Are Google Reviews Poised to Beat TripAdvisor at Its Own Game?
Skift Take
Google has fought and annoyed TripAdvisor and Yelp for years when it comes to user reviews. The search giant obviously has the scale to compete and is now putting new emphasis on its own user reviews, but it has to prove it has the focus to upend the review balance of power.
From TripAdvisor to Airbnb, the big players in online travel want to offer it all: booking capabilities, tours and activities, and traveler reviews.
Google is no exception. But while Google has made significant moves to grow and improve its offerings in the travel sphere, it’s still finding its way in the realm of user reviews and ratings of local businesses.
Search a hotel on Google, and guest ratings from TripAdvisor, online travel agencies, Facebook and other review sources are populated in both paid and organic results. But as with its flights and hotels products, Google gives higher prominence to its own reviews, placing Google ratings just below paid results in mobile searches and at the top of the Knowledge Graph in desktop searches.
Earlier this year, Google confirmed that Google review count and score are factored into local search rankings. Google ratings are also populated throughout Maps, Trips and Destinations.
Given the ubiquity of Google reviews, their role in search rankings and their influence on consumer decisions, Google bears responsibility for ensuring the quality of its review
