Do management responses affect my popularity ranking on TripAdvisor?

TripAdvisor’s Popularity Index is based on traveler feedback and reflects how your property ranks compared to your competitors. If you’re a business owner, it’s important to know what factors impact your popularity ranking. One of the questions we often receive is whether management responses are part of the equation.

The Popularity Index is primarily based on three key components: quantity, quality and recency of reviews written about the property. Management responses are not factored into popularity rankings.

However, research shows that when an owner responds promptly and professionally to a review, addressing any specific complaints as well as the positive comments, it can make a big impact on prospective customers. Our surveys show that 78% of travelers say that a management response to a good review makes them think highly of the hotel and when considering two comparable properties, 68% would choose the property with management responses.¹ So while responding to reviews doesn’t impact your ranking, it does make a strong impression on travelers when it comes time to book.

Find out about some of the best practices in responding to traveler reviews here.

For more information about TripAdvisor’s Popularity Index, check out the Pop Index Overview and read our previous post on “How to improve your popularity ranking on TripAdvisor.”

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¹ “TripAdvisor Custom Online Survey 2010”, conducted by Forrester Consulting, commissioned by TripAdvisor

Join us for the “Management Responses” webinar this coming Tuesday

50 million travelers are listening to you, so be a part of the conversation! Management responses give you the opportunity to engage with your previous guests and market your property to future guests. And industry research shows that management responses are highly influential with travelers during the booking process.

To learn more, join us for the “Management Responses” webinar on Tuesday at 11 a.m. EST. The webinar will cover:

• The influence and reach of management responses on the travel community
• Best practices of responding to positive and negative reviews
• How to publish responses on TripAdvisor
• An overview of the NEW Management Dashboard

And don’t forget to bring your questions! This is a 40-minute presentation with a 15-minute Q&A after.

Click here to register for the “Management Responses” webinar

How to improve your popularity ranking on TripAdvisor

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The TripAdvisor Popularity Index is based on traveler feedback and reflects how a property ranks compared to competitors within a geographic area. The closer you are to the top of the list, the more likely it is that travelers will see your listing when they search for properties in the area. In addition, research shows that travelers are drawn to places that are highly praised by other travelers.

Our popularity ranking algorithm is based on three key components: quantity, quality and recency of reviews written about the property.

• Quantity: Ask your guests to write reviews, and use our management center tools to remind them after they check out.  Offering incentives for reviews is against the rules, though – take a look at our policy to make sure you understand what is and isn’t okay.
• Quality: Guests who enjoyed first class hospitality and a memorable experience are more likely to write positive reviews. Monitor what previous reviewers have written to see what worked and did not work best for your property so you can maintain and improve your service.
• Recency: Recent reviews factor more strongly on your popularity rankings and older reviews have less impact on a hotel’s ranking over time. Once again, encourage guests to write reviews to keep fresh content rolling in.

All reviews must be authentic opinions of real travelers. We take content integrity very seriously and screen every review. If you are caught breaking our guidelines, it can take a big hit on your popularity ranking. Please review the guidelines to learn more.

The key to building a successful business and a higher popularity ranking is stellar hospitality and paying attention to your customers needs. Encourage customers to write reviews, learn from them and watch your hard work pay off.

How Travelers Interpret Reviews: Get The Facts

Want to know how travelers assess and react to reviews of your property on TripAdvisor? You’ll find real insight in research findings conducted by three independent professional bodies*.

Fact 1: Today’s traveler places growing importance on independent customer reviews

The growing sophistication of travel marketing has created more sophisticated travel consumers, who cut through the hype and seek out independent opinions and reviews. In a survey¹, 81% of travelers said reviews were important when deciding which hotel to book, and almost half said they wouldn’t book a hotel unless it had reviews.

Fact 2: Fifty million travelers value TripAdvisor reviews

Did you know that TripAdvisor is the world’s largest travel website, attracting 50 million unique users every month²? This user loyalty testifies to the usefulness of our traveler reviews and opinions.  According to a recent PhoCusWright study commissioned by TripAdvisor³, 98% of respondents found TripAdvisor reviews to be accurate of the actual experience; and 89% of respondents agreed that TripAdvisor hotel reviews “Help me plan a better trip”.

Fact 3: Travelers turn to the ‘wisdom of the crowds’

Recent research supports what we at TripAdvisor have always maintained: travelers form an educated view based on the opinions of many. A survey conducted by Forrester Consulting¹ found that 77% of travelers usually ignore extreme comments about properties and base their assumptions on a general assessment of customer responses (as well as property photos and descriptions).

Fact 4: Travelers appreciate a Management Response

While no single hotel review may be decisive for a traveler, we’re aware that the reviews and opinions on TripAdvisor are important to properties listed on the site. Ensuring the honesty of all reviews – and preventing fraud – is our top priority. While no system is perfect, and the anonymity and open access of the Internet offers its own challenges, TripAdvisor has adopted an extremely detailed, sophisticated and frequently updated process to screen review submissions.  Hoteliers also have the right to dispute any comments (contact Customer Services: 1-617-431-5424 (US, Canada) or +44 203 318 5019 (UK, Australia, India)), as well as the right to reply – in a Management Response. When an owner responds promptly and professionally to a review, addressing any specific complaints as well as the positive comments, a Management Response can be very effective. In fact, 71% of surveyed travelers¹ª found them to be very persuasive.

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*The three research companies were Forrester Consulting, comScore Media Metrix and PhoCusWright
¹ “TripAdvisor Custom Online Survey 2010”, conducted by Forrester Consulting, commissioned by TripAdvisor
¹ªQuestioned in relation to a specific review from an official hotel rep. Survey by Forrester Consulting, as above.
²Source: comScore Media Metrix, Worldwide, August 2011
³According to a July 2011 PhoCusWright survey of 3,641 respondents. Participants for the study were solicited at random through a pop-up invitation link on TripAdvisor.com.

How some properties are doing it right: great examples of management responses

Replying to reviews is very important, both to show that you take customer feedback seriously and to reassure potential guests that any issues which may have been mentioned in recent reviews have been addressed. Before writing a management response it’s a good idea to have a look and see how other businesses are responding to their reviews. How are they dealing with different kinds of feedback and, if you were a potential guest, would their reply have answered any questions you had and set your mind at rest?

Forum roundup: Managing your account Q&A

We’ve addressed some of the questions that commonly come up in the Business forums around managing your account on TripAdvisor.

I’ve just discovered there are two listings for my property with slightly different names. How can I have them combined and all my reviews put under one listing?

 If your property has been listed on TripAdvisor more than once, you can request to have the listings merged and all the reviews from the duplicate listing transferred across.

Reputation management – you have to create it before you can manage it!

TripAdvisor partnered with Tnooz this week on a webinar focusing on Reputation Management.  Some very useful tips came out of the webinar, one being you can’t manage a reputation until you have created it and that takes work and dedication!  Below are some of the tips they shared:

• Getting your employees on board is essential – they have to know what your vision is and share it. Hiring and training people who are committed to providing excellent customer service goes a long way.  
• User-generated content (reviews and opinions) can help you get more revenue from your own booking website and become less dependent on paid advertising, OTAs or wholesale contracts.

Pixar, here we come!

We may not rival the big animation studios yet, but our new videos on how to best market your property through TripAdvisor are fun to watch, as well as chock full of information on using our free resources, getting more reviews, responding to them, and earning TripAdvisor awards.  At just two minutes each, you can pick up a lot of tips in short time.  Check out the first video below, and then follow the links to see the others. 

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Get More Reviews and Make the Most of Them | The Power of Management Responses to Guests’ Reviews | How to Earn TripAdvisor Awards and Promote your Property

Introducing the new TripAdvisor Management Center

We’re excited to announce the launch of TripAdvisor’s Management Center, which replaces the Owners’ Center and offers improved navigation, familiar free management resources, and a new educational platform to help hospitality businesses make the most of their presence on TripAdvisor.

Reputation management from Tnooz and TripAdvisor

Do you know the best way to respond to traveler feedback? Would you like to leverage user reviews to promote your business? TripAdvisor has partnered with Tnooz, the travel, tourism and hospitality industry news site, to host a webinar featuring guest experts and live chat facilities.