In today’s modern and digitally-obsessed world, managing online reviews has been quite synonymous with providing great service, be it anywhere, hotels, restaurants and even a simple, small takeaway shop. Online reputation management for hotels has become so important that even before booking a room, people tend to scroll down to see what others are saying or speaking of. In short, reputation management for restaurants can either bring in a steady flow of customers or direct them straightaway to your competitors. Hence, it’s a big deal (even bigger because your business is at stake – not to scare you!)
So, what do you do, announce how good your service is? Print an ad on an offline billboard, or pay an influencer to let the world know about your restaurant’s perks. None of these! Get a good review management system to do your job – accurately, efficiently and effortlessly. We will come to this in a while, but first let’s move on to the basics. In this article, we shall help you break down the best practices in hotel review management, which will spike up your ratings, build a strong reputation and ultimately increase your business revenue.
Why Reviews Matter More Than Ever?
Unlike ancient times when marketing was trusted, in today’s time, consumers weigh other consumers’ remarks and feedback more. Over 90% of people check online reviews before choosing where to eat or stay. Even one negative review can impact a customer’s decision, especially when left unanswered. That’s why people tend to review management systems. These systems are not a luxury anymore. They are more like a necessity. Let’s now look at some of the most effective best practices to elevate restaurant review management.
- Claim Your Listings Everywhere
The very first step is to announce your arrival. Make sure your hotel or restaurant is listed on all major review platforms, including search engines, travel apps, maps, and food directories. This guarantees your vivid presence when people search and gives you control over how your business is presented. Also, keep your contact details, business hours, photos, and menus (if applicable) updated. Outdated information is frustrating to customers and can lead to negative feedback before they even step in.
- Set Up a Review Management System
Trying to manually set up everything, track reviews across so many platforms, and even replying to each reply is very hectic. That’s why you need to set up a hotel review management system. A proper review management system helps you collect, monitor, and respond to reviews from one central dashboard. Not just that, it also helps you get real-time alerts for brand-new reviews, identify trends amongst customer feedback, flag fakes or inappropriate ones and also respond quicker and in an efficient manner to them. These review systems run on AI, which will directly suggest response templates by analysing sentiments across hundreds of reviews, in minutes, making restaurant review management faster and more efficient.
- Respond Promptly (and Politely)
Ignoring reviews would naturally lead to delays and loopholes. And while dealing in business, you don’t want to create such missed opportunities. Whether it’s a glowing five-star review or a frustrated two-star complaint, each one deserves a reply. Especially, for hotels and restaurants, a personalised thank-you or apology shows professionalism, respect and care for customers. That’s also the golden key: customers don’t expect perfection – they expect accountability. Responding quickly signals to future guests that you’re active, responsible, and value feedback.
- Ask for Reviews at the Right Moment
Getting more reviews isn’t a herculean task; it just requires you to act at the right moment. Most guests who’ve had a good stay or meal are happy to share their thoughts; they just need a little reminder. It could be a simple thank you message after remitting a payment, a QR code on the bill or table, a quick feedback link in your follow-up email – it could be anything simple and easy. Even better, train your team to casually ask happy customers, especially the regulars.
- Automate Wherever You Can
You are opting for a review management system to make your work easier. So what if the work is done by an even easier method? Yes, automate it totally! And by automating, we don’t mean replacing the human touch – it simply means using AI-based tools like ReviuAI (for instance, which will automatically collect, analyse and even draft responses to reviews based on the tone and content of your reviews. For example, if a guest mentions a clean room and friendly staff, the system can detect keywords and suggest a reply that reinforces those positives. This kind of automated response is especially useful for online reputation management for hotels, where hundreds of reviews can pile up each month across booking platforms, social media, and search listings.
- Learn From the Negative
Was the Wi-Fi slow? Was the steak undercooked? Was the check-in delayed? You get all such answers through online reviews. No business likes criticism; however, there is plenty of hidden constructive criticism in each review and along with it come some valuable lessons. You can group all the concurring issues. Use this data to pinpoint weak spots and turn them into action points. Consider creating weekly review reports and sharing them in team meetings – it turns feedback into fuel.
- Showcase Positive Reviews as Social Proof
Great reviews shouldn’t just sit on review platforms; they should be part of your marketing. Broadcast them as much as you can, especially flaunting the 5-star reviews. If you are in the restaurant or hotel business, one thing to keep in mind is client satisfaction through quality services. For this, building credibility is a cornerstone. With proper consent and formatting, display top reviews on your website, social media, or in promotional emails. Highlight recent feedback on Instagram Stories or digital menus. This acts as social proof and builds trust with new customers before they even arrive. Add attractive photos that depict excellent service to elevate your quality.
- Monitor Your Ratings Regularly
Set a monthly goal for your business to track progress step by step. Even a small jump in stars means the audience is favouring you over their go-to brand. If your rating drops, rather than panicking, check your review system to identify the issue. Break down feedback by location, time, or even staff shifts to spot any patterns. This way, you can solve problems fast before they start affecting bookings or footfall.
- Involve Your Team in the Process
We’ve all seen those glowing reviews where a guest praises a housekeeper’s kindness or a waiter’s attention to detail. This is because in a hotel or restaurant, great reviews aren’t found just from the reception team or from the marketing guy. It comes from everyone. Right from the cleaning staff to the laundry guy, every team member should be aware of the importance of an exceptional guest experience. Not to add work pressure, but for everybody to contribute equally and help shape the business. Because happy staff leads to happier guests, and that shows up in reviews.
- Build a Good Brand Reputation in the Long Run
One thing to keep in mind is that a good image and brand identity isn’t built overnight – it takes time, effort and plenty of tools to help with. That is, in order to achieve good results, you have to put in constant effort, smart tools and genuine love and affection for your users. Over time, these reviews build more trust, bringing in more customers, and hence an increase in revenue.
This could be a very slow process. But once it gains momentum, then it gets steady and soars like a rocket!
