Ethical Question about Yelp Review?

Question

I have been writing reviews on Yelp for a long time. I wrote a negative review of a doctor's office where a certain member of the office staff (I will call her Beth) was always rude to me for no reason. I took my business elsewhere and don't go there anymore.

I was flabbergasted when Beth CALLED ME and said she was upset about my review and asked me to remove it. She read all of my other reviews and figured out who I was. My review of the doctor's office was fair and truthful, but I had mentioned her by name, which perhaps wasn't right. So I removed the review. Then I changed my Yelp identity and removed a lot of information from other reviews that might identify me in the future to anyone else.

Several months later, I re-posted my review. It was milder but still negative, and I did not name anyone. My review stated that the doctor was terrific, but the office staff was rude to people. I felt that I was entitled to my opinion and frankly wanted to warn others about how rude Beth can be. There are many other negative reviews of this doctor's office, and some of them do mention Beth's name. Those other reviews are much more harsh than mine. The doctor's office has 3.5 stars, by the way, because others have written 5-star reviews, which balances it out.

Almost a year passed. Today, out of the blue, she called again, saying that Yelp emailed and told her that my negative review had been reposted. Yeah, I reposted my second review almost a year ago! And people have posted other negative reviews since then (and a couple of postive ones). I didn't speak to her directly; my husband got the call (I was out at the time). I have a hard time believing that Yelp emailed her now about a review I posted almost a year ago -- or that they told her it was me posting it (what about privacy??)

I was surprised that she "figured out" that it was me writing the new review, since I had changed everything about my Yelp identity. Maybe she is trying to call my bluff; I don't know.

I feel that I am entitled to my opinion. My review is not inflammatory. It is truthful and I don't mention Beth's name; I just talk generally about how rude the office staff is. And frankly, I feel that Beth is stalking me. It's kind of creepy.

On the other hand, we both live in the same town, and odds are that I will come face-to-face with her at some point and that will be a very uncomfortable situation.

Part of me says, "just remove the review and be done with her...the past is the past....bad karma, etc"

And part of me says, "she treated you badly for years. She even made you cry a couple of times. You are entitled to your opinion, especially since she is continuing to be rude to people now."

I would love to hear some educated opinions about this ethical dilemma.

I'm considering just deleting the review so I can just be done with her and move on. I feel like this is hanging over me. But being the stubborn person that I am, I resent feeling pressured and bullied by Beth.

Answer 1

Don't allow someone to bully you like that. You are entitled to your opinion. The fact she called you and was upset just goes to show she IS RUDE and you need to distance yourself from her. Leave your reviews, and add to it, that she called and rudely asked you to remove your review. Refuse to do so!



In the future, don't use your real name on anything or information that can identify that it's you. If someone ever calls you or says they figured it out that it was you, simply tell them you never heard of "YELP? What is that a dog website?" and you had nothing to do with the review.



Do you have to tell a lie? No, you are protecting your privacy. People don't get to pester you and ask questions which you must provide information to them that's none of their business.



Another thing, you can get Call Intercept from Verizon and add a list of phone numbers to block so they can't call you. This is an option if things get bad.



You are doing a service to the community by posting reviews. Any business that has one bad review should be able to more than make up for it with good reviews by doing their job and treating people fairly. I know you feel rattled by this, but you didn't do a thing wrong. This "Beth" was rude for calling you in the first place!

Answer 2

I know it can be hard to put hurt feelings in the past, I can be stubborn too but maybe in this case deleting the post might just be best. Thinking about it a lot could cause you unwanted anxiety. It's understandable you're upset because she was rude to you for so long. I think it's sad that she is all worried about the post but not once has she tried to apologize to you for how she treated you. You should move past it and if you see her in town don't worry about it, just don't talk to her.

Answer 3

I would update your review and explain what this Beth has been doing as a result of your review to understand her level of rudeness.