Yikes, It’s Yelp! — Making User-Generated Review Sites Work for Your Restaurant

3 Min Read By Nawar Miri

Yelp and other user-generated review sites aren’t usually viewed favorably by restaurateurs and restaurant management. It’s understandable, given the penchant for customers with the strongest opinions to post their experiences all over the internet. However, that doesn’t mean that management can’t utilize these reviews to identify issues and better business for both employees and customers. 

Use these three tips to make Yelp reviews a valuable business tool rather than a pestering nuisance. 

1. When Possible, Respond to Every Review At my restaurant, we strive to respond to every single review – whether it be negative or positive. While some people might view this as overkill, I’ve found it truly humanizes your brand and reminds your guests that there are very real people behind the service and product they’re receiving. 

For the positive reviews, we always respond by thanking the guest for taking the time to write and visiting us. This demonstrates a genuine…