Getting Started with Sendlane Reviews

Overview

Welcome to Sendlane Reviews! With Sendlane Reviews you can collect, monitor, and leverage review behavior data to increase revenue, all within the Sendlane platform and included free with your email subscription! Sendlane Reviews also provides review previews on organic Google searches of your products!

Read on to get started with Sendlane Reviews, and use the checklists in this guide to track your progress!

In This Guide

  1. Import Existing Reviews
  2. Install and Customize Main Reviews Widget and Star Rating Widget
  3. Set Up Reviews Automations

🚦 Before Getting Started

  1. Integrate your Sendlane account with Shopify, BigCommerce, or a custom integration*
  2. Turn off your previous Reviews providers' review request system
  3. Have admin access to your Shopify or BigCommerce store
  4. Create a List named Reviews
  5. Associate the Reviews List with your eCommerce integration by clicking the Settings icon next to your store and selecting the List from the Reviews dropdown
  6. On your Shopify or BigCommerce integration page, click the Settings icon and select your new Reviews List under the Reviews dropdown

*Custom integrations cannot connect WooCommerce stores to Sendlane Reviews.

⚠️ Users of Sendlane Reviews are subject to the FTC's Trade Regulation Rule on the Use of Consumer Reviews and Testimonials, which can incur large fines if violated

You are responsible for reviewing, understanding, and complying with the FTC's Trade Regulation Rule on the Use of Consumer Reviews and Testimonials.

See the final rule's press release for commentary from the FTC and descriptions of prohibited behavior, which include:

  • Knowingly generating or disseminating (publishing) fake reviews or testimonials written by AI or people who did not purchase or experience the product
  • Implicitly or explicitly providing compensation (cash, gifts, or any other incentives) in exchange for reviews of a specific nature (positive for your product or negative for competitors' products)
  • Disseminating reviews or testimonials from your brand's management or leadership and not complying with requirements for reviews disseminated by your company's employees or their families
  • Implicitly or explicitly stating that Sendlane generates reviews or guarantees the independence or impartiality of your brand's reviews
  • Using threats, intimidation, or other "certain false public accusations" to prevent customers from posting a review or convince them to remove a negative review
  • Publicly declaring that negative reviews have not been artificially suppressed when you have removed negative reviews from your store without an appropriate reason
  • Buying or selling false social media metrics such as views, likes, or follows

What you can do to stay compliant:

  • Never publish, create, or solicit fake reviews
  • Request reviews only from verified customers and use neutral language; do not specifically ask for a positive review
  • Do not offer incentives (like discounts or gifts) for positive reviews, and do not ask customers to change negative reviews to positive
  • Ensure reviews from your employees are clearly marked as such and maintain clear disclosure policies for employees
  • Moderate reviews consistently; do not suppress negative reviews solely because they are negative

Sendlane Reviews contains built-in compliance tools, like autopublishing pending reviews after 14 days regardless of star rating, but you are ultimately responsible for ensuring your use of Sendlane Reviews follows all applicable laws and regulations. Contact your legal team for further guidance on compliance.

⚠️ Sendlane Reviews does not include loyalty functionality

If your existing reviews platform includes loyalty points or other rewards functionality, you will need to maintain access to it.

1

 Import Existing Reviews

If you’ve already collected reviews with another platform you can import them to Sendlane and hit the ground running!

Follow the instructions provided in our platform specific review import guides:

📍 Import Checkpoint

At this point, you should have:

  1. Exported reviews from a previous reviews provider
  2. Formatted the .CSV file of reviews according to Sendlane Review file acceptance standards
  3. Uploaded the .CSV file of reviews to your Sendlane account
2

 Install and Customize Reviews Widgets and SEO Page

Sendlane Reviews requires three snippets to be added to your Shopify or BigCommerce store. A script connects your store to your Sendlane account, and two widgets display product reviews and average star ratings.

1. Check out our detailed step by step guides to installing Reviews:

2. Check out our guide to customizing your reviews widget for a thorough look at all settings and style options.

3. Install and style an SEO page of all reviews

📍 Installation Checkpoint

At this point, you should have:

  1. Installed the Reviews Script in your eCommerce store
  2. Installed the Reviews Main Widget in your eCommerce store
  3. Installed the Reviews Star Rating Widget in your eCommerce store
  4. Customized your Reviews widget's styling
  5. Installed an SEO page of reviews
  6. Customized the SEO page's styling
3

 Set Up Reviews Automations

Sendlane’s Reviews platform is powered by our in house Automations which let you automatically request reviews from purchasers, respond to reviews with an email or SMS message, and notify reviewers that you've commented on their review.

Use the guides linked in the table below to set up Automations for Sendlane Reviews!

Automation Required?
Review Request Automation
 Yes
Review Response
 Highly recommended but not required for Reviews to function
Review Reply Notification
 Highly recommended but not required for Reviews to function

📍 Automation Checkpoint

At this point, you should have:

  1. Created an Automation to request reviews from customers
  2. Created an Automation to send an email or SMS response to review submitters
  3. Created an Automation to notify review submitters that you've replied to their review in your store
  4. Activated each of the Automations

⏭️ Next Steps: Moderate Reviews

With Sendlane Reviews your customers can “like” reviews and you can reply to reviews to increase engagement!

Head to the Moderation tab of the Reviews page to adjust review settings, comment settings, and moderation settings. Reviews can be rejected for a wide range of reasons allowing you to keep bad actors out of your store’s average review score.

Check out our guide to review moderation for more details!

Frequently Asked Questions

How much does Sendlane Reviews cost?

Sendlane Reviews is completely free and included with your email subscription! The only costs you'll incur when using Sendlane Reviews are the email credits used by reviews-related Automations

Which eCommerce platforms can integrate with Sendlane Reviews?

Sendlane Reviews supports Shopify, BigCommerce, and custom stores.

Can you use SMS with Sendlane Reviews?

SMS is not currently supported for requesting or responding to Sendlane Reviews, but this functionality is on our road map!

What can customers submit with their reviews?

Customers must submit text of their review and have the option to upload photos. Videos are not currently supported.

Does Sendlane Reviews include question and answer functionality or custom questions about specific products?

Sendlane Reviews does not currently support questions and answers where customers ask questions that the merchant or other customers can answer, or custom questions about specific products.

Can the Reviews widget's language be changed?

At this time the Reviews widget is only available in English

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