Reviews matter.
We know this. And we know that most automotive dealers have been building digital reviews to enhance their online presence all along. We also know generating reviews can be time-consuming. In fact, a recent survey stated that while 87% of respondents ranked review building as being very important to their business, only 17% of their time is actually spent on this important task.
The takeaway?
Review building should be practical, timely, and effective for a range of different reviewer types and customer happiness – fitting seamlessly into your current marketing strategy and efforts. In fact, building reviews from your first-party data should be part of your lifecycle messaging and not an afterthought.
BENEFITS OF REVIEW BUILDING
- 70% of consumers trust personal reviews as much as professional reviews
- Positive reviews attract more customers
- Recent good recent reviews can counteract any bad ones
- Positive reviews encourage new interest and engaged opportunities
- 4-5 star businesses are given priority by Google and other search engines
Relevant marketing to consumer in real time lends itself to earning stronger reviews more often because your dealership is providing a friction-free way to give them what they need when they need it. Here are a few more tips to increase positive reviews and accelerate retention:
JUST ASK
This might seem obvious, but the best way to increase the number of online business reviews is to just ask. The odds are your happiest customers might not initially think to leave a review, but will most likely oblige when prompted.
MAKE IT EASY
…not only for your customers, but for your marketing team to send. What’s easier than automated communication as a part of your current strategy? Eliminate pressure on your sales team to follow-up and other barriers that might currently exist.
ENGAGE CUSTOMERS THROUGHOUT THEIR JOURNEY
To compel your customers to write a review for your dealership, you need to engage with them and actively nudge them towards leaving a positive word...even after they leave it! Keep them interacting with your dealership by providing relevant content that keeps them coming back for more. Online customer reviews and ratings have a direct impact on dealer trust and online reputation. When customers invest their time to rate the dealership, be sure to thank them...and keep them.
BUILD TRUST & LOYALTY
Authenticity creates trustworthiness. To build it, transparency, and consistency goes a long way. Showcase your dealership, its brand, culture, and news through a comprehensive communications plan that includes a monthly digital newsletter keep customers connected, engaged, and informed. Ready-made and OEM-compliant highlights can be redistributed in across your marketing channels for a cohesive message.
GAIN INSIGHTS
Online reviews can help you gain better business intelligence and make smarter business decisions as you gather more and more information about your operations and performance. More reviews means more data. More data gives you a wider 360 degree view of your customers, processes, and success. Stop the guesswork with intuitive and automated review invites and gain competitive benchmarks to build even better.
There’s an old adage about a bird in the hand being worth two in the bush. Our smart, data-driven technology and high-quality content were designed to help our automobile dealership clients to not only retain customers, but to create loyal advocates and extend positive word of mouth both online and in the real world. Dealerships that work with 3 Birds keep the bird in the hand and use it to capture the two in the bush, earning all three birds.