Local and directory review widgets
Where local customers actually review you
Seven platforms carry almost all local review activity in English-speaking markets, and they are not equally important. Google is not one of seven; it is most of the total. The rest matter for specific audiences and specific kinds of trust.
| Platform | Who uses it | Worth your attention if |
|---|---|---|
| Everyone | Always. It feeds Maps, the local pack and most discovery | |
| Yelp | US consumers, food and services | You are in the US — and note Yelp asks you not to solicit reviews |
| Community and word of mouth | Your customers already message you there | |
| BBB | US, trust-sensitive purchases | You sell something expensive or regulated |
| Nextdoor | Neighbourhood services | You work in the areas your customers live in |
| Yell | UK directory traffic | You are UK-based |
| Yellowpages | US directory traffic | You have an established listing worth surfacing |
Why one platform is not enough on your own site
Your Google rating is what search shows. Your website is where someone decides. Those are different moments, and the second one is helped by breadth — a visitor who sees reviews from three sources reads it as harder to fake than the same number of reviews from one.
One widget takes all seven, with source tabs if you want visitors to filter. Reviews arrive together and stay current without anyone copying anything.
What to do about the ones you are not on
Start with Google and stop there until it is working. A business with forty recent Google reviews and nothing else is in a stronger position than one with eight reviews spread across five platforms, because eight-review profiles read as neglect.
Add a second platform when the first is healthy and there is a reason — an audience that lives there, or a buyer who checks it. Collecting reviews is the same effort per platform; the question is which one repays it.
Industry pages for local trades
If you are in a specific trade, the industry pages come pre-configured with the sources that matter for it: local services, restaurants, beauty and salons, dentists, home services and law firms.