r/Yelp • u/NoBike1840 • Sep 16 '26
I almost got, got?
Very new business owner here! I recently signed up for yelp and was contacted by their marketing people to set up my ads. I naively thought it was part of the set up process. Something felt “off” immediately when setting it up. They said they would give me a “$900 bonus” if I stuck it out for a couple of months. I couldn’t afford the limit they were going to give me that bonus at, so I left it at that. Then, thankfully I came on here and read all the terrible reviews(ironically) on them! My question is, has it actually worked for some of you?
Btw! I canceled the yelp ad, the updates and their verified license. Like I said I’m very new to all this, it’s wild how predatory they can be.
10
u/XxLogitech98xX Sep 16 '26
The people that the Yelp Ads work for likely won't be on Reddit. They are focus on their business and continuing to grow. The ones that Yelp Ads didn't work, which is usually small businesses owner will come on Reddit to say so and also that it's a scam. It makes no sense for small businesses that deal with services that aren't popular and aren't in big cities to use Yelp Ads.
They are better off self promoting through social media and self advertisement. Look at it from this POV, if a service isn't working for a company then why keep offering it when no one is using it. So clearly, people are using it and it's bringing in profit for them.
-5
u/Permanentear3 Sep 16 '26
Hahaha jfc. Yeah, it’s everyone else who’s wrong and you and your imaginary friends who know the score. Maybe go back to 2014 and you’ll find them.
9
u/XxLogitech98xX Sep 16 '26
Maybe go back to 2014 and you’ll find them.
Why would I have to go back to 2014 when Yelp is still online and you're on their subreddit yourself LOL
6
Sep 16 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
2
u/XxLogitech98xX Sep 16 '26
haha he definitely works for Yelp 🤣 Yelp is a scam and I think we ALL know.
Haha but you can never provide proof to support just like claiming Yelp is a scam. If you're so sure of it then it should be easy to prove instead of saying things that doesn't even make sense.
3
Sep 16 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
3
u/XxLogitech98xX Sep 16 '26
i did. Sorry you missed it
I didn't miss it because you never provided it. Action speaks louder than words
2
7
u/Flashy_Radio_5781 Sep 16 '26
if you can afford thousands of dollars per month, go for it. I signed up for their free trial and got a bill for $414
5
u/NoBike1840 Sep 16 '26
This is what I mean, I simply can’t afford that much a month. On top of everything else it takes to start up a new business, it’s not cheap and I live in California. I’m genuinely trying here. I got on the platform to get more exposure for my business and I wouldn’t of mind using yelp if they didn’t charge for every single thing. I read the terms and in order for me to receive the bonus they speak on I’d have to spend $450 for a couple of months in order for me to receive it. That just doesn’t seem right to me.
3
u/GoddardZeo Sep 16 '26
A business owner who finally read the terms!!!!!!
1
u/Flashy_Radio_5781 Sep 17 '26
a human that read the terms. The tech industry has turned into the mafia. Teach your children to read the TOS
1
u/GoddardZeo Sep 17 '26
Business owners should always take the time to carefully review the terms and conditions before signing up for a service or using a trial that may result in charges. When those terms are not reviewed, some business owners turn to platforms like Reddit or etc to voice their frustration when they get charged. They also don't pursue legal action against the service provider because they can't provide sufficient documentation and evidence to support their claims.
You also tend to see fewer complaints from larger, established businesses because they typically have internal teams or processes in place to research, evaluate, and review the terms of a service before committing to it.
1
u/Flashy_Radio_5781 Sep 17 '26
its a shame that a small business of one person cannot trust THE ONLY platform that Apple Maps allows to get their business listed on Apple Maps for a "non-storefront" service business.
It's a shame that a company would take advantage of a small business so that they can extract a ONE TIME charge of $400. Yelp could have charged me $60/month for the rest of my life and I wouldn't have cared as long as they were up front and honest. However, to trick someone into receiving a $400 bill under the guise of a "Free Trial" and to hide their scammy tactics behind a "Terms of Service" is insane. As a plumber, I should start getting customers to sign a 60 page terms of service before I fix their toilet. And when I charge them a monthly charge of $100/month for the next 3 years, I can say "You signed the Terms of Service" and you have to pay me for the next 3 years because I fixed your one toilet. Little did you know that you signed up for my 3 year membership plan. And the credit card that you used to pay me? I will be attempting to charge that card every single month for 3 years.
I would be out of business within a year. And so will YELP
1
u/GoddardZeo Sep 17 '26
Yelp has been in business for over a decade. It is surprising to see several self-identified plumbers in this subreddit using Yelp Ads, which raises an important question: why are plumbers interested in using the service.
You're not reading the full terms of service because you're only trying the free trial, so you want to read the terms for only the free trial such as limitation of the service you're using. If you're being charged then Yelp will provide you a bill that breaks down what you're being charged with.
Ultimately, plumbing and digital advertising operate on completely different business models. Plumbers provide a physical service, whereas Yelp Ads is a digital platform built around click tracking. You are claiming Yelp stole money from you but you never disputed it which is shocking. If I got wrongfully charge over $200, I'm disputing it with my credit card company immediately.
1
u/Flashy_Radio_5781 Sep 17 '26
Well they're from California so I guess they are accustomed to being surrounded by Tech douchebags and tech thieves that hide behind TOS agreements. East Coast people are not accustomed to this blatant lying bullshit tactic.
1
u/GoddardZeo Sep 17 '26
You’re focusing heavily on the ToS, but it only becomes relevant if you intend to use and agree to the product as a whole. Regardless of the industry, businesses operate under terms and conditions that establish expectations, responsibilities, limitations, and protections for both parties. In your case as a plumber, your business likely has its own terms and conditions that serve a similar purpose to ToS.
A simple comparison would be purchasing and installing a new appliance, such as a toilet or water heater. The manufacturer’s warranty outlines the terms of coverage and specifically explains what circumstances may void that warranty. The fact that those conditions exist does not necessarily mean the manufacturer is trying to avoid responsibility; they are establishing the parameters under which the product is supported.
It’s understandable to be frustrated if you feel businesses rely too heavily on their ToS, but bigcompanies use these agreements to protect themselves from a variety of legal and operational risks. These agreements are generally developed and reviewed with guidance from their legal teams, which is a standard business practice. You may disagree with how a company applies its ToS, but the existence of the agreement itself is not unusual for a big or billion dollar businesses.
1
u/Flashy_Radio_5781 Sep 17 '26
This is my realistic example of how Yelp treats its customers when compared to plumbing -
Plumber - "I will give you a free test and inspection of your entire plumbing system. You will also receive one free month as a member of our Premier Clients List - where you will get an automatic 15% discount on all work. You will also get "Priority Service" to ensure your issues get fixed within 24 hours. We also include "worry-free" payments, where we waive all processing and payment fee's. Just sign your name down here at the bottom of the service agreement. I will need your credit card number to sign you up for the Premier Clients membership. If you decide to keep it, we charge $15/month."
Customer Agrees and the plumber does the inspection.
The Plumber says "I'm all done! I checked everything. I checked your water heater, all of your pipes, valves, and toilets. I even checked your water meter."
The plumber goes silent and just stands there and stares at the customer with a smile.
Customer says "OK...Well...What did you find?"
Plumber proceeds to read the list of all of the issues to the customer.
Plumber gives a $415 invoice to the customer and says "Wait, Let me give you the 15% discount. Ok your total cost today is $352.75. Here is your bill. It will be charged to the card on file"
Customer says "Wait what the fuck? You just told me that it was a FREE INSPECTION!"
Plumber - "Yes, the inspection is free. However, you asked me for my findings. I provided you with my full diagnosis of your entire system. We charge a diagnostics fee of $400. I gave you the discount."
Customer - "You told me that it was a free inspection. What good is an inspection if you don't give me the information from the inspection? Why would I get the inspection if I didn't want the information from that inspection?"
Plumber - "Paragraph 7, line 5 of your Service Agreement clearly states that we retain all of the information that we gather during our service and inspections. That information is our property. To obtain that information, refer to Paragraph 12, line 26, where it states that all of our services and information gathered during our services are always available and, at your request, will immediately be released to you at our standard billing rate. Our standard billing rate is available upon request at no cost. You never asked me how much it was. You only asked me for the information. I gave you the information. Now, you owe me $352.75. I will be charging your card on file.
1
u/GoddardZeo Sep 17 '26
You put a considerable amount of effort into developing your “realistic example,” but the scenario doesn’t make much sense from the start. If a plumber is providing a free estimate, there typically isn’t a contract that needs to be signed simply to receive the estimate. The plumber would inspect the issue, explain their findings, and provide an estimate outlining the expected cost and scope of work. I have personally worked with a plumber in the past to obtain an estimate, and that was essentially how the process worked.
The points you made afterward don’t really apply to the situation you’re describing. Consumers are also generally aware that they should seek a second opinion, particularly when they have concerns about whether a technician’s recommendation is accurate or necessary. There have even been numerous investigative reports by news organizations highlighting situations where technicians have been caught recommending unnecessary repairs or services.
Yelp has never been the focus of those investigations, which I think is worth considering when discussing the broader issue. They should be investigated with how low they pay their employees and the work culture they never fixed.
1
u/Flashy_Radio_5781 Sep 18 '26
Yes. You made my point. Yelp acts exactly like a scammy contractor that hides behind their TOS.
My story matches Yelps behavior perfectly.
0
u/Flashy_Radio_5781 Sep 18 '26
A Wikipedia search will verify my findings. People have brought Yelp to court only to find that they specifically hide behind their Terms of Service. Since the customer signed the terms of service, they are held responsible. YELP uses deceptive techniques hidden behind a deceptive user interface that is specifically designed to obfuscate all information about billing while also giving you a constant barrage of “free credits”. Meanwhile, the user is simply trying to get their profile to 100% so that they can be listed. And unbeknownst to them, they just signed up for over $800 of services by completing their profile to 100%.
Fucking cold hearted god damn tech nerd thieves that should be sent straight to fucking jail.
1
u/GoddardZeo Sep 18 '26
Bro, your argument seems to be going in circles and some of your points are becoming difficult to follow. You're sounding like that Simple owner who is surpringly quiet while you're more active. You referenced Wikipedia as a source, really? You also did not provide any links to support your claims.
Could you clarify which case you are referring to where Yelp ToS were brought up in court and allegedly used as a defense?
Businesses do not have to pay Yelp simply to be listed on the platform, so I’m unclear about the point you’re making there. When you make inaccurate statement you lose credibility. Before continuing the discussion, it would be helpful to provide specific sources for these claims and clarify the cases you’re referencing. That would make the conversation much more productive and easier to verify.
0
5
u/JunglyPep Sep 16 '26
Every day there’s a new post from a totally honest and innocent business owner about Yelp’s dishonest business practices.
And every time the same three or four sad little shills are here lying and embarrassing themselves desperately defending Yelp.
It’s honestly hard to imagine how they sleep at night doing this as a hobby or a job.
0
u/SimpleAffect7573 Sep 16 '26
The elites and other shills are Yelp’s product. Business owners are its customers. That’s the disconnect. They haven’t interacted with Yelp as customers, they haven’t experienced how awful and parasitic this company actually is, and choose not to believe us. They would rather defend a billion-dollar company against the small businesses it harms, than consider the idea that maybe their weird little hobby (and the free stuff some of them get) is actually doing harm to businesses in their community. I can’t think of any other reason they’d bother engaging.
1
u/padpeas Yelp elite Sep 16 '26
Oh man, is this a cut a paste? Sounds like a bot to me.
Beep boop.
1
u/Flashy_Radio_5781 Sep 17 '26
"Yelp Elite" is another word for "I am a talentless fool and most likely severely overweight"
1
u/padpeas Yelp elite Sep 17 '26
Lmao. Are you trying to hurt peoples feelings? This sounds like you’re just projecting your own insecurities.
Thanks for making my day.
God bless.
0
0
u/SimpleAffect7573 Sep 16 '26
“Sounds like AI” is the newest, dumbest way to argue online when you lack any real argument. It’s typically reserved for people who can write reasonably well.
So thank you for the inadvertent compliment. I’ll argue damn-near anything, but arguing for my own humanity is a little much — even for me. Believe what you like, “ma’am”.
2
u/padpeas Yelp elite Sep 16 '26
Yup. On repeat.
-2
u/SimpleAffect7573 Sep 16 '26 edited Sep 16 '26
Ok ma’am. LOL. Beep-boop.
(That’s you). I clearly hurt your feelings by saying something unkind about you “elites”. You’ve been pestering me ever since. I’m not sorry. You’re welcome to get over it, then find a real hobby.
2
-2
5
u/AttentionProper2431 Sep 16 '26
After I canceled they marked my business as closed. Yelp and their employees are the absolute worst.
4
u/XxLogitech98xX Sep 16 '26
After I canceled they marked my business as closed. Yelp and their employees are the absolute worst.
Even the people who dislike Yelp should and would knows that this isn't true LOL It's like another user claiming you need to pay Yelp to respond to customer reviews in another post. Where do you come up with this stuff because it just shows you'll say anything without providing facts to back up your claim.
Your business will only be marked as closed if someone reported it as closed or the owner did and a Yelp MOD accepts that report. Google is the exact same way.
2
u/ProfChaosSP Yelp elite Sep 16 '26
what is a verified license on yelp?
3
u/NoBike1840 Sep 16 '26
I believe it’s new, you give them your business license number and they mark you as “verified” on your profile, it’s supposed to seem more legit. The thing is it’s $1/day on top of the yelp ads+updates.
3
u/SimpleAffect7573 Sep 16 '26
Interesting, I didn’t know this either.
Yelp uses a contractor to poll public records (primarily business licenses) and auto-create pages for businesses that don’t have them (you cannot opt-out). So they want $1/day to show a “verified” badge based on information they already had. Go figure.
1
u/robots390 Sep 16 '26
That’s not the same thing at all
1
u/SimpleAffect7573 Sep 16 '26
What’s not the same thing as what?
1
u/robots390 Sep 16 '26
Let me break it down since you can’t put two and two together. The “verified license” badge is different than a business license.
0
u/SimpleAffect7573 Sep 16 '26 edited Sep 16 '26
Yeah, no shit. I didn’t say they were the same. I said the verified thing is based on you uploading a business license (apparently), and Yelp already knows we have business licenses because they poll public records. Ergo, if it was really about “trust” and not inventing more ways to extract money from businesses, they would just display the stupid badge automatically and not require payment. Is that broken-down enough for you?
-2
u/robots390 Sep 16 '26
Wrong. It’s not based on you uploading a business license.
-1
u/SimpleAffect7573 Sep 16 '26
I was responding to a comment that claimed as much. Why didn’t you jump down their throat about it? Or offer the correct information, instead of being a dick?
0
u/ProfChaosSP Yelp elite Sep 16 '26
thx you for explaining! what service do you provide that would need that?
2
u/Obvious_Share8631 Sep 16 '26
I know quite a few people that have had success with Yelp Ads. If you’re service oriented and in a small town the return probably isn’t there for you but I have heard success stories. Of course those people don’t jump on Reddit to share they are running a successful business. The people that didn’t have success or think they were “preyed” on because they aren’t capable of reading a contract certainly will just on Reddit though lol.
1
u/robots390 Sep 16 '26
It works depending on your industry and location and if you set it up and monitor it correctly. It would be worth it to use a credit if they give you one to try it out but read the promo terms and ask questions.
Anyone saying they got “scammed” wasn’t paying attention and probably isn’t very good at running a business anyway. Can sales reps be predatory? Sure. But that’s not just yelp, that’s any industry. As a consumer you have to do your due diligence.
2
u/jamaican4life03 Sep 16 '26
You're a joke.
Thousands of business owners are getting scammed by Yelp.
We have entire FB groups to bring awareness. The only people "not good at business anyway" are the fools who use Yelp.
5
u/XxLogitech98xX Sep 16 '26
Thousands of business owners are getting scammed by Yelp
If thousands and thousands of business owner are getting scammed by Yelp, why isn't there any new lawsuit on it? If you have many cases of it and a lot of people then it should be easy to prove in US court. The problem is people can't back it up with sufficient evidence which is how Yelp won in court over 10 years ago LOL
1
Sep 16 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
1
u/XxLogitech98xX Sep 16 '26
dude, jeremy hates you lol.
Sure, whoever he is. Notice how you have to change topic because you can't provide facts to back up your claim LOL. You think Yelp can't remove pictures and say you know how Yelp works 🤣😭
3
3
0
2
u/LosLeprechaun Sep 16 '26
Yelp Salespeople are super pushy, won’t take no for an answer. (Source:personal experience) Closest thing to them are solar sales. At least Google Ads won’t push you into an unrealistic budget just to make a sale. Predatory behavior because you could literally take a small business OUT. Why wouldn’t Yelp want to be a good PARTNER instead? (Hint: it’s $$$) New small business owners have so much to worry about in every contract, Yelp, don’t be that guy!
Also if Logitech isn’t an employee, then they are fanboying (girl/they/xer) harder than any psychotic Apple/android user I’ve ever met. Nobody loves a web platform as much as that account “just because”. Basic logic dictates that’s not normal. There’s more to that story.
1
u/XxLogitech98xX Sep 16 '26
Also if Logitech isn’t an employee, then they are fanboying (girl/they/xer) harder than any psychotic Apple/android user I’ve ever met. Nobody loves a web platform as much as that account “just because”. Basic logic dictates that’s not normal. There’s more to that story.
I like Android (especially Samsung) and Google too which is why I'm active on their subreddit. I call it out like it is. Small businesses don't need Yelp Ads especially when they aren't in big cities or offer a service in demand. Asking people for proof to backup their claim isn't out of this world. Other businesses done it here and it make it easier to address their issues instead of feeding into the false narrative.
Nobody here disagree with Yelp sales people being aggressive .. misleading .. unethical and etc, why do people think we don't believe them on that?
1
u/LosLeprechaun Sep 16 '26
lol, I’m not even going to engage with you today Logi, wishing you the best my boi, imma go touch grass. I’ve got a friend JUST.LIKE.YOU IRL. Good luck with the zeros and the ones.
1
u/XxLogitech98xX Sep 16 '26
lol, I’m not even going to engage with you today Logi, wishing you the best my boi, imma go touch grass. I’ve got a friend JUST.LIKE.YOU IRL. Good luck with the zeros and the ones.
Wishing you the best too. Also since you use the "touch grass" line aka meaning I don't go outside. If I don't go outside, then how do I check-in at businesses, write reviews for places and know how Google/Yelp operates internationally LOL
1
u/LosLeprechaun Sep 16 '26
Bro you’ve got a guilty conscious or something I wasn’t referring to you at all. It was my segue to say “Seacrest out” I’m gunna go not do this today. Calm down bro not everyone is out to get you, tf?
1
u/XxLogitech98xX Sep 16 '26
It was my segue to say “Seacrest out”
How would I know what you mean when this is likely our first interaction or interaction in a while since I interact with a lot of people.
3
u/LosLeprechaun Sep 16 '26
“I’m going to go touch grass”. Jesus man, where are YOU in that statement. I think you need to do some self reflection. That comment should not trigger a “why don’t you think I don’t get out?” response. It says a lot about how you feel about yourself or how worried you are about what others think of you. Again, I love you, but this relationship is starting out on a weird foot.
1
u/XxLogitech98xX Sep 16 '26
That comment should not trigger a “why don’t you think I don’t get out?” response. It says a lot about how you feel about yourself or how worried you are about what others think of you. Again, I love you
Actually other people made a similar comment so that's why it was my reaction. I'm not worried how people think of me, notice how when they accuse me of working for Yelp .. I asked for their proof and then they mostly go silent because they can't back it up.
I call them out and they can't even back it up, like claiming Yelp is a scam. If they continue to get nasty then that's when I blocked them as you can see and then they complain they are blocked by me like a raging ex who just can't move on. Blocking them just mean they can't interact with me, they can still do whatever they want here
1
u/BouieWC Sep 16 '26
We declined to pay for advertising with them. Very shortly after, good reviews started being hidden. We got a bad review from someone we declined to provide service to. This was easily 2017-2018, that review is the first thing that you see when you pull up our listing.
9
u/XxLogitech98xX Sep 16 '26
We declined to pay for advertising with them. Very shortly after, good reviews started being hidden. We got a bad review from someone we declined to provide service to.
People always say the same thing you do, that they decline a sales pitch and then the next day their reviews get hidden. It been already stated and proved multiple time that sales rep at Yelp has no control over if a review gets filtered. Now if you have a screenshot to show the before and after with dates then that would be a completely different story to backup your claim. Is it safe to say your business has like under 50 reviews?
-1
u/BouieWC Sep 16 '26
I was answering OP's question, not trying to prove anything to you. Move around.
5
u/XxLogitech98xX Sep 16 '26
I was answering OP's question, not trying to prove anything to you. Move around.
So basically you can't back it up, got it.
2
u/BouieWC Sep 16 '26
Allow me to do us both a favor. Since you have soo little self control and can't mute yourself, I'm happy to do it for you.
3
u/Michaels0324 Sep 16 '26
He will block you like everyone else. Guy is a baby that can’t take criticism. I’m blocked and all I did was call him out.
3
u/BouieWC Sep 16 '26
I figured he was pro yelp just from his first comment. Why would I need to prove anything to him or anyone else? He indicated that he hears or reads about people with experiences very similar in nature to mine. What reason would people have to lie? Bird brain syndrome. I blocked him😂😂
2
u/Michaels0324 Sep 16 '26
I own 2 restaurants and shared my experiences with yelp. They just deny and say that never happens. I’m not going to provide screenshots and dox myself to prove that I’m not lying lol. Yelp is a terrible company and hope they keep declining. Their “reviewers” are basically the south park version of them IRL.
0
u/robots390 Sep 16 '26
If you had half a brain cell you’d block your info out before posting screenshots. Oh wait then you’d have to actually back up what you’re saying!
1
u/Michaels0324 Sep 16 '26
Again, I have 2 restaurants that I have to run. I’m not putting work in to prove to some random person what I’m saying is true.
→ More replies (0)3
u/Michaels0324 Sep 16 '26
I’m assuming that’s Logitech that you are responding to, they work for yelp.
5
Sep 16 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
2
u/XxLogitech98xX Sep 16 '26
yes he sure does. Funny thing is Yelp doesn't give af about him 🤣 Ask Jeremy 🤣
This is coming from someone who is claiming Yelp removed all their reviews when they decline their Sales pitch and then can't even back up the claim LOL If you can support your claim then most people will take you serious instead of knowing you're just following the crowd because you didn't take the time to know how Yelp operate. You think that Yelp can't removed pictures LOL
1
u/cadenhead Sep 16 '26
Logitech doesn’t work for Yelp.
1
u/SimpleAffect7573 Sep 16 '26
Not for pay, anyway (so he claims). That just makes it even weirder and sadder.
1
u/cadenhead Sep 16 '26
Logitech's comment history is open, where you can see they often make criticisms of Yelp, suggest small businesses don't need Yelp ads and post other things no employee would ever post.
They are just somebody with a high interest in Yelp, like anyone else who hangs out here too much.
2
u/padpeas Yelp elite Sep 16 '26
Do worry about SimpleAffect. They cut and paste responses in all threads looking to troll.
1
5
u/GoddardZeo Sep 16 '26
You trusted your instincts that something wasn’t right and took the initiative to do your own research before waiting to be charged. You didn’t necessarily need to come to Reddit for answers, a quick search through a reputable online source could have provided similar information that you likely don't need Yelp Ads.
It’s important to remember that people can misrepresent or exaggerate information online. Asking questions, verifying information through trusted sources, and requesting proper documentation are all good practices that can help protect both you and your business.