They have answered this question so many times in the press, and they answer it every day via a mouseover on every page. I have to think that business owners/ managers who still don't know the answer are choosing not to know the answer, so they can continue to vent their anger over negative reviews.pizano345 wrote:why doesn't Yelp list reviews chronologically unless you click "by date"?
If you have evidence that Yelp is lying, I suggest joining the class action lawsuit (maybe you already have?). I'm no lawyer, but if the accusation you've stated in a factual way above happens to be untrue speculation, I think you've exposed yourself to nasty legal problems. I do understand your frustration though -I'd be frustrated too if I read some of these things about my restaurant, and about me personally.pizano345 wrote:...let loose sales rep in the field that also had the ability to easily change reviews and how the reviews are laid out.
Myths About Yelp section of Yelp's website wrote:Myth #3: Yelp salespeople manipulate reviews for prospective advertisers (for example, offers to remove a negative review if a new client signs up, or a threat to remove positive reviews if the business owner does not choose to advertise with Yelp)
Reality: We have every reason to trust the smart, hard-working and ethical salespeople who work at Yelp. Beyond this, to avoid even an appearance of impropriety, we've taken several steps to ensure no member of our team is tempted to game the system. read more »Specifically:
- Yelp salespeople do not have access to the system that deletes reviews; only a few members of Yelp engineering and user support team have this access, and they literally work on different floors within the office.
- Every Yelp salesperson signs an agreement that s/he will not write reviews of any business while employed by Yelp. We trust our teammates in sales to live up to this commitment. We also have several monitoring systems in place to ensure nobody (accidentally or otherwise) crosses this line.
- Through our vigilance, we once did find a salesperson who encouraged a friend to write a positive review for a prospective client (that the friend had actually patronized). The salesperson's role at Yelp ended that day.
- When a new advertiser signs up with Yelp, the relationship is handed off to an Account Manager. The Account Manager then takes the client through a 30 minute phone training session -- and confirms that reviews have nothing to do with advertising.
- After the training call, the Account Manager sends a follow up survey that asks each client how much s/he agrees with the following statement: "I understand that Reviews are completely separate from the Yelp Ad Program, and that there is an automated filter that may suppress some of my reviews whether or not I am a client." Any client who does not click "Completely Agree" in this case gets yet another follow-up call for clarification.
jimswside wrote:By Yelp offering a "service" like that only to paying customers makes me think something fishy is going on there.
There is no such deal, except in the minds of angry business owners who don't like reading their negative reviews.jimswside wrote:...they would surely get a few of these business owners to call in and ask to get that particular negative post deleted, at that point Yelp can offer their great deal of "pay us $300 and the post gets removed or hidden".
Kennyz wrote:There is no such deal, except in the minds of angry business owners who don't like reading their negative reviews.
jimswside wrote:Kennyz wrote:There is no such deal, except in the minds of angry business owners who don't like reading their negative reviews.
isnt that $300/mo deal what was being alleged by the vet clinic involved in the litigation in the linked article?
Kennyz wrote:Yes, that is exactly my point.
chi esq wrote:If that is proven to be true, I can't see how that is not the end of Yelp as a legitimate business.
chi esq wrote:If that is proven to be true, I can't see how that is not the end of Yelp as a legitimate business.
nr706 wrote:chi esq wrote:If that is proven to be true, I can't see how that is not the end of Yelp as a legitimate business.
Substitute the word "credible" for "legitimate" and I'd agree completely. Oh, wait. Does that imply that Yelp is credible otherwise?
Kennyz wrote:nr706 wrote:chi esq wrote:If that is proven to be true, I can't see how that is not the end of Yelp as a legitimate business.
Substitute the word "credible" for "legitimate" and I'd agree completely. Oh, wait. Does that imply that Yelp is credible otherwise?
The business is credible. The reviews, perhaps not.
jesteinf wrote:I'm not sure I'm convinced the business is credible. Is it ok for an exterminator to release insects into your house (without your knowledge) and then solicit your business, saying "hey...I've bet you got a pest problem that I can solve"? I don't know if it's legal or not, but it certainly doesn't strike me as ethical.
Kennyz wrote:jesteinf wrote:I'm not sure I'm convinced the business is credible. Is it ok for an exterminator to release insects into your house (without your knowledge) and then solicit your business, saying "hey...I've bet you got a pest problem that I can solve"? I don't know if it's legal or not, but it certainly doesn't strike me as ethical.
Josh, I'm not sure I'm convinced that you're not a terrorist. Is it OK for you to send money to anti-US militants? I don't know if it's legal, but it certainly strikes me as something that puts the country in danger.
edited to add: I am actually convinced that Josh is not a terrorist, and I have zero reason to believe he sends money to militants, or that Yelp does any of the things he suggests that they do.
David Hammond wrote: Yelp Founder defends integrity of site.
Santander wrote:David Hammond wrote: Yelp Founder defends integrity of site.
If Jeremy Stoppelman came in to sit at my bar with that smirk, I would type "DOUCHE" into the system for his ticket name.
jlawrence01 wrote:Say what you want about Yelp, in many smaller cities, it is one of the best sources for restaurant information.
David Hammond wrote:I believe we’d all have to agree, at least provisionally, that restaurant folks like Dave Andrews of Lillie’s and the poster from kinderhooktap are showing that it’s possible for people with restaurant affiliations to take criticism, engage with the community, and use our input to make a better dining experience for customers without sounding condescending or defensive (which, as we’ve seen over the years, it’s sometimes very difficult for chefs to do).
Attrill wrote:David Hammond wrote:I believe we’d all have to agree, at least provisionally, that restaurant folks like Dave Andrews of Lillie’s and the poster from kinderhooktap are showing that it’s possible for people with restaurant affiliations to take criticism, engage with the community, and use our input to make a better dining experience for customers without sounding condescending or defensive (which, as we’ve seen over the years, it’s sometimes very difficult for chefs to do).
I can certainly understand why chefs have a difficult time taking criticism - running a restaurant can be a soul consuming endeavor, and reading comments like "the tuna tare tare was undercooked" can make anyone dismissive of all online reviews.
That said I think LTH is in a completely different league from places like Yelp or Metromix. Mainly because people who post here do have some appreciation of what it takes to operate a restaurant. I very rarely see negative reviews here that don't have qualifiers: "they've only been open for a week", "they were clearly understaffed that night", "just not what I like, but if you like X", etc. Chefs or restaurant staff who do not recognize the difference between this forum and others are making a massive PR blunder. They don't need to post responses to comments here, but I feel that most chefs who have posted here find encouragement, some constructive criticism, and appreciation for their engagement and their hard work. There are certainly some posts that could be better thought through, but they are in the vast minority. Ultimately this is a forum where people who love food and want to champion the places they like or love, not a place where people get snarky or make asses of themselves.
David Hammond wrote:Regarding negative reviews during his first week of operation, Charlie McKenna at Lillie Q’s mentioned that he was most disturbed by “bloggers” (I believe he’s using this term in a generic way that includes discussion boards like ours and Yelp), wondering if they’re “qualified,”
Kman wrote:David Hammond wrote:Regarding negative reviews during his first week of operation, Charlie McKenna at Lillie Q’s mentioned that he was most disturbed by “bloggers” (I believe he’s using this term in a generic way that includes discussion boards like ours and Yelp), wondering if they’re “qualified,”
Wait, I need to take a test or somehow become certified before I'm "qualified" to comment on the food I purchase? I mean, seriously, WTF?
David Hammond wrote: as I told him, that LTH posters are at least as qualified to make judgments as most of the diners who come into any restaurant (after all, most of us are thinking and talking about food for a good part of any day). And he seemed to agree with that assessment, and I think more chefs are starting to get it about us.
David Hammond wrote:Kman wrote:David Hammond wrote:Regarding negative reviews during his first week of operation, Charlie McKenna at Lillie Q’s mentioned that he was most disturbed by “bloggers” (I believe he’s using this term in a generic way that includes discussion boards like ours and Yelp), wondering if they’re “qualified,”
Wait, I need to take a test or somehow become certified before I'm "qualified" to comment on the food I purchase? I mean, seriously, WTF?
This is just one man's opinion which, as I indicated, I disagreed with immediately. However, I do not in any way think that this opinion is unique to McKenna -- I get the same sentiment from a lot of chefs, some of which have posted on this forum.
David Hammond wrote:This is just one man's opinion which, as I indicated, I disagreed with immediately. However, I do not in any way think that this opinion is unique to McKenna -- I get the same sentiment from a lot of chefs, some of which have posted on this forum.