One of the biggest discussions we've seen in online groups is the benefit of Yelp for photographers. Some people swear by it, some people swear it's the worst! This week we are joined by Corey Dane, the manager of local business outreach for Yelp!! The three of us have very different experiences with Yelp... Ashley & Kate have quite a few reviews, but Ashley chooses to advertise with Yelp & Kate does not. Julie only has 2 reviews & has had some experiences with Yelp that put a sour taste in her mouth. It was perfect to chat with Cory & ask him ALL our questions & get honest answers! Did you know that 82% of people use online reviews to research their decision before making a purchase? That means a LOT of your potential clients want to see reviews about your business before deciding to book you! Key Takeaways

1. Claim your Yelp Business Page: Corey emphasizes how important it is to take control over your business's page! The whole process takes about 2 minutes, and from there you can add unlimited photos, additional info, and reply to reviews. This allows you to put your best foot forward on your Yelp page!
2. Don't outright solicit for reviews: Corey suggests leaving a trail of breadcrumbs to let clients know you're on Yelp instead of asking for reviews, which can appear a little "spammy." You should mention your presence on Yelp (and your Yelp business page will have buttons & other tools you can display on your website) without being overly pushy about it!
3. What's the deal with reviews that are "not recommended?": Corey is very quick to point out that reviews are never "filtered." All reviews that are submitted to Yelp are online and available for potential clients to see, they are just either recommended or not recommended. About 74% of the content that is submitted to Yelp is recommended. Sometimes, a review is flagged as "not recommended" due to the quality of a review or an unestablished user account. If a client joins Yelp to write one review, it's likely that their review will be listed under the "not recommended" category. To help boost their profile, Yelp users can do the following:

• Upload a profile photo
• Fill out profile information
• Leave additional reviews for other businesses
• Add friends on Yelp
• Respond to all reviews: Corey suggests that as business owners we respond to ALL feedback, whether it's positive or negative. This shows potential clients that you value all feedback, and are an open communicator. He suggests personalizing the response by talking about each reviewer's specific shoot. For negative reviews, consider responding in a way that will get that client back on your side. This shows potential clients that you're willing to earn trust from your clients. Also, feel free to take the communication offline & reach out privately to the reviewer to remedy the situation.
• Advertising with Yelp: There is no truth the the rumors that advertising with Yelp helps hide negative reviews OR that NOT advertising will hide your business page. Advertising is completely optional, but can help your business be seen. Ashley definitely swears by Yelp advertising!

One of the best parts of this episode is when Corey breaks down Julie's Yelp profile & points out areas where she can add content to help boost her presence on Yelp! Even though Ashley & Kate are already having luck on Yelp, they both noticed they can add some content too. It was awesome to follow along & make some to-do lists to help build our Yelp profiles even more; be sure to listen to this week's episode to hear all of Corey's tips & tricks!! Subscribe via itunes HERE. If you have any questions about this show, please contact us! Recommended Links:

• biz.yelp.com