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Yelp is like the local yellow pages except that anyone online can publicly comment on their experience with the businesses listed. It's a great place to go for the inside scoop before hiring that plumber or visiting that restaurant.

I've had a few customers call me and ask what they should do because someone on Yelp just posted a bad review of their restaurant. They all asked me how to remove the negative review, and I've had to let them know it can't be done. It's like a news article. It can only be retracted by the author.

If it can't be removed, how do you fix the issue? You should treat negative reviews online the same way you would handle a negative print review. First, listen to the customer and investigate his complaints. Are they legitimate? Do you need to improve your service? One restaurant's air conditioner was broken when someone visited and a patron complained about it online. I told the owner he should contact the Yelp user and offer him an explanation of what happened. Along with the explanation, he should offer a free meal with the condition that the patron write a follow-up review. Although this doesn't guarantee a gushing follow-up, it shows the patron you're serious about running your business and want to be the best in town.