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Yelp, the leading business discovery platform, has unveiled its winter release with several new features for both users and businesses. The release includes Yelp AI-powered business summaries, a more visual feed, number masking for privacy, and more.
Yelp AI-powered business summaries and reviews
One of the main features of the Yelp winter release is the use of Yelp AI-powered business summaries based on recent reviews. Users can get a quick overview of a business when they open its page, without having to scroll through multiple reviews. Yelp said it has improved its AI to match more queries and highlight relevant reviews. Whether comparing Yelp vs Google reviews or seeking specific details about a business, users can rely on Yelp’s platform for accurate and helpful information.
Yelp has also introduced some review-related updates, such as badges for reviews and more interactive review topic categories. The badges will appear next to a user’s review in the next few months, indicating that the user is passionate about a certain category, such as pizza, coffee, or sushi. The review topic categories will help users get started with a review by suggesting topics such as service, food, or ambiance.
Visual feed and search experience
Another feature of the Yelp winter release is the revamped feed on iOS, which will show more visual content from the platform. Users will be able to see collections from Yelp Elites, videos posted by businesses, and video reviews from other users. Yelp said it plans to roll out the same feature for Android in the next few months.
The search experience on the iOS app has also been improved, with popular searches, recent searches, and recently viewed businesses appearing even before the user types in a query. The search results will also be more image-forward, showing relevant images from the listings. To help users discover more businesses, the Yelp winter release will also feature carousels of “People also search for” and “Popular dishes nearby”, based on photos posted by reviewers.
Number masking and services experience
Yelp is also focusing on user privacy and convenience with the winter release, by introducing number masking for contacting businesses. Previously, when users shared their numbers with service companies, they would receive unwanted calls even after the project was completed. Now, Yelp uses a temporary masked number, through a partnership with Twilio, to connect users to businesses. Users can also text businesses directly, without having to open the app each time.
To connect users to better service professionals, Yelp also asks users questions about the issue beforehand through a form. The form includes questions such as the category of services, what needs to be repaired, and what the issue is. Users can also send photos and videos to service professionals, to make it easier to describe what they need.
Yelp also offers users a money-back guarantee of up to $2,500 if a project goes wrong, through its “Yelp Guaranteed” program. The program, which was announced last year, is now available across the U.S.
New features for businesses
The Yelp winter release also brings new features for businesses, such as a revamped home page, a better onboarding experience, and a way to schedule consultations with Yelp advertising representatives. Businesses can also get new budget recommendations for ad-sends, based on their goals and performance.
Yelp also rolled out the ability for businesses to send quick replies to users and archive projects, to manage their communication and workflow more efficiently.
Yelp, which will announce its new earnings on February 8, posted a net revenue of $345 million for Q3 2023. The company also slightly raised its annual revenue outlook for 2023 from $1.332 billion to $1.337 billion.