June 6, 2011

The Power of Recommendations.

It takes years to build a reputation and only a day to destroy it.

Last week, there was a story about a hotel in New York, which had to close because of some nasty reviews that had been written about it on TripAdvisor. Apparently staff were seen smoking weed in the bedrooms as they went about their cleaning duties, rats were prevalent in the kitchens and mattresses stank of urine.

Yet this had been a well-respected family run hotel, that had done well for many years.

According to the friend that told me this story, the negative reviews were posted by a rival hotel rather than real customers.

The fact that there were lots of really favourable reviews on TripAdvisor for this same hotel becomes irrelevant if you think there’s a chance that your mattress is going to smell of urine – however good the other aspects of the hotel may be. TripAdvisor, to be fair, does give any hotel the chance to respond to this type of comment, but who would you believe?

“I stayed in that hotel and the mattress stunk of wee”
OR
“ I can assure guests that if any mattress stunk of wee, it would be replaced immediately”

So reviews of service-based products, such as hotels shouldn’t always be trusted – it is so easy for people with malicious intent, to skew the view of the masses.

It’s less easy with things like TVs, where the extent to which you can credibly slag off a really good TV is limited. Still possible though – ‘the sound was really fuzzy and it became really hot to touch after being left on for 6 hours’ - that sort of statement would put me off even the highest rated TV.

Recommendations from people you trust though are worth their weight in gold.

They may not always be good recommendations but if you know the person providing the recommendation, chances are that you will be able to put it into context. If one of your friends has got a bad breath problem and they recommend a particular product for easing the problem, that’s a very valuable reccomendation. Compare that to a beautiful celebrity endorsing a fresh breath product – you sort of know that they only endorse it for the money and you suspect that their celebrity breath smells beautiful anyway.

That probably explains why, in a recent study, friends recommendations were trusted by 65% of people and only 8% trusted those of a celebrity. Yet still many brands spend millions on getting celebrity endorsement and they wouldn’t do that if it didn’t work.

The moral of the story – if you want to buy something or go somewhere, before you do nything else , ask your friends.

May 18, 2011

The 10 Best Places for a Hen or Stag do on LoveThis.

Most of us only have one Hen or Stag Do, so it's important to find the right place to enjoy the last vestiges of freedom. I've been on a fair few stag weekends and so I feel I'm in a good position to comment on most of the Top 10 most recommended locations for Stag Do's on LoveThis...

Antwerp – I would personally recommend this as I went there last year. It’s really easy to get to via Eurostar. Full of bars, karaoke and decent restaurants. Incredibly cheap hotel rooms. Not so popular that stag or hen nights are banned or unwelcome. I stayed at the IBIS hotel, which is central and went to many bars, the names of which elude me but there was one where the barman was incredibly tall (well over 7ft). Try Petrol if you really want to party or Den Hopsack if you want to see local artists of all backgrounds perform on a quieter night.

Edinburgh – Not great if you are very posh and very English but great for everyone else. (Why? Listen to the words to ‘Flower of Scotland’). The downside ( or it could be an upside) is that there will be lots of other stags and hens happening at the same time and that you are unlikely to get turned away from anywhere (have you ever heard of a Scot turning away money?). The piano bar in Hanover St is a must as is a trip to one of the many fish and chip shops (Haggis in batter is incredibly tasty). The Good Pub Guide recommend a few pubs on LoveThis, including The Bennets.

Bournemouth – if your impression of Bournemouth is lots of old ladies huddled in blankets overlooking the sea, then you probably won’t know that Bournemouth is the clubbing capital of Britain. And what better way to sober up than a dip in the sea? Try The Dean Park for a good, hangover curing Sunday roast.

Newcastle – Aside from having to dress up to get into clubs, Newcastle is one of the friendliest cities in the world and a place to have a laugh. The Bigg market is where it all happens and everyone takes going out very seriously ( hence the strict dress code).

At a music festival – One friend went to the V Festival 6 years in a row without seeing a single band. As an environment to be around your nearest and dearest friends, it takes some beating. Other benefits are that you’ll walk a lot and you’ll be outside the whole time, so it’s a healthy option.

Paris – The Parisians are known for their aloof attitude/ rudeness, but on a stag or hen do, this really doesn’t matter because the chances are that you will be rather more obnoxious than they are. Plus great food almost everywhere, a McDonalds that sells beer and hotels to suit every budget. Hens wanting a (somewhat) civilised cocktail should visit The Hemingway Bar.

Prague – the stag and hen capital of Europe, due to cheap beer and cheap clubs. Although there are nice places to eat, you have to know where to go. Mecca is a popular ‘superclub’ amongst LoveThis members and Studio 54 is open late (or rather, early..) for those who plan to have an all-nighter.

Las Vegas – If you haven’t seen the movie, The Hangover, do. It’s all the inspiration you need for a trip to Vegas…

Krackow – Some say it’s the new Prague. Avoid if you fear going underground as most of the bars seem to require descending some stairs, but otherwise it’s a great (and cheap) place to visit.

Cabo San Lucas – A fair few celebrities have chosen to party here before tying the knot, including Christina Aguilera and Zoe Ball. Americans will be ware of Los Cabos, but many Europeans haven’t heard of it. Think an American version of Amsterdam with sun, sea and sand. Try the One&Only Palmilla if you want a quiet bit of luxury for your hangovers (maybe not if you intend to go too crazy..). And you have to visit the Happy Ending Cantina, one of Cabo’s most famous bars

Enjoy!

James

P.S. See what Alexis, founder of LoveThis, has to say on his blog...

May 13, 2011

The 'Best Hotels in the World'.

BRILLIANT – A FANTASTIC ARTICLE ON THE TOP NEW HOTELS IN NEW YORK, PARIS AND SOMEWHERE ELSE

What do you do, when that article that you read over someone’s shoulder recommending all the new hotels in your favourite cities, steps off at the next station?

You google it of course.

But then when you type in “Top new hotels in New York and Paris”, the article doesn’t appear on the first few pages of results and you are besieged by a mass of sponsored links...

So most people give up.

Those with a bit more patience will eventually find the article and may then bookmark it, along with everything else they have bookmarked.

Chances are the article will never be seen again (For those that are interested, you can find all of the Guardian's Travel recommendations on LoveThis).

Wouldn’t it be good if you could organise all these recommendations into a single place, and where you can search for it whenever you want?

That’s basically what LoveThis lets you do and then lets you see all your friends recommendations at the same time.

So if your friend has just stayed at the Design Sorbonne in Paris, you’ll know that it really is good.

James

P.S. - Once you've found a hotel, take a look at the most recommended restaurants on in New York and London on LoveThis, the place to find the things your friends recommend.