Statistics show that a customer who has a positive experience will tell 4 to 5 people about it, and a customer who has a negative experience will tell more than 20 people about it. In addition, they will usually leave a review expressing their opinions online. These reviews can make or break your online reputation.
Maintaining your online reputation is crucial to your business. New and existing customers read reviews to decide where to put their money. Every business encounters negative reviews from time to time, and if you don’t manage them effectively, you may lose a current customer along with customers to comes.
However, maintaining your reputation isn’t limited to online interactions – It starts at your dealership with each customer you service.
Here Are Some Ideas for Maintaining a Great Online Reputation
Assign a Mediator to Your Online Presence.
It is important to know what is being said about you in the digital world. By knowing when a negative review is posted, you can assign someone handle the complaint immediately, and hopefully turn complaint into a compliment before their opinion reaches the other customers. Dealerships, along with other businesses make mistakes, and that’s acceptable. What is important is how the mistake is handled and fixed.
Know How to Handle Negative Reviews.
Everyone in your dealership should be trained to manage and solve any issues or miscommunications. If only one employee is equipped to diffuse these scenarios, this may monopolize their time, thus eliminating the time needed for planning, strategizing, and developing their department and the dealership.
Manage Negative Reviews with Great Follow-Up.
A follow-up communication should be made to each customer 24 hours after their purchase or service visit to make sure that they are completely satisfied. It is imperative that the reviews are examined and responded to as soon as possible, to accomplish the highest level of customer satisfaction and customer retention. The perfect candidate for this responsibility is someone who understands how a dealership operates and has a strict guideline for how to manage any negative reviews.
Provide Exceptional Customer Service.
It should be emphasized that great customer service includes knowledge of the provided service or product, honesty, quality, and the intent of having the customers’ best interest in mind. When a customer feels you are knowledgeable and since while assisting them, they will be eager to trust you and follow through with a transaction without any buyer’s remorse.
Don’t Be Afraid to Ask for a Review.
Many customers don’t realize they can review a business or think to post a review unless they are dissatisfied. Asking a happy customer to post a quick review about why they recommend your dealership will give your online reputation a boost. Any of the dealership’s employees can create an opportunity for a customer to leave a review, or if you have a follow-up email scheduled to go out, you can include a link in the text. This link should allow your customers to leave their positive experience for the public to read. A second link can be available for negative reviews for not only the public, but for a manager to read at their earliest convenience.
Gather Enough Information to Resolve Issues
If you come across negative customer reviews, before you contact the customer, do your research.
- Who was the advisor, technician, or salesperson?
- What did the customer purchase or what service did they have performed?
- How long have they been a customer?
- Will they need to return to the dealership?
Once you’ve contacted the customer, you should anticipate what they may say, want, and need. Regardless of your views, your only goal should be to please that customer, not defend your dealership.
In conclusion, by preparing your employees for negative reviews, and knowing what to do to prevent and remedy them, you will proactively manage and build your dealership’s online reputation and secure a lifelong life of loyal, but most importantly, happy customers.