Adds Business Profile full-review sync, a clearer source-selection admin flow, and safer source-mode switching.<\/p>","0.1.8":"
Adds fuller carousel controls, safe wrapper-class overrides, and clearer guidance about the Google Places 5-review limit.<\/p>","0.1.1":"
Improves the wp-admin curation experience and makes sync and Google API errors clearer.<\/p>","0.1.0":"
Initial release of Softlinkster Reviews for Google.<\/p>"},"ratings":[],"assets_icons":{"icon-128x128.png":{"filename":"icon-128x128.png","revision":3668126,"resolution":"128x128","location":"assets","locale":"","width":128,"height":128},"icon-256x256.png":{"filename":"icon-256x256.png","revision":3668126,"resolution":"256x256","location":"assets","locale":"","width":256,"height":256}},"assets_banners":{"banner-1544x500.png":{"filename":"banner-1544x500.png","revision":3666897,"resolution":"1544x500","location":"assets","locale":"","width":1544,"height":500},"banner-772x250.png":{"filename":"banner-772x250.png","revision":3666897,"resolution":"772x250","location":"assets","locale":"","width":772,"height":250}},"assets_blueprints":{},"all_blocks":[],"tagged_versions":["0.1.0","0.1.1","0.1.2","0.1.3","0.1.4","0.1.5","0.1.6","0.1.7","0.2.0"],"block_files":[],"assets_screenshots":{"screenshot-1.png":{"filename":"screenshot-1.png","revision":3666897,"resolution":"1","location":"assets","locale":"","width":1600,"height":1400},"screenshot-2.png":{"filename":"screenshot-2.png","revision":3666897,"resolution":"2","location":"assets","locale":"","width":1585,"height":2229},"screenshot-3.png":{"filename":"screenshot-3.png","revision":3666897,"resolution":"3","location":"assets","locale":"","width":1585,"height":2226},"screenshot-4.png":{"filename":"screenshot-4.png","revision":3666897,"resolution":"4","location":"assets","locale":"","width":1585,"height":1466},"screenshot-5.png":{"filename":"screenshot-5.png","revision":3666897,"resolution":"5","location":"assets","locale":"","width":1585,"height":2191},"screenshot-6.png":{"filename":"screenshot-6.png","revision":3666897,"resolution":"6","location":"assets","locale":"","width":1600,"height":1400}},"screenshots":{"1":"Saved Views screen for managing reusable Google review shortcodes","2":"View Editor screen for display options and live frontend preview","3":"Style tab for layout, typography, and color customization","4":"Global Settings screen for Google Places connection, sync, and business lookup","5":"Configured settings state with saved location and cached review curation controls","6":"Frontend page example showing the neutral default review layout on a live page"}},"plugin_section":[],"plugin_tags":[21827,245569,191069,80,5103],"plugin_category":[43],"plugin_contributors":[259068,259069],"plugin_business_model":[],"class_list":["post-358255","plugin","type-plugin","status-publish","hentry","plugin_tags-google-reviews","plugin_tags-places-api","plugin_tags-reviews-widget","plugin_tags-shortcode","plugin_tags-testimonial-slider","plugin_category-customization","plugin_contributors-khurramshehzad","plugin_contributors-proudnation47","plugin_committers-proudnation47"],"banners":{"banner":"https:\/\/ps.w.org\/softlinkster-reviews-for-google\/assets\/banner-772x250.png?rev=3666897","banner_2x":"https:\/\/ps.w.org\/softlinkster-reviews-for-google\/assets\/banner-1544x500.png?rev=3666897","banner_rtl":false,"banner_2x_rtl":false},"icons":{"svg":false,"icon":"https:\/\/ps.w.org\/softlinkster-reviews-for-google\/assets\/icon-128x128.png?rev=3668126","icon_2x":"https:\/\/ps.w.org\/softlinkster-reviews-for-google\/assets\/icon-256x256.png?rev=3668126","generated":false},"screenshots":[{"src":"https:\/\/ps.w.org\/softlinkster-reviews-for-google\/assets\/screenshot-1.png?rev=3666897","caption":"Saved Views screen for managing reusable Google review shortcodes"},{"src":"https:\/\/ps.w.org\/softlinkster-reviews-for-google\/assets\/screenshot-2.png?rev=3666897","caption":"View Editor screen for display options and live frontend preview"},{"src":"https:\/\/ps.w.org\/softlinkster-reviews-for-google\/assets\/screenshot-3.png?rev=3666897","caption":"Style tab for layout, typography, and color customization"},{"src":"https:\/\/ps.w.org\/softlinkster-reviews-for-google\/assets\/screenshot-4.png?rev=3666897","caption":"Global Settings screen for Google Places connection, sync, and business lookup"},{"src":"https:\/\/ps.w.org\/softlinkster-reviews-for-google\/assets\/screenshot-5.png?rev=3666897","caption":"Configured settings state with saved location and cached review curation controls"},{"src":"https:\/\/ps.w.org\/softlinkster-reviews-for-google\/assets\/screenshot-6.png?rev=3666897","caption":"Frontend page example showing the neutral default review layout on a live page"}],"raw_content":"\n
Softlinkster Reviews for Google helps you display Google business reviews in WordPress without being locked into a single layout. Create reusable saved views, style each one separately, and place them anywhere with a shortcode.<\/p>\n\n
If you want a Google reviews plugin for WordPress that can handle homepage sections, testimonial grids, review sliders, carousel layouts, or marquee-style moving rows, this plugin is built for that workflow.<\/p>\n\n
What Softlinkster Reviews for Google does:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n Create multiple saved views and give each one its own shortcode. One view can be a homepage review slider, another can be a grid for a services page, and another can be a compact testimonial section for a landing page.<\/p>\n\n Choose from stacked cards, grid, compact, carousel, and marquee layouts. Each saved view keeps its own display and style settings, so different pages can show Google reviews differently without editing code.<\/p>\n\n Preview layout and styling changes inside the plugin before saving. This makes it easier to tune card spacing, typography, colors, visibility options, and motion-based layouts from one screen.<\/p>\n\n Search for your business inside wp-admin, save the correct place, and reuse that saved location across views instead of copying Place IDs manually every time.<\/p>\n\n Hide reviews, feature important ones, and adjust internal sort weight for cached review items. This helps you shape the order of visible reviews without changing the original Google review content.<\/p>\n\n The plugin fetches Google Places review content, stores it in a time-limited local cache, and refreshes it on a daily schedule or on demand. This keeps the plugin aligned with Google Places caching limits instead of promising permanent review storage.<\/p>\n\n Choose The plugin ships with one neutral default template. Developers can override that output from the active theme when they want a custom frontend design.<\/p>\n\n To keep the plugin WordPress.org-safe, it does not<\/strong> ship with any API key. Each site owner must provide their own Google Places API key and business location data.<\/p>\n\n Admin menu:<\/p>\n\n Optional constant overrides:<\/p>\n\n The plugin uses a neutral default template. Themes can override it by adding either of these files:<\/p>\n\n Primary shortcode:<\/p>\n\n Saved view example:<\/p>\n\n Supported shortcode attributes:<\/p>\n\n Example:<\/p>\n\n This plugin connects to Google APIs provided by Google LLC.<\/p>\n\n It contacts the service when:<\/p>\n\n It sends:<\/p>\n\n It receives:<\/p>\n\n Google Maps Platform Terms of Service:\nhttps:\/\/cloud.google.com\/maps-platform\/terms<\/p>\n\n Google Places API policies and attribution requirements:\nhttps:\/\/developers.google.com\/maps\/documentation\/places\/web-service\/policies<\/p>\n\n Google Business Profile API information:\nhttps:\/\/developers.google.com\/my-business\/<\/p>\n\n Google Privacy Policy:\nhttps:\/\/policies.google.com\/privacy<\/p>\n\n\n No. The plugin never ships with an API key. Every site owner must provide their own key.<\/p><\/dd>\n Yes. The plugin includes No. The key is used only on the server for backend requests to Google Places. The dashboard does not print the saved key back into the page after it is stored.<\/p><\/dd>\n Yes. Each saved view has its own shortcode and its own display\/style settings. You can create one view for a homepage slider, another for a grid, and another for a marquee without editing theme files.<\/p><\/dd>\n The plugin upserts rows by Because the Google Places API currently returns a maximum of 5 reviews per place, sorted by relevance. The plugin refreshes that limited feed every day and can only accumulate additional cached reviews if Google later rotates different reviews into that returned set.<\/p><\/dd>\n Switch the plugin to Google Places review content is subject to Google Maps Platform usage restrictions. This plugin therefore treats review content as cache content, lets you configure a cache lifetime up to 29 days, and refreshes it instead of claiming permanent archival storage.<\/p><\/dd>\n Only for documented plugin features. It contacts Google when you search for a business in wp-admin, when the scheduled or manual sync runs, and when the shortcode renders while the local cache is empty.<\/p><\/dd>\nReusable Google review views<\/h4>\n\n
Flexible layout options<\/h4>\n\n
Live preview in wp-admin<\/h4>\n\n
Google Places business finder<\/h4>\n\n
Local review curation<\/h4>\n\n
Timed review cache with scheduled sync<\/h4>\n\n
Two source modes for different needs<\/h4>\n\n
Places API<\/code> for the fastest setup when a public 5-review sample is enough, or switch to Business Profile<\/code> when you own or manage the listing and need the full review library that Google exposes through Business Profile APIs.<\/p>\n\nTheme override support<\/h4>\n\n
\n
Google Reviews > Views<\/code><\/li>\nGoogle Reviews > Settings<\/code><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\ndefine( 'SOFTLINKSTER_GOOGLE_REVIEWS_GOOGLE_API_KEY', 'your-api-key-here' );\n\ndefine( 'SOFTLINKSTER_GOOGLE_REVIEWS_GOOGLE_PLACE_ID', 'your-place-id-here' );\n<\/code><\/pre>\n\n\n
wp-content\/themes\/your-theme\/softlinkster-reviews-for-google\/reviews.php<\/code><\/li>\nwp-content\/themes\/your-theme\/softlinkster-reviews-for-google\/reviews\/default.php<\/code><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n[softlinkster_google_reviews]\n<\/code><\/pre>\n\n[softlinkster_google_reviews view=\"homepage-slider\"]\n<\/code><\/pre>\n\n\n
view<\/code> - load a saved view by ID<\/li>\nlimit<\/code> - maximum number of reviews to show<\/li>\nmin_rating<\/code> - minimum rating to include<\/li>\nsort<\/code> - one of newest<\/code>, oldest<\/code>, rating_desc<\/code>, or rating_asc<\/code><\/li>\nlocation<\/code> - render a saved location ID<\/li>\nplace_id<\/code> - render a specific place ID<\/li>\nlayout<\/code> - one of stacked<\/code>, grid<\/code>, compact<\/code>, carousel<\/code>, or marquee<\/code><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n[softlinkster_google_reviews view=\"homepage-slider\" limit=\"6\" min_rating=\"4\" sort=\"rating_desc\"]\n<\/code><\/pre>\n\nExternal Services<\/h3>\n\n
\n
Google Reviews > Settings<\/code><\/li>\n\n
X-Goog-Api-Key<\/code> request header<\/li>\nid,displayName,googleMapsUri,reviews<\/code> when fetching reviews<\/li>\nplaces.id,places.displayName,places.formattedAddress,places.googleMapsUri<\/code> when searching for businesses<\/li>\nbusiness.manage<\/code> scope when Business Profile mode is connected<\/li>\nAuthorization: Bearer<\/code> header for Google Business Profile requests<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n
\n
softlinkster-reviews-for-google<\/code> folder to \/wp-content\/plugins\/<\/code><\/li>\nGoogle Reviews > Settings<\/code><\/li>\nPlaces API<\/code> or Business Profile<\/code> in Google Reviews > Settings<\/code><\/li>\nPlaces API<\/code>, add your own Google Places API key, search for your business, and save at least one location, or define the API key and place ID in wp-config.php<\/code><\/li>\nBusiness Profile<\/code>, add your approved Google OAuth client credentials, connect Google Business Profile, select the account and location, and save<\/li>\nGoogle Reviews > Views<\/code>, create a saved view if needed, and copy its shortcode<\/li>\n[softlinkster_google_reviews]<\/code> or a saved-view shortcode into any post, page, or widget area<\/li>\n\n
Does this plugin include an API key?<\/h3><\/dt>\n
Does this plugin have a settings screen?<\/h3><\/dt>\n
Google Reviews > Settings<\/code> for API connection, locations, sync, and review curation, plus Google Reviews > Views<\/code> for reusable saved displays. Constants in wp-config.php<\/code> still override the dashboard values.<\/p><\/dd>\nIs the API key exposed to the frontend?<\/h3><\/dt>\n
Can I create different layouts for different pages?<\/h3><\/dt>\n
How are duplicate reviews avoided?<\/h3><\/dt>\n
source<\/code> plus source_review_id<\/code>, so repeated syncs do not create duplicate records for the same fetched review.<\/p><\/dd>\nWhy do I still only see 5 Google reviews after sync?<\/h3><\/dt>\n
How can I sync more than 5 reviews?<\/h3><\/dt>\n
Business Profile<\/code> mode and connect a listing that you own or manage. Google Business Profile APIs support paginated review retrieval for managed locations, unlike the Places API public place feed.<\/p><\/dd>\nWhy does the plugin use a time-limited cache instead of promising permanent storage?<\/h3><\/dt>\n
Does the plugin contact Google automatically?<\/h3><\/dt>\n
Where can I get support?<\/h3><\/dt>\n