Yelp Official Blog

Yelp.com Welcomes 100 Million Unique Visitors in January 2013

I’ve got some good news to share. Pretty fantastic news actually. For the first time in Yelp history, over 100 million unique visitors came to the site in a one-month period. That’s an all-time high for traffic to the desktop and mobile site and a clear indication that people are looking for local businesses and finding them on Yelp. While that number is huge, it doesn’t even include the 9.4 million unique mobile devices that used the Yelp mobile app in January alone.

Even more staggering than 100 million unique visitors using Yelp.com in January are the millions of contributions Yelpers made to the community in the same time frame. The 4.6 million calls and 5.7 million directions generated through the Yelp mobile app and nearly 2 million bookmarks created by Yelpers are the connection between searching for a specific local business and making a spending decision. And spending they are! A recent survey of business owners on Yelp reported that the average customer across all categories surveyed spends $101.59 in their first visit. That's everything from hiring a roofer to buying a new mattress and even your morning cup of joe, and it all adds up.

For a closer look at these 100 million unique visitors, we broke down this record breaking month into a visual party of an infographic. If you were one of them, thank you for supporting local businesses, and we’ll see you on Yelp again soon!

Turkish Delight!

Türk Lokumu!

Yelp Türkiye’de iş hayatına açılıyor

Duygularınıza memnuniyetle karşılayacağınız bir biçimde hücum eden, hayat dolu bir kültür, miras ve coğrafya mozaiği ile Türkiye, hemen herkese tanıdık gelecek egzotik bir dokunuşla hitap etmeyi başarıyor. Tarihinde Avrupa’yı kahve ile, Hollanda’yı lale ile tanıştıran, orjinal Santa Claus’un (St. Nicholas) ana vatanı, Nuh’un Gemisinin son durağı (Ağrı Dağı) ve en eski insan yerleşkesine (Çatalhöyük, 7500 M.Ö.) yurt olarak bilinen Türkiye, şimdi de Yelp topluluğunun yirminci ev sahibi ülkesi olmayı uzun başarılar listesine eklemek üzere.

Konu yemek, içmek ve paylaşmak olunca Türkler, her şeyin en iyisini bulmak için uzun yola gitmeye razıdırlar, sonra da bunu ortaya koyup aile, arkadaş ve gelen her misafir ile paylaşmaktan memnun olurlar. Türk kebabı yedim diyenlere bir sözümüz var, bir kez daha düşünün, bu konuda bildiğiniz her şeyi unutun ve mahalli bir İskender kebapçıda bir bardak ayran eşliğinde yemeklere yumulun veya bir kaç kadeh Rakı da iyi gidebilir, sonra bırakın dünya dönsün kendi ahenginde. Yalnız Rakıyı fazla kaçırmayın sakın ha, yoksa Boğaziçi’nde pembe filleri kovalarsınız.

Başlangıçta, topluluk oluşturma çabalarımız, sınırları iki kıtaya yayılan tek dünya şehri olan İstanbul’da yoğunlaşacak ama, Yelp’çiler, yurtlarının her yöresindeki gerçekten çok iyi olan veya pek de o kadar iyi olmayan iş yerlerini değerlendirebilecek, bunları hem hemşerileri ile hem de turistlerle paylaşabilecekler – onları nerede bir tavşan kanı çay veya bol köpüklü Türk kahvesi içileceğinden, Kapalı Çarşı labirentinde nasıl dolaşılacağına kadar bir çok konuda yönlendirebilecekler.

Bugünden itibaren Türkiye’de yaşayanlar, Yelp.com.tr adresinden profillerini oluşturabilirler ve mobil uygulamaları kullanabilirler. İş yeri sahipleri de kendi ücretsiz sayfalarını yaratabilir, biz.yelp.com.tr  adresinde profillerini oluşturmaya başlayabilirler.

Merhaba!

 

Turkish Delight!
Yelp Turkey opens for business

A vivid mosaic of culture, heritage and geography, mixed with a welcomed assault on the senses, Turkey manages to provide a touch of the exotic and the familiar to almost everyone. Having already brought coffee to Europe, tulips to the Dutch, being home to the original Santa Claus (St Nicholas), the final resting place of Noah’s Ark (Mount Ararat) and recognised as home to the oldest known human settlement (Catalhoyuk, 7500BC), Turkey can now add the accolade of being the twentieth country to host a Yelp community to its extremely long list of achievements.

When it comes to eating, drinking and sharing, the Turks go out of their way to find the best of everything, bring it together and share it with family, friends and any misafir (guest) they stumble across. For those that think they have tasted a Turkish kebab, think again, clear your mind, forget everything you think you have ever learned about the subject and tuck in to a local İskender kebab, accompany it with a cup of Ayran, or swill it down with a few shots of Raki and just watch the world go by. But go light on the Raki, one glass too many and you’ll be chasing pink elephants into the Bosphorus!

Our initial community building efforts in Turkey will concentrate on Istanbul, the only city in the world to span two continents, but Yelpers can rate and review the great and the not-so-great businesses from across the country and share what their neighbourhoods have to offer both locals and tourists – from pointing them to the best cup of strong black çay or Turkish coffee to helping them navigate the maze of the Grand Bazaar.

As of today, people in Turkey can log on to Yelp.com.tr, create their profile, access and use the mobile apps, while businesses can claim their page for free and start building their profile at biz.yelp.com.tr.

Merhaba!

Consumer alerts: because you might like to know...

The value of Yelp for business owners has been proven time and again and is thanks in large part to the high quality content on our site. The review filter, content guidelines and terms of service are all in place to make Yelp a better, more useful place for everyone, business owners and consumers alike. That said, the allure of a page full of five-star reviews can turn even the most ethical business owner starry-eyed and persuade some to attempt to game the system by paying for reviews.

This pretty much breaks every rule in the book, not to mention it’s just wrong to mislead consumers with fake reviews. To combat this, we’ve put on our detective hats, tracked down these rogue solicitations and are now giving you a heads up. Starting today, when we’ve determined that there have been significant attempts to pay for reviews, you may see a warning (like the one below) that some shady practices may be at play.

The alert will be removed from the business’s Yelp page after 90 days (unless we uncover any renewed efforts to mislead consumers). Initially, nine businesses will have the consumer alert message posted on their profile page, but the company will be posting alerts like these on an on-going basis, as warranted.

Why are we doing this? We want to make sure consumers are making informed decisions. Yelp’s automated review filter is working around the clock to flag these types of biased reviews, and we believe that you deserve the right to know when this type of activity is taking place behind the scenes.

As efforts to game the system continuously evolve, so do our methods for combating it. An independent Businessweek report confirmed the success of Yelp’s efforts to protect consumers. The article details the efforts of a Texan business owner who purchased 200 online reviews in an attempt to artificially bolster his business’s online reputation. The report found that Yelp’s review filter returned “impressive results” catching every purchased review, while the shill reviews remained up on seven other review sites.

Beyond alerting consumers to attempts to purchase reviews, the next step will be to let consumers know if a business has had a large number of reviews submitted from the same Internet Protocol (IP) address, which can be a helpful indicator that they lack authenticity. While the review filter already takes this type of information into account, we believe that consumers also have a right to know if this activity is going on.

To help put this in perspective, the large majority of businesses on Yelp play by the rules and work tirelessly to provide the best customer service and products to their clients. We salute their efforts and entrepreneurship. They inspire us to work even harder to protect the site from faux reviews, so that they have a fair opportunity to bask in the glow of their shining stars.

Rest assured we are not going to let a few bad apples spoil the bunch. 

Poland set to Yelp loud and proud!

Yelp zawitał do Polski

Co wiesz na temat swojego kraju?

Graniczy z siedmioma państwami? Ma dostęp do Morza Bałtyckiego na północy? Znajduje się tutaj jedyna pustynia w Europie Środkowej? Jest to miejsce z bogatą ofertą kulturalną i licznymi zabytkami, które każdego roku przyciągają miliony turystów?

Co mogłoby sprawić, aby Twój opis Polski stał się pełniejszy?

A gdybyśmy powiedzieli Ci, że od dzisiaj Yelp jest dostępny również w Polsce i, że udostępniamy Ci tym samym kulturalne, kulinarne, oraz rozrywkowe bogactwo społeczności Yelp, dzięki której dowiesz się, co ten kraj ma najlepszego do zaoferowania?

Tak, wiedzieliśmy, że to ci się spodoba!

 

Od teraz będziesz mógł znaleźć, sprawdzić oraz napisać recenzję wybranej usługi w Polsce i udostępnić ją swoim znajomym.

W momencie wprowadzenia na rynek, Yelp skoncentruje swoje siły wokół budowania społeczności w  dwóch miastach: w Warszawie - gospodarczej, politycznej i biznesowej stolicy kraju, a także w Krakowie - historycznym centrum, w którym znajduje się zachwycające Stare Miasto, dawna dzielnica żydowska, a obecnie zagęszczenie najmodniejszych klubów - Kazimierz oraz Wawel.  Choć każde z tych miast ma swój unikalny klimat, to w obu z nich będziesz mógł(ogła) znaleźć najlepsze miejsce serwujące np. solidne porcje sycących kotletów schabowych. Tylko pamiętaj, żeby zamówić do nich buraczki na lepsze trawienie.

W Polsce, będącej ojczyzną sławnego kompozytora Fryderyka Chopina, produkowana jest również wódka Chopin, wielokrotnie nagradzany, luksusowy rodzaj alkoholu, który powinien skosztować każdy odwiedzający Polskę. Jeśli nie jesteś wielbicielem mocnych trunków, możesz przenieść się do zamierzchłych czasów i skosztować rozgrzewającego miodu pitnego idealnego na nadchodzące zimowe miesiące - Na zdrowie!

Oprócz wyszukiwania najlepszych restauracji, polscy Yelpersi będa też mogli recenzować inne usługi, takie jak butiki, muzea czy  ośrodki spa.

Oznacza to, że  każdy będzie  mógł  poznać wszystko to, co najlepsze oraz pomóc innym unikać miejsc, które nie są warte polecenia.

Wejdź na Yelp.pl i nie zapomnij ściągnąć aplikacji mobilnej Yelp, aby mieć bezpośredni dostęp do tego, co najlepsze w Polsce.

Właściciele firm dodatkowo będą mieli możliwość skorzystania ze strony biz.yelp.pl,  na której za darmo można zarejestrować stronę firmową oraz utworzyć swój profil.

Witamy w Polsce!

Poland set to Yelp loud and proud!

Bordered by seven countries, the Baltic Sea to the North, and home to Central Europe’s only desert, Poland boasts a wealth of cultural and historical attractions that attract millions of visitors every year and entertains 38.5 million inhabitants all year-round.

What could make that introduction to Poland any better you may ask…? What if we told you that as of today Yelp is available across the country, opening up this cultural, culinary, artistic and entertaining wealth to the global Yelp community to review, share and test the best the country has to offer? Yep, thought that would do it.

Yelp is focusing its community building efforts on 2 individual locations at launch: Warsaw, the economic, political and business capital, as well as Krakow, the historic centre which includes the Old Town, Kazimierz and the Wawel Castle and was included as the first of its kind on the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites in 1978. Each city has its own very unique feel, but each one provides you the opportunity of seeking out the best place to get your hands on a hearty serving of the stomach filling Zrazy, just make sure you offset it with a side of Buraczki to help with digestion – that stuff will stick to your ribs! ;)

Home of the famous composer Chopin, Poland is also home to Chopin Vodka – an award winning luxury and a must try! If hard liquor is not your thing, how about stepping back in time and grabbing hold of a goblet of miód pitny to warm you up during the impending winter months - Na zdrowie!

Not limited to finding the best places to eat and drink, Yelpers in Poland will be able to review all types of businesses including fashion boutiques, museums and spas, meaning the community will be making the most of what’s good and helping others steer away from everything that’s not so good.

Jump into Yelp.pl and don’t forget to download Yelp’s mobile app to have the best of Poland at your fingertips. Business owners can get in the act too at biz.yelp.pl where they can claim their business page for free and start building their profile.

Witamy w Polsce!

Day in the Life of an International Yelp CM

The next to star in this blog series is Jenny L, Community Manager in Edinburgh, Scotland.

What did you do before becoming a CM at Yelp?                 
I read a lot of books, went to student productions of Arthur Miller plays and had aspirations of becoming a penniless author before landing myself a marketing role. Suited and booted I managed the brand and all advertising for a local Scottish company that helped students start up businesses. I also read a lot of books in that role, and ate cake.

How did you find out about Yelp?                 
A good friend of mine, from New York, who I had met at University told me to check out this "awesome new website" where I could write about eating cake. Turns out he was right! I was yelping for 6 months as a die-hard Yelper before I found out about the possibility of becoming a CM.                 

How do you describe your job to people?                 
I manage the Edinburgh community of Yelp – the review website where anyone can write reviews of any of their favourite places in the city, from bars and restaurants to bike repair shops and parks.

This basically means I get to host awesome parties at brilliant local Edinburgh restaurants, cafés, bars and shops, eat out and drink out as part and parcel of the job, research and write about all the food, drink and culture trends in the city, get involved with all the awesome events Edinburgh has to offer from crafting to live music to pop-up burger shops, and spread the good word of Yelp amongst locals.

What's your "office" like?                  
It usually involves cake, and big windows with lots of natural light and gorgeous views over the city. I work half the time from home, and the other half in local cafés and bars with wifi. I love being out and about in the city, and amongst people, and taking my laptop everywhere with me means I never miss what's going on.

What do you think makes your Yelp community different than others? Do you have a mascot?
Edinburgh is a capital city, but it's also quite small and feels more like lots of small villages all stuck together. The city inherently has a great community of friendly locals and great business owners, and it feels like Yelp was made for the city! The business owners all support one another, they're really active online and interact with customers via any online social outlet. And the locals are all real foodies with a great appreciation for fantastic food, and support a lot of 'eat local' movements. It feels like every Edinburgh local was a natural-born Yelper.

What's been your favorite event that you've thrown?                 
Yelp's Prohibition Spring Fling at The Old Waverley Hotel Ballroom, in March 2012. I'd been trying for months to throw a themed Elite Event, encouraging Yelpers to dress up, but to little avail. But for this event, everyone got dolled up to the nines! It was like something out of a Hollywood movie, or Boardwalk Empire. Classy gin cocktails, a Charleston dance class, in a period ballroom overlooking a night sky and Edinburgh castle, with the men in their suits and suave gelled hair, the ladies in their ball gowns. I couldn't have asked for anything more, it was just magical! http://communityblog.yelp.com/2012/03/yelp-edinburghs-prohibition-spring-fling-the-old-waverley-hotel.html                 
 
Describe your co-workers...                 
The friendliest, craziest, most beautiful group of people I have ever had the good fortune to meet.

What's your favorite thing about working for a company like Yelp?
The freedom and encouragement to be creative, to be yourself and make the job and the community your own. Every city is different, every CM is different, but the common theme is that all Yelpers are AWESOME. Oh, and I have a legitimate excuse to eat cake every day.

Day in the Life of an International Yelp CM

2009 ging Yelp das erste Mal in einem Land außerhalb der USA an den Start: Kanada. Seither geht es immer weiter voraus, mittlerweile gibt es uns in 18 Ländern weltweit. Aber eine Frage wird uns immer wieder gestellt, und zwar ob Yelp in allen Ländern außerhalb der USA gleich ist.

Nun ja, wir dachten uns, wir gehen mal direkt an die Quelle und fragen unsere Community Manager überall auf der Welt, wie Yelp in ihren Städten ist. Wir starten mit Svenja G, unserer Berliner Community Managerin, die davon erzählt, wie sie (oder vielmehr ihre Schwester) Yelp in Deutschland entdeckte.

Das folgende Interview ist das erste in einer Reihe von Artikeln über unsere Europäischen Community Manager.

Wie hast du von Yelp erfahren?
Yelp war noch recht unbekannt in Deutschland und es war tatsächlich meine Schwester, die die ausgeschriebene Stelle fand. Sie sagte: “Warum bewirbst du dich nicht auf den Job. Der klingt immerhin so, als sei er wie für dich gemacht!” Und Tatsache, sie hatte Recht! Ich wusste sofort, dass ich die Berliner Community Managerin sein wollte. Jetzt wo ich es erwähne, ich sollte meiner Schwester ein paar Blumen für die Entdeckung schicken!

Wie beschreibst du anderen deinen Job?
Ich entdecke die Stadt, schreibe den Weekly, gehe VIEL essen und trinken, jeden Tag treffe ich spannende Leute, schmeiße Events für meine geliebten Yelper und erzähle allen von Yelp.

Was ist dein liebster Yelp Moment?
Das schönste Ereignis bisher passierte dank eines schlichten Zufalls. Während meiner Kampagnenwoche “Yelps Pass für den Reuterkiez” starteten wir die Bar-Tour in einer französisch-amerikanischen Bar.  Ich war als erste da und erwartete offen gestanden acht bis zehn Leute. Nach und nach tauchten immer mehr Leute auf bis die Bar voll war und die Live-Band fing an französischen Chansonpop zu spielen. Die Gäste, die Band, die Barbesitzer, alle hatten irre viel Spaß. Als wir in Begriff waren weiterzuziehen, kam die Besitzerin zu mir und bedankte sich dafür, dass dank Yelp so viele tolle Gäste da waren, die den Abend auch für die Band atemberaubend schön gestalteten. Der Abend war deswegen so speziell, da ich das Yelp Motto  - Berliner mit tollen lokalen Geschäften zusammenzubringen - live miterleben konnte!

Wie sieht dein Büro aus?
Büro?! Pfffffft! Manchmal sitze ich auf meiner Terrasse im Fatboy, an anderen Tagen finde ich den Schreibtisch ganz spannend und freitags gibt es nichts besseres als meine Couch, aber auch das Café mit kostenlosem Wlan um die Ecke ist schnuckelig. Anderer Tag, anderer Arbeitsplatz, aber wer braucht schon ein Büro? Ich jedenfalls nicht!

Was hat dich am meisten überrascht an der Arbeit für Yelp?
Wir reden immerhin von Yelp, einer großen Firma mit zahlreichen Abteilungen, CMs auf der ganzen Welt, IT, Übersetzern, Editoren und was weiß ich noch alles. Jedes Jahr werden wir mehr. Wenn wir uns alle treffen, was meistens einmal im Jahr geschieht, fühlt es sich an wie eine Familien-Reunion. Bekannte Gesichter, neue Gesichter - Spannung und Freude in allen Gesichtern und jede Menge Spaß. Egal wie groß wir werden, wir behalten trotzdem die rührende Stimmung einer Familie.  
   
Beschreibe deine Kollegen...
Sie sind nicht nur meine Kollegen, sie sind meine Freunde, meine Stadtführer und die besten Leute zum Rumhängen! Egal wie weit wir voneinander entfernt wohnen und egal wie unterschiedlich unserer Kulturen sind, wir sitzen trotzdem alle im selben Boot und sind uns echt erstaunlich ähnlich. 

Was gefällt dir am besten an der Arbeit für Yelp?
Für Yelp zu arbeiten hat mir die Freiheit gegeben vieles auszuprobieren, kreativ zu sein, die Stadt neu kennenzulernen, durch die Stadt zu laufen mit einem verkleideten Roboter, neue Leute kennenzulernen und fantastische Kollegen auf der ganzen Welt zu haben. Und das allerbeste: Nie wieder elendig früh aufstehen!

 

Don't speak German? Find the English translations below:

2009 was the year Yelp moved beyond the US and Canada and entered Europe for the first time. Since that time expansion has been rapid and Yelp is currently available in 17 countries worldwide. But there is one question in particular we always get asked: Is Yelp the same everywhere?

Well, we thought we’d go directly to the source and ask our community managers all over the world what the Yelp community is like in their cities. Let’s start with Svenja G, our Community Manager in Berlin. She will talk about how she, or rather her sister, heard about Yelp in Germany.

This will be the first of a number of posts from our Community Managers from across Europe that will be published over the coming weeks.

How did you find out about Yelp?    
It was spring 2011, Yelp was still rather unknown in Germany. It was actually my sister who found out about the position. She said "Why don't you apply, this job sounds like it was made for you!" and gosh, was she right! I immediately knew that I wanted to have that job. Now that I mention it, I should send her some flowers for discovering Yelp for me!

What did you do before becoming a CM at Yelp?    
Oh I hardly dare to share that piece of information. I had just returned from Sweden, where I lived for more than 4 years and I was on a hunt for a job back in Germany. I was looking for a job, pretty much any job. And what kind of jobs are easiest and fastest to get? Right, call center it is. I booked beautiful vacations for Swedes... Glamorous, huh?

How do you describe your job to people?    
Well depending on who I am talking to the tone might shift a little more towards the fun or serious side of the job but essentially I would use some of the following components: I explore the city, write newsletter, eat and drink out A LOT, meet great people every single day, throw events for my beloved Yelpers and spread the word of Yelp.

What's been your favorite Yelp moment?     
The greatest thing actually happened by coincidence. It was one of the bar tours that we kicked off at a French-American bar. I was there first and expected about eight to ten people and when I arrived I discovered there would be a live band playing that night. Awesome. After a while more and more people showed up, also a lot of French people. In the end we were more than 30 people, the band started playing French pop songs and everyone had such a good time. When we were about to leave the girl that owned the bar came over, just to thank me for bringing all those lovely people into her bar, also making the gig a blast for the band. Isn't that what Yelp is all about: Connecting people with great local businesses!

What's your "office" like?     
Office?! Psssht! Sometimes I sit in my garden in my Fatboy, on other days my desk is tempting, on Fridays there is nothing better than my couch, but the internet café around the corner is also great. Different day, different work place, but who needs an office?

Describe your co-workers...    
They are not only my co-workers, they are my friends, my local guides and the greatest people to hang out with! No matter how far away we live from each other and no matter how different our cultures are, we all still are in the same boat and are surprisingly similar.

What's your favorite thing about working for a company like Yelp?
I really could not imagine working from 9 to 5 anymore, having a routine and always listening to a boss. Working for Yelp gives me the freedom to try out new things, be creative, explore the city, walk around the city with a human robot, meet new people and I have amazing colleagues all over the world. The best bit: no more getting up at the crack of dawn!

 

 

HRH The Duke of York Checks-in to Yelp London

With the announcement that Yelp UK is opening its sales office in London and creating over 100 new jobs in the city, Prince Andrew, The Duke of York checked-in to meet the management team and celebrate the announcement with the employees.



The largest urban zone in the European Union, a population of almost 8 Million people and host to a thriving Yelp community since January 2009, London is a city that can now also add the accolade of hosting the newest Yelp office!

The Duke of York has long been an ambassador for foreign investment in the UK and expressed his pleasure at the fact that “Yelp has decided to invest further in the UK and use it as the gateway to Europe as it continues to deliver on its impressive international expansion plans”.

We are honoured to have hosted His Royal Highness the Duke of York and we are excited about this next chapter in Yelp’s evolution, especially as the UK becomes an important piece of our European expansion plans.