This guide walks you through the steps on how to install the Shopper Approved WooCommerce plugin and integrate the code needed to begin collecting and displaying reviews.
Use the side menu of this article to skip to needed sections.
Install the Shopper Approved Plugin
Login to your WooCommerce store and install the plugin from the Plugin Store.
https://wordpress.org/plugins/shopperapproved-reviews/
Click "Download" in the upper right hand corner which will download a .zip file for you to install within your WooCommerce account.
Log in to your WooCommerce account, navigate to "Plugins" on the left hand nav. Click on "Add New Plugin" at the top. Click "Upload Plugin". Click "Choose File" to install the .zip file. Then click "Install Now".
Once the plugin has been installed, you will want to Activate the plugin by clicking on the "Activate Plugin" button.
Once the plugin is has been activated, the Shopper Approved plugin will be accessible by clicking on "Shopper Approved" on the main left hand menu in your WooCommerce dashboard. You will be guided through each step of the setup. Click on the plugin to get started within your account.
Note: If you already have a Shopper Approved account, click "Log in" to enter your Site ID and API token found in your Shopper Approved account, otherwise, click "Create an Account" to start a trial.
Continue below for step-by-step instructions for each code snippet. If you have any questions, please reach out to [email protected].
Generate a Product Feed
Select your GTIN attribute if you are using a GTIN. After selecting "Generate Product Feed", we will map your product feed to our system.
Note: It can take up to 48 hours for us to map your feed to our system.
For more details on product feeds see here.
If you are not using Google listing ads, reach out to [email protected] so we can help you with your custom product feed.
Thank you Page Survey code
The thank you page survey code will be automatically placed on your site when you enable the survey within the plugin. The survey will populate on the order confirmation page after a customer checks out.
To verify the survey is working as expected, we recommend placing an order and going through the entire checkout process like a customer would to ensure the survey pops up as expected.
Testing the survey
After placing an order, the survey should pop up. Fill out the survey and submit.
Log in to your Shopper Approved account, navigate to Seller Ratings > Manage Seller Ratings.
You should see your review at the top of the list. It will look similar to this example:
Please reach out to [email protected] if you do not see the survey after you placed an order, do not see the review you left within manage seller ratings, or if your review is not marked as "test" to prevent any issues with your review collection.
The following sections pertain to toggles within the Shopper Approved plugin:
Seal
After enabling the 'Install the Floating Seal’ toggle and clicking the "Install Seal" button,
the seal will be automatically placed in your site's footer using the wp_footer action hook.
The seal will not be visible until you collect 10 or more store reviews.
Here is what a default seal will look like:
Customizing the seal
Once your seal is displaying properly, you have the option to customize the seal by logging in to your Shopper Approved account and navigating to Seals & Widgets > Manage Seals.
From there, create a new preset and customize the seal to your liking.
Replacing the existing seal code
We recommend having a developer replace the code for you.
To replace the seal code with the existing default code, navigate to the plugin files (Tools > Plugin File Editor). The relevant function to locate from the URL below is update_seal_code and replace the existing seal code snippet.
Important note: After replacing the code, go back to the Shopper Approved plugin, and turn the "Install the Floating Seal" off and back on to see the changes reflected.
If you want to put the seal in the header, you’ll need to create custom code to do that or if you have a header.php file on your theme then you can add it there. If you are using a 3rd party page builder, then you can go to your header template and add an html block for the seal on the header.
If you do not see the seal after you have collected 10 or more reviews, please reach out to [email protected] for help.
Reviews Page
If you do not already have an existing reviews page (domain.com/reviews), our plugin has created one for you.
This will also add a shortcode [shopperapproved_reviews] inside the page content.
If you do already have a reviews page, you will want to copy and paste the Review Page Widget Code from within the Shopper Approved plugin into your existing reviews page.
Here is what a default reviews page looks like:
Customizing the reviews page
If you would like to customize your reviews page, navigate to Seals & Widgets > Reviews Page Widget within your Shopper Approved account.
Create and name your new reviews page preset.
Customize the settings to your liking
Copy the code.
Replace the reviews page code with the existing reviews page shortcode within your WooCommerce plugin under Pages > "Reviews" page.
Placing a "Reviews" page link on your website
After the reviews page has either been created by us or you have added the code to your existing reviews page, you will want to display a link to the Reviews page so customers can easily find them. We recommend either in the header, footer or both.
Within WooCommerce, go to Appearance > Menus > Select a menu to edit.
Find and select ‘Reviews’ and click “Add to menu” and then “Save Menu”.
Your "Reviews" page link should now be displayed in the menu you selected.
Rotating Widget
The rotating widget will have to be manually placed on your website after you toggle the widget on within the plugin. You can place the rotating widget anywhere you would like on your home page.
From within your WooCommerce store, navigate to Pages > Home Page > Edit. Note: your home page may have a different name.
Add an HTML block to insert the rotating widget code.
Paste the Widget Code from the plugin inside the Custom HTML block and Click “Save or Publish”.
Once you collect reviews, you will see the rotating widget on your home page.
Customizing your widget
You can customize the rotating widget by navigating to Seals & Widgets > Rotating Widget within your Shopper Approved account.
Create and name your preset.
Customize the rotating widget to your liking.
Copy and replace the existing rotating widget code under your home page under Pages > Home Page > Edit.
Note: Your Home page may have a different title.
Product reviews on Category pages
The category code will be automatically placed on your website via the toggle in the plugin. It should show up on your collection pages once you have collected product reviews.
If you do not see product reviews on your collection pages, please reach out to [email protected].
Product reviews on Product Pages
The product page code will be automatically placed on your website via the toggle in the plugin. Product review count and star rating will appear near the product name.
Product reviews will be displayed lower on your product page.
Until you have collected product reviews, we display your store reviews as a fallback.
Customizing your product widget
If you'd like to customize your product page settings, you can navigate to Setup > Product Page Code and create a new preset. Customize your product page to your liking and then copy the code and replace the existing code within your WooCommerce store.
Replacing the product widget code
We recommend having a developer replace the code.
If you have customized the product widget, you can update the widget code from within the plugin files (Tools -> Plugin File Editor). The relevant function to locate from the URL below is update_product_star_code.
URL: [WORDPRESS_SITE]/wp-admin/plugin-editor.php?file=shopperapproved-reviews/admin/class-shopperapproved-admin-menus.php&plugin=shopperapproved-reviews/shopperapproved.php
Editing Widget CSS
We recommend having a developer update any CSS.
The CSS of all the widgets can be added or updated in this file:
URL: [WORDPRESS_SITE]/wp-admin/plugin-editor.php?file=shopperapproved-reviews/public/css/shopperapproved-public.css&plugin=shopperapproved-reviews/shopperapproved.php
Important note: For the CSS changes to take effect, make sure to clear your browser's cache.
Confirm the survey is working
In order to confirm your survey is working properly, we recommend placing a test order on your website. This article will guide you through how to verify your survey is working properly.
https://help.shopperapproved.com/en/articles/9565904-verify-your-survey-is-working-properly-by-placing-a-test-order
Best Practices (enhance your service)
To get the most out of your review collection, we highly recommend turning on the "Email All" feature which allows us to email all customers who checkout regardless if they fill out the survey at checkout or not.
For more information on all our best practices, please read this article for all our recommended best practices to ensure you are getting the most out of our service.
If you need help with your integration or have any questions about your account, please reach out to [email protected].