The past few weeks have seen a lot of articles written about TripAdvisor: the integrity of their reviews, and how relevant they are today.
My own exclusive interview with TripAdvisor drew some skeptical comments, as did Darren's a while back:
"The ultimate loser here is likely to be TripAdvisor, since this doesn't help their credibility which already seems to be suffering…"
"TA is looking for SEO with their UGC page creation and to drive traffic to their OTA partners…it's incredible people still believe and trust this hotel reviews platform."
But I'm not convinced travelers really care that much.
"…We find that most guests use the ‘pinch of salt' view when reading reviews and form a balanced opinion of our resort before they arrive."
Review integrity is important, and TripAdvisor is taking steps to ensure that. But whether TripAdvisor is really an OTA in disguise? I seriously doubt that keeps their 15,000,000+ weekly users up at night.
I say fish where the fish are.
Maybe this whole debate is just a case of industry myopia.
What do you think?
Original article: www.hotelmarketingstrategies.com/tripadvisor-debate
About the author
This blog is written by Josiah Mackenzie, who enjoys exploring the relationship between emerging technology and the hospitality industry. www.hotelmarketingstrategies.com