 4) After connecting and selecting your review sources, select the "default" feed template.
116
117 5) You will now see a preview of your reviews feed along with customization options.
118
119 6) After you are done customizing, save your changes and click the "Embed" button. Choose the option to copy and paste a shortcode wherever you'd like or select a page to embed with a Gutenberg block.
120
121 == Frequently Asked Questions ==
122
123 = Can I display multiple reviews feeds on my site or on the same page? =
124
125 Yep. You can display multiple reviews feeds by creating multiple feeds and using multiple shortcodes: `[reviews-feed feed=1] [reviews-feed feed=2]`.
126
127 = Can I show reviews from more than one account in one single feed? =
128
129 Yep. You can add multiple accounts from both Google and Yelp using the customizer.
130
131 = How do I find my Google business place ID? =
132
133 We include a handy link to Google's place ID finder when connecting your Google account to the plugin.
134
135 = My review feed is empty. What happened!? =
136
137 There are a few common reasons for this:
138
139 * **Your Google business does not have a physical address.** At this time, only Google businesses with a physical address can be included in the feed.
140
141 * **There are no reviews available for the provider.** Make sure there are reviews available on Google or Yelp for your chosen business.
142
143 If you're still having an issue displaying your feed, then please open a ticket in the [Support forum](http://wordpress.org/support/plugin/reviews-feed 'Reviews Feed Support Forum') with a link to the page where you're trying to display the reviews feed and, if possible, a link to your Google business or Yelp business page.
144
145 = How do I get a Google business (Google Maps) API key? =
146
147 It’s free and simple to get an API key for Google reviews. This allows you to continue to get fresh Google reviews daily. [See our guide here](https://smashballoon.com/doc/creating-a-google-api-key/?reviews&utm_source=reviews-free&utm_medium=readmefile&utm_campaign=readme-google-key&utm_content=CreateKey).
148
149 = How do I get a Yelp reviews API key? =
150
151 Yelp also provides a free API key that is easy to obtain. This allows you to continue to get fresh Yelp reviews daily. [See our guide here](https://smashballoon.com/doc/creating-a-yelp-api-key/?reviews&utm_source=reviews-free&utm_medium=readmefile&utm_campaign=readme-yelp-key&utm_content=CreateKey).
152
153 = How do I filter my reviews by star rating? =
154
155 This is a feature of the [Pro version](https://smashballoon.com/reviews-feed/?utm_source=reviews-free&utm_medium=readmefile&utm_campaign=readme-star-filter&utm_content=ProVersion) of the plugin, which allows you to filter your review feeds, show Yelp review images, show reviews in a carousel + more!
156
157 = Can I control the reviews I want to appear in my feed? =
158 This is a feature of the [Pro version](https://smashballoon.com/reviews-feed/?utm_source=reviews-free&utm_medium=readmefile&utm_campaign=readme-mod-mode&utm_content=ProVersion) of the plugin, which lets you easily show specific reviews or hide certain ratings from your feed.
159 = Are other review providers available besides Yelp and Google? =
160
161 Our [Pro version](https://smashballoon.com/reviews-feed/?utm_source=reviews-free&utm_medium=readmefile&utm_campaign=readme-more-providers&utm_content=ProVersion) offers support for Facebook reviews, Trustpilot reviews, and WooCommerce product reviews in the "Plus" tier, and additionally TripAdvisor reviews and WordPress.org reviews in the "Elite" tier.
162
163 == Screenshots ==
164
165 1. Edit and manage multiple feeds
166 2. Display reviews from multiple platforms
167 3. Completely customize your feed
168 4. Responsive by design
169 5. Customize with a live preview
170 6. Choose between multiple layouts
171 7. Embed it anywhere
172
173 == Other Notes ==
174
175 Build positive brand trust in your Google business or Yelp listing with real Yelp and Google reviews on your website. Super simple to set up and tons of customization options to seamlessly match the look and feel of your site.
176
177 = Why do I need this? =
178
179 **Boost Social Proof**
180 Showing real customer reviews on your checkout page, pricing page, and in other places on your website has been shown to increase conversions and boost sales of your Google business or Yelp store.
181
182 **Save Time**
183 Don't have time to update the reviews on your site? Save time and increase efficiency by setting up a feed once and having the latest reviews show up automatically on your website.
184
185 **Display Your Reviews Your Way**
186 Customize your review feeds to look exactly the way you want, so that they blend seamlessly into your site or pop out at your visitors!
187
188 **No Coding Required**
189 Choose from tons of built-in Reviews Feed customization options to create a truly unique feed of your Yelp and Google reviews.
190
191 **Super simple to set up**
192 Once installed, you can be displaying your Yelp and Google reviews in under a minute! No confusing steps or registration needed.
193
194 **Mind-blowing Customer Support**
195 We understand that sometimes you need help, have issues or just have questions. We love our users and strive to provide the best support experience in the business. We're experts in the Yelp and Google reviews API and can provide unparalleled service and expertise. If you need support then just let us know and we'll get back to you right away.
196
197 = What can it do? =
198
199 * Display reviews from any physical Google business or Yelp business listing.
200 * Completely responsive and mobile ready –your reviews feed layout looks great on any screen size and in any container width
201 * Display multiple reviews feeds on the same page or on different pages throughout your site by creating multiple feeds in our customizer
202 * Choose a language for your Google reviews content to display in or leave reviews untranslated.
203 * Collect and permanently store new Yelp and Google reviews over time. Use our feature to load more reviews on the page.
204 * Encourage visitors to leave their own reviews with a link to Google or Yelp to rate your business.
205
206 == Changelog ==
207 = 2.10.0 =
208 * New: Rich snippets. Your reviews can now show as star ratings in Google search results — the plugin adds schema.org markup for your feeds. Works with or without an SEO plugin (it merges into All in One SEO when that's active). On by default, with a toggle under Settings → Advanced.
209 * Improvement: "Read more" reliably expands long reviews.
210 * Fix: Plugin security hardening.
211
212 = 2.9.0 =
213 * Improved: The upgrade prompts for our premium review sources — Airbnb, Booking.com, AliExpress and Easy Digital Downloads — now show each service's own branding, for a clearer, more consistent look.
214 * Improved: Accessibility. Feeds now work properly with keyboards and screen readers — list and heading structure, described source icons, a real "Read more" button, announcements after "Load More", and visible focus outlines.
215 * Maintenance: behind-the-scenes improvements and compatibility updates.
216
217 = 2.8.0 =
218 * Fix: You can now add a TripAdvisor source without entering an API key — the API key step now has a Skip option.
219 * Maintenance: behind-the-scenes improvements and compatibility updates.
220
221 = 2.7.0 =
222 * Maintenance: behind-the-scenes improvements and compatibility updates.
223
224 = 2.6.8 =
225 * Improved: On multilingual sites using WPML, your Google reviews now show up fully translated in every language you offer — not just the first few. Whichever language a visitor is browsing in, they'll see all of your reviews in that language, including when they click "Load More".
226
227 = 2.6.7 =
228 * Fix: Minor fixes and plugin hardening.
229 * Compatibility: Tested and confirmed compatible with WordPress 7.0.
230
231 = 2.6.5 =
232 * Fix: Feeds that combine more than one source now show the correct total review count and a properly weighted average rating — on your published pages, not just in the Feed Builder preview.
233 * Fix: Resolved a rare PHP error that could stop a feed from displaying.
234 * Fix: Reviews feeds load faster on Elementor sites — the plugin no longer runs extra background database lookups on every page, which could slow down sites with a lot of feeds.
235 * Fix: Fixed feeds dropping to only a few reviews after moving a site to a new domain — the plugin now reconnects to your existing account on the new address instead of getting stuck.
236 * Fix: Removing a review source now works properly — deleting one could previously error out, or leave you unable to add a new source even when none was showing in your list.
237 * Fix: Clicking Clear All Caches now refreshes your reviews right away, instead of sometimes leaving a feed empty until the next scheduled update.
238 * Fix: Pro customers (including legacy All Access Bundle licenses) are no longer mistakenly shown a free-plan review limit — your full set of reviews loads as expected.
239 * Fix: Addtional plugin hardening.
240
241 = 2.6.4 =
242 * Fix: Improved loading performance for the block editor and Reviews Feed dashboard, keeping these screens fast and responsive on sites with large amounts of content.
243 * Fix: Corrected a few misspelled labels in several translations.
244
245 = 2.6.3 =
246 * New: A modern Reviews Feed block for the WordPress block editor, plus a new Elementor widget — pick one of your feeds and drop it onto any page or post visually, no shortcode needed.
247 * Fix: Resolved a critical error on PHP 8 sites where an unexpected response from a review source could crash the page instead of being skipped over. Feeds now stay up and quietly ignore malformed review data.
248 * Fix: Adding or refreshing Google and Yelp sources is more reliable — when the reviews service is slow to respond, the connection no longer hangs or leaves you with an empty feed.
249
250 = 2.6.2 =
251 * Fix: Improved reliability on PHP 8 — when a review source can't be reached, the plugin now logs the issue quietly in the background instead of interrupting the feed builder.
252 * Tweak: Refreshed the Easy Digital Downloads source icon to match EDD's current branding.
253
254 = 2.6.0 =
255 * Tweak: Cleaner small-icon notice graphics — admin notification thumbnails now keep their aspect ratio instead of being stretched into a square.
256 * Tweak: Notification icons load reliably across the admin area; the small "Reviews Feed" thumbnails that occasionally appeared as broken images now resolve to the correct file.
257
258 = 2.5.5 =
259 * Fix: Background cron update optimizations — feed processing batches more efficiently, reducing Google Places API requests on sites with multiple feeds.
260 * Fix: Connection stability under transient server conditions such as cache events, brief deploys, and high-traffic parallel requests.
261 * Fix: Site URL recognition across proxy formats (Cloudflare, AWS, Nginx), www variations, and trailing-dot domain forms for consistent connectivity behind any hosting setup.
262 * Tweak: Update external links.
263
264 = 2.5.4 =
265 * Fix: Resolved a registration loop on multilingual sites (WPML, Polylang) where WordPress's home URL emitted different language paths across requests.
266 * Fix: Hardened the registration retry limiter so it correctly stops repeated requests even when the plugin successfully registers in a loop.
267
268 = 2.5.3 =
269 * Fix: Resolved a loop where sites that switched between http and https (for example after enabling SSL via their host) kept re-registering on every page load.
270 * Tweak: Added a safeguard that limits how often the plugin can retry registration when something goes wrong, so it never floods your site or our servers.
271
272 = 2.5.2 =
273 * Fix: Google reviews from authors with non-Latin names (Japanese, Korean, Arabic, Cyrillic, etc.) no longer disappear.
274 * Fix: Source address now shows under the business name for your Google sources.
275 * Fix: Total ratings no longer dips during a provider outage — falls back to last good count.
276 * Fix: Plugin self-heals on next admin load if settings get corrupted by a backup/migration tool.
277
278 = 2.5.1 =
279 * Fix: Resolved an issue where email verification could get stuck in a loop if the email was already verified.
280 * Fix: Resolved an error that could occur when clicking an expired email verification link.
281 * Fix: Email verification now completes successfully even if your session has expired.
282 * Tweak: Improved security for the email verification process.
283
284 = 2.5.0 =
285 * Fix: Resolved PHP 8.1+ deprecation warning when feed settings were not an array.
286 * Tweak: Added security fix with rel="noreferrer" on external links.
287 * Tweak: Accessibility improvements for interactive elements.
288
289 = 2.4.6 =
290 * New: Added deactivation feedback survey to help improve the plugin.
291 * Fix: Improved block editor performance by eliminating unnecessary database queries on page load.
292
293 = 2.4.5 =
294 * Fix: Resolved international character encoding issues (æ, ø, å, etc.) in source names causing API errors.
295 * Fix: Improved HTML entity decoding in review content display.
296 * Tweak: Enhanced source identification reliability for API communications.
297
298 = 2.4.4 =
299 * Fix: Resolved Borlabs Cookie 3.x compatibility issue preventing consent detection.
300 * Fix: Improved website registration token handling for better reliability.
301
302 = 2.4.3 =
303 * Tweak: Improved API key handling for all review providers.
304 * Tweak: Saved API keys are now used when adding new sources.
305 * Tweak: Enhanced API communication reliability.
306
307 = 2.4.2 =
308 * Tweak: Plugin hardening and miscellaneous fixes.
309
310 = 2.4.1 =
311 * Tweak: Add official support for WordPress 6.9.
312
313 = 2.4.0 =
314 * New: Full PHP 8.4 compatibility with all deprecation warnings resolved.
315 * New: Pagination for feeds and sources lists in the admin for better management of large numbers of items.
316 * Tweak: Plugin hardening and miscellaneous fixes.
317 * Fix: Fixed spelling errors in code.
318 * Fix: Various bug fixes and performance improvements.
319
320 = 2.1.1 =
321 * Fix - Fixed the issue that would cause the _load_textdomain_just_in_time deprecation warning.
322
323 = 2.1.0 =
324 * New - Added integration with the new Google Places API.
325
326 = 2.0 =
327 * New: Get an initial set of reviews without an API key after verifying an email address. Our Pro version will also update your sources without an API key. You can still add an API key for more frequent updates and unlimited sources.
328 * Tweak: Added additional logging to troubleshoot certain feed issues.
329 * Fix: Additional plugin hardening.
330
331 = 1.2.0 =
332 * Important: The minimum PHP version is now 7.4.
333 * Fix: Plugin hardening.
334 * Fix: Fixed an issue causing the cache to not work properly. Feeds and headers would not update.
335 * Fix: Miscellaneous fixes and enhancements.
336
337 = 1.1.2 =
338 * Fix: Fixed an issue that would cause feed sources to update more frequently than intended.
339
340 = 1.1.1 =
341 * Tweak: Added load more button in sources list.
342 * Fix: Miscellaneous fixes and enhancements.
343
344 = 1.1 =
345 * New: Add a minimum and maximum character length setting to hide short or long reviews if needed. In the feed customizer, visit the Settings tab, Filters sub-tab to configure this setting.
346 * Tweak: A source is automatically selected when it's added in the feed creation process.
347 * Fix: Fixed an issue that would cause reviews to be shorter than expected.
348 * Fix: Fixed the text for expanding reviews.
349 * Fix: Fixed issues and PHP warnings that affected sites using PHP 8.1+.
350
351 = 1.0.3 =
352 * Tweak: Added support for a combined endpoint to retrieve review and header information for Google in one API request.
353 * Fix: Fixed typos in some of the customizer settings.
354
355 = 1.0.2 =
356 * Fix: Fixed an issue causing duplicate reviews to show for Google sources under certain circumstances.
357 * Fix: Fixed the default URL to leave a review not working under some circumstances.
358
359 = 1.0.1 =
360 * Fix: Fixed PHP error "undefined index" when header data was not available for a feed.
361 * Fix: Changed relative file paths to absolute paths to prevent rare fatal PHP error when activating.
362
363 = 1.0 =
364 * New: Launched Reviews Feed!
365