Yelp for Realtors | How to use Yelp in your real estate business

First ask yourself these questions before reading the rest of this post.

1. Are you currently using Yelp Reviews for your Real Estate Business?

2. How much of your business is “referral based”?

3. Have you ever shown a client an online review of your services?

Using Yelp has a lot of advantages for Realtors (a possible couple of disadvantages too). It’s FREE to set up a business account and can be helpful in building your online credibility as a Realtor.

So what the heck is it? Yelp is a site that looks to connect local businesses with consumers. Local businesses can set up profile accounts and add pictures and information about services and/or products, but the real power comes from the consumers. Consumers on Yelp, often referred to as called “Yelpers”, then write up reviews on the local businesses they use and dish out the Good, the Bad, & the Ugly about those businesses.

The Good: Positive Yelp reviews can help you build an “online testimonial book” for future clients among the Yelp community. Furthermore, once you have had some positive Yelp reviews posted you can send any new potential clients a LINK to your Yelp page for them to see your reviews online. How powerful do you think that would be? Yelp is not the only place you want to have your reviews posted, there is also Google Places, Zillow, Trulia, and Realtor.com. We will have more blog posts on these other sites coming soon!

The Bad: For the most part Yelp reviews are honest about that Yelper’s experience with the business they review, but there can be disgruntled clients who will post something negative and it may or may not be truthful. That is where the downside comes in. Yelp will not take off negative reviews unless you can prove it was malicious, but getting Yelp to remove negative reviews is difficult. Yelp will allow you to respond back to a negative review in order to offer some type an explanation or counter. However, if your running a good business and getting clients to review you then you should always have more positive reviews than negative ones. In order for a client to post a review of you they do have to set up a Yelp account, however it’s Free and very easy to do.

The Ugly: There really isn’t one unless you make it. Realtors all know by now that technology and the internet has forever changed how buyers and sellers obtain real estate information. Referrals will always be the strongest leads a Realtor can get, and developing your online profile with positive reviews of your services is one way to improve your referral sources online.