TripAdvisor Reveals Results of Restaurant Engagement Study

TripAdvisor has announced the results of its first ever restaurant engagement study, uncovering which factors drive the most engagement from consumers researching places to eat on the website’s restaurant pages.

The study analysed data such as number of reviews, management responses, photo content and the presence of opening hours across a representative sample of restaurants to reveal which factors most encourage consumers to look for more information about a restaurant, through clicks on their TripAdvisor pages.

Two of the key findings from the study are that photos are essential for restaurant businesses, and higher management response rates drive up average review ratings. The study also revealed that both user and manager generated content can make a restaurant’s profile far more compelling to consumers researching on TripAdvisor.

Factors that drive the most engagement on restaurant pages:

1. Overall number of photos (submitted by both users and management)
2. Number of photos submitted by management
3. Total number of reviews
4. ‘Opening hours’ displayed

More Photos

Diners are keen to preview what kind of food they might expect to find, as well as how the restaurant looks. Just going from not showing any photos to having photos on TripAdvisor restaurant pages results in 73% more engagement from users. Restaurants with more than 35 pictures see an increase of 107% in the level of engagement (compared to restaurants with no pictures).

Open or Not

Displaying opening hours has a significant impact – those restaurants that display their opening hours on TripAdvisor see an 11% increase in engagement from potential patrons.

Communication

The study also shows that responding to reviews is beneficial for restaurants, not only to ensure that they are able to get their side of the story across but also in terms of increased engagement levels from visitors to their business pages on TripAdvisor. Travellers are 12% more engaged on restaurant pages where the owner posts management responses.

Taking part in the conversation also has a positive impact on the overall rating for a restaurant on TripAdvisor, meaning the more reviews the management responds to, the higher the average review rating.

Average review rating vs. rate of response for recent reviews (restaurants):

0% response rate = 3.91 average review rating
5%- 40% response rate = 4.02 average review rating
40% - 75% = 4.06 average review rating
75%+ response rate = 4.21 average review rating

"The results of this study clearly demonstrate the importance of both user and manager generated content on restaurant pages," said Severine Philardeau, VP, Global Partnerships, TripAdvisor. "Prospective diners want to know what kind of experience they can expect from a restaurant before selecting where to eat, showing more interest in businesses that have pictures and plenty of reviews to help them make their dining decision. When selecting a restaurant, 50% of traveller usually or always reference TripAdvisor reviews before making a decision. Restaurant owners should be encouraging their diners to share their experience by posting reviews and pictures on TripAdvisor. Just as importantly, they need to respond to reviews, as the study shows that increasing the frequency of management responses has a measurable impact on average review ratings."