Holiday Travel and Tourism Advisor

Did you know that 50% of travelers usually or always reference reviews before choosing where to eat?1

That’s why we’re serving up TripAdvisor best practices, restaurant trends and more. Our TripAdvisor Best Practices for Restaurants page collects our top tips and news so you can:

Take a look at these valuable tips and add them to your marketing efforts. Think of them as not-so-secret ingredients that will help your restaurant stand out on TripAdvisor!

The La Selva Amazon Ecolodge & Spa has a comprehensive TripAdvisor strategy. It includes a Business Listing to attract and convert more travelers, review collection, and responding to reviews to drive traveler engagement. Recently, Business Development Manager Katie Beckwith shared more about each element of the strategy:

“La Selva originally subscribed to Business Listings back in 2012 after the property had reopened under new management,” says Beckwith. “We liked the idea of posting promotions.”

Over the years, La Selva has tried out several Special Offers to attract more travelers. The sales team reports that the most successful offers combine a stay at La Selva in the Amazon with a cruise to the Galapagos Islands. The promotion helps travelers make the most of their visit to Ecuador. Also, because La Selva is a family-friendly property, it regularly uses special family packages. Early booking discounts and free transfers are also popular. The La Selva team believes that Special Offers will continue to drive more attention and sales as their TripAdvisor traffic continues to grow.

“We also like the statistics in the Property Dashboard,” adds Beckwith. “Seeing how many people are searching for us and how many times we are featured in results for our location is really valuable.”

La Selva uses Review Express to collect feedback from guests who have recently stayed at the property. Beckwith says, “We use Review Express as much as we can. We make a list of all of the emails and send campaigns bi-weekly. We’ve definitely seen an increase in reviews overall since using Review Express.”

But La Selva doesn’t just stop at collecting the reviews. Prior to using Review Express, feedback had all been collected on comment cards that were difficult to access. Now, the property uses TripAdvisor reviews to gauge guest satisfaction and make improvements. Beckwith shares, “I send the reviews – good or bad – to our President and CEO, our Vice President, our Operations Manager and our Hotel Manager. They get to see what people are actually writing. We can see feedback quicker, take care of any problems and prevent them in the future.”

“We are grateful for the reviews,” she continues. “Otherwise, we would never know what the guests are thinking. For example, people never cease to write things about our guides. Some even say that the guides make the difference between a mediocre stay and an exceptional adventure in the Amazon. Of course, we know our guides are excellent at what they do, but we never really understood what our guests thought of them before.”

Management responses are also an important part of La Selva’s TripAdvisor strategy. La Selva’s staff takes the tool very seriously because they want travelers to see they’re listening to the feedback. They also believe that responding to every review encourages others to write about their experiences as well.

Each response is unique and personalized, even though that’s more time consuming. Beckwith also shares that they use Management Responses to explain more about La Selva and how they operate.

“We don’t always get a perfect review, but we like having Management Responses,” she says. “Guests can see our explanation of what’s happened and how we’re taking care of it. Even if everything in the review is great, we think it’s important to say thank you for taking the time to write and let others know how great their stay at La Selva was...” 

La Selva’s comprehensive TripAdvisor strategy has paid dividends. Beckwith shares, “Overall, TripAdvisor has helped us a lot since we reopened in 2012. We have seen a 15 – 20% increase in sales. Plus, we’ve seen an increase in confidence from our clients because the reviews provide a true testament to the quality of service La Selva provides.”

She continues, “People go to TripAdvisor first to see what others are saying. Now they get to see the reviews we’ve collected and contact our sales department via the Business Listing when they see what good experiences others have had at La Selva.”