September 12, 2018

Why Is Online Reputation Important?

Written by: admin

We live in a sharing economy. Peer-to-peer commerce sites like eBay, Amazon, and Airbnb have become ubiquitous, and with their success consumers have come to trust reviews from other users when making purchasing decisions. We could throw statistics at you, but at the end of the day, think about how you behave as a customer. Do you read online reviews before you make a major purchase? If you give someone at a business a compliment or a criticism, don’t you prefer that person to acknowledge it?

Ok, we’ll give you some statistics too:

90% of all consumers say buying decisions were influenced by online reviews.1
80% of auto buyers use the internet to assist in the shopping process.2
43% of drivers conduct an online search to decide where to service their car.3
61% of auto consumers will read reviews before doing business.4

So we know consumers are reading reviews about your business. And reviews matter more and more each day for auto dealers. In the past, customers would visit roughly four dealerships during the shopping process. Now, however, 67% of customers only visit 1 or 2 dealerships before making a decision. This means that they could be ruling out buying from you before they even step foot on the lot. Having a good online reputation is your best tool to make sure your dealership isn’t ruled out early on in their research process. With this in mind, it is imperative that you put your best foot forward as a business, and take an active role in managing your reputation.