FAQ

Can’t we do this ourselves?

In reality, many dealerships attempt to manage their online reputation themselves, but you would be able to realize only a fraction of the success enjoyed in partnership with AutoReputations. The real value we offer is through our approach—Monitor, Manage, and Build—which incorporates our full-service account management by trained auto and reputation specialists. We tackle every aspect of the hard work, as hard work takes a lot of time, and most dealerships don’t have this time. Why? Because they are busy selling cars! From review generation to social media distribution to monitoring, alerts, damage control and business listing upkeep, we do it all, and we are really good at it! Our full-service package is far more affordable than hiring someone in house to do it and far superior to doing it yourself.

Ninety-two percent of Internet users read online reviews, and 89 percent of consumers say reviews influence their purchasing decisions. (online eTailing group)
A difference of one star in an online review can mean a 5 to 9 percent difference in revenues. (Harvard Business Review)

These numbers are staggering. We suggest using a dedicated and experienced firm to handle all your reputation management needs!

We have an SEO company that says they can do our Reputation Management. Why do I need you?

We can appreciate other vendors attempting to help facilitate your dealership’s needs, and SEO is part of a solid reputation management strategy, but online review reputation management is a particularly specialized practice that requires deeper insights and strategies. Our service has taken many years to develop and involves high levels of training. We understand that if a reputation management campaign is not executed properly more harm can come and cause permanent damage to a dealership.

An example would be a shady SEO team trying to employ a fake paid review strategy (buy fake reviews) that has disastrous repercussions.

Our solutions are not only reputation centric but were also created by dealers for dealers, so we believe our solution is the best full-service auto dealership reputation management solution currently on the market.

So how do you help our dealership get new reviews on the internet and where do the reviews go?

We use the power of our custom-built Review router that allows your customers to easily leave positive online reviews for you while also allowing you to catch bad reviews before they hit the review sites. The platform can be implemented by email and/or a dedicated website. The platform is easy to use. It simply asks the customer if they were happy with your dealership; if so, they just click the big “thumbs up” button, which then directs them to your exact review pages that we prefill on your behalf. They don’t have to go to the review site themselves, search for your dealership, and get lost.

If your dealership has unfair or competitor driven reviews on DealerRater.com and Edmunds.com, then those two review site options will only show on your customer review router. If you just need Yelp help, then we will only show Yelp, and customers will leave their feedback there. If customers are unhappy, they will naturally click the large “thumbs down” button, which will then take them to a small form that is FAR away from the review sites where they can vent and submit. The form will immediately be emailed to our staff and your dealer principal or point of contact to immediately respond to.

How do my customers find out about the Customer Service Platform?

We ask them! We found that asking your customers to review you is the best way to improve your online reputation and the only truly ethical way as well! Many competing reputation companies and also shady SEO firms will employ a fake review tactic that has disastrous results as seen here. We use a short and simple template to request feedback from your customers. We can ask them through email, phone, or by way of our dealership kiosk system. An example would be the following:

Dear Jane, I hope your recent vehicle purchase from Auto Dealership Inc. exceeded your expectations. We would really like to know how you felt about your experience with us. Feedback from online reviews is very useful, as it helps us to keep improving and is also helpful to customers that are considering us for their next auto purchase.
Would you mind taking a moment to review us online? Please click here to be taken to our easy-to-use review portal.
Sincerely,
Chris Gooden, Auto Dealership Inc.

Can we review the Dealership Dashboard?

Absolutely! We are so proud of the metrics the Dealership Dashboard provides that we encourage you to review it often not only to see the health of your dealership but also to see how we are improving your online reputation.

Is there a contract, cancellation, termination or setup fee?

There are no contracts and no cancellation, setup, or termination fees . . . ever. Our dealerships are on a month-to-month subscription basis. To stop service, you simply email or call our customer service department 24 hours before your renewal due date. We believe in our product, and our dealerships see its value. We consider ourselves a partner and dealer advocate for the success of your dealership. A charge on your credit card from Platinum Internet Enterprises will appear every month on your statement after on-boarding has concluded.

Do you completely remove negative reviews, comments, ratings and websites about our dealership?

In some very rare cases, yes we do. We work very closely with a legal team that has helped dealerships in the past, but this happens only rarely. To combat negative reviews and ratings, we utilize our Review Router, which helps suppress old, outdated negative reviews while boosting positive reviews and rating score.

To combat negative search engine listings, malicious blogs, and rip-off reports, we use Internet suppression, using positive Internet content about your dealership to push down negative content. Whether you need assistance with reviews and ratings or have a damage control issue, we can help you.

Does AutoReputations.com use ethical tactics?

We pride ourselves in knowing that our services are 100 percent ethical, and we constantly follow the rules from such sites as Google, ratings and review sites, and even the FTC. One of the most important rules that dealerships need to follow is to clearly state when they are using a paid testimonial for advertising/review purposes. We believe that every dealership and business owner has the right to ask their customers how their experience was with THEIR business.

We care about the integrity of our industry and the dealers we represent.

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