Responding to Yelp reviews within 24 hours boosts the probability of a review upgrade
Editor’s note: Did you see the date on this post? It’s a little old, but you can check out this newer approach to responding to reviews.
According to Yelp’s Data Science team, Yelp users are 33% more likely to upgrade their review if you respond with a personalized message within a day. This mirrors a study Jay Baer talks about in his book, Hug Your Haters. Jay teamed up with Edison Research and found that 53% of customers expect a reply on review sites. What’s more is that businesses experience a 16% boost in customer advocacy from answered complaints on reviews sites. Meanwhile, businesses that ignore complaints on review sites experience a 37% decline in customer advocacy.
This study shows there’s a big advantage to responding to Yelp reviews within 24 hours. It turns out you might also be doing yourself a huge disservice by not responding at all. With that in mind, here are some tried and true quick tips to help you respond in any situation.
Responding to negative Yelp reviews
Respond publicly when the customer has a legitimate concern or there’s a simple misunderstanding. Use it as an opportunity to address their concerns, explain your policies, and invite them back.
Respond with a direct message if it reads like a rant or is false. Send a polite note presenting your side of the story and remember you never go wrong taking the high road.
Responding to positive Yelp reviews
Respond publicly when you have something to add to the user’s review. For example, tell them about the sale you’re having next week and invite them back in. Respond with a direct message if you simply want to say thank you.
How to respond to your reviews
Log in to biz.yelp.com, and go to the Reviews tab, or download the Yelp for Business mobile app.