How to Display Google Reviews on Your Website Using Google Cloud

Integrating Google Reviews into your website is a great way to showcase customer feedback and build trust with new visitors. While many third-party tools are available for this, they often come with a monthly fee and limited customization options. Instead, you can use Google Places API directly to display reviews with full control over the content and display. In this guide, we’ll explore how to set up your own Google Reviews widget using Google Cloud, PHP, and Python.

Why Display Google Reviews Directly from Google Cloud?

Using Google Cloud to display reviews has a few advantages. First, you don’t have to rely on third-party services, which often come with extra costs. Additionally, direct integration allows you to customize the display, styling, and even filter the reviews to match your website’s aesthetic and user experience.

Pros and Cons of Using Google Cloud and Places API

Pros

• Cost-Effective: With Google Cloud’s free tier and minimal API request costs, you can avoid high monthly fees.
• Customization: Full control over how reviews are styled and displayed, so you can ensure a seamless look with your website.
• Data Privacy and Security: No data is shared with third-party services, allowing you to safeguard your data directly within Google’s infrastructure.
• API Access Control: Google Cloud lets you control who can access the data and offers detailed reporting for monitoring usage.

Cons

• Rate Limits: Google Places API has daily request limits. If you have high traffic, you may need to manage caching and API quotas to avoid overuse charges.
• Setup Complexity: Requires more configuration compared to third-party plugins, making it better suited for developers or those comfortable with code.
• Limited Review Data: Google only provides a sample of recent reviews, so you won’t be able to display every review.

Step-by-Step Guide to Display Google Reviews Using Google Cloud, PHP, and Python

This solution involves three main steps:

1. Setting up Google Places API in Google Cloud.
2. Creating a Python function to retrieve the reviews.
3. Using PHP to call the Python function and display the reviews on your website.

Step 1: Enable the Google Places API in Google Cloud

1. Create a Google Cloud Project: Log in to Google Cloud Console, create a new project or use an existing one.
2. Enable the Places API: Go to APIs & Services > Library, search for the Places API, and enable it.
3. Generate an API Key: In APIs & Services > Credentials, create an API key for secure API calls.

Step 2: Set Up a Python Function to Fetch Google Reviews

Python is a good choice for handling the API request to Google Places and processing the review data before it’s passed to your website. Below is a sample function that retrieves recent reviews based on your business’s unique Place ID.

import requests

def get_google_reviews(place_id, api_key):
    # Construct the API request URL
    url = f"https://maps.googleapis.com/maps/api/place/details/json?place_id={place_id}&fields=reviews&key={api_key}"
    response = requests.get(url)

    # Check if the request was successful
    if response.status_code == 200:
        data = response.json()
        # Check if reviews are available
        if "reviews" in data["result"]:
            return data["result"]["reviews"]
        else:
            return "No reviews available for this place."
    else:
        return f"Error fetching reviews: {response.status_code}"

Replace:

• place_id with the Place ID for your business.
• api_key with your Google API key.

Step 3: Host the Python Script as a Google Cloud Function

Deploying this script as a Google Cloud Function enables you to make secure HTTP requests from your website, allowing it to fetch reviews dynamically.

1. Go to Cloud Functions in Google Cloud Console and click Create Function.
2. Choose Python as the runtime and paste the get_google_reviews function.
3. Set Trigger type to HTTP and Allow unauthenticated access (if public access is needed).
4. Deploy the function. You’ll get a unique URL for calling this function.

Step 4: Call the Cloud Function Using PHP to Display Reviews on Your Website

With the function deployed, use PHP on your website to call this URL and display reviews.

<?php
// Function to fetch reviews from Google Cloud Function
function fetch_reviews($function_url) {
    $ch = curl_init();
    curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_URL, $function_url);
    curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_RETURNTRANSFER, 1);
    $output = curl_exec($ch);
    curl_close($ch);

    $reviews = json_decode($output, true);
    return $reviews;
}

$function_url = "YOUR_CLOUD_FUNCTION_URL"; // Replace with the actual URL
$reviews = fetch_reviews($function_url);

foreach ($reviews as $review) {
    echo "<div class='review'>";
    echo "<p><strong>" . htmlspecialchars($review['author_name']) . "</strong> - Rating: " . $review['rating'] . "</p>";
    echo "<p>" . htmlspecialchars($review['text']) . "</p>";
    echo "</div>";
}
?>

Replace YOUR_CLOUD_FUNCTION_URL with the URL from your deployed Google Cloud Function.

Examples of Custom Display Styles for Reviews

Here are a few ideas for how you might style the review display to align with your website’s branding:

1. Minimalist Card Display: Show each review in a bordered box with the reviewer’s name, rating, and text.
2. Grid Display: Arrange reviews in a responsive grid for a dynamic look on larger screens.
3. Slider View: Use a JavaScript library like Swiper.js to create a carousel that rotates through reviews.

Practical Examples: Use Cases for Google Reviews

1. Restaurants and Local Shops: A restaurant could showcase positive customer feedback to build trust with new visitors.
2. Service Businesses: For example, a car repair service could highlight reviews from satisfied customers, giving potential clients confidence in their expertise.
3. Hotels and B&Bs: Hotels can pull in Google Reviews to demonstrate their value and amenities, making it easier for travelers to make booking decisions.

Managing API Quotas and Handling Errors

While displaying Google Reviews provides great value, you’ll need to manage API quotas and handle potential errors:

1. Caching: Cache reviews on the server-side to avoid exceeding API quotas, which will also improve load time for returning visitors.
2. Error Messages: Implement user-friendly error messages in case the API fails. For example, if the Python function encounters an error, PHP can display a “Reviews are currently unavailable” message instead of blank space.

Conclusion: Is This the Right Approach for Your Website?

Using Google Places API with Google Cloud gives you a cost-effective, secure way to display reviews directly on your website without paying for third-party services. If your website doesn’t require high volumes of requests and you want maximum control over styling, this approach is perfect. However, if you expect high traffic and want a simpler setup, a third-party solution could save development time.

In Summary:

• Pros: Lower cost, more control, greater customization.
• Cons: Potential API limits, setup complexity, limited review data.

With a bit of initial setup, you’ll gain a powerful and customizable way to showcase authentic customer reviews, helping build trust and engagement on your website.”