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> but there will always be a small handful of businesses who mistakenly think it’s a good idea to threaten consumers who exercise their free speech right Wh... what? the free speech right only covers repercussions initiated by the government. Businesses are not the government so consumers have no free speech right or expectation here.
Am I the only one who finds it ironic that Yelp is doing this? The same Yelp that was built on the back of some of the most aggressive, manipulative, downright shady marketing tactics out there? I've heard multiple complaints from Mom & Pop shops in my neighborhood which basically amount to Yelp calling and saying "Sign up for our premium business package or the negative reviews stay at the top"
> but there will always be a small handful of businesses who mistakenly think it’s a good idea to threaten consumers who exercise their free speech right Wh... what? the free speech right only covers repercussions initiated by the government. Businesses are not the government so consumers have no free speech right or expectation here.
Technically speaking, you're right that the legal definition of Free Speech doesn't apply, but there's a moral principle of free speech which has been the subject of a lot of debate in recent years, with persons of varying political backgrounds and agendas arguing about whether abusive speech should be promoted as the poster-child for free speech. (though I'm hesitant to invoke any of this for fear of it exploding...stuff like the Twitter fights that people get into over things like misogyny, misandry, rape, social justice, etc)
Basically, like with a lot of topics online, there's a built in audience you gain access to if you say the right incantation; if you're not clear on what I mean, just look at any topic about the NSA or encryption on HN and look at some of the more popular comments; you'll get an idea of how by stating a stance, you can sometimes get new audiences.
The childish cynic in me thinks that this is what Yelp is doing, along with cementing their business model as free speech. Yelp has been guilty of extortion like practices in the past against businesses, and their users are equally obnoxious with restaurants at times. There was even a Southpark episode about it, so it was wide spread enough to be picked up offline. I honestly don't think Yelp really gives a rats ass about its users, it's just this sort of pro-consumer stuff is majorly beneficial to Yelp. There's no doubt in my mind that Yelp would gladly take the notice down if the price was right and the business did a bit of advertising for Yelp.
Not that I can prove that. This is all just a misanthropic rant on my part, and I am not trying to pass it off as anything else. But the point is that there's a lot more to "free speech" than the US legal definition right now.
Businesses can perhaps incentivize their customers to write good reviews by offering a discount in exchange for a review on Yelp. When the customers are paying the bill, they can ask them for a 1-5 star rating posted alongside a photo of that customer to their Yelp page as some sort of a proof that the said business is not making up those star ratings.
There's nothing technically wrong with what's happening there, since there is no formal arrangement of good review = free product, but it's perfectly understood without a single word being said that if your reviews are too critical, you will not be receiving discounts/demo items in exchange for an unbiased review any more.
Your idea isn't quite the same if I understand it since the restaurant isn't enticing people in with the promise of a discount for reviews, but it's hard to say that you're not being influenced for favor when receiving something like that. It's why I believe it's a journalistic ethical standard to refuse gifts/outings from businesses and individuals as it may compromise journalistic integrity. Whether or not that's actually followed or just a super-ideal is another matter entirely
Am I the only one who finds it ironic that Yelp is doing this? The same Yelp that was built on the back of some of the most aggressive, manipulative, downright shady marketing tactics out there? I've heard multiple complaints from Mom & Pop shops in my neighborhood which basically amount to Yelp calling and saying "Sign up for our premium business package or the negative reviews stay at the top"
This simply doesn't happen. People have been saying it for years, but there's zero proof. My theory is something like this. A mom and pop shop opens Yelp one day to see they have some bad reviews. Then, if around that time a Yelp sales rep happens to call to pitch some ads or "enhanced profile" (actual name of an ad product they sell which doesn't alter reviews, just makes the profile prettier), and OMG all of the su…
Watch the third video in the playlist
My only concern is around the lack of ability for businesses to respond or request any level of verification that a person actually did business with them. The BBB at least contacts the business and oversees a process for resolution (documenting the entire thing). I personally know multiple business owners who've dealt with threats from customers who will go and write a bad review if they don't simply bow to demands.…
> There are far too many businesses who've been open 10+ years with thousands of customers that have never felt the necessity to leave a review. I wonder what could be a good way to incentivise this. If I like a restaurant, I'll go back multiple times. At most, I may leave a good review once. If I go to a bad place, I'm more likely to leave a bad review. Maybe businesses could integrate a "did business here $x amount…
Am I the only one who finds it ironic that Yelp is doing this? The same Yelp that was built on the back of some of the most aggressive, manipulative, downright shady marketing tactics out there? I've heard multiple complaints from Mom & Pop shops in my neighborhood which basically amount to Yelp calling and saying "Sign up for our premium business package or the negative reviews stay at the top"
This simply doesn't happen. People have been saying it for years, but there's zero proof. My theory is something like this. A mom and pop shop opens Yelp one day to see they have some bad reviews. Then, if around that time a Yelp sales rep happens to call to pitch some ads or "enhanced profile" (actual name of an ad product they sell which doesn't alter reviews, just makes the profile prettier), and OMG all of the su…
I have a small business that is facing it right now. I either pay the Yelp tax or they have taken our community-created page with all 5-star reviews completely off the site. Can still find it from Google search, but can't find it from search within Yelp. And if you search for us, they show our competitor as a search result.
Got a call from Yelp sales guy about an offer 'that expires this week', just the day after our listing could not be found.
Now, I can't tell you my business name, because they will bury it even further. Yelp is as shady as it gets on the internet.
PM me and I'm happy to tell you who I am after I confirm who you are.
> but there will always be a small handful of businesses who mistakenly think it’s a good idea to threaten consumers who exercise their free speech right Wh... what? the free speech right only covers repercussions initiated by the government. Businesses are not the government so consumers have no free speech right or expectation here.
Am I the only one who finds it ironic that Yelp is doing this? The same Yelp that was built on the back of some of the most aggressive, manipulative, downright shady marketing tactics out there? I've heard multiple complaints from Mom & Pop shops in my neighborhood which basically amount to Yelp calling and saying "Sign up for our premium business package or the negative reviews stay at the top"
This simply doesn't happen. People have been saying it for years, but there's zero proof. My theory is something like this. A mom and pop shop opens Yelp one day to see they have some bad reviews. Then, if around that time a Yelp sales rep happens to call to pitch some ads or "enhanced profile" (actual name of an ad product they sell which doesn't alter reviews, just makes the profile prettier), and OMG all of the su…
Maybe you could post a little bit of background info about yourself and your lack of connections to Yell to avert any suspicion that you're not a genuine disinterested individual.
In any case - from my memory there were stories about this in the mainstream press. I can't vouch for their veracity but if you bother to reply then I'll try and find a few references.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
This simply doesn't happen. People have been saying it for years, but there's zero proof. My theory is something like this. A mom and pop shop opens Yelp one day to see they have some bad reviews. Then, if around that time a Yelp sales rep happens to call to pitch some ads or "enhanced profile" (actual name of an ad product they sell which doesn't alter reviews, just makes the profile prettier), and OMG all of the su…
I'm not generally a distrustful person, panda888 - but how come you created a new account to post this comment? Maybe you could post a little bit of background info about yourself and your lack of connections to Yell to avert any suspicion that you're not a genuine disinterested individual. In any case - from my memory there were stories about this in the mainstream press. I can't vouch for their veracity but if you…