I've been using Trip Advisor for years - I generally write reviews only when my stay is stellar, or if I have a bad experience.

I recently stayed at a non-chain property, and had a terrible experience with their customer service as it related to their (complimentary) shuttle service. Figuring I'd get nowhere by writing a formal complaint to the hotel, I wrote a long and detailed negative review summarizing my experience, and posted it on Trip Advisor (where most of the other reviews of this property are positive).

So today, I get home and there's a letter from the hotel waiting - from the GM, expressly apologizing for the hotel's poor customer service, assuring me that this is something that would never happen again, and that staffing changes were made as a result of the incident I wrote about, and telling me that they were going to credit back the room rate, taxes, and other expenses to my CC, as well as enclosing a certificate for a free stay. The letter referenced parts of my Trip Advisor post. I am 100% floored by this - I never wrote and asked for any of this - and they apparently read the Trip Advisor reviews and take what their customers say very seriously (my name was also not on the review, so I'm guessing there may have been some detective work involved in matching the review to me, then finding my home address to send me this letter). I have never received this kind of reparation from any business (travel-related or not) in my entire life.

Needless to say, this completely changes my opinion on this property. Do I change my review to reflect this (deleting the negative experience?) Crazy that people are actually listening (and caring) out there.