5 Yelp insiders share the business tools and features you need to know about

Customers come to Yelp for more than just star ratings and reviews. When visitors land on your Yelp Page, they’re looking for the full package: a business with a robust profile and accurate details that can help them make an informed decision, such as photos, services offered, price quotes, and much more. With so many tools to choose from, it can be hard to know where to start—but Yelp community managers (CMs) are here to help.

As part of their role connecting Yelp Elites with great local businesses, CMs keep a pulse on the most helpful Yelp tools and tips. We asked six members of Yelp’s community team about their favorite product or feature and how each benefits local businesses.

1. Embed review tool | Jayme Hitchcock (Midwest and Toronto)

This free tool allows you to add customer reviews to your website. Click on the three dots above any Yelp review, and copy the embed code to highlight them on your business website, testimonial page, email newsletter, and more.

How businesses benefit: “It’s beneficial for businesses to direct reviews from their Yelp Page to their website because it gives the reader an inside perspective from a real customer to what the experience was like in their business. It allows potential customers to hear that from an authentic voice.” —Jayme

2. Request a Quote | Corynn Benoit (Salt Lake City)

This free feature allows Yelp users to fill out a request with detailed information about a project or service. To start receiving requests, make sure you have messages/requests enabled on your Yelp for Business account and are prepared to answer their questions with accurate and relevant information.

How businesses benefit: “It’s so important for business owners to connect one-on-one with their consumers. [Request a Quote] is a low pressure thing, where you show your personality in the response, and then it’s low pressure for the consumer. It’s a really easy way for the consumer to get quotes and consultations for something that might be overwhelming for them.” —Corynn

More from Corynn: “I used [Request a Quote] recently for my lawn care. I was so overwhelmed by all the options, I didn’t even know where to start. I’d never hired a lawn person before, so it made it so easy for me as a consumer to put feelers out there. It also gave me an opportunity to connect one-on-one with a business owner, and I chose the one I felt like I aligned with really well. He was straight to the point, super nice, and showed his personality.”

3. ‘Inside’ photos | Morlene Chin (Brooklyn)

Photos and photo captions help your page stand out and give customers crucial information about your business. For restaurant, food, and nightlife businesses, Yelp also uses artificial intelligence to categorize photos on your Yelp Page so users can easily view photos of specific dishes, the menu, and inside or outside of your business.

How businesses benefit: “I like user-generated content, and I think most people on Yelp are the same. My advice for business owners is always to create a photo opportunity. In this day and age, people really want to show off to their friends. They want to post on various sites, including Yelp, so give them an excuse to take a photo. Maybe it’s an interesting piece of art, maybe it’s new decor, maybe it’s showcasing your products in a really pretty way—whatever it is, make the space look really aesthetic. You should care about aesthetics as much as you care about the quality of your services.” —Morlene

More from Morlene: “The most common way I use Yelp is to go straight to looking at ‘Inside’ photos on a restaurant’s photo carousel because I want to know what the ambience is like inside a restaurant. Ambience says so much: whether a space can accommodate a big group, whether it’s brightly lit or dimly lit, what kind of vibe it is. Is it going to be romantic? Is it going to be loud? You can immediately tell based on the photos.”

4. Yelp Guest Manager | Nathen Marker (Central Valley North)

This paid product for restaurants allows you to offer reservations and online waitlists that guests can join from anywhere.

How businesses benefit: “The best way it helps a business owner is stopping a not-so-favorable review before it starts. If you go to a restaurant, and your first interaction is a 45-minute wait—you haven’t had a drink or a bite to eat, and you’re already sort of salty—you’re like, ‘Man, this is not living up to what I wanted.’ —Nathen

“Right off the bat, if a business owner can sign up for [Yelp Guest Manager], it starts you off on the right foot. Your customer is getting updates while they’re still at home, maybe finishing up getting ready, maybe having that last cocktail before heading to the restaurant. If you can start your customer already being happy, knowing that they only had to wait maybe 5, 10 minutes and now they’re sitting down, that’s one less thing for you to worry about. A business owner has so many things to worry about—staffing, properly cooked food—the last thing on your mind should be, ‘Are people waiting too long?’”

5. Review responses | Jared Schutz (Long Island)

Responding to reviews is an opportunity to demonstrate your commitment to customer service. Plus, 86% of review readers say they’re more likely to look past a critical review if they see that the business has responded and adequately addressed the issue.*

How business owners benefit: “[Responding to reviews] shows there are real humans behind your business. Let’s say I’m looking at a restaurant, and they have a pretty good rating, and then I come across a 1-star review and I’m thinking: ‘Do I want to go? Do I not want to go?’ If I see a response, it nullifies any concerns I had. I’m like, ‘Okay, the business owner took their time out of their day to address the concerns. Maybe that was an outlier.’” —Jared

More from Jared: “I love it when business owners respond to reviews. It feels really good when I write a review, and then the next day, I get a notification on my phone saying I got a reply. It forms that instant bond with the owner, and it makes me want to go back as soon as I can.”

The benefits of Yelp

Ninety-six percent of users on Yelp compare options before making a purchase, which means a great Yelp Page can encourage potential customers to choose your business. When you claim your Yelp Business Page, you can strengthen your online presence with both free and paid tools. Not only can you engage with customers to build communication and trust, but you can also entice potential customers to patronize your business by uploading high-quality photos, adding identifying business attributes (like Black-, LGBTQ-, and women-owned), and taking advantage of the Request a Call feature.

If you’re a business interested in hosting a Yelp event for Yelp Elites and would like to connect with your local community manager, simply submit an inquiry. Plus, check out www.yelp.com/events to see local events happening in your area.