Facebook Methodology Change Leads To Increased Market Share Of Review
New statistics from Feed It Back’s monthly social review tracker has revealed that Facebook’s polarised methodology change in August is now translating to increased usage across the platform.
The statistics, which were taken from thousands of social reviews across the restaurant, quick service restaurant and pub industries, reveal that Facebook now accounts for 11% of reviews – up from 9% in October and 8% in September, clearly demonstrating that its switch to a simple yes/no recommendation has translated into increased usage.
However, Google still remains the most prominent channel with November’s figures showing 60% of reviews were made across the platform (up from 59% in October and September). Meanwhile TripAdvisor’s market share continues to fall, currently sitting at 29% (down from 31% in October and 32% in September).
The switch in methodology, which is slowly being rolled out across all Facebook users, has also driven up the number of positive reviews across Facebook, with the platform boasting an average rating of 4.5 out of 5.0 (up from 4.4 in October and 4.3 in September). The average reviews on Google and TripAdvisor remain flat at 4.1 and 4.0, respectively.
TripAdvisor continues to be the platform generating the most negative reviews, with 17% of reviews posted in November falling between 1.0 and 2.0 out of 5.0. Google showed the biggest share of 4.0 out of 5.0 reviews, with a 30% rating in this bracket.
Splitting the data by industry, customers are far more critical when eating and drinking out in the restaurant and casual dining industry (where the average rating is 4.1), than the pub and bar industry (where the average rating is 4.3 out of 5.0). One factor driving this is the higher percentage of TripAdvisor reviews, which are typically more negative, left across the restaurant and casual dining sector (33%), whereas the pub and bar sector has less (24%).
Atmosphere and environment were determined to be the key factors in driving positive reviews on Facebook, with users citing nice environments as particularly influential in their experience of pubs and bars. Food was also a key driver of positive reviews across the sector. In particular, allowing guests time to enjoy their meal without being rushed was a clear theme amongst positive reviews, while waiting times continued to drive negative reviews across all sectors.
Commenting on the figures, Carlo Platia, CEO of Feed It Back said: “The data from the past three months clearly reveals that Facebook’s algorithm change has translated into monthly increases of people using the platform. In an age where consumers want ever quicker, frictionless transactions and processes, the polarised switch and ability of the platform to quickly understand your preferences and make recommendations around them, will no doubt continue to deliver growth.
“It’s vital that operators keep abreast of these developments and view their own social scores through this context. In this day and age, simply tracking your online reputation isn’t enough, you have to be actively managing it and gleaning information from the reviews to improve your offer in a constant pursuit of perfection. Social channels are going to become an increasingly important tool in fighting this battle.”
This data is part of a regular report Feed It Back runs across social reviews and just scratches the surface of their ability to drive revisits. To understand more about Feed it Back, and sign up for a monthly copy of this report, please email: allears@feeditback.co.uk.
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Geoff Campion
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Laura Rogers
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