Trip Advisor & User Generated Hotel Ratings? Wait a minute...
- ynlqndr
- Feb 3, 2016
- 2 min read

USER GENERATED HOTEL RATINGS
In today’s new internet driven tourism review environment of Trip Advisor and consumer commentaries from hotel booking sites, you will likely want to read the reviews of other persons that have stayed at the hotel.
According to a study by JD Powers (a world leader in consumer satisfaction research) approximately 50% of travelers are now researching hotel reviews before they make a hotel reservation.
But are these reviews reliable?
Brand Integrity Auditors – a Hotel Mystery Guest service provider - firmly believes that, despite their popularity, they should not be depended upon completely. After all, the reviews are impulsive and random, some write them and others don’t; the reviews are opinions, and have no basis in scientific measurement, or comparison.
But they are nevertheless important, because today’s consumer seeks out information sources that are alternatives to advertising, and “word-of-mouth” - as any advertising professional worth their salt will painfully admit - is the most effective form of advertising – bar none.
And hotels are reacting to this phenomenon, with recent research by Cornell University suggesting that “managing online reputations” was the number one priority for a significant number of international brand hotel chains.
PITFALLS
However the most recognized of these hotel review sites can be – and have been – manipulated: We recently read an article stating that in 2013, a businessman was exposed after having posted fake yet flattering reviews for an imaginary seafood restaurant in Devon, England, called ‘Oscars’. Instead of finding ‘Oscars’, persons that wanted to try the restaurant after having read the reviews, followed directions to the “restaurant” that were posted online and arrived to find an alleyway filled with garbage containers. TripAdvisor was among the sites that were a victim of the hoax.
So, traveler be wise and expand your travel research beyond one or two user-generated hotel ratings websites, and take the reviews with "more than a pinch of salt" - after all opinions do vary, and if they come from strangers; how valid are they?
For more from Brand Integrity Auditors, please visit our (work-in-progress) website:
http://ynlqndr.wix.com/hotel-mystery-shop
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