The Gold Star — QR Feedback Platform
Overview
The Gold Star is a QR code-based feedback platform that enables businesses to collect customer reviews seamlessly. Customers scan a code, leave feedback (public or private), and businesses get real-time analytics and moderation tools—all while maintaining Google review compliance.
Problem & Users
Target users: Small to medium businesses (restaurants, retail, services)
Key pain points:
- •Traditional feedback cards are manual and slow
- •Online review forms have high drop-off rates
- •No easy way to filter spam before publishing
- •Limited analytics on customer sentiment
- •Google review compliance is complex
Solution
QR Code Generation
Unique codes linked to business profiles
Dual Review Paths
Public (moderated) or private feedback
Admin Dashboard
Moderation, analytics, responses
Rate Limiting
Multi-layer spam prevention
Key Technical Decisions
1. Signed URLs for Security
Each QR code generates a signed URL with an HMAC signature to prevent tampering and unauthorized review submissions. This ensures only legitimate scans can submit reviews.
2. Multi-Layer Rate Limiting
Implemented comprehensive rate limiting to prevent spam while ensuring legitimate users are not blocked:
Per IP: 5 reviews per hour
Per business: 50 reviews per day
Per device: 3 reviews per day
3. Google Review Compliance
Built a workflow that collects reviews, allows moderator approval/rejection, then redirects approved reviews to Google with pre-filled forms—ensuring compliance with Google authenticity policies.
Challenges & Solutions
Challenge: Spam Prevention
Initial launch saw automated spam submissions overwhelming the system.
Solution: Browser fingerprinting, CAPTCHA for suspicious patterns, honeypot fields, and multi-level rate limiting reduced spam to <2%.
Challenge: Mobile UX Drop-off
Early testing showed 42% completion rate on mobile devices.
Solution: Reduced form fields, added animations, implemented auto-save, optimized for native mobile keyboards. Completion rate increased to 78%.
Impact & Metrics
12
Active businesses
1,200+
Reviews collected
85%
Completion rate
<2%
Spam rate
99.8%
Uptime
120ms
API response
What is Next
- →Owner reply system: Allow businesses to respond to reviews
- →NPS trend tracking: Net Promoter Score analytics over time
- →Email digest: Weekly summary of reviews and metrics
- →Multi-location support: Chain businesses with location-specific analytics
- →Integration APIs: Webhook support for Slack, Zapier, etc.