{"id":7248,"date":"2017-02-23T07:57:12","date_gmt":"2017-02-23T13:57:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.advicelocal.com\/?p=7248"},"modified":"2017-02-23T07:57:12","modified_gmt":"2017-02-23T13:57:12","slug":"yelp-questions-answers-feature","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.advicelocal.com\/blog\/yelp-questions-answers-feature\/","title":{"rendered":"The Power of Yelp\u2019s Questions & Answers Feature for Businesses"},"content":{"rendered":"

Have you checked out Yelp\u2019s new Questions & Answers feature<\/a> yet? This feature enables the Yelp community to ask and answer specific questions about a business. Each question is connected to a specific business and the answers to the questions can come from other consumers or the businesses themselves.<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n
\n
#Yelp\u2019s Questions and Answers Feature by @BernieColeman #Business<\/a><\/div>\n

Click To Tweet<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

This feature differs from reviews<\/a> in that consumers are able to get crowdsourced feedback about a specific feature, product, or experience related to the business. For example, users can ask anything from whether a restaurant would be a\u00a0good choice for a birthday dinner to how long it typically takes to explore a local museum.<\/p>\n

Since users can vote for the answers they find most helpful (and downvote the ones that don\u2019t add any value!), the community effectively gets to choose which answers are \u201cright\u201d and, therefore, most visible.<\/p>\n

With traditional review sites, many customers leave and don\u2019t look back once they\u2019ve shared their opinion (that is, unless a new experience dramatically changes their mind, warranting an update or new review). But Questions & Answers invites the community to continue answering others\u2019 questions to share their experiences and maintain an ongoing connection with the business online. Just as it\u2019s important for businesses to monitor and respond to online reviews<\/a>, it will be equally as important for them to be proactive and involved in the Yelp Q&A community.<\/p>\n

Why Local Business Owners Should Pay Attention<\/h2>\n

As Yelp Product Manager Brian Boshes pointed out, this feature allows consumers to actively engage in a \u201cpotentially limitless way.\u201d We recommend all local businesses take advantage of this limitless opportunity to foster customer relationships, adopt a more active role in addressing customer needs, and learn what consumers want to know about their business. (This will be a great way to find out what Q&As should be added on the company website.)<\/em><\/p>\n

Major Benefits of Yelp\u2019s Q&As<\/h2>\n

The many advantages of this aptly-named feature include:<\/p>\n