What Is Yelp And How Does It Work?

If you have experience searching for things like restaurant reviews on the internet, you’ve definitely come across Yelp. If you are looking for an online directory to discover platforms such as bars, restaurants and cafes, you can choose Yelp.

Yelp has a special place among consumers and businesses. On the Internet, anyone can take on the role of critic of their experiences. However, transparency and accountability are important here. At this point, problems such as security and legitimacy may arise.

Yelp is used by many people. You can find many platforms in one place, such as reviews, opening hours, contact information, images, star ratings, prices. Yelp is an effective marketing tool for businesses.

We will explain a question like what is Yelp for you here.

What Is Yelp?

Yelp is a social application where you can make transactions for all kinds of local business activities. By registering to the website immediately, you can access the best businesses in your immediate vicinity or in a city.

You can see lists and discover businesses on many topics such as restaurants, hotels, dentists. If you are a person looking for professional services, you can find many platforms here such as landscape architect, contractor, electrician or plumber.

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By logging into the Yelp platform, you can immediately read customer reviews about a business. It can also list popular events near you. Yelp helps you find the best events in your area.

In this article, we will tell you what you can find for those who do not use Yelp yet. Yelp started its service in 2004, based in San Francisco, California. Today, it is among the largest review platforms in the world with over 200 million reviews and 30 million registered users.

How to Use Yelp?

How to Use Yelp?

You can use Yelp through internet browsers, applications on IOS or Android smart devices. This app allows you to sort by registered business type. It also offers you sorting options based on geographical location and listing options by price range.

On Yelp, you can filter on platforms where you can sit outdoors, platforms with delivery services, and features that allow reservations. This app has strong social aspects, and users can comment on their experiences about the businesses they visit.

They can leave star ratings and photos for evaluation. Yelp accounts have a friends list that you can link the app to Facebook and your smartphone or tablet address book. Other users can also review Yelp reviews. Popular reviewers can also be promoted to Yelp Elite status.

Yelp has a simple and practical use. You can browse Yelp based on the type of business you are looking for. You can then see the options in your immediate area. You can filter by search rating, price and location. Users can read reviews and get detailed ideas by seeing business pictures.

A user can leave a review and rating about their experience with the business. The review includes experience with the service process, food quality and atmosphere. Additionally, you can rate businesses between 1 and 5 stars. There is also an option to provide feedback.

Yelp also has the ability for businesses to list their services and for potential customers to make appointments. There are also features such as menu viewing and making reservations. If the reviews and evaluations are positive, it has great benefits for businesses. Businesses can gain more customers and build positive brand reputation.

How To Add A Business On Yelp?

It would be practical to add a business to Yelp. Yelp can present challenges in finding the right listing for a business. If the business changes its address or is not in the Yelp directory, it will be necessary to add or edit it.

You can easily add a business to Yelp. You can easily add your business by filling out a form through the Yelp application.

The steps to add a Yelp business are as follows:

  • First, log in to the Yelp application and click on the “More” tab at the bottom right.
  • Press the “Add Business” button on the screen that appears.
  • If you work in a business, “I work in a business.” Select the option. If you are a business owner, select the relevant option and continue. As a customer, you can select the “I am a customer” option to check in and review the location.
  • Then try to fill in as much information about your business.
  • You must enter the business name, address and business category. If you include business hours, phone number, website address and other information, the likelihood of acceptance will increase.
  • If you finish filling out the form, simply press the “Send” button.
  • After this step, when the business addition application is accepted, it will be published on the Yelp application and website within 2-3 days.

When you apply for a business, there is no guarantee that Yelp will accept it. Every application is made manually on the platform. Therefore, confirmation may take 2-3 days. At the same time, there is a possibility of rejection if you have provided incorrect information.

Can Businesses Use Yelp For Free?

Businesses can use the Yelp app for free. There are some free tools for businesses. To add your business to this platform, simply fill out a form. To add your business, you can list your business on this platform by going through a few steps such as Google My Business.

You can click the “Request My Business” button to see if your business is in the directory. If your business is not listed, you can take action via the “Add Your Business to Yelp” button. Moderators will review and you will be asked to create a basic profile. Once approved, you can start using Yelp by opening a free account.

If customers have added reviews or images for their business, you have a profile. Businesses are listed as “Locked” or “Open.” If the lock is open, someone in the store has claimed the business. Here you need to have login information.

If the lock is not open, there is no claim. At this point, you need to provide Yelp with your name and business email address to show that you are the owner of the business.

You cannot benefit from targeted marketing, CCP campaign and paid listing features using the free version. If your budget is limited, you can use the free version. You can also use paid features for greater brand awareness and visibility.

Benefits of Yelp for Users

Benefits of Yelp for Users

Yelp has many advantages for users. Users can discover new businesses and learn about their services. As a user, it helps you develop the most effective strategies for discovering a new place or seeing businesses in a region.

The benefits of Yelp for users are as follows;

  • You can use Yelp to discover a new business.
  • You can learn what services a business provides and its style.
  • You can read reviews and images of a business and find out what awaits you when you visit the business.
  • With comprehensive search and filtering features, you can find specific businesses that fit user needs.

As a user, you can use Yelp to find businesses, read reviews, and get detailed information about the business. This way, you can have a great dining or entertainment experience.

Benefits of Yelp for Businesses

Yelp offers unique opportunities for businesses. As a business owner, if you are listed in the Yelp directory, you can first find new customers and increase your brand’s online reputation.

The benefits of Yelp for businesses are as follows;

  • You can strengthen your business’s online reputation. You can stand out in your industry by strengthening the reputation of your business in the eyes of potential customers.
  • You can highlight the strengths and unique points of your business.
  • You can create a sense of trust in potential customers with positive comments and evaluations.
  • You can encourage customers who visit your business to interact by leaving comments and reviews.
  • You can interact directly with your customers with the messaging feature.
  • Thanks to the reservation feature, you can benefit from the online reservation feature without making any extra investment.
  • You can find ways to reach new customer bases by participating in discussions, answering questions, and sharing valuable insights about your business and industry.

You can establish an effective online presence by featuring your business on Yelp. We will explain in detail how to do this. Now you know what is Yelp App and how it works.

What Are the Steps to Make a Successful Yelp Business Page?

If you want to reap the benefits of your business on Yelp, you need to create a successful business page. In addition to creating a basic profile, each business can make it stand out more by following certain strategies.

If you create a successful Yelp business page, you can become more popular with your customer base. At the same time, your online presence on Yelp can be further strengthened. In this way, you can be more visible.

You can follow these steps to create a successful Yelp business page:

  • Complete the Yelp registration process.
  • Fill out your profile information completely.
  • Encourage those who receive services from your business to leave comments and ratings.
  • Focus on moderating your comments.
  • Respond to comments.
  • Highlight new products and create personalized promotions.
  • Optimize by tracking your business’ Yelp performance.
  • Continue your work on Yelp.

Complete The Yelp Registration Process

If you want to establish a Yelp presence for your business, you must first open an account. You need to complete Yelp registration procedures. We explained above how to go through a Yelp registration process. To do this, open your business account or, if you have a business account, complete the process of claiming your business account.

Fill Out Your Profile Information Completely

If you want to have a strong presence on Yelp, you need to fill out a profile for your business accurately and effectively. People who visit your business need to have a great experience. That’s why you need to be visible to them so they can engage on your Yelp page.

You need to enter all the information in your business profile. Attracting visitors to your page can be costly. That’s why you need to create your profile in detail. You need to specifically enter the location of your business. Users can use Yelp to find directions to your business.

Another thing you should pay attention to is that the information and corporate details between your Yelp profile and other social media applications such as Facebook and Instagram are consistent.

Add images about your business to help a user enter your store and shopping experience. At the same time, provide detailed information by adding your products and services. Make sure the images are up to date. You can also publish these images on other platforms and your website.

Encourage Those Who Receive Services From Your Business To Leave Comments And Ratings

The process of opening an account for your business and optimizing your profile is very easy. Businesses can usually do this within a day. For Yelp, you may need to do a little more detailed work.

If you want to attract more customers for your business, you first need to increase trust with customer reviews. Additionally, get a high star rating and attract more customers. Even if your ratings increase slightly, your business traffic increases significantly.

Businesses can provide incentives by offering free promotional items or discounts if shoppers leave comments. The more positive reviews and ratings people leave for your business, the more your business stands out.

You need to encourage your customers to leave feedback. Ask people if they can leave a review for you. Also remember that customers should leave real reviews. Always provide them with good products and services to give them good reviews.

By creating an email list of loyal customers, you can send out posts several times a year. Yelp provides a storefront sign that businesses can display in the front window and POS area. Find people who leave positive comments about your business on platforms such as Google and Bing, and add their comments on Yelp. Try to highlight your Yelp profile links in your social media accounts, e-mail, and business cards.

Focus On Moderating Your Comments

Focus On Moderating Your Comments

Major review sites, especially Yelp, only publish legitimate responses. He reviews each customer review and publishes it. A significant portion of businesses try to get fake reviews. Yelp is constantly trying to improve its algorithm according to such situations.

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Yelp recently announced a review filter in its recommendation software. With this feature, a more fair evaluation process has come for businesses. No matter how big a platform Yelp is, there may be fake reviews that exceed its software. Therefore, you should focus on positive comments and ensure that there are real reviews for your business.

Your competitors may also make unrealistic negative comments about your business. In this case, you should develop strategies to eliminate negative comments. A user just needs to constantly leave positive or negative reviews or create an unfinished profile.

If there are questionable negative reviews for your business, check to see if they are valid and legitimate. If you spot reviews that are fake or irrelevant to your business, contact Yelp to report it. Yelp moderators may review each post for compliance with the guidelines.

Respond To Comments

Spending time actively on Yelp is very important for a successful business profile. Yelp users for businesses and consumers need to be active. That’s why there is a system in the algorithms that will reward active users.

Like Google, the Yelp platform also allows you to highlight your business with SEO practices. To be active, you can respond to positive and negative comments.

Responding to positive comments shows users that you take them seriously. It will also reveal that you value them for choosing your store. You can thank them for their visit in return for positive comments.

If you want to respond to negative reviews, you need to be more meticulous here. You need to determine in advance what strategy you will follow against negative comments. If you create the right strategy, you have the chance to turn negative comments and experiences into positive ones.

The fact that the review is real and sincere is important in managing negative comments well. It is important that you offer customers some compensation and opportunities to correct their negative experience. With the right approach, you can make these people review and delete negative comments. If the review is unreasonable and comes from a customer who is very angry at you, still don’t hesitate to explain yourself to them. With proper comment management, you can have a successful and active Yelp profile.

Highlight New Products And Create Personalized Promotions

Highlight New Products And Create Personalized Promotions

It can be a good idea for your business to use Yelp to promote new products and sell more products. If you have a new product in your menu or have created a new holiday campaign, you can inform your customers about your innovation here.

In addition to new products on Yelp, you can offer special personal deals to your customers. Businesses attract more customers by offering special discounts to their customers on Yelp. Additionally, you can also give away some free products. You can benefit from personalized promotions for more events and communities on your page.

If you want to use Yelp more effectively, you can take advantage of the Yelp Deals feature. With this feature, you can offer special promotions to Yelp users. The algorithm promotes across the platform for greater traffic towards the discount. This way, more potential customers come to your page. Businesses can use the service for free. Yelp receives a 30% promotion on sales and a 10% promotion on gift cards for promotions and discounts made through this platform.

Optimize By Tracking Your Business’ Yelp Performance

Yelp has a dashboard for business owners to monitor their performance on the platform. This board has personalized features. You can test different strategies here and measure the results. This way you can optimize your Yelp marketing plan. You can also develop new brand awareness strategies and customer acquisition strategies.

You can track the number of visitors to your Yelp page, the position of your business in different results, and specific action options from users. You can also set, view and manage your advertising budget. By tracking Yelp performance, you can use this data to develop more effective strategies and find out how effective your strategy is.

Continue Your Work On Yelp

Continue Your Work On Yelp

Simply responding to reviews and highlighting promotions and products on your Yelp profile is not a strategy. At the same time, updating business information does not make you visible. You should constantly be active on your Yelp profile and start trying different strategies.

There is no official technique or explanation to get more views and rank higher. Even if you use paid ads, this may put a strain on your budget. We know that the algorithm highlights businesses that make regular updates and interact with their customer base. At the same time, there is no extra cost or long time required to keep your profile constantly active on Yelp. You can have an active Yelp profile for free and for a short time.

If you are looking for professional support on Yelp, our team can help you. Spending money on paid ads on Yelp is also a good strategy, but you can actively stand out instead of constantly allocating an advertising budget.

Final Thoughts

Yelp is a directory application where businesses can promote their products and services and find new customers. People can also discover businesses that offer products and services in a particular area.

You can start optimizing by creating a Yelp profile or claiming your business’s account. You can raise brand awareness through Yelp, bring your business to more people, introduce your new products and services, provide promotions and discounts, and set up an appointment system.

On Yelp, people evaluate your business by making comments and ratings. Engage customers here and become more visible by staying active.

Frequently Asked Questions About

Businesses can use Yelp for free. You do not have to pay to open a profile and use certain features. However, for more effective use, you can use some features in the premium version. You can start using it by proving ownership or opening a business account.

Another user may comment and review your business on Yelp. Even if you don’t open an account, there may be an account in your business name. In this case, you can claim your business with immediate proof by contacting Yelp. You can then start managing your business account.

Be active on Yelp, respond to customer reviews, and actively create promotions to attract more customers. At the same time, keep business information active and up to date. However, create a more active strategy.

Hasan Berber

Posts: 50

Hello, I'm Hasan. I graduated from Istanbul University with a degree in Business Administration. My interest in digital marketing started when I took a related course at university. Since then, I have been passionately following this field, and I'm at Dopinger to share the knowledge I've gained wi... Read More

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