# Collect Google Customer (Merchant) Reviews after checkout

The review request appears on the **Thank You** and **Order Status** pages right after a customer completes their purchase. Customers who rate you 5 stars are invited into the Google Customer Reviews program, which builds your Google Seller Rating over time.

### What is Google Customer Reviews?

**Google Customer Reviews** is a free tool from Google that helps you collect customer feedback after a purchase. If a customer opts in, Google sends them a short survey email once their order is delivered, asking how their shopping experience went.

<figure><img src="/files/0IniuvLbbIIKca520dL5" alt=""><figcaption><p>Opt-in popup</p></figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="/files/OFKsU4LbsJ2fx37ARljX" alt=""><figcaption><p>Googe Customer Reviews email</p></figcaption></figure>

### Benefits of Google Customer Reviews

**1. Stars in your Google Ads.** Once you hit 100 reviews, Seller Rating appears automatically in your search ads. Same budget, higher click-through rate. Competitors without it look less credible next to you.

**2. Stars in Google Shopping.** When someone clicks a product in the Shopping tab, your store rating shows right next to the store name. At the moment of comparison, you win on trust before they even read the product page.

### How to set up Google Customer Reviews

#### 1. Enable Customer Reviews in Google Merchant Center

* Go to [Google Merchant Center](https://merchants.google.com/).
* Log in and navigate to **Settings → Add-ons.**
* Click "Add" on the **Google Customer Reviews** card under the "Discover" tab.

<figure><img src="/files/sZ0jfYEQ7kYQbLBbcH28" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

#### 2. Copy Google Merchant ID

* In Google Merchant Center, your **Merchant ID** will be displayed at the top right of the page.
* Copy the ID as you’ll need it for the app setup.

<figure><img src="/files/QuVd8jytvKDxKa9d8Dbz" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

#### 3. Set up Google Reviews widget

The review widget is added to your Shopify checkout through the Checkout Editor. It takes about 5 minutes.

1. Open the **Collect reviews** tab.
2. Click **"Add checkout extension."**
3. In the **Checkout Editor,** click **"Add app block"** in the left-hand panel.
4. Select **"Google Reviews - Ask for review".**
5. Enter your **Google Merchant ID**.
6. Set your **Average delivery days.**
7. (Optional) Customize the widget text.
8. **Click Save → Publish** in the top right of the Checkout Editor.

{% embed url="<https://youtu.be/na_DReqaphI>" %}

<figure><img src="/files/yi9We23Ao1xftu8N8Jfs" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

### How the review flow works

After setup, every customer sees a star rating widget on the Thank You and Order Status pages. What happens next depends on the rating they choose.

<figure><img src="/files/eL5BIKfHHdhVRpO5mVo5" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

#### What the 5-star opt-in looks like

If 5 stars are selected, customers are redirected to the confirmation page with an option to opt in to the Google Customer Reviews program.

Customers who opt in will be sent an email managed by Google, [asking them to rate their experience](https://support.google.com/merchants/answer/14628816?sjid=3775656152204191113-EU). This rating is then aggregated to become the Seller Rating.

<figure><img src="/files/NZxs55YVupMU4zbZHNOY" alt="" width="563"><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

#### The Google survey email

Customers who opted in receive this email from Google after their delivery date. Completing the survey is what creates the actual Seller Rating for your store:

<figure><img src="/files/GFTz2S6ipY4rownL43Yw" alt="" width="563"><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

#### What the 1–4 star feedback form looks like

Customers who rate 1–4 stars see your custom feedback form instead. Their message goes to your Reputon dashboard so you can follow up privately, it does *not* get posted publicly anywhere.

<figure><img src="/files/AdSLhdOZUgibc7cq2vgE" alt="" width="563"><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

### Reading your dashboard

{% hint style="warning" %}
**The dashboard counts widget clicks - not completed Google reviews.** A "click" is recorded every time a customer selects a star rating, regardless of whether they opted in to the survey or completed it.
{% endhint %}

Your Reputon dashboard tracks every interaction with the widget. Here's what the numbers actually mean:

Here’s how it works:

* A customer clicks the widget and selects a star rating.
* If they select 5 stars, they are redirected to the Google opt-in step.
* If they select 1–4 stars, the feedback form opens.
* All clicks are still tracked in the dashboard, regardless of whether a final review is submitted.

<figure><img src="/files/RDHt1j620CPVugX0FGh9" alt="" width="563"><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

### How to test if everything is working

#### 1. Check the "Thank You" page

* Go to the Thank You page and click on the 5-stars.
* If everything is fine, the Google Customer Reviews popup will appear as in the example below.

<figure><img src="/files/h1I1Oyu6ispC0vrhekTS" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

#### 2. Create a test order

* Create a test order in your store checkout.
* Use a real email address you can access.
* Pay with Shopify test mode or a real payment method you can refund.
* On the Thank You page, find the Rate Us widget.
* Click the 5 stars to confirm the popup appears.

#### 3. Check Google Merchant Center

* **Wait 24-48 Hours** for data to appear.
* Go to **Google Merchant Center → Reviews.**
* Look for “**Survey Opt-ins Received**” and “**Surveys Offered**“.
* Data typically appears within 2 weeks.

### Common questions

<details>

<summary>Opt-in button doesn’t show on the Thank You page</summary>

* Make sure the **Google Customer Reviews** is added in your Google Merchant Center.
* The Google Merchant ID used matches your store domain and entered correctly.&#x20;
* No ad blockers are used.

</details>

<details>

<summary>I don't see reviews in Google Merchant Center</summary>

* Wait for 24-48 hours for initial data to appear
* Check if your Merchant Center account is properly set up
* Check if your store meets Google’s review program requirements

</details>

<details>

<summary>I don't have a Google Merchant ID. Can I still use the checkout extension?</summary>

Yes, but without a Merchant ID, the Google Customer Reviews opt-in won't appear. The widget will still show the star rating and your custom feedback form for all ratings. So you can collect private feedback from customers, but the Seller Rating program won't be activated.

</details>

<details>

<summary>How many days should I set for Average delivery days?</summary>

Set this to your typical delivery time. For most stores, this is 5-14 days.

Google uses this number to time the survey email so it arrives *after* the customer has received their order. For digital products (downloads, subscriptions), set this to `1`.

</details>

<details>

<summary>Why does my dashboard show clicks but I don't see new Google reviews?</summary>

There are several steps between a widget click and a published Google Seller Rating:

* The customer must select 5 stars *and* click "Yes, send me the survey" on the opt-in popup
* Google sends the survey email only after your set delivery days have passed
* The customer must open and complete the email survey
* Google aggregates ratings, you typically need **100+ survey responses** before a Seller Rating badge appears on your ads

This is all normal. Dashboard clicks will always outnumber published ratings. The click count shows interest, not completions.

</details>

#### Want more reviews on autopilot?

Our [**Customer Reviews app**](https://apps.shopify.com/reputon-store-reviews) sends automated email requests after delivery and works with Google, Trustpilot, Yelp, and 20+ other platforms at once.

👉 [**See how merchants use it →**](https://reputon.com/google-cases)

***

{% hint style="info" icon="comments" %}
**Questions about Customer Reviews popup or need assistance? We're excited to help:** [**support@reputon.com**](mailto:support@reputon.com) **or** [**live chat**](https://go.crisp.chat/chat/embed/?website_id=d24ef16e-6e05-49e9-bd59-a6f3bde0658a)**.**
{% endhint %}


---

# Agent Instructions: Querying This Documentation

If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question.

Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter:

```
GET https://reputon.gitbook.io/reputon-help/google-reviews-app/how-to/collect-google-customer-merchant-reviews-after-checkout.md?ask=<question>
```

The question should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language.
The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation.

Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.