If you’re like the other 178 million people visiting Yelp each month to learn more about a business, then listen up, because we’re going to outline what you should know about Yelp reviews.
As you might already know, Yelp does one thing exceptionally well. It collects and displays user-generated content, also known as reviews, so consumers can make informed purchasing decisions.
But here’s the thing: Finding trustworthy reviews about solar contractors can be a bit tricky.
That’s because some contractors may try to game the system by incentivizing customers or even hiring writers to publish positive reviews for their business.
Sneaky, right?
Well, here are three warning signs to watch out for (red flags 🔴) and three positive indicators (green flags 🟢) to consider when checking out solar contractors on Yelp.
While it’s a great place to start researching a company, Yelp does receive some criticism for not doing enough to weed out fake reviews. Sure, they’re not perfect – no one is – but it is true that Yelp invests a lot of time and resources into separating genuine reviews from fake ones.
This brings us to our first red flag 🔴 : If you don’t see the trusty Yelp logo next to the review, beware. This is a good indicator that the review was not written by a customer of the business in question.
Would it surprise you that real reviews sometimes get left out? Well, this can actually happen!
Yelp actually acknowledges this and provides a section called “other reviews that are not currently recommended.”
These reviews don’t affect a company’s star rating, but they can give you a deeper understanding of its strengths and weaknesses.
This brings us to our first green flag 🟢! You’ll often find more positive reviews for highly ranked companies and more negative reviews for those poor performers, so make sure you check this hidden treasure trove of “other reviews that are not currently recommended” for some incredibly insightful stories.
What if I can’t find a company on Yelp? This is a potential red flag 🔴 to be aware of. Why?
Because reputable solar companies want to be found, and Yelp is a popular platform for consumers to discover them.
So, if a contractor doesn’t have a Yelp listing or they remove their listing in a certain area, but they operate within that area, it should raise some red flags. That’s because they might be trying to hide negative reviews.
However, keep in mind that some national solar companies might still have listings in the cities where they’re headquartered, so be sure to thoroughly look for a national company that operates within your area. You might be surprised by what you find.
Changing their business name to start fresh is another sneaky tactic companies employ to throw off would-be customers from finding out the truth.
Look for companies proudly displaying their local information (green flag 🟢) on Yelp and verify their locality by checking their business license on your state’s commerce department website.
Lastly, pay attention to those glowing 5-star Yelp review badges displayed on a company’s website. It may look impressive, but if you can’t click on it to read the actual reviews, it’s a bit suspicious (red flag 🔴).
You want companies that proudly showcase their review badges and provide a direct link to the source page, allowing you to read what their customers actually wrote (green flag 🟢).
So, keep these tips in mind while exploring Yelp and other platforms for solar contractor reviews. It’ll help you make more informed decisions when it’s time to go solar.