Member Guidelines

General

• What is TrueLocal?
• How do I become a member?
• What does TrueLocal cost?
• Why use TrueLocal?
• Who uses TrueLocal?
• Who can see my profile and my reviews?
• What are ’Businesses that service the area’ and ’Businesses from other locations’?
• What is the ’Most popular’ tab?
• How do the special offers work?
• Get the most from our site. Watch demo

What is TrueLocal?

TrueLocal is the one place where you can search for a business in your local area and be sure to get the results that are the most relevant to you. What’s more, TrueLocal is updated weekly to ensure our listings are current and accurate.

TrueLocal is also the place for consumers like you to share their experiences, whether good or bad, with a particular business or service. Reviewers from all over the country are invited to participate. If you’re taking a trip interstate tell us about the great restaurant you visited or tell everyone about the local café whose coffee is divine.

How do I become a member?

Becoming a member of TrueLocal is quick and easy. Just follow this link: http://www.truelocal.com.au/login.do. If you want to post reviews you need to be a member.

What does TrueLocal cost?

It costs users nothing to access our services, whether it’s posting a review or searching for a business in your local area.

Why use TrueLocal?

TrueLocal allows users to search for businesses and services in their local area, finding relevant results for them. You don’t have all day to trawl through pages of business listings so relevant search results help you get your jobs done quicker.

TrueLocal allows real locals to share their opinions on businesses they visit and services they use on a daily, weekly or monthly basis. In this way TrueLocal offers a more effective recommendation service – people who know the service review the service. It also allows visitors to share their opinions on a business. A new pair of eyes may offer new insights that locals may not notice. It can even introduce you to places in your local area you never knew existed.

Who uses TrueLocal?

Busy people like yourself who need to find relevant businesses quickly and easily. In-the-know locals who want to share their favourite pub, café or butcher. Curious people looking for a new place to eat, a new boutique to buy clothes, even a bargain in their local area. Visitors looking for the local’s perspective.

Who can see my profile and my reviews?

Any visitor to TrueLocal can read your reviews and take on your recommendations. They can also click on your display name and see your profile, avatar and everything you’ve reviewed. No personal information is displayed.

What are ’Businesses that service the area’ and ’Businesses from other locations’?

TrueLocal’s search doesn’t just bring up listings directly from the suburb you’ve chosen. Put simply, ‘Businesses that service the area’ are mobile operations. Their head office is located elsewhere but they’re on the road and able to help. ‘Businesses from other locations’ are places located in nearby or neighbouring suburbs. They’re not located in the exact searched suburb but they’re not too far away either.

What is the ’Most popular’ tab?

You’ll find ‘Most popular’ tabs directly under the search tool when you visit the TrueLocal homepage and also on search results pages.

On the homepage the tab highlights the top rated businesses in the major capital cities under the eight categories of Accommodation, Automotive, Health and Beauty, Medical, Professional Services, Restaurants, Retail and Trades. On a search results page it highlights the top rated businesses that meet your search criteria.

The tabs keep changing as more reviews are submitted so make sure you check it out each time you visit TrueLocal.

How do the special offers work?

You’ll find ‘Special Offer’ tabs below the ‘Most popular’ tab when you visit the TrueLocal homepage and also on search results pages.

On the homepage the tab highlights the latest special offers available in your chosen capital city. On a search results page it highlights the latest special offers available from businesses that meet your search criteria. Click on your desired special offer and you’ll be taken to the business description page. The instructions on how to redeem the offer will be stated on the voucher page. Call the business if you’re unsure

What is Ratings and Reviews?

Ratings and Reviews is an important part of TrueLocal that lets members share with others their experiences of businesses. People generally prefer to get recommendations about goods and services they’re shopping for and this is a great way to get personal recommendations online.

Ratings and Reviews has benefits for businesses too. A good review can help a business stand out from the competition and win customers. Even a so-so review can help a business learn more about their customers’ needs.

Do I need to be a member to submit a review?

Yes you need to be a member and logged in to submit a review. The registration process is quick and simple. Just follow this link: http://www.truelocal.com.au/login.do

How do I write a review?

First you need to log in, then search for the business you want to write about. Searching via the business name is the quickest way to find the listing. You can add a review from either the search results page or the business listing page. Just look for the ’Write a Review’ option prominently displayed on the page. You’ll then be directed to a page where you can write a review and give a rating out of five (half marks are allowed). There’s a limit of 1,000 characters per review.

What am I allowed to write?

You can write a review about any business or service that appears in TrueLocal. That’s provided, of course, that you have bought (or tried to buy) something from them or used their services.

Here are some things to think about when writing a review:

• What did you like? What did you dislike?
• If the service was recommended to you by someone else, did it meet or exceed your expectations?
• Would you use the service again and recommend it to others?
• Try to keep the review short and simple.

All reviews should be personal, objective, truthful, and offer helpful suggestions. Stating you waited 50 hours for a pizza to be delivered doesn’t help the business or members in any way. If anything it will reduce the credibility of your review and any others that you may post.

Can I review my family or friend’s business?

Yes, as long as you disclose your relationship with the business in the review. Personal and professional connections to a business can understandably alter the reviewer’s perspective. By being open and honest about this relationship you ensure that your review is trustworthy.

Does TrueLocal moderate reviews?

All reviews submitted to TrueLocal undergo a moderations process. This is to ensure nothing offensive, defamatory or derogatory makes it onto the business listing page. Ideally all reviews should be up and running live within 24 hours. Delays do occur depending on volume so please be patient. If your review is declined you’ll receive an email explaining why.

How does the moderation process work?

Our moderation process is designed to ensure that all reviews are personal, objective, truthful and fair. That’s all the moderation process is for. We want to keep reviews real.

You’ll be notified by email if any review submitted does not meet our criteria. This includes any review that has been reported for abuse to our moderation team.

Please remember:

• Your review must be your own experience with the business or service you are posting about. At no time are reviews to be directed towards other members’ reviews on TrueLocal
• Second hand experiences are hearsay. If a friend or co-worker has had a bad experience you should ask them to sign up and post their own review
• Are you an aggravated ex-employee or don’t get along with that family member? We’re not interested. These reviews must be experiences based on the business providing their service to you as a customer
• There is no place for name calling and/or singling out a specific employee. Poor customer service from the waiter is fine but mentioning the short, dark haired, accented employee named Tim is not acceptable
• We’re not going to be strict when it comes to spelling and grammar but make sure people can understand what you’re saying.

I want to review a business but it’s not listed.

A business has to be listed on TrueLocal to be reviewed. If you can’t find a business, please let us know by following this link: Contact Us

How many times can I review the same business?

Not every business gets it right every day. One night everything may run smoothly for a restaurant and the next night they may be understaffed. For this reason TrueLocal allows its members to review the same business on a daily basis. If you experience problems with a tradesman and they fix the issue you can follow up your initial review letting people know of the resolution.

Will TrueLocal only accept positive reviews?

No we won’t. We realise not all experiences are going to be positive. Negative reviews actually give more credibility to the entire review experience. While we do allow negative reviews we ask that they be truthful and fair. Nothing defamatory or abusive will be posted. Stick with the relevant facts as to why the experience was unsatisfactory. The more details and facts you provide can only help the relevant business and give other users a full picture of your experiences.

How do I report inappropriate reviews?

If you see a review that you believe to be untrue, defamatory or inappropriate in any way you can flag the review by clicking on the ‘Report as inappropriate’ link under the review. A box will appear prompting you to give your reason for believing the review is inappropriate. The flagged item will then be judged by the TrueLocal Content Services Team and removed if found to be inappropriate.

I flagged something as inappropriate and it’s still on the site. Why?

Just because you flag a review doesn’t necessarily mean it will be taken down. The end decision lies with the TrueLocal Content Services Team. We’ll take your reasons into consideration but remember what is inappropriate or offensive for one person may not be for another.

The only way to have a review removed temporarily is to be the business owner connected to the listing. Please see the Business Owners Guide for more info.

Can I review under multiple accounts or cut and paste reviews?

No. The hard and fast rule is one account per user. The idea behind TrueLocal’s Ratings and Reviews is to have accurate information and reviews submitted by people who have had actual experiences. We can’t allow one person submitting multiple reviews, under different names, to the one business as this simply doesn’t indicate a true experience. The same goes for cutting and pasting the same review under every branch listing of a business. Unless you’ve actually experienced the services at the business listed we don’t want you posting about them. When we discover multiple accounts or cut and paste reviews we will remove them.

Can I change my charity after I’ve selected one?

Yes you can. Members can change their chosen charity at anytime. Just remember though, all the money raised from your reviews during the 90 day period can only go to one charity, you can’t divide donations. The charity you have selected at the end of the 90 day period will receive all the money you have raised.

How do I choose my charity?

Firstly you need to register and become a TrueLocal member. If you’re already a member simply log in. Once logged in click on the My Profile link located on the top right hand side of the page. From Your Profile page click on the Choose Your Charity tab and then pick your desired charity. Don’t forget to click Save at the bottom of the screen. If you want more information about a specific charity click on their logo.

Do I have to choose a charity?

No, selecting a charity isn’t necessary. At the end of the 90 days TrueLocal will collate the review money you have raised and distribute it between the charities.

Can I nominate a charity to receive donations?

Yes, if we don’t have your favourite charity or not for profit organisation listed you can nominate it to receive the money you raise. The process is simple. Head to the Rant & Rave for Charity page www.truelocal.com.au/charity and click on the Nominate a Charity link. Make sure you submit as much information about the charity as possible – name, phone number, alternate contact details, anything you feel is relevant. TrueLocal will consider all nominated charities but there is no guarantee they will be accepted. The final decision lies with TrueLocal.

How do I feature as a Top Reviewer?

The Top Reviewer feature is located on the right hand side of the Rant & Rave for Charity page www.truelocal.com.au/charity and lists the 10 TrueLocal members who have submitted the most reviews. It will be updated throughout the promotional prize period. The member who has written the most reviews during the promotional period wins a prize. Remember all reviews must be unique and on different businesses – no cutting pasting the same review on multiple listings.

Can I make a personal donation to charity?

Yes you can but you need to contact the charity directly. Unfortunately TrueLocal is unable to act as middleman for personal donations.

My number of total reviews and donation amount do not add up, why?

Your total number of reviews is tallied from all the reviews you have ever submitted as a TrueLocal member. Your total donation amount for Rant & Rave for Charity reflects the reviews you have submitted since August 20, 2008.

I’m a business owner, can I participate?

Yes, TrueLocal encourages and welcomes all registered business owners to participate in Rant & Rave for Charity. You’re also eligible for all monthly prizes.

How do I verify my TrueLocal account?

Once you have completed the registration process a verification email will be sent to you. The email will contain a link. All you need to do is click on the link to verify. If clicking the link doesn’t work you can cut and paste it into your browser. If this doesn’t work either please forward the email to customerservice@truelocal.com.au explaining the situation and we’ll try and fix the problem for you.

How do I change my basic account information such as display name, email address, and password?

To edit your profile or change any account preferences you first need to log in, then click on the ‘My Profile’ link which appears on the top right hand side of the page next to the ‘Log out’ link. All editing links are located to the right of your profile box. From here you can change your display name, email address and password.

I have forgotten my password. How can I retrieve it?

Easy. Click on the ‘Log In’ link and look for the forgotten password link towards the bottom of the box. Click on that link and you’ll be taken to a page asking you to submit the email address you registered with. Once that is submitted we’ll send you a new password that you can then change in ‘My profile’.

What does ’Add as favourite’ mean?

Click through to a business listing page and you’ll notice an ‘Add to favourites’ link to the right. If the listing is one of your favourite bars, restaurants or hairdressers click on the link and it will be added to the list of ‘Favourites’ on your profile page. Your fellow members will be able to see your favourite places.

What does TrueLocal do with my personal information?

TrueLocal will not give, sell, trade or share any of your personal information to any third parties. Please see our Privacy Policy for more information.

Can I change my avatar?

To edit your profile or change any account preferences you first need to log in, then click on the ‘My profile’ link on the top right hand side of the page next to the ‘Log out’ link. All editing links are located to the right of your profile box.

Your avatar will be moderated by the Content Services Team before it goes live. This is to ensure nothing inappropriate is posted. You’ll be notified by email if your avatar is rejected.

How do I use ’Custom locations’?

‘Custom locations’ allows you to get straight forward directions to any business listed on TrueLocal. To use the service, log in, click on ‘My profile’ then click on the ‘Edit custom locations’ tab to add up to three addresses, either home, work or anywhere else you spend a lot of time. Next time you look up a business you’ll be able to get personalised directions to their address from any of your customised addresses.

Other users will not be able to see your custom addresses.