Octopus does deal for authentic reviews from Reevoo

Octopus does deal for authentic reviews from Reevoo

Consumer-facing GTA subsidiary Octopus, now part of the Kuoni group, has brought in online review authentication specialist Reevoo to provide city and hotel reviews.

Consumer-facing GTA subsidiary Octopus, now part of the Kuoni group, has brought in online review authentication specialist Reevoo to provide city and hotel reviews.


Reevoo is the latest third-party review site to eye travel as a potentially lucrative market as the furore surrounding the trustworthiness of TripAdvisor reviews rumbles on.


This week Travolution featured Feefo, which is also hoping to make a major splash in the travel sector and was exhibiting for the first time at World Travel Market this week.


In September Reevoo published a manifesto covering how reviews should be used and managed, an initiative welcomed by the UK government’s Department for Business Skills and Innovation which is working with firms on an industry charter.


Richard Anson, Reevoo founder and chief executive, said: “Travel review sites have been the subject of allegations regarding the authenticity of their reviews on several occasions. 


“This is damaging for all parties because it plants doubt in consumers’ minds. But Reevoo only collects reviews from authenticated customers. 


“This, and our independence, means travellers and holidaymakers can be confident that, wherever they see the Reevoo brand, the opinions they are reading are from people who have been on a particular holiday, stayed at the hotel, or gone on that trip.


“As we roll out our service throughout the travel sector, consumers will be quick to cotton on to the fact that sites which continue to display unverified reviews may be making a conscious decision to do so, because they know it doesn’t have to be that way.”


Among the services Reevoo will be supplying to Octopus will be its ‘Ask a guest’ button, connecting potential clients with past customers of a hotel.


Consumers can rate their own experiences and Octopus will be able to respond immediately to any issues raised by a reviewer.


An Octopus spokesman said: “For many people a holiday is the biggest single purchase they make in any year, paying up to thousands of pounds. 


“It is absolutely right that they should know what other people genuinely thought of their own, similar trip, without worrying that the review might not be all it seems.  We’re delighted to be leading the way in our sector by making that possible with Reevoo.


“As for allowing people to rate us, we’re confident about putting our money where our mouth is. Knowing what people like and dislike about the Octopus service sits well with our business ethos of listening to customers and continually improving our service. 


“Conversations about our service will happen with or without us, so it is far better to be part of them and to learn from them.”