Do you judge a local business based on the number of stars next to its name in the search results? Most of us do, whether we recognize it or not.
When searching for a dealership or a specific vehicle online, the majority of car shoppers rely on star ratings and customer reviews during their evaluation process. In fact, according to Bright Local’s 2018 Local Consumer Review Survey…
“86% of consumers read reviews for local businesses (including 95% of people aged 18-34)”
Online reviews have evolved into an essential part of running a business. Generating and managing reviews through various online channels (like Facebook, Yelp, Google etc) will do wonders for your dealership’s reputation as well as its organic SEO.
How will reviews benefit your dealership?
Online reviews offer far more value to your dealership than simply boosting (or damaging) its reputation.
Reviews influence car shoppers’ critical decisions — they help to build trust in your dealership and have the potential to be the persuading factor needed for a car shopper to choose your dealership over competitors.
“Positive reviews make 73% of consumers trust a local business more”
Stand out from your competition — Online reviews are a powerful way to differentiate your dealership in a highly competitive landscape. Leverage your dealership’s superior service and sales team to generate high-quality, unique online reviews.
Reviews impact local search rankings —Beyond influencing consumer purchase decisions, reviews also have the power to impact your dealership’s local SEO. Google reviews are a driving factor in ranking for Google’s local pack. Further, in-depth reviews that contain relevant keywords are something that Google notices, as well, and may result in an added boost in the search engine.
Google loves online reviews because consumers love online reviews. According to Moz’s 2018 Local Search Ranking Factors, reviews account for over 15% of total ranking factors.
Reviews fuel consumer decision-making and have the power to drive car-shoppers to your lot over others. Believe it or not, a couple of negative reviews aren’t the end of the world, either. Although negative reviews can potentially cause damage to your dealership’s reputation, they increase your dealership’s total number of online reviews and have the power to positively impact your dealership’s SEO if they contain valuable keywords. Hopefully, the positive reviews outweigh the negative, though!
Review Generation & Management Strategies for Your Dealership:
- Set up a variety of online review channels (like Yelp, Facebook Google etc.) to capture a broader set of customer reviews for your dealership.
- Work on growing the number of positive reviews — Ask for feedback from every happy customer and consider offering an incentive to sweeten the deal. A reward is always more enticing than no reward!
Pro Tip: Building your dealership’s number of positive reviews may become simpler if a review generation system is implemented. Craft a message to be emailed or communicated through a phone call soon after a customer has purchased a vehicle or received a service. Timing, personalization, and clear instructions are essential here!
- Make it easy for your dealership’s customers to write reviews! Consider including a highly visible “Write a Review” button on your website. Further, ensure that your review platform is compatible with mobile users! With our premium website solution, it’s easy to include prominent review buttons and display positive reviews dynamically.
“89% of consumers read businesses’ responses to reviews”
- Respond to all reviews— even the negative ones. Engage with your dealership’s customers, acknowledge that they’re opinions are both heard and valued. Don’t forget to include keywords in your responses, as well!
Pro Tip: set up a notification system like Google Alerts to be notified any time your dealership is mentioned online!
What are you waiting for?
Review generation is a simple way to boost your dealership’s organic SEO as well as its reputation online. Positive reviews can impact a car shopper’s decision to choose your dealership over others and indicate to Google that your dealership’s website is worth ranking high for local searches.
Reach out to our Customer Success team today to chat about the ways in which your dealership can acquire and leverage positive online reviews!