Wait... you didn't purchase Motormeister did you??!! :D

I was skiing about a month ago with a guy who has a business that does exactly what you are looking for, he helps businesses improve their Yelp reviews. I'll get his info and pass it on to you. Apparently his is a very legit service and guarantees success, etc...

The one thing that he told me over lunch is that you never, ever want to try to game Yelp by having friends or some bogus service post phony reviews or the like. Yelp has a very sophisticated software to detect that and when they catch you, (which they will), you will get a huge banner across the top of your page stating that they detected fraudulent reviews on your site.

I know that you have not suggested such a thing but others here have and it's the worst advice possible, as has been noted. There are legitimate ways to sometimes get negative reviews removed, that is what my acquaintance's service does, among other things. They also help you improve your score on Yelp in other, (non-fraudulent), ways. :cool:

Bad idea - bad bad bad idea.

Best idea to is if replies to comments are allowed - explain that things are under new ownership, and perhaps ask them to pay your business a visit and see what you can do to create a happy relationship again.

It is not possible to please everyone all the time - especially if its a service industry.

What type of business is it? I suggest marketing locally and get the word out about new management and ownership. Give them a great experience and they will write the reviews.

Take this with a grain of salt. I only saw it on Robert Irvine's Restaurant: Impossible.

A true clean slate would be changing the business name.

Personally I think that idea would backfire.
There is a lot going for Open-PR advertizing. "New owner? Hmm what's new?".
The word of mouth network is already there.
Turn it around 180.

For instance, Toyota and other mfrs are in a race to see how many recalls they can advertize.
Sound crazy?
The recall itself is not very important. It's the reputation of the company to make things right 100% of the time.
When the company is deemed 'reliable', word gets around.

Contact the old customers, and offer a discount to those who've been royally screwed by previous management.
They will become your best new advertizement.

Only if the behavior that lead to the prior poor reputation/reviews is changed as well. Not to imply that GLASEM would screw folks over, etc.

Check out Vulcan, Hesse, and Blackthorne - all the same guy trying to do the same type of business with quality issues, etc.

A bit of local radio advertising stating the business has new owners. Offer a service or discount if they mention the radio add.

Stomachmonkey is correct on this one, don't try to game the system by placing phony reviews (often called astroturfing). If yelp is the source of the issue, get yourself verified by them as the owner of the business and then respond to each negative comment that you are sorry for the experience, you are the new owner, you vow to fight the underlying cause of their complaint, and you want them to try the business again.

Attempts to build status via friends etc is transparent to most end users who know what to look for, if I see a business doing this I avoid.

One of the products my company offers is reputation monitoring and soon management.

I can offer some tips on what we do for our clients. Shoot me a PM with your phone number and I can probably offer some assistance.

The thing with Rep Monitoring/Management is you gotta watch it like a hawk. Customer service doesn't end once they walk out the door :)