If you want to find out more about a new restaurant or bar, where do you go? That’s right, Yelp! On the Yelp platform, you can read honest customer reviews about a wide range of local businesses in your area.
Yelp started in 2004, and since then, it has earned a reputation as a popular online platform that allows users to leave reviews and rate local businesses such as restaurants, bars, and shops.
In its early days, Yelp quickly became one of the most influential review platforms, with millions of users and companies listed worldwide.
But is Yelp still relevant? The answer is yes. Yelp remains relevant in 2023, providing valuable services to businesses and potential customers, making it essential to the modern business landscape.
In fact, Yelp reviews play an even more relevant role nowadays, as online reviews have become a critical part of the buying decision process for consumers.
How Yelp Is Still in Business in 2023
While some people may have thought that Yelp would disappear in the face of competition from newer review sites and changing consumer habits, Yelp reviews remain a relevant and influential player in online reviews.
You might be wondering how Yelp survived in getting to 2023. Let’s take a closer look.
Yelp is nurtured by real people sharing their experiences. People rely on their recommendations, and that’s why, after almost twenty years, Yelp has remained a go-to source for people looking for businesses in their area.
In its early days, Yelp was a popular place to read reviews about restaurants. Now, it has expanded to include a broader range of business categories. You can find everything from doctors to auto detailing to dry cleaning and beyond.
By offering reviews for a more comprehensive range of businesses, Yelp has been able to appeal to a broader audience.
Also, with Yelp’s advertising partner program, businesses can create targeted advertising campaigns, helping them reach a wider audience and increase their visibility on the platform.
Most importantly, agency partners can use Yelp to manage their clients’ campaigns, which makes Yelp another essential tool for content strategy and paid advertising efforts.
As a final note, Yelp has adapted to new technologies, such as mobile-friendly interfaces. The company launched a Yelp app for Android and IOS mobile devices.
In addition to finding businesses and leaving or reading reviews, users can make reservations, order food for delivery or pickup, and browse special offers and deals.
What Is the Number of People on Yelp?
As of March 2023, Yelp still needed to release information regarding how many people were registered. According to earthweb.com, Yelp receives 178 million monthly visitors.
As a result, Yelp is the 44th most visited website in the United States. US Yelp users are evenly distributed by age categories, with 30% aged 18-34, 36% aged 35-54, and 33% aged 55 and older.
How Many Businesses Are on Yelp?
There is no exact data on how many businesses are listed on Yelp. Still, as of March 31, 2021, Yelp stated that it had over half a million registered businesses on its platform. This only illustrates the vast number of companies already on the platform.
It’s important to note that some of these listings may no longer be active, as they may have closed or changed their information.
What Are Some Advantages of Yelp?
Whether you’re a small or large business owner, Yelp can be a solid asset for your online strategy.
Many people read online reviews before deciding which products or services to purchase. An accurate example of this is Amazon. Most of the time, a customer will base their buying decision on how many other people have rated the product.
Online reviews have this kind of power.
Here are some ways that you can take advantage of Yelp:
- Create trust around potential customers: Review sites like Google Reviews or Yelp are reliable sources of information for most people. Whenever a customer shares a good or negative review, it builds credibility around your business.
- Boost the sense of community and interaction: Letting your customers share their experiences with other customers creates dialogue. Customers can interact and share valuable insights. If you play it smartly, these interactions can be an excellent opportunity for you to join them.
- Build engagement: You can use Yelp to address both good and bad experiences with your company. If someone leaves you a good review, you can thank that user and nurture customer loyalty. And, if you receive a bad review, you can manage the situation and address the issue professionally.
- Increase exposure: Despite the idea that so many businesses registered on Yelp will make you go unnoticed, joining Yelp can help you earn star ratings, increasing your online reputation on your business and your offer.
- Improve search engine ranking: When a customer searches for a specific business on Google Maps, the results will appear in Google’s local search results, which are often displayed at the top of the search results. The more relevant your keywords and reviews are to your business, the more likely you will appear in local search results.
The Disadvantages of Yelp
Yelp is a popular platform for consumers to find and review local businesses. However, there are some disadvantages to using Yelp.
Here are three potential drawbacks:
- Fake reviews: Yelp relies heavily on user-generated reviews, which can be biased or manipulated. Sometimes, competitors post fake negative reviews, or users may leave inaccurate or unfair reviews due to personal biases or emotional reactions.
- Biased negative reviews: A business that receives a negative review on Yelp may find it challenging to remove it. You must meet specific criteria to gain access to remove them, and Yelp has a strict policy. This can be frustrating for businesses that feel they have been unfairly reviewed.
- Filtered reviews: Although you can filter an unfair Yelp review, which might seem positive, the platform may filter good reviews or miss fake ones.
Who Are Yelp’s Competitors and How Are They Changing the Industry?
Yelp’s competitors include other online review sites such as Google Reviews, TripAdvisor, Facebook Reviews, and Foursquare. These platforms offer similar services to Yelp, allowing users to post reviews of businesses and share their experiences with others.
Each of these competitors is changing the industry in its own unique way. Google integrates reviews directly into its search results, making it easier for users to find companies near their locations.
- TripAdvisor focuses on travel-related places and offers tools for users to plan and book their travel experiences.
- Facebook Reviews leverages its massive user base to provide more social media features around business reviews, such as seeing which of your friends have visited a particular business and what they thought of it.
- Foursquare offers a more personalized experience, providing recommendations based on a user’s location and past check-ins.
Overall, these competitors provide a new and innovative way for a customer to discover and share business information.
What Does the Future Look Like for Yelp?
There’s no doubt that Yelp was a game-changer for businesses in its early beginnings and continues to be a dependable source of data nowadays by offering valuable insights to users through its user-generated content.
By reading both positive and negative reviews, most people can easily find trusted companies in almost any industry.
Still, in terms of the future, there can be some uncertainty about what will happen. Nonetheless, it’s safe to say that the future is online, and customers, as well as companies, must continue to adapt.
And definitely, Yelp will continue to be a significant player in the online review space. According to Yelp metrics, as of December 31, 2022, it received around 33 million app-unique devices monthly.
This data only states that Yelp must continue to evolve and adapt to changing user preferences and keep pace with the increasing use of mobile devices.
Also, with an average of 74% of reviews recommending businesses online, business owners will have to upscale their game online while improving their offline efforts, such as customer service and quality products, to guarantee a solid online reputation.
If you’re a business owner looking to improve your online presence, strength, and credibility through social media and reviews, working with a reputable digital marketing agency is essential.
At Nativo, our team of experienced professionals specializes in enhancing online credibility and managing review platforms.
With years of experience in this field, we can guide you through the intricate details of online reviews. We can also help you build a strong and credible online presence for your business.
Contact us today and learn how we can help you achieve your goals and grow your business!