Getting Started with StellarReply: The Complete Setup Guide
This guide walks you through everything from signing up to having AI-powered review responses, competitor intelligence, and a customer recovery system all working for your business. Total setup time: under 10 minutes.
In this guide
1. Sign up and create your business 2. Configure your settings 3. Set up the Smart Feedback Funnel 4. Add your competitors 5. Add your first reviews 6. Explore all your featuresStep 1: Sign up and create your business
Create your account
Head to stellarreply.com and click "Start free trial". Enter your email, set a password, and you are in. No credit card required. Your 14-day free trial starts immediately with full access to every feature.
Set up your business profile
On first login, you will be asked to enter your business name, choose your business type (local business or hospitality/Airbnb), and add a short description. This context helps the AI write responses that sound like you.
Tip: The more detail you put in your business description, the better the AI responses will be. Instead of "Italian restaurant", try "Family-run Italian restaurant in Bromley, known for homemade pasta and wood-fired pizza. Casual atmosphere, friendly service."
Step 2: Configure your settings
Go to the Settings page from your sidebar. This is where you fine-tune how StellarReply works for your business.
Add your Google Maps URL
Paste your Google Maps URL into the Google Review URL field. This is the most important step because it powers several features at once:
- Creates your branded review link (stellarreply.com/r/your-business)
- Generates a downloadable QR code for print materials
- Enables the Smart Feedback Funnel
- Powers the Review Recovery Loop
- Allows "Sync from Google" on the Reviews page
How to find your Google Maps URL: Search for your business on Google Maps, click on your listing, then click the "Share" button and copy the link. It will look something like https://maps.google.com/?cid=12345678 or https://www.google.com/maps/place/...
Set your tone and preferences
Still in Settings, you can customise:
- Your first name — the AI signs responses with this
- Tone preferences — e.g. "friendly and casual" or "professional and warm"
- Humanise responses — strips AI-sounding language from drafts
- Review translation — automatically translate reviews into your preferred language
Step 3: Set up the Smart Feedback Funnel
Once your Google Maps URL is added, your feedback funnel is automatically active. Here is how to use it.
Share your review link and QR code
Your dashboard shows your branded review link and a downloadable QR code. The funnel works like this: customers click the link or scan the QR code, rate their experience 1-5 stars, and are automatically routed. Happy customers (4-5 stars) go straight to Google to leave a public review. Unhappy customers (1-3 stars) see a private feedback form instead.
Print the QR code on receipts, table cards, appointment reminders, email signatures, or anywhere your customers will see it. The more places you put it, the more reviews you will collect.
🔄 Review Recovery (automatic)
When unhappy feedback comes in through the funnel, StellarReply automatically generates a personalised recovery message using AI. You will see it in your Recovery page, ready to review and send. If the customer left their email, you can send the recovery message directly. If they resolve their issue, you can follow up with a gentle review request. This is how you turn 1-star complaints into 5-star advocates.
For more on this, read our full guide: Review Recovery: Turn Unhappy Customers Into 5-Star Advocates.
Step 4: Add your competitors
Paste up to 5 competitor Google Maps URLs
Go to the Competitors page and paste Google Maps URLs for up to 5 local competitors. StellarReply will pull in their reviews, ratings, and review counts. Click "Sync All" to fetch their latest data.
Generate competitor insights
Click "Refresh Insights" on the Competitors page. The AI analyses all of your competitors' 1-3 star reviews and extracts recurring complaint patterns. These insights appear as "Competitor Opportunities" on your dashboard and are automatically used to make your review responses sharper.
💡 Competitor Weakness Mining
When your competitors keep getting complaints about something you do well (e.g. they are slow, you are fast), StellarReply subtly highlights that strength in your AI-generated review responses. The response gets tagged with a "Smart Insight" badge so you can see which responses used competitor intelligence. Read more: Competitor Weakness Mining explained.
Step 5: Add your first reviews
Add reviews manually or sync from Google
Go to the Reviews page. You have two options:
- Sync from Google: Click the "Sync from Google" button to pull in your latest Google reviews automatically. (Available for local business accounts with a Google Maps URL set up.)
- Manual entry: Click "Add Review", paste in the review text, set the rating and reviewer name, and save. Works for any platform including Airbnb and Trustpilot.
Review your AI-generated responses
As soon as a review is added, StellarReply generates a personalised response. You will see the draft on the review card. From here you can:
- Approve: Accept the response as-is
- Edit: Tweak the wording before approving
- Regenerate: Ask the AI to write a new version
- Copy: Copy the text to paste into Google or Airbnb
Tip: Try adding a positive and a negative review to see the difference in AI response tone. The AI adapts its approach based on the rating and content of each review.
Step 6: Explore all your features
You are now set up with the essentials. Here is everything else available in your account:
📊 Dashboard & Analytics
Your homepage shows total reviews, average rating, response rate, rating trends over time, and AI-powered insights about what customers love and what needs work. The "What Your Customers Are Saying" card uses AI to summarise your review themes.
🛡 Feedback Page
All private feedback from unhappy customers (submitted through your funnel) appears here. You can see each complaint, whether it has been resolved, and the customer's contact details if they provided them. This is your early warning system for operational issues.
🔄 Recovery Page
Recovery opportunities created from 1-3 star feedback appear here. Each card shows the original complaint, an AI-drafted recovery message, a suggested action, and buttons to send, resolve, and follow up. Track your conversion rate to see how many unhappy customers you turn into advocates.
🎨 Shareable Review Cards
On any review, click "Share Card" to generate a beautiful branded image of the review. Choose from three themes and three formats, then download to share on social media, print in-store, or add to marketing materials.
💻 Embeddable Review Widget
Go to Settings to customise and get the embed code for your review widget. Add one line of code to your website to showcase your best reviews. Choose from carousel, grid, or list layouts, and set the minimum rating to display.
🌑 Review Translation
Enable translation in Settings and choose your preferred language. Reviews in other languages will be automatically translated so you can understand every piece of feedback, regardless of the customer's language.
💰 Billing
Your 14-day trial gives you full access to everything. After that, StellarReply is £20/month for early adopters (locked in forever) or £30/month standard. You can manage your subscription, update payment details, and download invoices from the Billing page.
Don't forget: Your feedback funnel and QR code only work once your Google Maps URL is set up in Settings. If you skip this step, reviews will still work, but you will miss out on the funnel, recovery, and branded link features.
What to do this week
Now that you are set up, here is a quick action plan for your first week:
- Today: Add your 5 most recent Google reviews and approve the AI responses. Print your QR code and put it somewhere customers will see it.
- Tomorrow: Check for any feedback that has come through the funnel. Review and send any recovery messages.
- This week: Add your competitors and refresh insights. Share a review card on social media. Check your dashboard for the "What Your Customers Are Saying" insights.
- Ongoing: Add new reviews as they come in (or let Google sync handle it). Check Recovery for new opportunities. Monitor your competitor insights for new weaknesses to capitalise on.
More guides
How to Respond to Google Reviews (With Examples) Review Recovery: Turn Unhappy Customers Into Advocates Competitor Weakness Mining Explained How to Stop Negative Reviews Before They Go Public Check Your Reputation Score (Free Tool) Best Review Response Tool for UK Small BusinessesReady to get started?
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