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March 7, 2014 | Small | Business, Yelp, reviews, social media, community |
With over 53 million local reviews and 120 million monthly unique visitors, Yelp is considered the leading review site on the Web. Indeed, ‘to Yelp’ is a verb meaning to review a local business online, and a Yelper is one who actively participates on the site. It’s part of our culture!
A public profile on the site is considered a must for local businesses, especially restaurants.
Customers leave reviews, and other users use these reviews when considering visiting a local business. Reviews and ratings for a business stack up, democratizing the process of choosing to eat at the new Thai restaurant or trying out a new nail salon. Further, users can rate reviews ‘Useful,’ ‘Cool,’ or ‘Funny.’ (Yelp’s editors do keep things lighthearted.)
Let’s take a look at some features and best practices for participating on Yelp, and using the network to promote your business.
Make It Fun: Contests, Games, Rewards
First off, make it fun! Encourage your customers to check out your Yelp page. Display the Yelp sticker on your front door, and in your collateral materials – brochures, menus, business cards, and the like – mention Yelp and your wish for your customers to review your establishment.
In addition to encouraging customers to write and post reviews, which are generally more time consuming, ask them to instead take photos, check in, or leave Quick Tips, which are faster and much easier. Plus, you still get engagement and free social content. Yay!
(Extra credit: ask your Yelping customers to cross-publish their reviews, tips, and photos to their Facebook, Twitter, and other social profiles for even more engagement. Even more extra credit: ask your Yelpers to first take photos – and beautify them -- with Instagram, and then re-post to your Yelp profile.)
Meet Your Yelp Community Manager
Of the hundreds of communities on Yelp – Yelp is now in 24 countries – there is a Community Manager. Unlike reviewers, who are not paid to contribute reviews, photos, comments, tips, and information on the site, Community Managers are paid employees of the company, and their job is to ensure that reviews keep going unabated.
The email address for your local Community Manager is usually YourCity@yelp.com.
Community Managers also plan local events, bringing together business owners and reviewers. As an alternative to paid advertising, you could participate in these events by offering up your venue, catering food, providing a free giveaway, or some other way to get your name out in front of local Yelpers. (Again this is not mandatory, and your decline to participate will not affect your profile on Yelp.)
Do I Have To Pay for Advertising?
Yelp derives 100% of its income from advertising, but you do not need to spend on advertising in order to unlock value from your participation on Yelp.
However, if you hear from a local Yelp advertising salesperson, don’t be alarmed – hear them out and learn about what they offer.
One promotion you might wish to consider is offering a special for checking in. Much like geolocation app Foursquare, Yelp has increased its mobile engagement features, and allows merchants to offer discounts, freebies, and specials (called Yelp Deals) to users who check in or leave a tip at their establishment. Your local Yelp advertising representative would be able to set up a promotion like this for your business.
There were rumors a few years ago that Yelp would only favor businesses who advertised, pushing those who did not further down in search results (i.e, if someone searched on ‘dry cleaner’ and ‘Phoenix,’), but after a few legal challenges, Yelp has pledged that the site is completely democratic and review-driven.
What If I Get a Bad Review?
Every business on Yelp has received negative or unfavorable reviews. What to do? For one thing, do not ignore it. As the business owner, you can respond to the review publicly, and also reach out individually to the Yelp member and offer to make things right.
This actually does not happen too often so taking the time to respond positively and in a timely manner shows your commitment to providing excellent customer service – and also displaying proper social media etiquette! Go you!
(Yelp Business Owner Secret: you can communicate directly with customers via the Yelp platform, privately or publicly – your choice.)
Not the Only Game in Town
Besides Yelp, there exist many other review sites. Here are some worth considering:
The list goes on, and some specialty review sites exist for physicians and other professions. Your experience with Yelp will certainly support your ability to deal with other review sites.
Getting Started
As with any social media profile, you should stake your claim before someone else – perhaps one of your customers – already starts. Yelp makes it very easy for you to get started, and the good news is that once you claim your business, you can upload your own photos, add important info like phone numbers, hours, parking, and methods of payment, and begin to truly see how the community reacts and engages.
Like any social media site, features, design, and navigation will continue to change over time. Your Yelp community manager, local advertising representative, and most importantly, your customers, will help you unlock Yelp’s true potential as a marketing platform.
Final Thought: A strong Yelp presence should be a substantial component of your marketing and social media strategy.
Not only will it help you become a better marketer, but your active involvement will also help you understand more about your customers, their preferences, and how they engage and interact with your products and services (and even your employees).
In a way, this is free market research, perhaps even leading to a shift or adjustment in your very products or services.
View your Yelp presence as an ever-changing source of new ideas.
Want more info? Expand your horizons with additional reading.
Want Help? Contact our team today!
ChangeU: independent study…
Yelp Case Studies
https://biz.yelp.com/support/case_studies
Case studies on small businesses that successfully implemented Yelp, including automotive, beauty and spas, health and medical, home services, and restaurants
Huffington Post: How to Turn Customer Service Into a Compelling Competitive Advantage
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/brian-whetten/companies-that-care-how-t_b_4898558.html
From Huffington Post’s Small Business blog, five essential steps to exceptional customer service
The 2014 State of Marketing
http://www.socialmediaexplorer.com/social-media-marketing/the-2014-state-of-marketing/
From Social Media Examiner, the results of a survey of over 2,500 marketers of what’s working and what’s not, and trends for 2014 and beyond.
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