Damien Smith leans in to hug Mairead Kelly. They have never met, but he has read her reviews dozens of times. “I can finally put a face to the person. She’s a great writer,” Smith said, sampling some squid ink risotto and moving between groups of smiling online friends.
We are at a party for “elite” reviewers for Yelp, a Web site where the public reviews bars, restaurants, laundries, car mechanics and just about every service imaginable. On mass review sites like Yelp, Amazon and Epinion, “super reviewers” get extra recognition for the hundreds of reviews they post. (Sixteen of the partygoers later review the Yelp event, several finding the finger food below par.)
Yelpers who write frequently and succinctly are given elite status by a Yelp review board, while high profile Amazonians have hundreds of listed “fans” waiting for their next reviews.
A cynic might see that as free labor for the corporations that make big bucks from their reviews. But that is not how the dozens of elite Yelpers see it. Damien, like others here, speaks of his Yelp profile the way a starlet might speak of a planned Hollywood career: “With perseverance and a tenacious attitude and writing reviews and building a name for yourself, you establish your own following,” he said.
Many of the Yelpers recall “building a name” before they reached the much-coveted elite status, which allows them to come to Yelp parties and mingle with other elite members.
Danny Chonde is studying for a doctorate in medical physics at Harvard University and sees Yelp as a form of public expression.
“It’s a creative outlet,” he says before a fellow Yelper leans in for a hug. “Hey lady, how’s it going?”
She asks if his friend Krystale got him into the event. “Yeah, she did, but at the last minute, they also…