Yelp has updated the way consumers experience content on the site and in the app.

The changes, announced Tuesday, improve search, with more local content and easy navigation, and visual experiences such as video and other types of visual content with support from artificial intelligence (AI) and large language models (LLM).

Using AI and LLM in the search experience aims to improve queries and surface smarter suggestions when a user knows what they want.

Yelp will now use AI to provide business suggestions in search that are not tied to the user’s current location. When a user comes to Yelp without a specific search in mind, AI helps the platform introduce new features that will help them find the right business.

LLM now helps Yelp to better understand the nuance in consumer search intent and surface relevant excerpts from reviews in snippets that appear under each business listing in Yelp search results.

For those who are having a difficult time deciding where to eat, Yelp’s Surprise Me feature generates restaurant recommendations as users scroll through the Yelp home feed and search results.

Clickable Category Tags allows users to find this feature on business listings for restaurants, food and nightlife searches, helping undecided users better refine their general searches, such as for “restaurants” or “dinner” with category-specific searches.

The site also has added video to the review experience — a new way to contribute content. Reviewers can now post high resolution video up to 12 seconds in length alongside text reviews and photos. 

Users will find new interactive review topics by suggesting helpful topics such as food, service and ambiance they might address a draft of the review.

Yelp also announced what it’s calling Review Reactions, such as “Helpful,” “Thanks,” “Love this” and “Oh no,” adding to the way people engage with and show appreciation for another’s reviews.

To provide site users with added confidence during the hiring process, Yelp is rolling out Yelp Guaranteed, a satisfaction guarantee program that allows Request a Quote users to receive up to $2,500 back in the event something goes wrong with a project from an eligible business.

At launch, the satisfaction guarantee program becomes available to consumers in San Francisco, New York City, Chicago, Seattle, and Washington D.C. among some of the most popular home services — such as movers, plumbers, contractors, home cleaners, landscapers and more. 

Yelp has updated the way consumers experience content on the site and in the app. It also pledges a satisfaction guarantee program that allows Request a Quote users to receive up to $ 2,500 back in the event something goes wrong with a project.