Welcome research on Restaurant recommendations and review site credibility!

12 Shares

In what initially looked like an Eat Out survey about restaurant recommendations when I saw the Facebook post very late last night was in fact a survey conducted by Tokara to research sources of restaurant recommendations and review platform credibility. I was delighted to see that our WhaleTales Blog was included in the Survey as a source of restaurant review information.

Tokara Restaurant owner Wilhelm Kühn is writing his dissertation for an Executive MBA at the UCT Graduate School of Business, and designed the survey. He introduced it as follows on the Tokara Facebook page: ‘We have joined forces with UCT’s Graduate School of Business to research who our customers turn to when looking for a hot restaurant tip and the reasons why you contribute to restaurant review sites or applications. Please take the survey below – the 20 multi-choice questions only takes a few minutes to complete (depending on how decisive you are!)‘. A survey incentive is that 12 respondents will be invited to taste Chef Richard Carstens’ new summer menu!

We have provided the link to the survey above, and encourage all restaurant lovers to share their feelings about restaurant review sites, and the use and credibility thereof. One hopes that Tokara will make the information public on its completion, as it will be of interest to all who debate the reliability of information sources such as Eat Out, TripAdvisor, Zomato, our WhaleTales Blog, Relax-with-Dax, and other restaurant information sources. Interesting is that Kühn has not added the American Express Platinum Fine Dining Awards as a source of restaurant information. We noted earlier this week that Tokara did not receive an award, but this may be by choice or because they do not accept American Express credit cards. Food24 is also visible by its absence. Of greatest interest will be the feedback regarding the credibility of TripAdvisor reviews, of which we all know that many reviews, both good and bad, are false, either to boost the rating of own restaurants or to bash and lower the rating of a competitor restaurant!

The questionnaire used by Kühn in his survey follows below. Personal details are said to be optional at the introduction to the survey.

1. What is your name?

2. At what email address would you like to be contacted?

*3. In the past 30 days, how many times did you eat out at restaurants?

Never

1-3 times

4-6 times

7-9 times

10 or more times

*4. Do you prefer to visit

a new restaurant every time you go out

a small selection of trusted favourite restaurants

a combination of new restaurants and old favourites

*5. Do you prefer restaurants that

follow the latest worldwide foodie trends, even if it means that the menu changes from year-to-year

build and nurture a unique identity over years

*6. What is your most trusted source of information when choosing which restaurant to go to?

printed guides such as EatOut Magazine or Rossouw’s Restaurants

websites such as Tripadvisor.com or Dining-out.co.za

apps such as Zomato or Great Little Place

blogs such as The Whale Cottage Portfolio Blog or Relax With Dax

word-of-mouth recommendations, especially from family and friends

other (please specify)

*7. Do you prefer restaurant recommendations that are

more personal, i.e. that might appeal to you and your foodie friends

more general, i.e. might appeal to diners in general

*8. How often to you contribute reviews or ratings of the restaurants you visited?

never

occasionally

most of the time

always

*9. Under which circumstances would you be more likely to post a review or rating?

when I had a bad experience

when I had a good experience

it makes no difference whether it was good or bad experience

10. Please rank which considerations are most to least important to you when posting a review or rating via a review site or application (1 being most important and 4 least important)

to express my view

to build my online profile

to help other diners

to give feedback to restaurants

*11. Have you ever refrained from complaining while still at a restaurant as you wanted to post a review afterwards?

yes, I have stayed quiet to complain afterwards

no, I always speak up when I’m not satisfied

*12. Would you be less likely to post a negative review if there was an incentive available to you whereby a restaurant would be given the opportunity to address any remaining grievances, which had not been addressed on-site, within 24 hours?

yes

depends on what exactly the incentive would be

*13. Do you prefer reading reviews by

professional critics

someone like you

14. Please rank the importance for you of the following characteristics of a reviewer, whether a professional critic or someone like you (1 being most important and 5 least important)

experience

objectivity

relatability

independence

profile

*15. What do you think is the modern-day role of professional restaurant critics with so much information available via social media and review sites?

to share their expertise

to share foodie trends they observe

social media and review sites haven’t changed their role at all

they have no more purpose or function

other (please specify)

*16. To what extent do high-profile restaurant awards influence you to visit a restaurant included on a “Top” or “Best Of” list?

very much so

when in doubt

not at all

*17. Do you regard “Top” or “Best Of” restaurant lists as

an objective assessment of quality and consistency

a subjective view of the judges and/or sponsors

other (please specify)

*18. Do you trust the views expressed by amateur reviewers on restaurant review sites?

yes

*19. Would you regard the information available via online review sites as generally helpful even if a portion of, say, one in five of all reviews were found to be fake or fraudulent?

yes

*20. Are you a member of a book club, cooking club or restaurant club?

yes

*21. Would you be interested in participating in an online community where people with similar interests as you have a forum to discuss their restaurant and foodie experiences to learn from one another?

yes

maybe

*22. Would you prefer access to such a community to be

as open as possible, i.e. everyone could join

limited, i.e. existing friends or people with very similar foodie interests

Please follow and like us:

3070

27k

WhaleTales Blog by Chris von Ulmenstein

Blog about Restaurants and Tourism in Cape Town and the Western Cape

Welcome research on Restaurant recommendations and review site credibility!

September 10, 2015

1. What is your name?

2. At what email address would you like to be contacted?

*3. In the past 30 days, how many times did you eat out at restaurants?

*4. Do you prefer to visit

*5. Do you prefer restaurants that

*6. What is your most trusted source of information when choosing which restaurant to go to?

*7. Do you prefer restaurant recommendations that are

*8. How often to you contribute reviews or ratings of the restaurants you visited?

*9. Under which circumstances would you be more likely to post a review or rating?

10. Please rank which considerations are most to least important to you when posting a review or rating via a review site or application (1 being most important and 4 least important)

*11. Have you ever refrained from complaining while still at a restaurant as you wanted to post a review afterwards?

*12. Would you be less likely to post a negative review if there was an incentive available to you whereby a restaurant would be given the opportunity to address any remaining grievances, which had not been addressed on-site, within 24 hours?

*13. Do you prefer reading reviews by

14. Please rank the importance for you of the following characteristics of a reviewer, whether a professional critic or someone like you (1 being most important and 5 least important)

*15. What do you think is the modern-day role of professional restaurant critics with so much information available via social media and review sites?

*16. To what extent do high-profile restaurant awards influence you to visit a restaurant included on a “Top” or “Best Of” list?

*17. Do you regard “Top” or “Best Of” restaurant lists as

*18. Do you trust the views expressed by amateur reviewers on restaurant review sites?

*19. Would you regard the information available via online review sites as generally helpful even if a portion of, say, one in five of all reviews were found to be fake or fraudulent?

*20. Are you a member of a book club, cooking club or restaurant club?

*21. Would you be interested in participating in an online community where people with similar interests as you have a forum to discuss their restaurant and foodie experiences to learn from one another?

*22. Would you prefer access to such a community to be

WhaleTales Blog

WhaleTales Blog