The reviews for my property are mostly positive. I have only had one review removed, because of a personal attack. I don't go after reviews, like some places do.
My website is supposed to find the people who want to be here. I keep it as real as possible. I try to provide as much information as possible. Also, I happily answer questions by email or phone. There is no such thing as a stupid question as far as I am concerned. Assumptions are far more dangerous to a holidayer's enjoyment. I don't like to have unhappy people here; life is too short.
Consider that some places actually DO pay for reviews. There are businesses that sell reviews. I get asked every summer for free accommodation in exchange for a review on some blog or other. Not ethical by my way of thinking. Strangely these requests are always for the high season, not the off season. Of course, by turning them down, I do run the risk of negative publicity...
One of the two negative reviews on TripAdvisor is from a person who arrived on the fly. The extended family was revisiting the place her son had worked, a hostel in Madawaska, now out of business. Mom was disconcerted that I did not have her choice of accommodation available at the last second, then posted a negative review. Had they stayed at the hostel her son worked at, they would have to slept in dorm single bunks, and had breakfast and dinner included. I wonder which is the better deal, 2 cabins (privacy) with equipped kitchens, one on the waterfront, or the hostel, which was on Highway 60, not waterfront? The hostel cost more for 4 people than the 2 cabins here. Hmmmmmm....Oh, these folks left with a balance owing, which I thought was an oversight until I read their review on TA.
The other negative review on TripAdvisor is from someone who wanted to change her high season booking from 2 nights to 4. I rearranged another client so that I could accomplish this without having to move the plan-changing client half way through her stay. This meant I upgraded the shorter stay person @no charge, and discounted the longer stay person. Then the person who wanted to stay longer changed her mind again, and wrote a negative review, after saying to my face that everything was fine.
This easily explains why I am not keen on reviews. As a proprietor, I get a limited amount of time to respond, and only one chance. There is no taking back what is said. If I happen to be busy with clients on site, is it fair to take time away from them to respond to cranks? I find it takes some time to find the composure to make an intelligent, useful reply.
Used to be if you liked a place you told your friends. If you didn't like it, you told the management so they could remedy the situation. Now we have ninja review writers instead.
Lots of happy clients are not interested in writing reviews. After all, they are on vacation.
Suits me fine!