GUEST RELATION MANAGEMENT {ONLINE REVIEWS} Flashcards
Definition: What is an Online Review?
A review of a product or service made by a consumer who has experienced a service or purchased a product.
Online Reviews in Hospitality:
Potential consumers pay attention to what past clients are thinking about a business.
In hospitality, online reviews are critical, even game-changers.
Online reviews can increase leads and bookings through trustworthy and convincing content.
These reviews have the power to convert internet users to clients.
The guests are more eager to share negative comments even before asking.
However, happy guests will accept a hotels request to leave an online review.
They also want to impact positively the hostel business as the hotel was able to do for them.
Effects of Positive Online Reviews
People search online before paying for a product or service.
A potential guests will read all reviews of surrounding hotels before booking.
In this scenario, good online reviews will increase their likelihood of choosing a specific hotel.
Moreover, when a potential visitor comes across a positive review on their results page, they will instantly click the website for more info.
Firstly, there is more of a chance to persuade them to book a room.
Secondly, that will boost online traffic and eventually the search engine rankings without much effort and money.
Customer reviews are like building blocks of trust between brands and customers.
When they see a positive review on a page, they will think that prior customers cared about the hotel enough to spend time writing.
Client reviews offer significant clues about where the hotels marketing strategies should go.
Online Reviews
Effects of Negative Reviews
Negative customer reviews can affect the brand reputation badly and weaken its reliability.
Many online buyers are reluctant to book from a hotel or restaurant with no or too many negative reviews, thus decreasing revenue.
However, having bad reviews makes the good ones seem more trustworthy.
It is even more beneficial for a business when a customer sees a proper response to that negative review.
This way, customers can know that the hotel is responsible, genuine, and a brand they can choose.
On the other hand, some negative reviews are rightful.
These reviews will benefit the business by showing the areas or products that should be enhanced or changed.
Similar to positive reviews, they can affect the future marketing plans and give a hotel a chance to improve itself.
Tips for Handling Negative Review
A hotel cannot escape from negative social media reviews.
Especially businesses in the hospitality industry, since it is quite hard to make everyone happy all the time.
Even if a hotel only has positive reviews, It is not necessarily desirable.
People notice when they see fake reviews or assume that there are a lot of these out there.
That is why a combination of positive and negative reviews is preferable for a business to build trust in customers
The most important thing is the way a hotel handles a negative review rather than having one.
five tips you should know about how to manage negative reviews online:
- Asking for further explanation.
- Being kind, helpful, and understanding.
- Not hiding the negative reviews and answering them in public. This shows that the hotel cares for them.
- Using the reviews as an opportunity for development.
- Offering solutions/gifts/promotions. While appreciating their honesty, time, and effort.
