Potters Resorts Collects 37% More Reviews with Trustmary

Potters Resorts holds a unique position as the only fully inclusive holiday resorts in the UK with two locations in Norfolk and Essex. Both resorts have earned consistent five-star ratings and accolades, such as the TripAdvisor Certificate of Excellence and topping surveys like Which? for best UK holiday resorts.

Gary Bartley, Head of Marketing at Potters Resorts, shares how the company manages reviews and feedback with the help of Trustmary.

Summary:

• Potters Resorts already had great reviews but wanted to increase the volume.
• Trustmary helps them collect 37% more reviews.
• Negative feedback is dealt with immediately to maintain high customer satisfaction.
• The resorts collect glowing reviews for Tripadvisor, Google, and Trustpilot.

Challenges: More Reviews Needed

Prior to using Trustmary, Potters Resorts faced a common issue: demonstrating strong guest satisfaction in public online reviews. 

– The customer satisfaction was high and the reviews we got before were good, but we were getting just a couple of reviews a week despite having around 1,500 guests every week, Bartley explains.

We were getting just a couple of reviews a week despite having around 1,500 guests every week

Gary Bartley, Head of Marketing, Potters Resorts

The Solution: Trustmary’s Review Collection

The managing director of Potters Resorts discovered Trustmary and saw an opportunity to elevate their review strategy. 

With Trustmary, the resorts can craft a targeted approach to request reviews directly after stays.

– Trustmary gives a direct approach to collecting reviews. When that is handled, we can focus on other things in the post-stay emails, such as encouraging repeat bookings and referrals.

Results: 37% and 26% Uplift in Reviews

Since implementing Trustmary in May 2024, Potters Resorts saw a notable increase in their review numbers:

• Hopton-on-Sea location experienced a 37% increase in monthly reviews.
• Five Lakes saw an uplift of 26%.

The Feedback and Review Process

The team at Potters Resorts leaves feedback cards on breakfast tables for guests on their departure day. 

The manual collection of email addresses is needed, as guests arrive in parties, and the resort only has the contact information of the person who books the holiday. To capture everyone’s feedback, the rest of the party fills in a physical feedback form.

This initial feedback is funneled into their system, and possible negative feedback is handled immediately by the guest services team.

– Negative feedback is valuable for improvement. It’s another layer in our process that ensures we can address any issue swiftly, maintaining our top-tier service.

The strategy ensures a smooth transition from in-resort feedback to online review solicitation.

Potters Resorts wants to collect reviews to Tripadvisor, Google, and Trustpilot, so the review requests alternate between the platforms to keep up a strong reputation on each of them.

Fresh Reviews on the Website

We’ve never had reviews as fresh as just a few days on our website before.

Gary Bartley, Potters Resorts

Potters Resorts has always showcased reviews on their website. Before, they had to do it manually.

– Every couple of months we’d go and update the reviews, but that’s a long-winded process and invariably you find an older review on a page somewhere and think, oh, right, that’s almost two years old. We need to get that updated, Bartley says.

The introduction of Trustmary’s automated review widget on their website has reduced manual labor and provided up-to-date feedback that guests could trust.

New reviews are imported automatically, and the marketing team can add them to the widget as often as needed.

– We’ve never had reviews as fresh as just a few days on our website before, Bartley points out.

Personal Support

Bartley praises Trustmary for its user-friendly interface and strong support system. 

– The team at Trustmary has been exceptional. They don’t just set you up and leave; they check in regularly to ensure we maximize our use of the system, he notes. 

If Trustmary ceased to exist, Bartley’s primary concern would be maintaining the improved review flow. 

– We’d need to act fast to find a similar solution to prevent losing the momentum we’ve gained in securing more five-star reviews.