TripAdvisor dumps word 'trust' from hotel listings

Travel reviews website TripAdvisor has removed the slogan "reviews you can trust" from its hotel listings, but it says the move is unrelated to an ongoing investigation by the Advertising Standards Authority.

The ASA is looking into complaints from thousands of hoteliers that allege TripAdvisor contains misleading and fraudulent reviews.

The advertising watchdog is also looking into the use of the word "trust" on the site following a complaint from online reputation management company KwikChex that this is a misleading statement.

TripAdvisor said it had changed the slogan "reviews you can trust" to "reviews from our community" as part of the site's evolution. Spokeswoman Emma O'Boyle said: "As with all marketing messaging, the wording used on the TripAdvisor site is constantly evolving to reflect different aspects of the business.
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"The -¬---Reviews from our Community-¬~, which is now visible on the hotel pages, is also part of our ever-evolving communication efforts, this time highlighting our commitment to our all-important community.

"The description of TripAdvisor as a trustworthy source of travel advice and information continues to be used in other parts of the site, and by example you-¬™ll still see this wording on the homepage."

By Linsey McNeill

Wednesday, September 14, 2011