—Write your own reviews. Some people say reviews never seem to be in line with their own experiences. So start writing your own.
For Yelpers who are confused about why their reviews have been filtered in the past, it helps to include a photo of yourself, to write several reviews to build legitimacy and to include useful information instead of short, random generalizations such as: “Food was bomb.”
Despite some consumers’ misgivings about the site, Yelp has 108 million visitors a month, making it the place to go for business reviews. Those numbers understandably make business owners with poor ratings nervous.
By hosting 22 town halls in major U.S. cities this year, Yelp hopes to smooth things over with business owners and dispel much of the speculation surrounding the San Francisco company.
“Over the last few years, we’ve ramped up our efforts,” Yelp spokeswoman Rachel Walker said. “There’s just a general misunderstanding.”
©2013 Los Angeles Times
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