We need to talk about TripAdvisor

If you missed last night’s live discussion about review sites – which was arranged and moderated by Ron Mader (@ronmader) of planeta.com – please go here to watch it now. (or you can watch it below.)

The talk revolved around what review sites we use in tourism, whether they should allow anonymous reviews, whether there might be an argument for giving preference to reviewers who allow the sites to verify their identities, how the different sites define words live reviews and ratings (and what this means for users), and so forth.

We also spoke about management responses, and their importance – and I mentioned the fact that hellopeter (probably South Africa’s best-known consumer review site) only allows businesses to respond to reviews if they – the businesses – are  payed subscribers!  (This brought gasps of disbelief from our international panel. And so it should.)

And talking of international panels: last night’s was an amazing line-up indeed, and a demonstration of the brilliant technology available to us today: technology that allows us to have conversations across the globe like never before. (How are we using this to improve tourism and international understanding? 

Google+ Hangouts work like this: as each person in the conversation talks, their face (or, if they so choose, their screen) appears on the screens of everyone else. And it doesn’t matter where you are in the world.

Besides Ron and I, last night’s discussion included

• Aivar Ruukel (@Ruukel), an ecotourism and e-tourism practitioner, PhD student and lecturer based in the Soomaa National Park, a Ramsar site of protected wetlands in Estonia; 
• New York-based Ethan Gelber (@localtravels)  of the Local Travel Movement  and Outbounding  – a new service for sharing excellent tourism-related content (go there. It’s addictive – in a good way);
• Gregory Hubbs of Transitions Abroad  (@TransAbroad)  – a guide to work, study, travel, and volunteering abroad (established in 1977; Greg spoke from Amherst, in  Massachusetts); and 
• Anders Kärrstedt of Nutti Sámi Siida  (guided outdoor activities with or without reindeers in Swedish Lapland: Kiruna, Sweden) @nuttisamisiida 

Join us next Tuesday (21 January, 2014) at 6:30 p.m. SA time when we discuss how powerful the influence of the review sites really is. What are your views on the subject? And can review sites contribute significantly to the ideals of responsible travel?

There’s more information here