Collecting product reviews via a widget

How to encourage users to post reviews about a software product

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If your software product is published in Webasyst Store then its users can rate the product and post their reviews about it. Those ratings and reviews are displayed on the Webasyst website and in the Installer.

Product review widget

In order to encourage users to post ratings and reviews about your product then add a review widget to the product’s user interface. To do so, use this Smarty method:

{$wa->installer->reviewWidget('...')}

Replace the ellipsis with your product’s ID according to the appropriate pattern:

  • app: app/[app_id] or simply [app_id]; e.g., app/myapp or myapp;
  • design theme: theme/[theme_id]; e.g., theme/mytheme;
  • plugin for an app: plugin/[app_id]/[plugin_id]; e.g., plugin/shop/myplugin;
  • system plugin: plugin/[payment|shipping|sms]/[plugin_id]; e.g., plugin/shipping/myplugin.

Example of a review widget:

Widget displaying options

A product review widget can be displayed in one of the two modes:

  • Static block (inline mode). The product’s developer determines where exactly its review widget should be displayed.

    As a static block, the review widget can be displayed for all types of software product — apps (an extra parameter is required as shown in the example below), and design themes and plugins (with extra parameters).

  • Pop-up block. The product review widget is displayed, by means of JavaScript code, always in the top-right corner over the rest of the page content.

    The pop-up displaying mode is supported only for apps. It’s the default displaying mode for apps. Should you need to show the app review widget as a static (inline) block, then call method {$wa->installer->reviewWidget('...')} with array ['is_inline' => true] as an extra parameter; e.g.:

    {$wa->installer->reviewWidget('myapp', ['is_inline' => true])}

Widget displaying conditions

The review widget cannot be displayed on website pages. It will work only in the Webasyst user backend.

Displaying of a pop-up block

Below are listed cases when the product review widget is not displayed as a pop-up block.

With disabled debug mode

  • A user has already rated a product (an app). The review widget will not be displayed again for the same app.
  • A product is distributed with a paid license but no license has been activated for its installed copy. The review widget can be displayed for a paid product only in the case when its license has been purchased and activated in the current Webasyst account.
  • A pop-up widget was displayed before for a particular app but a user closed the widget, and less than 48 hours have elapsed since that time. The system will wait for 48 hours before showing the pop-up widget again for the same app.
  • A user recently rated another product, and less than 12 hours have elapsed since that time. The system will wait for 12 hours before offering a user to rate another product.

In the debug mode

  • A pop-up widget was displayed before for a particular app but a user closed the widget, and less than 2 hours have elapsed since that time.
  • A user recently rated another product, and less than 1 hour has elapsed since that time.

Displaying of a static block

Below are listed cases when the product review widget is not displayed as a static block.

  • A product is distributed with a paid license but no license has been activated for its installed copy. The review widget can be displayed for a paid product only in the case when its license has been purchased and activated in the current Webasyst account.
In the debug mode, the review widget is displayed even if a user has not activated the product’s license. However, the widget will not accept a rating or a review from a user in this case.