Yelp is a marketplace connecting small business owners with their customers.
New customers want to find small businesses (restaurants, plumbers, dentists) who are near them, with high trustworthy user reviews and matches their needs. For restaurants, it might be the type of cuisine, a particular food item, atmosphere. For a dentist, it might be a type of dental speciality, whether they are friendly, and the type of insurance they accept.
Yelp solves the new customer use case very well.
If a business is successful in keeping these new customers coming back, why would a loyal customer visit Yelp again? There is no reason for regular customers to go on Yelp for the business that the use very frequently. This is where Yelp has missed a huge opportunity to connect the most loyal customers with the business owner.
Background
As a business owner these are the activities that a user interacts with the business on Yelp.
Mobile Check-ins : A customer is inside the business and wants to tell the owners : “Hey I’m here”
Directions & Map : A customer is looking up directions to the business
Deals Sold : A customer buys a deal, prepaid and will come in very soon.
Messages : A customer sense a messages to the business owner
Calls to Your Business : A phone call is made
Clicks to your website : Click to check out the website
Online Reservations : Made a reservation using Yelp Reservations
Yelp Online Orders : Order food/ items to be delivered or picked up
Users uploaded Photos : The customer was at the business and took a photo
Yelp bookmarks : The potential customer bookmark with intent to go
Call To Action Clicks : The button that the business wants a customer to click on, and it actually happens.
These activities are cool to look at, but only the ‘Mobile check in’ applies to loyal customers
Loyal Customers
If I were a loyal customer of a restaurant, I would like to choose to receive the following. Deals for me as a loyal customer, special occasion deals (birthdays, my anniversary). New menu updates. Maybe a direct line to the owner on my favorite dishes, and also maybe some comments on dishes I don’t like. A way to directly message with the chef.
For a dentist or optometrist, I would like a way to message and make appointments easily. A way for them to remind me of appointments that I need to schedule. Maybe a way for me to refer my friends and I get a small kick back?
For my favorite local bookstore, let me subscribe to their email list easily?