Car ownership can be both exciting and nerve-wracking; it requires time, money, and commitment from customers alike. And when something goes wrong, customers often turn to social media with stories of bait-and-switch tactics and unexpected fees; with the appropriate tools and strategies dealerships can turn negative reviews into opportunities to rebuild trust with their customer base.
Consumer reviews are the go-to resource online when it comes to cars – even more than what auto brands themselves may claim. Reviews cut through marketing hype to tell an honest tale about how real people experience driving the vehicle every day; answering key questions such as reliability, long distance travel ability and gas consumption. While some car manufacturers remain resistant to using reviews as part of their traditional marketing plans, many are now seeing its advantages and are reaping the benefits from doing so.
Kia makes an effort to prominently display reviews on their website, where they’ve found a twofold increase in sales conversion. Furthermore, their reviews contain both positive and negative comments which lend more credence. Furthermore, reviews don’t just help sell cars – Kia uses them in television advertisements too!
Other dealerships are following suit. A Nissan dealer who was featured in a viral video made effective use of YouTube reviews by using them to drive customer engagement and increase views and conversion rates. Without showing reviews on your car website, your competitors could gain an edge; Google My Business rankings increasingly depend on them and customers searching for specific models often visit nearby dealers in their area to read them firsthand.
Focusing on what matters to your target market will maximize the effectiveness of your reviews. For car enthusiasts, this might mean providing comprehensive reviews on newer vehicles or comparing one with others in its class; other audiences might require paying closer attention to specific details that matter such as acceleration speed, size dimensions or stereo speaker quality at high volumes.
If you prefer writing reviews yourself, creating an automotive blog might be the way forward. Platforms like Tumblr, Squarepace or WordPress allow for easy creation of sites tailored specifically to your brand. Reaching out to auto magazines might also be worth it; just be sure that all reviews remain professional when publishing them! When done right, reviews can become an integral component of sales in dealerships.
