What is TripAdvisor ranking?

The TripAdvisor ranking signifies the popularity of your business and tells potential guests how positively you have been reviewed. TripAdvisor is one of the most widely used social platforms around the globe.

Travellers of all ages and demographics head to TripAdvisor in order to get objective and honest feedback about the accommodation providers, tour guides, restaurants and transportation services they are considering for their next getaway.

Recognising the powerful role that TripAdvisor plays, you need to make sure that your B&B consistently improves its TripAdvisor ranking.

Why is increasing your TripAdvisor ranking important?

Increasing your TripAdvisor ranking is important for several reasons:

  • Enhanced visibility. TripAdvisor is one of the world’s largest travel platforms, with millions of users. A higher ranking means your hotel will appear earlier in search results, increasing its visibility to potential guests. This can lead to more clicks, inquiries, and ultimately, bookings.
  • Increased trust and credibility. A high ranking on TripAdvisor can enhance your hotel’s reputation. It signals to potential guests that your hotel provides excellent service and quality, as it’s been highly rated by previous guests. This can increase trust and credibility, which are crucial factors in a guest’s decision-making process.
  • Competitive advantage. In a highly competitive industry, a high TripAdvisor ranking can give your hotel a significant edge. It can set you apart from competitors and make your hotel the preferred choice for travellers, serving as a powerful endorsement of your hotel’s quality and service.
  • Improved guest feedback. A high ranking on TripAdvisor encourages positive feedback. Guests may be more likely to leave positive reviews when they see that a hotel is highly rated – and less likely to leave negative ones – creating a virtuous cycle of positive reviews and high rankings.

Ultimately, all these benefits of a high TripAdvisor ranking contribute to one crucial business objective: higher revenue. With increased visibility leading to more bookings, and enhanced trust and credibility attracting more guests, your hotel can enjoy higher occupancy rates. This increase in occupancy rates, coupled with the potential for higher room rates driven by positive reviews and high rankings, can significantly boost your hotel’s revenue. Investing in strategies to improve your TripAdvisor ranking can deliver substantial returns for your hotel.

TripAdvisor ranking system algorithm change and the new TripAdvisor ranking factors

TripAdvisor has grown enormously during the last decade, and now there are more than 200 contributions being added to the popular review site every minute.

Given the amount of activity that occurs on TripAdvisor at all hours of the day, the company decided to create an algorithm that gives travellers the most accurate information about hotel rankings.

The Popularity Ranking algorithm is designed to provide travellers with an overall ranking of the individual hotel over a period of time.

This algorithm change means that if you consistently earn positive reviews from your guests, you will be able to climb in the rankings and maintain your spot — a fast-rising hotel with a few good reviews won’t outrank your property, which may have hundreds of positive reviews. 

These ranking changes are a good thing for small hotels, because it means that competing accommodation providers will be ranked more fairly, more travellers will trust in TripAdvisor’s rankings, and your profile will hold that much more weight when travellers are browsing through it. Let’s take a look at what this would mean for small hotels.

More reviews equal a better ranking

The recent algorithm changes mean that you won’t necessarily rank higher if you have a handful of recent 5-star reviews, when others in your area have dozens.

To keep your numbers up, continue to encourage each guest to leave reviews after their stay.

Because yours is a small property, you will naturally have fewer guests and therefore less reviews than larger hotels.

However, you can offer personalised service – the kind that big hotels can’t compete with, and that will inspire guests to write genuine reviews.

More positive reviews mean a better ranking

Having higher star rankings will still lead to a better TripAdvisor ranking, so do your best to impress your guests!

According to TripAdvisor “all other things being equal, a property with more 4- and 5-bubble ratings will rank higher than a business with lower bubble ratings”.

Recent positive reviews help you rank higher

You may have hundreds of reviews… from 5 years ago! These are being devalued in TripAdvisor’s eyes.

Why? Today’s travellers are looking to stay at your property in the near future, and your reviews need to be from the present.

In your post-stay email (this should be automated by your booking engine), ask for honest reviews. And be sure that you log in to your TripAdvisor account each day to manage them.

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How to improve your TripAdvisor ranking

Customers no longer trust a B&B listing in isolation, they need advice from other travellers before they make a booking themselves.

So it only makes sense that 81% of travellers think TripAdvisor reviews are important. If you’re asking yourself “why did I fall in ranking in TripAdvisor?”, your ratings might be the culprit.

Use these 5 tips to boost your TripAdvisor ranking. 

1. Manage your profile effectively

While you aren’t always in control of the reviews that people leave on your TripAdvisor profile, you are in control of what you present on this profile page.

Another step you can take in improving your TripAdvisor ranking is completing your profile. Always include the most up-to-date information about your B&B, including your contact information and your website URL.

Create a powerful text description that can be displayed. Always make sure that you include a few of your own high-resolution photographs to display your property in the best possible light.

2. Avoid rewarding your travellers for positive feedback

It may be tempting to incentivise your travellers and reward them for leaving positive feedback on your TripAdvisor page.

However, this goes against the terms of agreement that you have with TripAdvisor, and could have a very negative impact on your TripAdvisor ranking. TripAdvisor wants to make sure that its platform is a safe space where guests can leave honest and objective feedback that may help other travellers.

Rather than rewarding your guests for leaving feedback, focus on offering the best guest experience possible and politely ask them to leave a review on TripAdvisor when they are checking out.

3. Monitor reviews and respond frequently

Once you have created your TripAdvisor profile, you need to check it on a regular basis in order to evaluate the feedback that you are receiving.

First and foremost, this gives you insight into the guest experience at your property and can help you improve your business. Secondly, it allows you to respond accordingly and display your customer service skills for other travellers who may be considering a stay at your B&B.

Respond to all reviews – even negative reviews – in a polite and professional manner.

4. Remind your past guests to leave reviews on TripAdvisor

The number of reviews that you have has a significant impact on your ability to improve your TripAdvisor hotel ranking.

The more reviews that your property receives, the higher it will be ranked. You should remind your guests to leave a review on TripAdvisor by sending them an automatic email several days after they have checked out of your property. You can schedule this email through your property management system.

Your TripAdvisor profile is a fluid entity that needs to be constantly evaluated and edited so that you can maximise the impact that it has on your business.

5. Utilise a seamless online booking experience

A smooth and efficient booking process is a crucial aspect of the guest experience. It’s the first interaction potential guests have with your hotel, and it sets the tone for their entire stay. 

With Little Hotelier, guests can easily navigate through the booking process. The system is intuitive and user-friendly, making it easy for guests to find the information they need, select their room, and complete their booking. This streamlined process not only enhances the guest experience but also increases the likelihood of successful bookings.

Moreover, Little Hotelier’s booking system can integrate with existing hoteliers’ booking systems. This means that you can maintain your current workflows and processes while benefiting from the advanced features and capabilities of Little Hotelier. This integration ensures a seamless transition and minimises disruption to your operations.

But the benefits of a seamless booking experience extend beyond the guest experience. A smooth and efficient booking process can also have a positive impact on your hotel’s online reputation. When guests have a positive booking experience, they’re more likely to leave higher ratings and recommendations on platforms like TripAdvisor. This can enhance your hotel’s online presence and attract more potential guests.

Lastly, when more guests successfully complete their bookings, it signals to TripAdvisor that your hotel is in demand and provides a positive user experience. This can improve your hotel’s ranking on TripAdvisor, making it more visible to potential guests and increasing your chances of attracting more bookings.

Boost your TripAdvisor rankings and get more direct bookings

Maintaining and optimising hotel search engine listings on TripAdvisor can be a full-time job. Large hotels often have entire teams dedicated to this task — so how can you keep up?

Little Hotelier’s unique Demand Plus feature simplifies the process of managing metasearch and hotel search engines, including TripAdvisor, ensuring your hotel is visible to the right guests who are ready to make a booking. Our system oversees, tracks, and fine-tunes your campaigns daily, maximising the potential of your listings. 

The best part? You don’t have to lift a finger. Your listings will direct guests straight to your website, and you only pay us for confirmed stays. Minimal effort on your part, maximum reward for you, and a fantastic opportunity to remain competitive, even against larger hotels.

Little Hotelier streamlines the process by providing an all-in-one system that handles everything.

  • Draw in new guests. We ensure your hotel is visible to travellers on leading hotel metasearch platforms like Google Hotel Ads, Trivago, and TripAdvisor. These guests are actively seeking accommodation and are ready to book directly with your hotel.
  • Increase revenue. By encouraging direct bookings through metasearch, you establish a direct relationship with your guests, creating opportunities for repeat bookings for your hotel.
  • Reclaim your time. Secure more bookings without any extra effort. Leave the intricate details of setup, bidding, and billing to us. We handle everything for you to ensure you’re reaping the benefits of your listing on hotel metasearch engines. This allows you to focus on delivering an exceptional guest experience.
  • Seamless integration. We propel your property to the top of search results, helping you compete with third-party channels. It’s all effortless when everything is managed from a unified platform like Little Hotelier.

Regardless of where your bookings originate, Little Hotelier consolidates them all for your convenience. By utilising this platform, small hotels can boost their guest experience and revenue, with many of our users experiencing an increase of up to 46% in bookings and an impressive ROI of 63x!

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By Dean Elphick

Dean is the Senior Content Marketing Specialist of Little Hotelier, the all-in-one software solution purpose-built to make the lives of small accommodation providers easier. Dean has made writing and creating content his passion for the entirety of his professional life, which includes more than six years at Little Hotelier. Through content, Dean aims to provide education, inspiration, assistance, and, ultimately, value for small accommodation businesses looking to improve the way they run their operations (and live their life).