Yelp may just be the most important website for small businesses, next to Google that is. Millions of reviews have been left around the world on Yelp’s website, letting people know how a local business stacks up against their competition and what customers liked or disliked about their services.
With all of this being said, there are still many misconceptions about the review site and its time to set a few of these things straight.
Yelp Doesn’t Actually Encourage that You Ask for Reviews
According to Todd Wasserman, Yelp doesn’t actually want you to be explicitly asking your customers for reviews. Instead, by focusing on providing a great customer experience and being aware of your customers’ needs you are more likely to get quality feedback that gives you an accurate snapshot of your company’s strengths and weaknesses.
This thinking actually holds true for many aspects of business in general. By concentrating on creating a great customer experience you are more likely to get the feedback that matters from your clients and customers. This translates into reviews that are thought out and accurately address what your business is doing right, and wrong, if you need some improvement in certain areas.
Businesses Can Dispute Customers
Another lesser known Yelp tidbit is that business owners can dispute poor reviews from customers. Not only is the feature available, but Yelp also encourages business owners to do so. This allows for companies to directly engage with their unsatisfied customers and set forth a solution that will hopefully get the customer back on board and happy again.
You Gotta Earn It, Man
You’ve probably seen the stickers around town saying, “People Love Us On Yelp.” How do you get one, you ask? Well, according to Yelp you have to earn it. Each year they send out stickers to businesses that qualify and it all depends on how great your reviews are. If you think your business is truly exceptional and has been passed over, you can use this form to request that you be selected for a sticker.
Reputation Management? Get Real
Just like many of the other review websites Yelp frowns upon using reputation management firms to boost your ratings. Directly from Yelp’s website, “If you’re wondering how these companies can make good on this offer, the answer is simple: They can’t.”
Not only is using a reputation management company to fake reviews on Yelp likely to get you into trouble on the website, it also covers up a larger, underlying problem with your business. If you have numerous bad reviews on your Yelp profile chances are you have some improving to do.
Sure, maybe you fell victim to a competitor trying to bash your company, but odds are the reviews you receive are often and genuine and true. So, take them seriously and use them to help repair the relationships with your customers.
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