How To Delete Yelp Reviews

If you’re wondering how to delete Yelp reviews to improve your business or personal reputation, you’ve come to the right place.

Online reviews can make a significant impact on how customers perceive your business. A single damaging post on a popular review site like Yelp can affect everything from foot traffic to long-term trust in your brand.

While not every negative review qualifies for removal, there are times when content clearly violates Yelp guidelines.

If you’ve found a review that’s biased, inappropriate or false, it’s helpful to know your options. 

Do you need help with your digital presence? Call us at (844) 458-6735 for an in-depth audit and valuable insights from an expert.

What Happens If You Find a Review You Want Removed?

It’s not always easy to have user content, including photos and reviews, removed from Yelp. However, if you spot a review that you think should be removed, you can report it to Yelp. It helps to include any information that moderators may need to make their decision.

It’s also smart to publicly respond to the review in order to correct any inaccuracies. That way, whether or not the review is eventually removed from the platform, anyone who sees it will have correct information thanks to your response.

Don’t wait — get started today with online reputation management or repair. Give us a call at (844) 458-6735 to learn more.

How to Report a Review on Yelp

If there’s a review of your business that you want Yelp to remove, first make sure you’ve claimed your business page on Yelp. You’ll need to report the content from your business account.

How To Claim Your Business Page on Yelp

To claim your Yelp business page, start by searching for your brand on the Yelp for Business app or Yelp for Business website.

If you’re able to find your company, you can claim your page and follow Yelp’s directions to set up your business account.

If you’re not able to find your business on Yelp, it’s possible that someone else has claimed it or it’s been submitted recently and is pending approval. For business owners having trouble claiming their page on Yelp, you can reach out to the support team for help.

Reporting a Review to Yelp in 3 Steps

Reporting a review to Yelp is easy, whether you’re using the mobile app or the website.

Start by logging in and going to the Reviews section of your business account. Find the review you want to remove, and select the More Options (three dots) button.

Click Report Review on the menu.

Select your reason for reporting the review from the drop-down menu.

After you report a review, you’ll receive an email message once the content’s been evaluated by Yelp’s moderators. This can take several days, so don’t expect an immediate response. 

You can also find the status of your report by going to the review and hovering your cursor over the Flag icon next to it. This will say if Yelp is (a) still reviewing your report or (b) decided not to remove the content.

If the content ends up being removed, Yelp will also let the reviewer know.

When Should You Report a Yelp Review?

In general, a review that’s opinionated or passionate isn’t likely to be removed, even if it speaks negatively about your business. However, Yelp will remove a review that violates its Content Guidelines.

Here are the main reasons why Yelp will decide to remove a review once it’s been reported:

The reviewer has an obvious conflict of interest. 

According to Yelp, the website strives to be “a trusted resource for consumers,” and reviews should only be posted by “someone with an unbiased consumer interest.”

• The reviewer is a competitor or former employee.
• They’re affiliated with the business.
• Payment or other incentives have been given to the reviewer for their review.
• The reviewer is promoting the business itself of a competitor.

If the review is from a current or former employee; competitor or peer; or family member or friend, it will be removed, even if that person was also an actual customer.

Note that if you suspect bias, you have to provide clear and specific evidence when reporting the review.

The content of the review isn’t focused on the reviewer’s own experience as a consumer. 

Trustworthy reviews help other consumers make informed decisions about whether or not to patronize a business. Furthermore, reviews should reflect the individual’s personal experience with the business. The ambiance of the business space, customer service performance, and even cleanliness are all fair to review, even if the commentary is negative.

However, reviews that aren’t from the perspective of a consumer aren’t helpful. These include:

• The review is about someone else’s customer experience.
• There’s a description of extraordinary circumstances, such as a media-fueled story.
• The content of the review mainly disputes another Yelp review.
• A different business is the topic of the review.
• The review seems to be plagiarized from another source.

Additionally, reviews that comment on business details, such as hours of operation, offerings or policies, may be removed. Even if the information is considered interesting or helpful to consumers, it’s not enough for an actual Yelp review.

There’s inappropriate material in the review.

Even though reviewers can use colorful, passionate language in their reviews, and they may even be able to use profanity at times, other types of material are not allowed on Yelp:

• Hate speech, lewd commentary or threatening language is included in the review.
• The review includes private information about employees or customers.

Yelp goes on to clarify what the different types of inappropriate content entail:

• Hate Speech: Speech that attacks a person or group based on color, disability, national origin, race, religion, sexual orientation or other traits
• Lewd: Overtly sexual statements that are crude or offensive
• Threat: An intent to damage, hurt or injure

Regarding personal information, there are times when a full name is acceptable in a review, such as when referring to a doctor, lawyer or realtor. 

COVID-19 Content Guidelines

In recent years, Yelp has added new review moderation guidelines specifically in the COVID era. For example, the following review content is prohibited:

• Claim that a person contracted COVID-19 from a business or an employee.
• Criticism about a business being closed during what’s otherwise its normal operating hours.
• Criticism of the safety measures a business takes, such as having employees wear masks.
• Pandemic-related situations that are not within the business owner’s control.

From 24-hour monitoring to upscale content creation and promotion, our team of ORM experts can help you create the online presence you deserve. Contact us at (844) 458-6735 for more information.

How Do You Delete Negative Yelp Reviews You Posted?

If you want to remove a bad Yelp review you left for a business, it’s much easier than having genuine reviews removed that others left. Alternatively, you can edit your own review instead of removing it if you want to update your feedback. There’s also the option to post a review update if you’ve had a more recent experience with the business.

Here’s how to remove a review you’ve posted:

• Sign in to your Yelp account.
• Navigate to the Reviews section.
• Find the bad Yelp review you want to remove.
• Click the Three Dots icon to the right of the review.
• Select the Remove Review option.
• Enter your reason for removing the review.
• Click Remove Review again.

Before you permanently delete feedback you left on Yelp, consider if an edited version will be a better reflection of your experience and helpful to other consumers. 

On the other hand, if your original review was posted in error or no longer reflects your opinion, removing it means your review portfolio as a whole will better express your views.

Final Thoughts About Handling a Bad Yelp Review

Finding a review of your business that you want removed can feel like an urgent issue, especially if it’s biased, inappropriate or incorrect. However, even if the review does violate Yelp guidelines, it won’t necessarily be removed right away.

When it comes to review management, a careful, strategic approach matters. Remember, one of the best tools you have is the ability to respond publicly and professionally. By doing this, even negative Yelp reviews become opportunities to show your brand’s accountability, transparency and commitment to customer service.

The way you’re perceived online matters, and a poor online reputation can damage your personal life and your professional opportunities. Find out how to create the online reputation you deserve by calling (844) 458-6735 today.