How it works
What happens to a review, start to finish
There is no hidden layer. This page describes the whole system, and the code behind the score and the fraud checks is quoted on the trust page.
If you are reading reviews
Step 1
Search a business
Type a name or a website. Profiles are keyed by domain, so northgate-audio.co.uk finds the right Northgate every time.
Step 2
Check the badges
Verified means the review came through an invitation tied to a real order. Organic means anyone with an account wrote it. Both are shown, neither is hidden.
Step 3
Read the score, then the maths
The number at the top comes from one published equation. Click through to the trust page and you can recompute it from the reviews in front of you.
Step 4
Open the transparency tab
Every review that was held, removed or restored for that business is listed with the date and reason. Nothing is deleted quietly.
If you are writing one
Step 1
Write it
A rating, a title and a few sentences about what happened. You need an account with a confirmed email so a real person stands behind each review.
Step 2
Automated checks run
Eleven signals, all listed on the trust page, look for velocity, duplicate text, links and disposable email domains. Most reviews publish instantly. Some are held for a person to read.
Step 3
The business can reply, once, in public
Owners see the review the moment it is live. They can post one public reply and they can report it if it breaks the guidelines. They cannot edit it, hide it, or pay to remove it.
Step 4
Every decision is logged
Publish, hold, remove, restore, reply: each writes a line to the moderation log that you, the business and anyone else can read.
Three things that never happen here
- A business pays and a review disappears.
- Plans buy invitations, integrations, seats and analytics. They do not buy moderation. The removal path is the same for a free profile and an enterprise account, and it ends in a public log entry either way.
- A business picks which customers get invited.
- Invitations through our integrations go to every order. Hand-picking happy customers is called out in the guidelines as a reason to lose the Verified badge on the profile.
- A score is adjusted by hand.
- Nobody at TheReviews can edit a score. It is computed from the published reviews by the formula on the trust page, and recomputed every time a review changes.
Running a business? Here is the version for you.
Questions about the process
Do I need an account to write a review?
Yes. A review needs a rating, a title, a few sentences, and an account with a confirmed email so a real person stands behind it. Reading reviews needs nothing.
How long until my review appears?
Most reviews publish the moment they are submitted. A review that trips enough of the eleven automated signals is held, and a person reads it within one business day. Either outcome is written to the moderation log with the reason.
What can a business do about my review?
Post one public reply, and report the review if it breaks a written guideline. It cannot edit the review, hide it, or pay to have it removed. If a report is upheld or dismissed, the decision and the reason appear in the public log on the business profile.
Can a business choose which customers get invited?
No. Invitations sent through the integrations go to every order. Hand-picking happy customers is listed in the guidelines as a reason to lose the Verified badge on the profile.