Ratings and Reviews Responding to Reviews
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In this section, we're going to highlight some best practices when it comes to responding to reviews.
But first - here's some good news. 85% of the reviews on Yelp are positive.
Distribution of All Reviews
Yelp
Don't Be Defensive
The response below is an example of what not to do.
Acknowledge the problem.
Apologize for their experience.
Offer to makes things right.
Combating negative reviews does not have to be painful. Stay calm in your response.
Do Engage Positively with Reviewers
The response below is an example of how to properly respond to a negative review.
As you can see here, Linda thanks the reviewer for their feedback - acknowledges their experience, and then explains how they are hoping to rectify the situation for future guests.
Keep in mind it can be just as helpful to engage with positive reviewers. Try to respond to every review if you can - with at least a thank you.
Things to Remember
Keep in mind that it’s against Yelp’s policies to solicit reviews or to directly incentivize positive reviews. That being said, you can still let people know you are on Yelp. And if you provide a good experience, people will review.
Three Things to Remember:
- The most successful businesses on Yelp focus on providing great customer service, not soliciting reviews. Word of mouth will take care of itself.
- Don’t over-focus on any single review.
- Take advantage of the free tools from (biz.yelp.com). Your business page will look better, and this will attract new customers.
Where'd It Go?
Some reviews disappear over time. If you’re wondering why a review has been removed from Yelp, it’s probably because a user removed a review, the review was flagged since it violated guidelines, or it was caught by an automated filter that suppresses some reviews.
