WikiCharlotte Online Directory

WikiCharlotte Online Directory | Help & FAQs

Frequently Asked Questions

We get two questions over-and-over again:

What's the catch?
Why didn't I get an email when I created a new account?

Whats the catch? There isn't one. You can register your business for FREE and it will always be FREE. We make our money off advertising on the site. In order to get advertisers, we need traffic. In order to get traffic we need you to list your business. Simple really. You can find out more about us here.

Why didn't I get an email when I created a new account? We sent you one—it's automatic and you should get it within minutes of signing up. What's probably happened is our email was caught in your spambox. You cannot try again with the same username and email address. But, what you can do is click on Login in the upper left corner, then click on the "Request a new password" tab. Enter your email address (the one you used to set up your account) and within minutes you should receive an email with a new login link. Now, if you don't get the second email - then it's for sure our email is going to your spam catcher. In which case, you need to add support@wikicharlotte.com to your "white list" in order to receive emails from us.

You have the wrong information for my business. Can you change it for me?
Actually, you have the power to register and manage your profile. Registering is quick and you can change your address, phone number and your business category in a few steps, then come back and add more to your profile whenever something changes. Just log-in with your username and password and edit your profile.

I received a negative review. Can it be removed?
We don't remove many reviews, nor do we edit them. We give consumers the opportunity to voice their opinions about local businesses they've used, so you'll find both positive and negative reviews throughout the site.We have no way to determine whether the business or customer is right..

Some of my reviews seem to be missing. How do I get them back?
Reviews may not be showing on your profile for several reasons. Most commonly a consumer who posted a review hasn't confirmed his consumer registration. Consumers must reply to a registration confirmation e-mail before we post their review. We don't confirm consumers at a business' request. Another possibility is that we removed the review because it violated our Visitor Agreement.

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General Information

Registration

How do I register my business on WikiCharlotte.com?
Registering is easy! Go to the header banner and click on "List Your Biz for FREE Click Here" on the rock at the top of any page on WikiCharlotte.

The link will explain the simple 3 step registration process. And then click on the Register Your Biz on Wiki Charlotte link at the bottom of the page. From there you set up an account and complete your business profile. Easy as pie.

Can I register more than one business?
Yes. However, each registration must contain a unique business name, unique phone number, unique contact email address, and unique user name. Our system only accepts one account name per email address.

What if I cannot finish registering my business in one sitting?
The business profile is short, but if you have to stop during the registration process you can finish it later. You can update or make changes to your biz profile anytime-24/7/365.

To come back and finish registering, log in to WikiCharlotte with the user name and password you created when you activated your account. Any information you previously entered on your profile has been save. You should be able to pick up right where you left off or change anything currently in your profile.

Be sure to click the "save" button at the bottom of the page to save your new information. Publishing your listing will add your business to our database so that it will publish to WikiCharlotte.com immediately.

Do I need to confirm my profile?
No, you don't have to confirm—but it's a good idea to check how the information will look once on the site. Just go to the top of the page and type your business name in the search box and a link to your profile should appear.

I did not receive a confirmation e-mail. What do I do?
If you did not receive your confirmation e-mail, either your e-mail address was entered incorrectly in your profile or the spam filters for your e-mail program blocked delivery. See the information at the top of this page about email.

Am I able to change my profile information once it is published on WikiCharlotte.com?
Absolutely. You can log in to your acount/profile and add or edit content at any time—24/7/365.

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Testimonials

Merchants are getting great results from their WikiCharlotte.com listing and advertising. We want to hear your story. Please contact support and tell us all about it.

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Business Login Information

"Log In"
From anypage on WikiCharlotte.com, there is a Login link in the top left corner. The login is for both businesses and vistors. Login requires both your Username and Password. If you forget your password, click on the Request new password tab.

What do I do if I have forgotten my business login user name and/or password?
When you log in, click the Request new password" tab. Then either enter your Username or e-mail address and click the "E-mail new password" button. You will receive an e-mail with your login information. It's always a good idea to write down your login information so that you can refer back to it later.

How do I change the login information associated with my profile?
You can edit your user name, e-mail address, password or at any time:

After logging into your profile, click the "edit" tab."
Make the desired changes. Note: login information cannot contain spaces.
Click "Continue" at the bottom of the page to save your changes.

Remember, login information is case-sensitive.

It's always a good idea to write down your login information so that you may refer back to it later.

Why did my session time out?
For your protection, WikiCharlotte incorporates time-out features that will automatically log out users after a period of inactivity.

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Business Account Contact

How do I edit my account contact information?
You can modify your contact info at any time. Here's how:

After logging into your profile, click on the "Edit" link next to "Business Account Contact."
Make your changes and click "Continue" at the bottom of the page.
On the following page, click the "Save" button to save your new contact information.

Will my account contact information be published?
No. While parts of the contact information and business information may be similar, WikiCharlotte actually pulls publication information you've entered within the "Your Business Information" fields. If your personal contact information is published, then this information must have been entered in the Business Information fields. Click here for instructions regarding editing business information or hiding the business address.

Please see our Business Agreement to learn how WikiCharlotte may use your contact information.

How do I change the primary contact name?
This is done within the "Business Account Contact" fields. Login and change your biz profile.

Who is the authorized contact person for my account?
For security purposes, WikiCharlotte considers only the individual whose name is listed on the profile contact page to be the authorized contact person.

How do I add or change my e-mail address?
Your profile may contain two e-mail addresses: One is used to register your account and will recieve support-related information from WikiCharlotte. Preferred merchants also can add to their WikiCharlotte profiles an email address potential customers can use to contact them for services.

To change your registration/support e-mail, please follow the instructions for changing your login information found in the Business login section.

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Your Business Information

How long does it take for my new/revised profile information to appear on WikiCharlotte.com?
Please allow 48 hours for new or revised profiles to publish. If your business has not published to the site after this time, click here for a list of possibilities and solutions.

The WikiCharlotte.com map to my business isn't right. What do I do?
WikiCharlotte.com's mapping feature is supported by Google Maps and generates a map for your business based on the physical location associated with your profile. Click here for more details.

Does WikiCharlotte offer a business newsletter?
Yes, "Lottie's News" is a free newsletter e-mailed on occasion to all registered businesses. "Lottie's News" offers advice and tips for getting the most out of your profile and the best ways to grow your business.

How do I unsubscribe to the "Lottie's News" newsletter?
You can unsubscribe at any time. Simply click the "unsubscribe" link at the bottom of any "Lottie's News" newsletter. Please allow up to 10 days to be removed from distribution.

Does WikiCharlotte.com have site abuse policies?
Yes, for both consumers and businesses.

Multiple profiles for the same business and the addition of non-verifiable business locations in an attempt to leverage search results are prohibited. Duplicates are deleted. Usage of merchant e-mails for bulk solicitation also is restricted.

Please refer to the Business Agreement and Visitor Agreement for more details.

Business Name

How do I change my business name?
Businesses can change their name by logging in to their profile and clicking on the "Your Business Information" link. On the next page, select any business location and click the edit button. You will be taken to the Add Your Business Information page where you can change the text within the "Business Name" field. Go to the bottom of the page and click "Continue" to save.

Business names must follow the following guidelines.

Names must appear in title case only, not in ALL CAPS.
Names must be the actual name of the business.
Slogans, service area or payment-type information is not allowed.

Locations

How do I edit my business address?
You can edit your profile at any time. Here's how:

After logging in to the Business Center, click on the "Edit" link next to "Your Business Information."
Select the business location you wish to edit and click the "Edit" button. If you have upgraded your service, you can click the "Add" button to add a new business location to your profile.
Make the desired changes and click "Continue."
On the following page, click the "Save" button.
Select the "Preview Profile" tab in the upper left corner to view the results.

Updates are published to the site as soon as you save the changed profile.

I work from home. How do I keep my home address from appearing on WkiCharlotte.com?
WikiCharlotte will show whatevver address you enter in the address fields. So you can leave these fiields blank and no address will show.

Map

The WikiCharlotte.com map to my business isn't right. What do I do?
WikiCharlotte maps are powered by Google Maps. If your map is incorrect, you first may want to check your business address for accuracy. While entering your business address, should it be unrecognizable, Google Maps may suggest variations of the address based on available information in our database. Often, using the suggested version of the address will correct your map.

If your address is new, you may wish to contact Google Maps directly. They will coordinate with the US Postal Service to make the latest information available.

Your Website Link

How do I add/edit my website/URL?
If you have a website, definitely link your biz profile to it. You should give your customers as many ways to reach you as you can. You can edit your website link at any time. Here's how:

After logging into your account, scroll down and type in your web address. Be sure to include "www" in the web address.
Click "Save" to save your changes.
Select the "Preview Profile" tab to view the results.

Updates are published right away. WikiCharlotte reserves the right to delete any URL links of questionable content.

Am I required to have a website?
No. With a detailed profile on WikiCharlotte.com, your business will appear in search results with all other businesses, whether or not you maintain a website.

What do I do if my website link is not working on WikiCharlotte.com?
There are just a few reasons that will keep your Web URL from linking to your web site.

Check your website address on your biz profile for accuracy. Be sure to add "www" to the address. See the instructions under "How do I add/edit my Website/URL?" for more help.
If your URL is accurate and you are still experiencing problems, contact your web space provider. That company can let you know if there is a problem with its servers, or if they are experiencing slow service due to heavy Web traffic.

Can I list more than one website/URL?
At this time, WikiCharlotte allows publishing only one website link/URL per biz profile.

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Categories and Categorizing Your Business

How do I choose a category?
Right now, WikiCharlotte has several hundred categories and subcategories to choose from. Customers will also be able to find you when they do a search for businesses with similar attributes, if they search your business name or your tagwords.

You can determine the best category for your profile by searching on WikiCharlotte.com for keywords related to your business. Here's how:

Go to www.WikiCharlotte.com and enter a keyword or phrase that relates to your business, such as "hair salon." Click on "Search."
You will then see a list of businesses associated with the keywords that you used to search. Take note of the "Refine Your Search" links on the left as these may be keywords you will want associated with your profile. Below each business address is the category in which that business is listed.

Which one most closely matches your business? This is the category in which you will want to list your business profile. Once you have selected a category, you will be able to refine your listing further by answering the specialties questions associated with that category. Click here to learn how. Return to the business registration pages to select the category and continue building your profile.

Can I publish my profile in more than one category?
Each profile gets just one category.

How do I suggest a category?
WikiCharlotte.com is optimized to help consumers easily find the business services they need. Right now, rather than browsing by category, most consumers that search WikiCharlotte using keywords - which are embedded in many lists of categories and specialties.

If you are concerned that consumers may not find you, you should check to see if your suggested category is searchable by keyword on www.WikiCharlotte.com. Click here to learn how.

If you are unable to find a category by using a keyword search, then you may contact support to suggest a new one.

Once your suggestion is submitted, our Site Operations team will review the request and, if approved, make the necessary adjustments including coding and adding keywords.

If a suggested category is approved, how long does it take before it is available on the site?
It may take up to 2 to 4 weeks to research and add the needed data to create a working searchable category.

How do I change the category for my business profile?

You can edit your profile at any time. Here is how:

Login and click on the edit" tab on the page.
Choose the new to category for your biz.
Click "Save."
Select the "Preview Profile" tab view the results.

New updates are published to the site as soon as you save your profile.

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Reviews

Do my customers have to register to rate and review my business?
Yes. WikiCharlotte encourages visitors to give accurate and honest reviews of local service professionals. To protect the credibility of these reviews, we allow consumers to review a business location only once. That's why we ask visitors to register first.

My customers' reviews haven't been published. Why is this?

There are a few possible reasons:

Consumers must confirm their user registrations by e-mail before their reviews are published. If your customer did not confirm their profile, their reviews will not be published.
Consumers may modify or delete a review at any time.
Each business location contains its own reviews. When a location is deleted, so are any associated reviews.
Finally, WikiCharlotte.com reserves the right to refuse or remove any review that does not comply with our Visitor Agreement.

Can reviews for one location be associated with all of my locations?
Each business location contains its own records. Therefore, a consumer must rate and review each location individually.

Service standards may vary from one location to another. This feature allows consumers to see an accurate rating for each individual location. Further, should a consumer post a poor rating for one location, the other locations are not affected.

How do I handle a negative review?
WikiCharlotte encourages consumers to enter their honest opinions about a service. We believe it is important to protect the voice of the consumer to ensure that reviews - both negative AND positive - retain their credibility. Therefore, it would not be fair to consumers if we modified these reviews at a business' request. And while we work hard to make this website a useful place, we do not take steps to confirm the accuracy of these postings.

We encourage you to do the following:

You can respond to reviewer's comments, positive or otherwise, so that consumers can see your side of the story. Please be mindful that merchant comments, like consumer reviews, must meet content standards outlined in the Visitor Agreement to be publishable.
Have your loyal customers become members of WikiCharlotte.com and share their experience. Not everybody has a great experience every time they use a service, however we believe a high number of good reviews offset the impact any negative reviews may have. Also know that the first page of your WikiCharlotte profile displays only the 10 most recent reviews. Therefore, 10 positive reviews will push negative reviews off the first page.

How can I contact a person who wrote a review about my business?
While we cannot give you a reviewer's contact information, merchants should experience great results by communicating with reviewers via the comments feature.

How do I rate or review another business?
Ratings and reviews are a consumer visitor feature only.

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Linking to Your WikiCharlotte Profile

Can I link to my Wiki Charlotte profile from my website?
Please do. We offer merchants some special HTML code that contains a sharp-looking WikiCharlotte logo and a link to the merchant's profile on WikiCharlottte.com.

It's easy to put the HTML on your website. Here's how:

Go to this page and get the html code and Charlotte Wiki logo"
There are three styles of links to choose from. Select the link that best suits the layout of your web site.
Copy the HTML code of the link and embed it into your website. (See the Help menu of your website developer software for assistance.)

Photos and Logo

Do I need a logo, portrait & picture album (graphics)?
While not required, this content will give you an advantage over businesses that are not using these features.

How do I add/edit my logo or photo?
You can edit your profile at any time. Here's how:

Log in. Click on the "Edit" tab.
Search your computer for the appropriate logo or photo file. Select the file.
Click "Save" at the bottom of the page. Your logo or photo will upload and appear in the preview pane
Click "continue" at the bottom of the page to save your image.
Click the "Preview Profile" tab at the top of the page to view the results. Your image should publish to the site immediately.

What format and size graphics are acceptable?
Wiki Charlottte accepts photos and logos as JPEG, GIF, or BMP files and will be scaled to a maximum of 100 x 100 pixels. If your photo exceeds these dimensions, it will be resized to this size. Please refer to the "Help" menu of your favorite photo editing software for instructions on how to resize your photo to meet these specifications or at least be in a square format so it will reduce proporationaltely

Why didn't my graphic upload or appear correctly in the preview?
Difficulty uploading is generally contributed to the format or size of the graphic. If the graphic is in the wrong format or exceeds the allotted size, it will not upload properly.

Sometimes, over- or under-sized graphics will upload, but will appear shrunken, squeezed, or pixilated (blotchy) in the preview.

In either case, please make sure your image is a JPEG, BMP or GIF file and is less than 250 pixels in either direction. Most digital cameras' standard image is over 250 pixels and must be resized to a smaller image before uploading. Also, for best results, be sure your image is square.

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