Who's the boss?

09/05/2006 Christy "peach of a gal" R. says:

Dead serious.  There are far too many people with 10 two-line reviews all posted in one day, along the lines of:  "I love the Starbucks by my work, because it's so close to my work!  It's also really classy because it's a business district.  I love non-fat lattes!"

09/06/2006 Edenista M. says:

Yes, we're looking for critique not criticism.  But an open forum is bound to be faced with this issue. And I believe that for now we need people to be encouraging and positive, so that we have more Yelpsters contributing to San Diego Yelp.  Nobody's perfect!  Again, this is not a professional reviewing site.

09/06/2006 Jason R. says:

No doubt!  Excellent points.

With the advent of community orientated sites such such of this, there will always be "issues" relating to quality of material.  Take for instance Tripadvisor or Craigslist.  The forum Gestapo or moderators always put the axe down on the slanderous, heresy, orientated posts.

I guess my point is this.  Yelp is developed as an amazing tool for the average consumer, customer, individual, and shopper to explore and discover great places they may have not considered.  With that said, Yelp's game is to sell advertising to substantiate, grow, and pay it's bills.  To accomplish this, it has to be taken seriously by the industries that may consider devoting a chunk of their marketing and advertising budget.  (See Tripadvisor).

09/06/2006

This post was removed because the yelper who wrote it has violated the Yelp Terms of Service and is no longer a registered yelper.

09/06/2006 Jason R. says:

"Have you read this review of yours?"

Nope.

It materialized from butterfly kisses, and all things sugar and spice.

...

My OP asked a simple, rather vauge question.  I was not pointing fingers, or banging pots and pans.  I was utilizing the "conversation" feature of YELP to dangle and provoke thought amongst users.

Worked well I see...

Rather protective of that Myspace review?

09/06/2006

This post was removed because the yelper who wrote it has violated the Yelp Terms of Service and is no longer a registered yelper.

09/06/2006

This post was removed because the yelper who wrote it has violated the Yelp Terms of Service and is no longer a registered yelper.

09/06/2006 Jason R. says:

"So you post up something that you don't agree with yourself to engage conversation? Wow, that's pretty cool. You have a lot of time on your hands."

san diego yelp is weak."

...

09/07/2006 L a r i s a H. says:

Ok, back to the point....
-The one liner reviews are pretty useless.
-The reviews about celebrities or websites or concepts are irrelevant, useless and stray from the whole purpose of this site.

(From the FAQ: What Should I Be Reviewing On Yelp?
Yelp is meant for just about any sort of local service or destination. Our biggest categories today are restaurants, bars, salons and retail businesses, but you can also use Yelp to find reviews of everything, from doctors to tennis pros to parks and museums. )

-Censorship is a slippery slope, but I also hate wasting my time sifting through crap to get to substantial content.

-If you need to share your clever opinion about what you think of another website or Gwyneth Paltrow, go do open mic night or put it in this general talk forum, don't muddy up the pool of reviews.


Saying "San Diego Yelp is weak" accomplishes nothing, except build one's image as a buzzkill. (You ever have that friend that says "This sucks. This is boring, This is lame" but never has a better idea or makes an effort to get involved. Yeah, buzzkill)  If you care, do something about it.

09/07/2006 Kinsee M. says:

A yelp-off. Nice!

I'm into anarchy--the truest form of freedom. Once you start talking about regulation (read: censorship) you start walking a very thin line; watch your step, 'cause if you fall, you'll fall face first into fascism.

Yelp, like language itself, is fluid and ever-changing. Words were spoken before dictionaries and rules existed--just let it go and then maybe we can all get together with our pens, our books and our bourgeoisie thinking caps and try to define it all later.

I kind of dig one-liners. I also dig satire. We can't worry about how yelp is going to sell itself to advertisers. That part of the writing biz sucks huge donkey balls--trust me on this one.

Everyone should just write. Write however you want. Write backwards for all I care.

09/21/2006

This post was removed because the yelper who wrote it has violated the Yelp Terms of Service and is no longer a registered yelper.

09/21/2006

This post was removed because the yelper who wrote it has violated the Yelp Terms of Service and is no longer a registered yelper.

09/21/2006 Mike L. says:

Ok, pulling this back to the original topic. Yeah, I don't understand about rating people...where there's still alot of places or businesses to review. The Gwyneth Paltrow thing is fun and all, but it doesn't really help us.

As in for the short liners, I don't really begrudge them, but I wished they would explained a little more about the reason for the rating. If they hated it and only has three words: Don't Go There.  Then, I'm a little curious.

People have different methods, so let's not worry about the little things  and just focus on getting more useful reviews up because I'm dying to see more.

09/21/2006 Jason R. says:

Andrew, please don't breed.

09/21/2006

This post was removed because the yelper who wrote it has violated the Yelp Terms of Service and is no longer a registered yelper.

09/22/2006 Christy "peach of a gal" R. says:

I don't find the long rants annoying, as long as they are expounding on valid points, or they're funny.  It's not a waste of my time if I'm entertained or learning something.  I don't like "this place is awesome because it's by my house" reviews, because they don't help anyone who doesn't live on that block, and I imagine everyone in the 'hood knows they're there.  

I don't think Jason's original post said anything that is contradicted by his Ocean's 11 Casino review.  It's more than 10 words, does not base evaluation on an unrelated accident, is about a local business, and is not an opinion piece on a celebrity or a website.  While he doesn't delve into the details, he creates and image and a feeling that conveys the atmosphere of the place.  I don't need him to harp about the weak cocktails, or even the gambling (how do you rate that?  Good if you win, bad if you lose?) to get a good idea about the place.  The stars help as well.

Ultimately it doesn't matter.  People can write douchey reviews about websites and shitty concerts (1-time events?  useful) and celebrities and how awesome it is to live or work on the same block as a mega-chain store location, and we're not going to lose sleep over it.  We may, however, call it out as useless, and have fun discussing it on the message boards.  Or over beers at a local dive we will review in the morning, because it was like, SO convenient!

09/22/2006 David J. says:

My review of this thread: kids, everyone's entitled to their own opinion.

Some people's reveiws I don't dig or relate to... there are certain places and parts of town I don't frequent, chic things I don't do, and my greatest contributions shere eemingly relate to mexican food and pizza.

09/25/2006

This post was removed because the yelper who wrote it has violated the Yelp Terms of Service and is no longer a registered yelper.

09/26/2006 Neil "what does it take to get a drink in this place" K. says:

One thing you can do is vote on the reviews that you find useful (or funny or cool). Just use the buttons underneath the review. That will go along way to help seperate the quality from the quantity.

10/28/2006 David M. says:

I believe one line reviews can be justified if there are other reviews that have covered salient points. For instance, there was a review of Nico's in Ocean Beach that I did as an addendum to the existing reviews just pointing out the the chicken rolled tacos were the best thing on the menu.

10/29/2006 Julie G. says:

This post has been flagged as inappropriate by the community and has been removed.

10/30/2006 Christy "peach of a gal" R. says:

David, I think you have a point.  If someone's one-line review starts out "everyone else's review is spot on, so I just want to point out that _____" that makes perfect sense.  Or if a short review is hilarious, that's even better.  I'm a firm believer that rules can be bent for funny.  But I'm getting bummed out by number of times I'm seeing 4 reviews in 10 minutes--and all they say is "this place is ____.  It's kind of like this other place, only ____.  I like the _____.  It's busy during mealtimes."  I don't mean all those elements aren't helpful, but alone?  they don't give me any kind of feel for the place.  

I'm not saying anyone should start censoring reviews.  I'm just saying this site would be more useful and more entertaining if more people adjusted their focus to quality, not quantity.

10/30/2006 L a r i s a H. says:

Yes, as reviewers if we focus on quality instead of quantity, it will make Yelp more relevant and keep it from getting cluttered with fluff. If you have to scroll through 20 reviews that say "this place is good" to get to anything of substance, you are going to go elsewhere.

Even if you just want to agree with the points made by others, be specific about what you agree on, tell a personal story of your experience, or yes, even be funny to help make it worthwhile to do so.

As readers, if we reward only the really "useful", "cool" or "funny" reviews with votes and compliments, eventually you'll know which reviewers aren't just copying things from the company's website, being vague, or rehashing other reviews without adding anything new.

10/30/2006 Julie G. says:

I dig reviewing places that I truly enjoy. I like supporting independent business owners and services and giving props to those who kick butt and are passionate about what they do.. I also like adding my reviews to those that have already been posted as I think a second or third opion is a good thing, Sometimes I agree and sometimes I don't. I would never review a place or service that I haven't experienced myself....and that's the good word! I like taking photos of businesses and meeting the owners as well. We have some cool mom and pop shops up here in North County that I think all should know about. Maybe you'll visit us sometime too!

10/30/2006 Christy "peach of a gal" R. says:

Absolutely, Julie.  I think that's why most of us are into Yelp--we like reviewing places we enjoy and supporting independent business.  I certainly don't think people shouldn't re-review somewhere, just because it's been reviewed several times.  

But I think it's a problem when people--particularly people in positions of leadership--simply rehash previous reviews, with no additional insight, or write the kind of review you'd read in an ad margin in the Reader.  Some of these people are even being paid for their dazzling reviews, so I want to be dazzled.  Or at least not feel like he or she walked by a place, read the sign, glanced at the wall menu, and moved on.  I'm not trying to call out any single person.  I'm also not pretending that I write fantastic reviews all the time.

I'm sure some people feel pressure to have a prolific presence on Yelp.  Some are required to.  Maybe it's the difference between loving to write reviews, and simply loving to write, that I'm picking up.  I'm just bringing it up again, because this Talk thread is here, and that's what it's for.

10/30/2006 Julie G. says:

I think the ROTDs are electronically selected and maybe I'm wrong but  the one that they selected on Saturday (mine) was definitely not my best. In fact it was at the bottom of my list. I didn't even know as I was busy on Saturday and not around here. I probably should have noted that I was there (museum) in the Spring for a concert and didn't like the acoustics but it was an odd venue for this particular type of concert. But I think this conversation was started for an entirely different reason anyway and it's certainly interesting to see where and how it develops. And yes you have a point and your comments are something that I will consider seriously and keep in mind for my next reviews. Feedback is a good thing. I personally don't like critiquing others but rather focusing on getting the good word out there. I do appreciate others' opinions if they like to speak out in a useful and constructive way. I'm not into negative blogging....it's just not my thing and I apologize if I've contributed in that way.

10/30/2006 Christy "peach of a gal" R. says:

You don't owe me an apology, and believe me, as I said before, I didn't write here to call you, or anyone out specifically.  I realize re-reading my last post that it sounds a little like I'm talking shit about the mods and/or elite, but that wasn't actually my intention--I just used "leaders" as a collective as an example of Yelpers who I'd hope would write reviews of greater substance more frequently.  While I don't like straight-up bashing, I think honest critique is essential to improvement--and that is something different from negative blogging.  Now, I don't run around the Internet looking for blogs and communities to critique, but when I do join a community that exhorts me to invite all my friends and to really make Yelp an effective tool and connector in my greater community, I feel it is appropriate to make suggestions to further that goal.

But again, Julie, I don't type here to single you out, and if you saw something of yourself in what I wrote, I hope you understand the spirit in which it was written.  Have a great week, and keep reviewing your favorite haunts and hide outs.  I'm going to.

10/30/2006

This post was removed because the yelper who wrote it has violated the Yelp Terms of Service and is no longer a registered yelper.

10/31/2006 Julie G. says:

Thanks Christy, I  totally did not take it personally but I did like what you said and I felt that it was a useful point and something for me to consider. Sometimes I just like re-enforcing what some others say if I feel just as strongly. So I will probably keep doing that occasionally. Other than I will keeeeeeeep on Yelping and hope I inspire someone somehow to at least smile.

For the rest of you sorted creatures, I  think it's a good thing to have a mix of review styles to keep things well-balanced. I personally would like to see everything well-written for my snobby standards (remember I'm half Yuppie), but I know that's not fair to those who are new at this and not practical. I'm a very practical person. Silly, but practical. I don't want to discourage anyone from writing here. So keep on Yelpin' and have a great day!