If I Worked at Yelp

I've actively been using Yelp (I even attended an event) and Foursquare for the last several months (much to the dismay of my Facebook friends who have to see my Foursquare check-ins in Facebook). Actually using these services, you realize that they're fundamentally different products, independently addressing a piece of a larger opportunity. I keep asking myself why Yelp hasn't really aggressively responded to Foursquare.

This quote from Yelp CEO Jeremy Stoppelman says it all, "Yelp has the chance to become one of the great Internet brands...That for me is the chance of a lifetime." They allegedly recently turned down a $700mm offer from MSFT and a $550mm offer from GOOG. AND they recently took $50mm in funding.

With that $50mm burning a hole in my pocket, I would focus on 5 things to make good on Jeremey's goal:

1. Leverage user segmentation

When I was in Quebec City on holidays, I tried using Yelp to get some recommendations. The problem is that one person's 5 stars could potentially be my 3 stars. The example I give is that I unapologetically like local dives. I want to give a venue 5 stars, but I don't want my Mom to misconstrue that as a recommendation for her.

The solve: Sense Networks. These guys do some interesting work -- they segment users into "tribes" based on the locations they frequent. For example, there could be two "tribes": 'fancy mama's' and '30-y-o wanna be hipsters'. So, when I do a search for restaurants in Quebec city, I would be effectively asking "for all the '30 yo wanna be hipsters' what are the top venues?"

2. Focus on micro-engagement

I know Yelp just launched the idea of checking in (the Foursquare idea) on their iphone app, but there's really 2 sides to this: checking in and getting recommendations. I want to ask, in an Urbanspoon-kind-of-way, for a restaurant nearby. I don't want to read any reviews, I just want it to be near me, and leverage the technology I mentioned in point #1.

3. Neutralize other networks

If you've used SocialScope on BlackBerry, or Ping.fm , you get it. Post an update once, and it finds it's way to all your "social accounts". I want to be able to check-in once, and it shows up in Gowalla, Foursquare, Loopt, and Yelp. An aggregator app like this, authored by Yelp, puts Yelp in control. Otherwise, some 3rd party (or a competitor) will do this and guide their users to a competitive site.

4. Double-down on mobile

I heard anecdotally that the number 1 status update source on Twitter is still SMS. Also, the cost of writing a good iPhone, Android, and BlackBerry app is much less than the $50mm in funding Yelp took. Seriously, aggressively develop these apps, leverage the platform-strengths of each, and make sure they have at least feature parity. People will engage much more.

5. Let me make reservations
I'm sure the Yelp Eliters don't like this idea, but from a 'user needs' perspective, think about the process of 'finding a place to eat'. I go to Yelp, search for a recommendation, then I need to call to make a reservation (and Yelp doesn't get paid). I don't want to talk to someone, I just want to click "make reservation", select day/time, add it to my calendar, invite my friends, and be done. A partnership with OpenTable would solve this problem, and if it turns out to be lucrative, at least Yelp would own the end user.