Kia ora, thanks for your interest in how we calculate an experience's ranking score. It's at the core of Rankers so I'm pleased you're curious.
The ranking score percentage is used to compare and sort experiences in ranking tables. It is not necessarily a direct measurement of the quality of a particular experience as rated by its customers. I've found it a useful tool to allow me to find the best experiences with confidence. But I've also found it important to read the customer reviews before making any final judgements!
We calculate an experience's ranking score using a multi-factor data model instead of a raw data average (mean). This model takes into account several important questions. For instance - is there a trusted body of reviews? What is the age of a review and is the review from a credible source?
Below you'll find details around some of the important factors that went into calculating the ranking score for Swimming with Dolphins.
If you have any questions or comments about our ranking score calculation please get in touch at info@rankers.co.nz. We don't believe this is perfect or complete so we're always interested in ways we might make improvements.
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Swimming with Dolphins
Valid Reviews
60 Valid Reviews
The Swimming with Dolphins experience has a total of 61 reviews. There are 60 valid reviews that are included when calculating the ranking score and 1 invalid review that are excluded from the calculation. Reviews can be excluded only when a reviewer is not verified or after an investigation by our team determines the reviewer is not genuine.
Below is the distribution of ratings for the 60 valid reviews:
| Rating | Count | Percentage | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10/10 | 23 |
|
38% |
| 9/10 | 12 |
|
20% |
| 8/10 | 12 |
|
20% |
| 7/10 | 10 |
|
17% |
| 6/10 | 2 |
|
3% |
| 5/10 | 0 |
|
0% |
| 4/10 | 1 |
|
2% |
| 3/10 | 0 |
|
0% |
| 2/10 | 0 |
|
0% |
| 1/10 | 0 |
|
0% |
86.67% Average
The raw data average (mean) for all the Swimming with Dolphins valid reviews is 86.67% and is based on 60 valid reviews. This value is not used to calculate the ranking score and it only provided here as a comparison to the weighted average.
Face-to-Face Reviews
53 Face-to-Face Reviews
The Rankers team meets with travellers while they’re in New Zealand and conducts face-to-face surveys. These reviews, in our opinion, are the most trusted in the industry and represent a critical control sample. To our knowledge, we are the only travel review website in the world that has gone to this extent.
More about face-to-face reviews
Within the 60 valid reviews, the experience has 53 face-to-face reviews collected during interviews by our team.
Below is the distribution of ratings for the 53 face-to-face reviews:
| Rating | Count | Percentage | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10/10 | 18 |
|
34% |
| 9/10 | 11 |
|
21% |
| 8/10 | 12 |
|
23% |
| 7/10 | 9 |
|
17% |
| 6/10 | 2 |
|
4% |
| 5/10 | 0 |
|
0% |
| 4/10 | 1 |
|
2% |
| 3/10 | 0 |
|
0% |
| 2/10 | 0 |
|
0% |
| 1/10 | 0 |
|
0% |
85.66% Average
The raw data average (mean) for all the Swimming with Dolphins face-to-face reviews is 85.66% and is based on 53 face-to-face reviews. This value is not used to calculate the ranking score and it only provided here for comparison purposes.
Weighted Average
86.86%
Rankers calculates a weighted mean as a base average on which we can improve. Individual review's ratings are given a weight based on several factors. The weight of a review determines the overall impact it'll have on the final weighted average.
Recent reviews have more weight as they are more relevant and reflect the experience as it currently operates. Over time reviews become less relevant and loose their impact on the ranking score.
Low rating reviews carry slightly less weight. This dampens the effect of very low ratings for every experience across the board. This is especially important when the experience has few reviews overall and a single negative rating can grossly mischaracterise an experience. Consistent poor reviews will still result in the experience receiving a comparitively low ranking score.
Credible sources provide reviews that can be trusted. If we have verified a reviewer is genuine via a face-to-face meeting then the review carries additional weight.
| Reviewer | Rating | Age | Relative Weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| Isabel | 4/10 | 3291 days | 52% |
| Alix | 10/10 | 3294 days | 100% |
| Claire | 10/10 | 3294 days | 100% |
| Lena | 7/10 | 3334 days | 86% |
| Stefano | 8/10 | 3361 days | 89% |
| Ivan Dupont | 7/10 | 3365 days | 82% |
| Max Backelandt | 7/10 | 4034 days | 2% |
| Marie Toulemonde | 8/10 | 4034 days | 4% |
| Annika Marz | 7/10 | 4047 days | 1% |
| Julian Zeissler | 7/10 | 4047 days | 1% |
| Lena Hanhart | 7/10 | 4052 days | 0% |
| Barbara | 10/10 | 4070 days | 1% |
| Mark and Eefie | 9/10 | 4495 days | 26% |
| Nigel Leighton | 10/10 | 4498 days | 26% |
| Laura Diepeveen | 8/10 | 4790 days | 25% |
| Stam | 8/10 | 4796 days | 25% |
| cpope | 10/10 | 4845 days | 26% |
| Naomi Kosteaman | 9/10 | 5155 days | 26% |
| Samuel Prechel | 9/10 | 5171 days | 26% |
| Niels Van Welsenes | 10/10 | 5179 days | 26% |
| salsnz | 10/10 | 5455 days | 26% |
| Jvjm Family | 6/10 | 5504 days | 17% |
| Sinjc Grude | 8/10 | 5541 days | 25% |
| Rachel & Barak | 9/10 | 5542 days | 26% |
| Jeremy & Sarah Rind | 10/10 | 5543 days | 26% |
| Andreas Sterki | 8/10 | 5614 days | 25% |
| Gina Swindells | 10/10 | 5617 days | 26% |
| bogaard | 9/10 | 5732 days | 26% |
| Amy_B | 10/10 | 5838 days | 26% |
| NancyB | 9/10 | 5838 days | 26% |
| TraceyM | 8/10 | 5838 days | 25% |
| DanielGermany | 6/10 | 5843 days | 17% |
| AndreaT | 10/10 | 5846 days | 26% |
| Sue Green | 10/10 | 5850 days | 26% |
| Greg18 | 7/10 | 5850 days | 22% |
| DavidJ | 8/10 | 5856 days | 25% |
| Stolz | 10/10 | 5874 days | 26% |
| LindaV | 7/10 | 5884 days | 22% |
| Ian | 10/10 | 5898 days | 26% |
| HelenUK | 8/10 | 5900 days | 25% |
| enthusejohn | 10/10 | 5901 days | 26% |
| Camilla E | 9/10 | 5906 days | 26% |
| Zoe Summers | 10/10 | 6062 days | 26% |
| Benjamin Throk | 9/10 | 6229 days | 26% |
| Marion | 10/10 | 6230 days | 26% |
| Maria Fahlander | 7/10 | 6240 days | 22% |
| Ellie | 10/10 | 6243 days | 26% |
| Sanne | 8/10 | 6243 days | 25% |
| Claire Masling | 8/10 | 6250 days | 25% |
| Sally and David Wallis | 9/10 | 6250 days | 26% |
| Jody | 9/10 | 6262 days | 26% |
| Eliase | 7/10 | 6264 days | 22% |
| Vicki Cook | 9/10 | 6277 days | 26% |
| Carola Haaparinne | 10/10 | 6278 days | 26% |
| Wayne Best | 10/10 | 6286 days | 26% |
| Martin Wright | 10/10 | 6298 days | 26% |
| Floren | 9/10 | 6339 days | 26% |
| Sebastian | 8/10 | 6568 days | 25% |
| Tracy | 10/10 | 6613 days | 26% |
| Jacobien | 10/10 | 6620 days | 26% |
Adjustments
Several adjustments to the weighted average are added to improve relevancy and credibility. These adjustments apply equally to all experiences that meet the criteria.
Sample Size Adjustment
No Adjustment
A reasonable number of reviews are necessary in order for the average to be credible and for an experience to take a prime position within the ranking tables. As such, experiences with only a few reviews have a moderated score. This does not mean that the experience or the reviews can't be trusted. The Swimming with Dolphins experience has plenty of reviews and does not meet the criteria for any adjustment.
Recent Reviews Adjustment
-3.63% Adjustment
There may be an adjustment if this experience hasn't received any reviews within the last 62 days. However the Swimming with Dolphins experience does not meet the criteria for any adjustment.
In addition, an experience's ranking score may be adjusted for each day there is no new ranking. After 1 day the adjustment comes into effect. The maximum number of days that can be adjusted for is 200 days. Due to the seasonal nature of many businesses, this adjustment is applied dynamically throughout the year.
The Swimming with Dolphins experience has been adjusted for 200 days. Adjustments are according to the following table.
| Days | Adjustment |
|---|---|
| … | … |
| 197 | -3.57% |
| 198 | -3.59% |
| 199 | -3.61% |
| 200 | -3.63% |
| 201 | -3.64% |
| 202 | -3.66% |
| 203 | -3.68% |
| … | … |
Balancing Adjustment
2.19% Adjustment
Every experience's review score is adjusted to balance out the disproportional number of negative reviews that are contributed.
You won't be surprised to learn that disgruntled customers are more likely to leave a review than happy ones. They are motivated to share their experience and warn others. We consider this a good thing and it's why reading the reviews is important. However we've learned it can misrepresent the experience in a more overall sense.
We apply a balancing adjustment to counteract this effect and ensure the ranking score is a more fair representation of the experience. This adjustment is applied equally to all experiences.
Final Ranking Score
85%
The final ranking score once any adjustments, ratings, and rounding has been applied. This value is recalculated each day and a short rolling average is applied. Therefore it may not be precisely accurate based on the other values presented.