User Generated Reviews on VisitLoudoun.org

The newest feature on VisitLoudoun.org is the inclusion of user generated reviews in the content of the website. When launched in December 2007, anyone, including visitors and residents, will be able to post reviews of their experiences at the places they visited. The review will be business specific, and will appear under the business’ listing on the website. The following information will help you understand how the reviews will work and what it means for your business.

What is a User Generated Review?
A user generated review is a commentary posted to a website by a person that has experienced a particular service, product, or business.

Why User Reviews on VisitLoudoun.org are Important to YOUR Business

1. Tourism research has shown that more and more travelers are utilizing user-generated reviews to help them choose places to visit.
   • 50% of Internet users read consumer reviews. Source: Suzanne Cook, TIA
   • 71% of millenials (ages 18-25) are utilizing user-generated content of some form to inform their decision process. Source: Bruce Clay, Inc.
2. User-generated reviews add credibility to the marketing text in your brochures, on your website, and in your advertising.
   • 50% of Internet users say they trust user generated content more than formal travel reviews. Source: Suzanne Cook, TIA
   • On Yahoo! Travel, a property’s reviews have replaced price as the deciding factor in hotel selection. Source: Yahoo! Travel
   • User reviews provide “real” qualitative survey information you can use in future marketing materials.
   • Visitors to VisitLoudoun.org may “vote” on whether or not a particular review was helpful. When multiple reviews are posted for one business or product, users tend to skim them to find the ones that were most valuable to other users.
3. Anyone that sees a particular review on VisitLoudoun.org may email the review directly from VisitLoudoun.org to a friend and add a custom message, thus expanding your marketing reach.
4. An individual that utilizes user-generated content visits a website more often, stays longer, and views more content. Increased duration often leads to higher conversion rates. Source: Bruce Clay, Inc. This is important for your business, and for tourism to Loudoun County.
5. The keywords used in reviews are valuable for search engine ranking.
   • User reviews add more keyword-rich content to a website, making it more likely that VisitLoudoun.org will be one of the top results when users search for your business on search engines such as Google and Yahoo!
   • User reviews can also uncover “unknown” keywords. The LCVA will share keywords that may be beneficial to your business so that you may work to maximize your own website search engine optimization, too.
6. User generated reviews provide valuable consumer insight into your product/service, a public forum to address concerns or problems, and opportunities to provide excellent customer service.

How User Generated Reviews are Posted on VisitLoudoun.org

• Anyone can post a review for any business listed on VisitLoudoun.org. 
• The person who wishes to create a review (or multiple reviews for different businesses) registers on VisitLoudoun.org by providing their first and last name, city and state of residence, and email address, and creating a password. By registering, they agree to the Terms of Use Policy for User Reviews.
• Immediately after registering, the person may create and submit their review(s).
• The review includes the ability to give the business up to five stars (at least one star must be given) and post comments regarding the business and/or its products/services. The comments field allows for an unlimited number of characters. Once registered, the reviewer may login at any time to VisitLoudoun.org to post a review of a business using their email address and password.
• Once a review is posted, an email is generated to the LCVA staff moderator.
• Reviews are examined by the LCVA staff moderator within 4 business days.
• Reviews are approved/posted to the website if they comply with the Terms of Use.
• If the review does not meet the Terms of Use, the review is not posted. The reviewer is notified via email and given the opportunity to rewrite and resubmit a review that conforms to the Terms of Use.
• If the review meets the Terms of Use but is negative in nature, it is still posted. At the same time, you, the business owner/manager, are notified, typically by email, giving you the opportunity to respond to the review. Responses must also conform to the Terms of Use and are posted by the LCVA on behalf of your business, next to the negative review.
• Approved reviews are posted indefinitely on VisitLoudoun.org.

The Terms of Use can be found in the "Important Documents" box below.

Tips for Writing a Response to Negative Feedback
Most people post negative reviews because they want you to know about their experience and to have an opportunity to make it better for them (or the next guest). The following tips may help you consider how to reply to a negative review:

• Respond promptly, but not too fast if the review has made you angry. Show respect and restraint.
• Identify yourself and your affiliation with the business.
• Remember that the old adage, “the customer is always right,” is still the case. Be professional and think about what response you would want if the review was your experience.
• Take responsibility, express appreciation for the feedback and the opportunity to make the experience better, tell them that it is your desire to always offer excellent products and/or services, and that you look forward to welcome them in your business again. If the reviewer exposed a problem you have already rectified or plan to rectify, let them know that, too.
• Word your response in such a way that the reviewer feels like you took them seriously and that you care. Make sure your response sounds genuine.
• Use standard capitalization and spelling. Do not use all capital letters which can be interpreted as being aggressive.
• Choose your words carefully, since you cannot provide any physical context clues with your response. Be careful of your tone and try not to use slang.
• Take time to proofread your response.
• Keep in mind that the message will be posted next to the review on VisitLoudoun.org indefinitely, and will be potentially seen by any visitor (or resident) considering to patron your business.

Two ways to Stay Informed of Newly Posted Reviews

1. VisitLoudoun.org/Reviews: This page allows you to search for reviews by business name, star rating, location of the author, and most recent reviews posted.
2. RSS Feeds: RSS (Really Simple Syndication) is a format for delivering regularly changing web content directly to your computer through your web browser. By registering to receive RSS Feeds of website content that you are interested in, you save time by not needing to visit that website to find the content. The LCVA will have RSS Feeds for User Reviews on the main section pages (Dining, Shopping, Accommodations, Things To Do, Horse Country, Wine Country) on VisitLoudoun.org. Anyone can subscribe to these feeds, to quickly read the latest reviews posted to that section on the site. This is a great way to stay abreast of current reviews for your business, and other Loudoun tourism businesses. For information on how to subscribe to the RSS Feeds, please download the document below titled "User Generated Reviews Industry Manual."

Questions?
Contact Brian Jenkins, Marketing Manager, at 703-771-2170 ext. 21 or jenkins@VisitLoudoun.org.