Do you read and rely on Tripadvisor reviews?

[konying]

I am a regular reviewer on TA and, like a number of other contributors to this thread, I use TA judiciously and as a guide to hotels and restaurants. If you take some time on the site you will see how many restaurants and hotels have engaged very productively with TA and, in some cases, have exposed poor reviews for their lack of authenticity and exaggeration. I have a number of friends who are hoteliers and, like you, they don't seem to like TA much. However, most of them recognize that it cannot be ignored and it is best to actively engage. A few of my friends have also admitted that there is a very useful side to the site and that some useful. Feedback is sometimes gained. And no, I haven't missed your point about fake reviews and the issue of anonymity. That notwithstanding, TA has a strict set of protocols for reviewing which is enforced. It might be time to 'get with the program' as they say.

Have a look at a link i posted earlier, a management company ran some tests and found TA does not have any useful protocols and the ones used are badly flawed.

It looks for same computer signature and same phrases, nothing else.

So it's not possible you just had an unhappy customer?

One bad review does not a reputation make.

Why are you asking me? do you struggle to keep up with the posts and references? This is what TA uses to pick "fake" reviews

[mogandave]

I am a regular reviewer on TA and, like a number of other contributors to this thread, I use TA judiciously and as a guide to hotels and restaurants. If you take some time on the site you will see how many restaurants and hotels have engaged very productively with TA and, in some cases, have exposed poor reviews for their lack of authenticity and exaggeration. I have a number of friends who are hoteliers and, like you, they don't seem to like TA much. However, most of them recognize that it cannot be ignored and it is best to actively engage. A few of my friends have also admitted that there is a very useful side to the site and that some useful. Feedback is sometimes gained. And no, I haven't missed your point about fake reviews and the issue of anonymity. That notwithstanding, TA has a strict set of protocols for reviewing which is enforced. It might be time to 'get with the program' as they say.

Have a look at a link i posted earlier, a management company ran some tests and found TA does not have any useful protocols and the ones used are badly flawed.

It looks for same computer signature and same phrases, nothing else.

So it's not possible you just had an unhappy customer?

One bad review does not a reputation make.

Why are you asking me? do you struggle to keep up with the posts and references? This is what TA uses to pick "fake" reviews

I'm sorry, I thought you were whining about a bad review your business revived on Trip Advisor, my bad.

[konying]

I'm sorry, I thought you were whining about a bad review your business revived on Trip Advisor, my bad.

I guess its wise to actually read, before posting smarta$$ comments

[kurtramsbottom]

Which TVF member do you reckon wrote the review?

[happy Joe]

I use TA regularly on a journey, and I will in the hotels and restaurants rated by privileging the long reputations and have therefore received a lot of advice.

It made me generally avoided galleys and dependence of a rude boss.

An anecdote, recently Sukhothai restaurant recommended by TA was closed. I knew then randomly went close to one of the worst meals of my long life.

[arkom]

I use TA extensively and have found it to be a good source of info. It's not perfect, but it's something I look at. I also contribute extensively.

I ignore reviewers with only a few posts. I tend to find the worst reviews are about some silly thing. Last hotel I was in, in Stockholm, had some really bad reviews. Why? The bathrooms were small, and overall, the hotel is small...and in a nautical theme. True, but the property was absolutely fantastic and the bathrooms in the rooms for 2 people were a bit larger. And we loved the nautical theme and quirky nature of the hotel. So you have to dig deeper to see if the review is important for what you are looking for. In the end, I ignored the reviews and had a wonderful time in a great property.

I'm really sad TA didn't deal with your issue. This is one of the big problems they have. Somebody does 2 reviews, one bashes and another praises. Seems a setup to me. Again, I just ignore these. Or ones where they say they have problems which seem to have been of their own making. One hotel I stay at in Bangkok gets bad reviews because it's hard to find. Go figure....

Like craig I use TA regularly and also contribute, I have seen a lot of hotels both here and overseas getting very positive reviews from people with only one or two reviews. These I mostly ignore because it's obvious that they are fake, some even post pics that you can tell are set up, this is same with the bad reviews.

At the end of the day I use TA enough to know the real reviews from the fake.

Edited August 22, 2015 by arkom

[GuestHouse]

I use Fodor's, I have found their reviews far more reliable than those of Tripadvisor.

[konying]

I use TA regularly on a journey, and I will in the hotels and restaurants rated by privileging the long reputations and have therefore received a lot of advice.

It made me generally avoided galleys and dependence of a rude boss.

An anecdote, recently Sukhothai restaurant recommended by TA was closed. I knew then randomly went close to one of the worst meals of my long life.

You are referring to TA forums?

[nidieunimaitre]

The few times that I bothered to check reviews on Trip Advisor, I found them very shallow.

Perhaps the type of traveler they attract?

I contribute to Booking.com, and find their reviews reliable - no doubt because only guests can contribute.

To the OP: Replying to bad reviews on trip advisor can of course be seen as an acknowledgement that you take them (Tr Adv) seriously, but what else can you do?

Sorry I find nothing really helpful to say - maybe enjoy this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hnTmBjk-M0c

Edited August 22, 2015 by nidieunimaitre

[JMWPACIFIC]

I use TA religiously and always give my honest reviews. No system is perfect and you point out the TA flaws but you can respond to any review---why didn't you?

If you ignore the overly gracious and overly critical and those of newbies on TA, one can usually make a pretty informed decision to stay or not stay.

[NickJ]

Theres a guy running around an area belowHua Hin. He is on his fith or six venue. He relies on trip advisor and his drunken semi retarded cronies to quickly get rated as the best or top of trip advisor.His food his awful but good for diets if being sick for a week causes one to lose weight.

There are even restaurants that dont exist and never had on TA.

If the restaurants have dozens and dozens of reviews over a long peroiod of time. You might get a decent idea of what to expect.

[sir charles IV]

I recommend you improve your facilities and service so people write good reviews. Simples!!

[Spaniel]

I have posted many reviews on TA and I also use them to get opinions on places that I plan to visit.

[xen]

We used to run Thai restaurants and one of them is still getting rave reviews on TA even though it changed locations 4 years ago before we put it to sleep. I have also have a suspicion that many critical reviews are written buy competitors rather than customers and have appeared in several restaurant review sites word for word. Being served a Tom Yum that is not spicy enough is hardly worth the venom that is exhibited in the reviews.

However having said that it is also useful to look at the reviews and use them as a performance management tool. Are the staff too disinterested? Do the light fittings need a dusting? Maybe there is something valid that you can improve on unless you are certain they are pure BS.

Konying , if you get 80% good reviews, for example, and a few critical ones then most customers will weigh it up for themselves and decide in favour of the 80% good reviews. It is impossible to please everyone and some customers are just either unreasonable , and dare i say it just ar__ hol_s and not worth the expense of depriving the good customers your good service. Put your effort into the ones that will bring return business.

I too use TA occasionally for research on areas that i plan to visit but i do take zero notice of any hotel or restaurant reviews .As stated on a few posts before at least on Agoda you have needed to stay at the hotel before you can write a review. A competitor has no way of running your business down that way . However with Trip Advisor i would be asking myself what competitor would be capable of letting their jealousy grow out of control and allow them to do this review. In Thailand it could be a long list.

Edited August 23, 2015 by xen

[Linky]

I recommend you improve your facilities and service so people write good reviews. Simples!!

I think it can be seen in his attitude too.

Wonder why his staff wouldnt tell his guest where to find girls? If they didnt know that is ok and they simply should have said they didnt know. But to simply refuse is stupid.

Seems his attitude rubs off on his staff.

[mogandave]

I recommend you improve your facilities and service so people write good reviews. Simples!!

I think it can be seen in his attitude too.

Wonder why his staff wouldnt tell his guest where to find girls? If they didnt know that is ok and they simply should have said they didnt know. But to simply refuse is stupid.

Seems his attitude rubs off on his staff.

Indeed

[konying]

We used to run Thai restaurants and one of them is still getting rave reviews on TA even though it changed locations 4 years ago before we put it to sleep. I have also have a suspicion that many critical reviews are written buy competitors rather than customers and have appeared in several restaurant review sites word for word. Being served a Tom Yum that is not spicy enough is hardly worth the venom that is exhibited in the reviews.

However having said that it is also useful to look at the reviews and use them as a performance management tool. Are the staff too disinterested? Do the light fittings need a dusting? Maybe there is something valid that you can improve on unless you are certain they are pure BS.

Konying , if you get 80% good reviews, for example, and a few critical ones then most customers will weigh it up for themselves and decide in favour of the 80% good reviews. It is impossible to please everyone and some customers are just either unreasonable , and dare i say it just ar__ hol_s and not worth the expense of depriving the good customers your good service. Put your effort into the ones that will bring return business.

I too use TA occasionally for research on areas that i plan to visit but i do take zero notice of any hotel or restaurant reviews .As stated on a few posts before at least on Agoda you have needed to stay at the hotel before you can write a review. A competitor has no way of running your business down that way . However with Trip Advisor i would be asking myself what competitor would be capable of letting their jealousy grow out of control and allow them to do this review. In Thailand it could be a long list.

Xen, reviews are always good to know what needs improvement, what many seem to miss about the point i have tried to make numerous times now, is that

It is NOT about reviews received, it is about TA allowing anyone to post anything without any verification,not even requiring people to provide any information, while at the same time claiming that ALL their reviews are genuine from genuine people.

To top it up, as per email shown, TA openly admits to facilitating fraud.

Yes responding to reviews is an option, but it is NOT about responding, it is about having system in place to prevent fake reviews, instead of facilitating it.

When one receivesenuine bad review, there is something to consider, in most cases people are lying and making up things to be spiteful, because they did not get something their way.

[konying]

I recommend you improve your facilities and service so people write good reviews. Simples!!

I think it can be seen in his attitude too.

Wonder why his staff wouldnt tell his guest where to find girls? If they didnt know that is ok and they simply should have said they didnt know. But to simply refuse is stupid.

Seems his attitude rubs off on his staff.

Indeed

You see how easy it is to spot trolls

Did i say review mentioned anything about bad staff?

Perfect example of spiteful trolls trying to make smarta$$ comments

Linky is a known master of that, seems he now has a cheerleader to assist

Edited August 23, 2015 by konying

[SoiBiker]

Actually, I'm changing my advice. Based on your posts here, it's probably better if you don't respond.

[konying]

I recommend you improve your facilities and service so people write good reviews. Simples!!

That is a great recommendation.

Could you please provide your expert opinion, how this would eliminate fake reviews?

In case you do not completely understand the meaning of fake, it means people who were never your customers and in many cases are your competition.

Will await your expert opinion, thanks in advance

[mogandave]

Is posting here part of your 20 hour work day?

[richard_smith237]

I nearly always use TripAdvisor when visiting a new restaurant or hotel...

I always look at the negative reviews first and see how realistic or unrealistic the complaints are... usually in places with a lot of 5* reviews the negative reviews are written by whack jobs having a bad day, those who wouldn't be satisfied anywhere.

I look at the response of the establishment and how they deal with the complaint - I have greater trust in the establishments which write honest responses.

i.e. those such as (example)

'yes, We remember your visit... we seated you even though the kitchen closed in 5 minutes, we took your order even though you ordered 10 minutes after the kitchen usually closes, we're sorry we'd ran out of burgers, but you did arrive late at night, we're sorry you didn't like the ribs, after your complaint we gave you 25% discount even though you'd eaten everything... Apologies we could not seat you at a larger table, however, you were dining alone (no surprise there!)... we're sorry that some people cannot be pleased,...

I have also written the odd review... a couple of positive responses, also a couple of negative responses where I was disgusted with the establishment.

OP: How do you stop a fake review??? You can't... However, you can respond to the review... You could point out a few facts where they are wrong... you can plant the seed of doubt by suggesting the review is fake to sabotage your reputation.

Another question: How can we as potential customers stop the 'fake' positive reviews written by friends of a hotel or restaurant? We can't... we have to use our intelligence to filter the wheat from the chaff.

[konying]

I nearly always use TripAdvisor when visiting a new restaurant or hotel...

I always look at the negative reviews first and see how realistic or unrealistic the complaints are... usually in places with a lot of 5* reviews the negative reviews are written by whack jobs having a bad day, those who wouldn't be satisfied anywhere.

I look at the response of the establishment and how they deal with the complaint - I have greater trust in the establishments which write honest responses.

i.e. those such as (example)

'yes, We remember your visit... we seated you even though the kitchen closed in 5 minutes, we took your order even though you ordered 10 minutes after the kitchen usually closes, we're sorry we'd ran out of burgers, but you did arrive late at night, we're sorry you didn't like the ribs, after your complaint we gave you 25% discount even though you'd eaten everything... Apologies we could not seat you at a larger table, however, you were dining alone (no surprise there!)... we're sorry that some people cannot be pleased,...

I have also written the odd review... a couple of positive responses, also a couple of negative responses where I was disgusted with the establishment.

OP: How do you stop a fake review??? You can't... However, you can respond to the review... You could point out a few facts where they are wrong... you can plant the seed of doubt by suggesting the review is fake to sabotage your reputation.

Another question: How can we as potential customers stop the 'fake' positive reviews written by friends of a hotel or restaurant? We can't... we have to use our intelligence to filter the wheat from the chaff.

I always enjoy reading your balanced and thoughtful responses and you are correct in all aspects.

As a business owner, one can not stop fake reviews and there is nothing to stop business owner from adding fake good ones.

My gripe is with Tripadvisor business model, facilitating the practice.

If Tripadvisor was to add to their homepage a disclaimer stating what they said in the email, it would not be an issue, however TA claims to provide genuine service and feedback from genuine people, yet evidently it is a false statement, as TA is totally anonymous and does not require people to disclose any information or provide any evidence or proof of ever being a customer.

TA also does not provide any facility for business owners to submit information. For example if someone wrote fake review and stated carpets were stained and moldy, business could attach a video that business does not have any carpets.

[stickylies]

1. TA doesn't care about your biz. They care about their own biz. Next ;-)

2. Fake reviews (praise or bash) happen all the time. Get over it. It's the internet stupid ;-)

3. I assign no value to these reviews. I love hard beds. 95% of people like soft matrasses ;-)

[Linky]

I recommend you improve your facilities and service so people write good reviews. Simples!!

I think it can be seen in his attitude too.

Wonder why his staff wouldnt tell his guest where to find girls? If they didnt know that is ok and they simply should have said they didnt know. But to simply refuse is stupid.

Seems his attitude rubs off on his staff.

Indeed

You see how easy it is to spot trolls

Did i say review mentioned anything about bad staff?

Perfect example of spiteful trolls trying to make smarta$$ comments

Linky is a known master of that, seems he now has a cheerleader to assist

Well actually it was you who stated the staff refused to tell the guest. Great staff.

[Linky]

I nearly always use TripAdvisor when visiting a new restaurant or hotel...

I always look at the negative reviews first and see how realistic or unrealistic the complaints are... usually in places with a lot of 5* reviews the negative reviews are written by whack jobs having a bad day, those who wouldn't be satisfied anywhere.

I look at the response of the establishment and how they deal with the complaint - I have greater trust in the establishments which write honest responses.

i.e. those such as (example)

'yes, We remember your visit... we seated you even though the kitchen closed in 5 minutes, we took your order even though you ordered 10 minutes after the kitchen usually closes, we're sorry we'd ran out of burgers, but you did arrive late at night, we're sorry you didn't like the ribs, after your complaint we gave you 25% discount even though you'd eaten everything... Apologies we could not seat you at a larger table, however, you were dining alone (no surprise there!)... we're sorry that some people cannot be pleased,...

I have also written the odd review... a couple of positive responses, also a couple of negative responses where I was disgusted with the establishment.

OP: How do you stop a fake review??? You can't... However, you can respond to the review... You could point out a few facts where they are wrong... you can plant the seed of doubt by suggesting the review is fake to sabotage your reputation.

Another question: How can we as potential customers stop the 'fake' positive reviews written by friends of a hotel or restaurant? We can't... we have to use our intelligence to filter the wheat from the chaff.

I always enjoy reading your balanced and thoughtful responses and you are correct in all aspects.

As a business owner, one can not stop fake reviews and there is nothing to stop business owner from adding fake good ones.

My gripe is with Tripadvisor business model, facilitating the practice.

If Tripadvisor was to add to their homepage a disclaimer stating what they said in the email, it would not be an issue, however TA claims to provide genuine service and feedback from genuine people, yet evidently it is a false statement, as TA is totally anonymous and does not require people to disclose any information or provide any evidence or proof of ever being a customer.

TA also does not provide any facility for business owners to submit information. For example if someone wrote fake review and stated carpets were stained and moldy, business could attach a video that business does not have any carpets.

Well their claim is not false. Genuine people do provide feedback.

Its very easy for you to respond to the critic you mention by saying you dont have carpets.

Its not rocket science.

[konying]

Well actually it was you who stated the staff refused to tell the guest. Great staff.

huh?

In what post?

Mate about time you stop trolling, getting tiresome

[konying]

I nearly always use TripAdvisor when visiting a new restaurant or hotel...

I always look at the negative reviews first and see how realistic or unrealistic the complaints are... usually in places with a lot of 5* reviews the negative reviews are written by whack jobs having a bad day, those who wouldn't be satisfied anywhere.

I look at the response of the establishment and how they deal with the complaint - I have greater trust in the establishments which write honest responses.

i.e. those such as (example)

'yes, We remember your visit... we seated you even though the kitchen closed in 5 minutes, we took your order even though you ordered 10 minutes after the kitchen usually closes, we're sorry we'd ran out of burgers, but you did arrive late at night, we're sorry you didn't like the ribs, after your complaint we gave you 25% discount even though you'd eaten everything... Apologies we could not seat you at a larger table, however, you were dining alone (no surprise there!)... we're sorry that some people cannot be pleased,...

I have also written the odd review... a couple of positive responses, also a couple of negative responses where I was disgusted with the establishment.

OP: How do you stop a fake review??? You can't... However, you can respond to the review... You could point out a few facts where they are wrong... you can plant the seed of doubt by suggesting the review is fake to sabotage your reputation.

Another question: How can we as potential customers stop the 'fake' positive reviews written by friends of a hotel or restaurant? We can't... we have to use our intelligence to filter the wheat from the chaff.

I always enjoy reading your balanced and thoughtful responses and you are correct in all aspects.

As a business owner, one can not stop fake reviews and there is nothing to stop business owner from adding fake good ones.

My gripe is with Tripadvisor business model, facilitating the practice.

If Tripadvisor was to add to their homepage a disclaimer stating what they said in the email, it would not be an issue, however TA claims to provide genuine service and feedback from genuine people, yet evidently it is a false statement, as TA is totally anonymous and does not require people to disclose any information or provide any evidence or proof of ever being a customer.

TA also does not provide any facility for business owners to submit information. For example if someone wrote fake review and stated carpets were stained and moldy, business could attach a video that business does not have any carpets.

Well their claim is not false. Genuine people do provide feedback.

Its very easy for you to respond to the critic you mention by saying you dont have carpets.

Its not rocket science.

Now i am certain you are nothing but a troll.

FOR EXAMPLE is the operative word, let me underline it for you in original post and in response.

Quite possibly, you may not have the capacity to understand the meaning of "FOR EXAMPLE"

something that you mention in order to show the type of thing that you are talking about and to help to explain what you mean http://www.macmillandictionary.com/dictionary/british/example

A fake review should NOT be posted to start with,because a genuine critic would not be writing about something that does not exist, unless genuine critic is a complete moron. Hence ability to provide evidence supporting the fact that it is a fake, would be logical,

Now this is not rocket science, just takes little thinking to comprehend and little less desire to troll.

Edited August 23, 2015 by konying

[Linky]

Being in the business, i am very familiar with idiots

As i mentioned, dealing with idiots is one thing, but for company to openly facilitate fraud and scams is a much bigger issue,

Its perfectly normal for people to write bad and idiotic reviews when they do not get something their way, it is actually standard behavior.

I could write a book about that , but for example from experience, when people post rubbish on Agoda, Agoda will remove it

I recall having one idiot writing about sofa in the room being dirty and smelly, he wrote this because hotel staff would not tell him where to go look for CHEAP hookers.

Agoda was contacted and pointed out that the room does not have a sofa, review was removed.

TA on the other hand would not move a finger.

In this post

[Linky]

I nearly always use TripAdvisor when visiting a new restaurant or hotel...

I always look at the negative reviews first and see how realistic or unrealistic the complaints are... usually in places with a lot of 5* reviews the negative reviews are written by whack jobs having a bad day, those who wouldn't be satisfied anywhere.

I look at the response of the establishment and how they deal with the complaint - I have greater trust in the establishments which write honest responses.

i.e. those such as (example)

'yes, We remember your visit... we seated you even though the kitchen closed in 5 minutes, we took your order even though you ordered 10 minutes after the kitchen usually closes, we're sorry we'd ran out of burgers, but you did arrive late at night, we're sorry you didn't like the ribs, after your complaint we gave you 25% discount even though you'd eaten everything... Apologies we could not seat you at a larger table, however, you were dining alone (no surprise there!)... we're sorry that some people cannot be pleased,...

I have also written the odd review... a couple of positive responses, also a couple of negative responses where I was disgusted with the establishment.

OP: How do you stop a fake review??? You can't... However, you can respond to the review... You could point out a few facts where they are wrong... you can plant the seed of doubt by suggesting the review is fake to sabotage your reputation.

Another question: How can we as potential customers stop the 'fake' positive reviews written by friends of a hotel or restaurant? We can't... we have to use our intelligence to filter the wheat from the chaff.

I always enjoy reading your balanced and thoughtful responses and you are correct in all aspects.

As a business owner, one can not stop fake reviews and there is nothing to stop business owner from adding fake good ones.

My gripe is with Tripadvisor business model, facilitating the practice.

If Tripadvisor was to add to their homepage a disclaimer stating what they said in the email, it would not be an issue, however TA claims to provide genuine service and feedback from genuine people, yet evidently it is a false statement, as TA is totally anonymous and does not require people to disclose any information or provide any evidence or proof of ever being a customer.

TA also does not provide any facility for business owners to submit information. For example if someone wrote fake review and stated carpets were stained and moldy, business could attach a video that business does not have any carpets.

Well their claim is not false. Genuine people do provide feedback.

Its very easy for you to respond to the critic you mention by saying you dont have carpets.

Its not rocket science.

Now i am certain you are nothing but a troll.

FOR EXAMPLE is the operative word, let me underline it for you in original post and in response.

Quite possibly, you may not have the capacity to understand the meaning of "FOR EXAMPLE"

something that you mention in order to show the type of thing that you are talking about and to help to explain what you mean http://www.macmillandictionary.com/dictionary/british/example

A fake review should NOT be posted to start with,because a genuine critic would not be writing about something that does not exist, unless genuine critic is a complete moron. Hence ability to provide evidence supporting the fact that it is a fake, would be logical,

Now this is not rocket science, just takes little thinking to comprehend and little less desire to troll.

And my response was a 'for example' indication of how easy it is to reply.