Pasch’s leadership message is entitled: “Car Dealers are Under Attack,” and dealer professionals will learn why at the Denver summit. Pasch will explain why some very popular inventory advertising models can actually drive traffic away from their own site, as well as how dealers can fight back against online attacks on their brand name.

Information is power, and according to Pasch, dealers will leave his seminar with the proper information needed to protect their digital marketing investments. Tim Jackson, director of the Innovative Dealer Summit, said, “Brian’s presentation will be very timely and one of the most popular and interesting of the conference.”

Innovative Dealer Summit

The Innovative Dealer Summit is considered one of the premier leadership functions for dealer advancement. Summit attendees will include dealer principals/owners, general managers, senior dealership managers and directors, Internet sales managers, business development managers, F&I managers, key dealership leaders, sales leadership, advertising and marketing consultants, controllers and other key decision makers.

Attendees will learn the latest in innovative technologies from seminars devoted to 30 emerging, compelling topics during the 12-hour conference. Topics include Internet strategies regarding search engine optimization, dealer reputation management, social media marketing, lead generation and follow-up, and more.

Brian Pasch, CEO and Founder of PCG Digital Marketing (http://www.pcgdigitalmarketing.com) is a popular speaker and writer on automotive digital marketing strategies.  He is an active blogger on the most visited social networks and forums for car dealers who seek to learn more about SEO, SEM, social media and leveraging the Internet to grow dealership sales.

Brian Pasch is also creator of the popular ASMA Awards (http://www.asmaawards.org) which recognizes the best digital marketing platforms in the automotive industry.
The Innovative Dealer Summit was created as a directive and priority of the Colorado Automobile Dealers Association. For more information visit http://www.innovativedealersummit.com

It’s Social Media Baby!

If you haven’t noticed car dealers are being pushed off of Google Page One for the cars that they sell. To throw salt in the wounds, it seems that every month another car dealer “review site” pops up.

This means when consumers type in a car dealership name, more sites are vying to capture and suck the equity out of the brand.

In reality, many of these sites are just Google Adwords and banner advertising sites that are making money from optimizing website pages on a car dealer’s name.

There is nothing illegal about this and over 60% of car dealers are allowing their name to be leveraged for other people to profit from.

In the area of car dealer reviews, have you take a minute to see just how many websites seek to be the “authority” for car dealer reviews?

Here is a quick sample of the sites that I have found that want to be found in Google, Yahoo and Bing search for the phrase “Car Dealer Reviews” or “Auto Dealer Reviews”:

Car Dealer Specific SItes

• www.mydealerreport.com
• www.cardealercheck.com
• www.dealerrater.com
• www.cardealerreviews.org
• www.prestoreviews.com
• www.dealerscene.com
• www.dealershipratings.com
• www.carsdealersreview.com
• www.autodealerreviews.com
• www.dealerreviewer.com
• www.autodealerreviews.com
• www.edmunds.com

General Review Sites

• www.my3cents.com
• www.insiderpages.com
• www.yelp.com
• www.citysearch.com
• www.judysbook.com
• www.merchantcircle.com
• www.yellowbot.com
• www.switchboard.com
• www.superpages.com

Automotive IRM Confusion

The reason I bring this trend up on this blog is because it can be confusing for a car dealer to know where to focus their Automotive Internet Reputation Management strategies.  So let me give you some practical advice:

1. Look at your own Google Maps listing and see which review websites are being summarized on your Google Maps page.  Focus on getting positive reviews posted on these sites first.
2. Of course, getting posts directly on Google Maps should be a car dealers #1 priority because the “star” ratings are directly counted if a consumer posts on Google Maps.
3. Once you have seen which review sites are being summarized on your Maps listing,  focus on getting more reviews on those sites via email, calls and in store coaching.
4. To see if other sites are having an impact on your business, Google your exact business name and see which review sites are showing on Page One and Page Two.
5. Any sites on Page One or Page Two should get some attention to build positive reviews.

If a review website is not on Page One or Page Two, I would hold off investing any labor on these sites  until the steps listed above are complete.  Then, I would add positive reviews to the largest website vendors first and ignore the lesser sites that only have their own self interests in mind.

Summary:  There are hundreds of websites trying to capitalize on your car dealership name.  Don’t get overwhelmed and just focus on the most visible websites that appear for your car dealership name or the cars you sell in your PMA.

If you need help, call 732-450-8200.

Car dealers are turning to a second career to jumpstart their online sales: movie director.  Consumer engagement in social media coupled with the popularity of online review sites has forced car dealers to rethink their automotive advertising strategies.

Video production which was once was cost prohibitive for dealers to do themselves has now become an affordable tool for creative automotive professionals. In growing numbers, car dealers are turning to FlipCam video cameras to create video testimonials for their customers, walk around car videos and now a move to create social media viral videos.

These videos are being integrated into their websites, Google Maps, Facebook and loaded on popular video websites like YouTube to extend the reach of their brand.  Customer testimonial videos are becoming standard operating procedure as studies show that consumers trust their peers five times more than a statement from an automotive dealer. 

One of the newest place to leverage a car dealer’s video testimonials in on Google Maps.  I recommend that you load a new car, used car and service testimonial video to your Google Maps listings. 

You should also add 3 or  good photos of customers getting delivery of cars and delete those photos of your building.  When you enhance you Google Maps listings with positive eneergy, watch what happens to your click through statistics.

Pioneers in this field of FlipCam videos include Tim Jennings, Ken Beam, Christine Knowles, and a host of advance thinkers who have made their websites come alive with multimedia. 

Get Ready To Laugh

One of the rising stars in automotive videos is Acton Toyota who first made me laugh with their A++ Toyota Warranty videos that you can see on this link:  Toyota Extended Warranty

Toyota Dealer Shines for FlipCam

One innovative car dealers has been nationally recognized for their innovative videos using a FlipCam is Acton Toyota.  The Boston Toyota dealership was recently featured in the national magazine “Toyota Today” for their spoof videos that were inspired by the popular Mac vs PC TV commercials.

Acton Toyota had no previous film or editing experience yet their videos have attracted thousands of visitors to their websites. The recent article in Toyota Today highlights that car dealers are just beginning to embrace social media communications that include these creative viral videos.

With the ease of which the FlipCam can create videos, more car dealers should investigate how they can bring their static websites alive with tutorials, testimonials, better display of the cars they sell and warm introductions for the services they offer.

I would estimate that less that 10% of all car dealers in the United States have testimonial videos on their website or integrated into their social media processes.  He who acts first will increase their marketshare and brand awareness.  Are you ready? 

I have some good news for you today. Car dealers can now respond positive and negative reviews on Google Maps! The feature that many dealers have been waiting for is finally here. If you have verified your Google Maps listing proving that you are the owner, you can now respond to any comments, positive or negative, when you are logged in to your account.

This is great news for dealers who have an Automotive Internet Reputation Management (IRM) process setup and who have been monitoring reviews on sites like Google Maps, Yelp, CitySearch, InsiderPages and Dealerrater. I also like the strategy of thanking people who place positive comments!

Here is the official notice from Google:

Whether you’re looking for a great lounge to hang out with your friends or a trusty shop to repair your bicycle, the web is a great place to discover and learn about local businesses and services. Some of the listings on Google Maps showcase reviews to help prospective customers make informed decisions and find the places that are just right for them. Reviews on Google Maps are assembled from a variety of sources on the web to give you the best possible overview of what people are saying about a specific place. We also encourage users to share their opinions by writing reviews directly on the Place Page of any place they’ve visited, be it a local business, tourist attraction or the like.

Starting today, if you’re a verified Google Places business owner, you can publicly respond to reviews written by Google Maps users on the Place Page for your business. Engaging with the people who have shared their thoughts about your business is a great way to get to know your customers and find out more. Both positive and negative feedback can be good for your business and help it grow (even though it’s sometimes hard to hear).

By responding, you can build stronger relationships with existing and prospective customers. For example, a thoughtful response acknowledging a problem and offering a solution can often turn a customer who had an initially negative experience into a raving supporter. A simple thank you or a personal message can further reinforce a positive experience. Ultimately, business owner responses give you the opportunity to learn what you do well, what you can do better, and show your customers that you’re listening.

This new feature will make some serious competition for Yelp…but for now, it’s time for car dealers to take charge and come up with an review response policy and be careful how your comment on a negative review.

Demo of Comments

What is your reaction to this news?

I’m very excited to see that negative comments or characterizations can be challenged by car dealers who have been unfairly judged.  This of course reminds me to say that dealers must have an IRM policy in place with guidelines on who should respond, if at all.  Responding the wrong way to an angry customer or a negative review could compound the problem.

As part of their new strategic digital marketing strategy, Kirkwood Mitsubishi will receive the most advanced automotive digital marketing strategies developed by PCG.   Enhancing the dealer’s online visibility will be accomplished through on-site and off-site SEO strategies, content development and the opportunity to be included in PCG’s exclusive Automotive Advertising Network (AAN).  The AAN combines PCG Digital Marketing’s proven strategies in Search Engine Optimization, content marketing, social media and blogging to provide dealers with an industry leading solution for lead generation and direct sales.

Additional PCG services will include blogging, writing and publishing press releases, link building, posting customer reviews, Twitter, Facebook, Google SEO compliance, Analytics, Google Maps, video uploads and more.   The goal of the new Internet Marketing campaign will be to increase the frequency that their vehicles appear in local and regional search results and to generate additional traffic and leads to their business.

As part of their new strategic digital marketing strategy, the Fairfield County Nissan dealer will receive the most advanced automotive digital marketing strategies developed by PCG.   Enhancing Nissan Darien’s online visibility will be accomplished through on-site and off-site SEO strategies, content development and the opportunity to be included in PCG’s exclusive Automotive Advertising Network (AAN).  The AAN combines PCG Digital Marketing’s proven strategies in Search Engine Optimization, content marketing, social media and blogging to provide dealers with an industry leading solution for lead generation and direct sales.

Additional PCG services will include blogging, writing and publishing press releases, link building, posting customer reviews, Twitter, Facebook, Google SEO compliance, Analytics, Google Maps, video uploads and more.   The goal of Nissan Darien’s new Internet Marketing campaign will be to increase the frequency that their vehicles appear in local and regional search results and to generate additional traffic and leads to their business.

Nissan Darien serves the greater part of Stamford Nissan shoppers, extending their reach all the way into White Plains and Port Chester, New York. Nissan Darien is a part of the Darien Automotive Group, in business since 1956.

To learn more about Nissan Darien, please visit http://www.nissandarien.com/

Irwin Ford is known for offering competitive perks like their price match guarantee and 24 hour vehicle locator to Laconia Ford shoppers.  Now the dealership is reminding the public of the many additional benefits their dealership offers. 

Included in Irwin’s top 20 list are convenient services such as a 24 hour vehicle locator, used vehicle money back guarantee, free loaner cars, free delivery anywhere in New England, and the Owner’s Advantage Rewards Program.

The full list can be viewed online at http://www.irwinzoneford.com/About%20Us-pid11998

Irwin Ford has the highest customer satisfaction scores of all local Ford dealers serving Tilton Ford, Meredith Ford and Manchester Ford shoppers.

Irwin Ford also offers one of the largest selections of competitively priced new and used Ford vehicles. Ford shoppers in the Laconia, Meredith, and Tilton areas can view a more comprehensive selection of Ford vehicles on the Irwin Ford website at:  http://www.forddealersnewhampshire.com/
To learn more about year end specials at Irwin Ford, consumers can visit http://www.irwinzoneFord.com

http://www.irwinzoneford.com/tilton-ford-for-sale-NH–pid12560

http://www.irwinzoneford.com//Meredith-ford-for-sale-NH–pid12561

http://www.irwinzoneford.com/Manchester-Ford-For-Sale-NH–pid12563

Lamoureux Ford has been the dealer of choice for MA Ford customers since it opened in 1977.  Lamoureux has received Ford Motor Company’s President’s Award for 15 consecutive years, which “recognizes and rewards Dealers who have excelled in achieving superior Customer Satisfaction.”

That commitment to consumers is what makes Lamoureux the MA Ford dealer “where friends send their friends.”

Lamoureux Ford also boasts one of the best service centers in the area with knowledgeable staff to meet our Worcester Ford customers’ needs.  For customers’ convenience, Lamoureux also has an Enterprise Car Rental location on the premises.

Conveniently located on Route 9 in East Brookfield, Lamoureux Ford is the first choice for customers looking for Ford dealers in East Brookfield, North Brookfield, Worcester, Charlton, Sturbridge, and Southbridge.

To find out more about Lamoureux Ford please visit the Worcester Ford dealer’s website at: http://www.lamford.com

Consumers living in the Worcester area can trade in their current vehicle to get 0.0% APR financing on approved credit thru FMCC on select Ford models. Plus, the new Ford Edge is eligible for $1,000 factory bonus cash at Lamoureux Ford in East Brookfield.  The Ford edge is a midsize crossover SUV offering a roomy cabin, comfortable ride, Sync system, plenty of standard safety equipment, and strong crash test scores.

Worcester Ford shoppers who may have been eyeing a particular model should take advantage of this limited time opportunity.  Qualifying Ford models eligible for the ‘swap’ include the Fusion, Mustang, Edge, Flex, Escape, Explorer and more. 

The Ford Fusion, Motor Trend’s 2010 Car of the Year, is a fuel-efficient mid sized sedan.  It features a stylish exterior with a chrome grille and sleek halogen headlights.  It blows the competition away with not only its performance, but its technological capabilities, such as Sirius travel link navigation system, SmartGauge Cluster with EcoGuide, BLIS system, and Sony sound system.

For more information on the Swap Your Ride event consumers can visit Lamoureux Ford located in East Brookfield or call 888-608-0042.

Lamoureux Ford serving Worcester is a community minded new and used car dealer.  They carry one of the largest in-stock selections of Ford cars, trucks and SUVs and offer the best pricing on all sales and service. 

For more information, visit http://www.lamford.com/

Here’s an excerpt from Brian’s IRM workbook:

I am often asked how to deal with DUPLICATE directory listings for your business on popular directories like Google Maps and consumer review sites like Yelp, Insider Pages or CitySearch.  It is not uncommon for a business to have multiple entries on the same website if:

1. Your business has moved during the past 10 years.
2. Your business has gone through a name change.
3. Someone added a new listing without checking for previous entries
4. Someone has purposely added the business multiple times with variations on your business name.

Duplicate Entries Are Not Good

Leaving duplicate entries on the same website dilutes your Internet Reputation Management (IRM) process and may trigger the website owner to ban both accounts if they feel you are spamming their index.   Duplicate entries that a consumer may find via organic search or by searching a review website should be removed.

To find duplicates, try these steps using Google search:

1. Search Google for your business name + the name of the review site
2. Search Google for your business phone number + name of the review site
3. Search Google for your OEM brand, city  + name of the review site
4. Search or your business name inside of the website using their search tool.

So, if your dealership name is Brickell Honda, you would test for duplicates on InsiderPages.com by going to Google and typing as a search these three phrases:

1. brickell honda insiderpages
2. 866-645-7878 insiderpages
3. honda miami insiderpages

The process for removing duplicate entries varies by website.  Google Maps has an easy tool to report duplicate or erroneous map entries.  Other websites like Yelp, have a reporting process that requires a few more steps.  Invest the time in making sure all your public directory listings are correct. 

Review All Public Directory Listings

When you review your business listings, here are some suggestions:

1. Make sure you have a tracking number on the most popular websites, like Google Maps, and the review websites that show on Google Page One and Page Two for your dealership name.
2. Make sure your website address is correct
3. Make sure that you have selected the proper business category “tag” for the services you offer.
4. Make sure there are no spelling errors.
5. Make sure you take advantage of any sites that allow you to load photos or videos to your listing page.

Once all the most effective IRM websites are de-duped, record the links to all your business profile pages in a file that can be used to for IRM letters, icon placement for your primary website or to be used in a Reputation Management Portal (RMP). 

Checking What Consumers Are Saying

By having a single document that has all your profile page links, it is a basic ad no-cost way to see what has been written about your business online.  Setup a procedure where someone on your team visits these profile pages to ensure that no complaints have been posted that you are not aware of.

Setting up Google Alerts is another free tool to notify you in real-time when anything is posted online with your dealership name. However ,in case you miss some alerts, checking your manual list will be a second round of checks and balances for your overall social media strategy.

There are paid services that automate this process and save you the manual work but not everyone has extra money to spend.  So you have no excuse, other than time, not to check your current business listings and clean them up if they have duplicates on the same website.

See You In Orlando

At my DD8 seminar I will demonstrating the most effective strategies, policies and procedures to create powerful Internet Internet Reputation Management (IRM) campaign, which should be an integral part of your social media strategy.  Public review websites is one of the most powerful social media tools that consumers have decided are valuable so you can’t ignore them!

The Digital Dealer Conference being held this April in Orlando will cover the latest developments in Internet Reputation Management strategies.  Brian Pasch, CEO of PCG Digital Marketing, will deliver an in-depth presentation focusing on proactive reputation management techniques that will establish a winning online strategy for auto dealers in 2010. 

Pasch will review and demonstrate the most effective IRM strategies that car dealers can implement at a low cost that deliver a high ROI. Guests of Pasch’s presentation will also learn what other car dealers are doing to increase their positive customer reviews on Google Maps, DealerRater, Presto Reviews, InsiderPages and other important review websites. 

According to Pasch, Internet Reputation Management will be one of the key metrics for success in 2010 and beyond.  Add to this mix new mobile phone technology that can reward consumers for on-site reviews and it becomes very clear why dealers in 2010 need a reputation management policy and strategy.  

“The Internet has empowered consumers with new tools to express their satisfaction and dissatisfaction with car dealers online. Dozens of consumer review websites now appear on Google page one for searches on a car dealer’s business name. I recommend that all dealers look to see what is being written online about them,” says Pasch. 

Brian Pasch is the founder and CEO of PCG Digital Marketing, formerly the Pasch Consulting Group. He is a respected member of the automotive digital marketing community and an active writer and lecturer.  His expertise in automotive SEO, social media and Internet reputation management have made him a popular name among dealers looking for strategic digital marketing advice.

To learn about the automotive SEO services of PCG Digital Marketing, visit http://www.pcgdigitalmarketing.com .  For more information on automotive Internet Reputation Management strategies, visit http://www.automotiveirm.com/

About the Digital Dealer Conference

The annual Digital Dealer Conference attracts hundreds of dealership attendees that are looking to learn more about Internet and technology-related issues.  Speakers who are experts in the field of Automotive Digital Marketing present seminars which help forward thinking dealerships stay ahead of the ever changing technology curve.   For registration or sponsorship opportunities, visit http://www.digitaldealerconference.com/

Car dealers who want to implement an effective Internet Reputation Management (IRM) process at their dealership should plan on attending Brian Pasch’s seminar at the 8^th Digital Dealer Conference in Orlando.  The conference runs from April 20^th through the 22^nd and will attract the top dealers in the country who are passionate about digital marketing.

Brian will educate dealers on how to create an effective reputation management strategy that empowers the dealership’s customers to share their positive experiences online.  With Google consolidating consumer’s reviews on Google Maps, car dealers can no longer ignore what consumers are saying online.

More importantly, if dealers are not proactively asking their satisfied customer to post their reviews online, the only comments that most dealers will see will be critical.   Brian’s research has shown that as positive reviews increase, so do calls and leads from a Google Maps listing.

Brian will walk attendees through the processes and procedures to establish a strong IRM program as well as leveraging new IRM ideas that include Reputation Management portals (RMP).

For additional information on the seminar schedule and how to register for the 8^th Digital Dealer Conference, visit:  http://www.digitaldealerconference.com

Many articles on the Internet have discussed Automotive Internet Reputation Management and the importance of checking what consumers are writing about you on the Internet.  Still many dealers fail to read even what is posted or rolled-up on Google Maps.  Automotive Reputation Management must be a standard operating procedures for car dealers in 2010.

Hare Chevrolet RMP

I would like to offer some new twists on this discuss with the concept of a Reputation Management Portal (RMP).  In the example shown above, we have taken a simple WordPress website and consolidated links to popular review websites.   Each icon is linked to the specific review page for our client Hare Chevrolet. 

Here is an overview of the Reputation Management Portal (RMP):

1. The site is created on a great branding URL, like www.iloveharechevy.com
2. The dealer can print up postcards and give them to happy customers marketing this catchy URL.
3. The single URL can be easily promoted offline and also by email.
4. The review website icons that you show and the order that they appear can be changed.
5. You can add your streaming Dealerrater reviews as a tab, as shown on this site.
6. You can add your Facebook Fan Page stream as a tab, as shown on this site.
7. You can add your YouTube video channel of testimonials, if they exist.
8. You can add your Twitter stream as a sidebar widget.
9. You can add a quote form for consumers who stumble upon you site and want a car.
10. You can add popular links in the sidebar to drive traffic to your main website.
11. You can add blog posts to the site to highlight written testimonials that arrive via email or postal mail.

If  Hare Chevrolet prints up postcards that promote this website www.iloveharechevy.com, you can bet that their service advisors will be able to identify happy customers to hand the card as ask for their assistance.  That’s dozens of postcards in people’s hands each day. 

You can bet that your sales managers know who the customers that are very excited about their purchase experience.  Instead of just handing out a card for one review website, why not create your own Reputation Management Portal postcard and drive reviews where they are needed most.

The great thing about the RMP being a WordPress website, is that anyone can add or change icons to promote higher review counts on new websites.  Once this is set in place, you don’t need a programmer to get involved.  

This will allow you to direct review traffic to different websites throughout the year to have a wider branding influence since there are about 10 review websites that should be included in a comprehensive IRM strategy.

If you like this idea, and would like a RMP constructed for your dealership, its very easy and simple to manage.  I have a few other ideas to help dealers in 2010 increase their brand visibility online.

We’ll have some “killer” strategies revealed at the Automotive Marketing Boot Camp  in Orlando the day before the official start of NADA Convention.  If you are going to NADA, fly in on the 11th and register for an intense day of social media and digital marketing education.

I hope to see you there….

During the last month of 2009, calls to the Pasch Consulting Group researching Automotive Internet Marketing strategies was at an all time high.  According to Brian Pasch, over 50 car dealer store locations contracted with his company in the past 30 days looking for assistance with social media, automotive SEO, blogging, press releases, microsites and pay-per-click marketing.

Among the dealerships welcomed by Pasch Consulting are Checkered Flag Auto Group in Virginia Beach, Miller Automotive Group of California, a division of Group 1 Automotive, Jerry Durant Auto Group of Texas, the Rairdon Automotive Group in Washington and Park Avenue Motors in New Jersey.

Furthermore, a recent study commissioned by the Pasch Consulting Group revealed that over 50% of US auto dealers have less than 20% of their total ad spending allocated towards Internet Marketing.   According to Pasch, car dealers could shift 20-30% of their non-digital marketing to online digital services by the end of the year.

Based on this study and dealers’ rising interests in online marketing, Pasch predicts that 2010 will see one of the largest budget shifts towards the Internet.  “We predict that over the next two years, tens of millions of dollars will be pumped into digital marketing strategies and social media marketing by car dealers.” says Pasch.  “Dealers want to be in front of the growing number of consumers researching cars online before making a purchasing decision.  Getting their brand in front of consumers using social media tools and platforms like Facebook is also a hot topic for car dealers.”

To meet this growing demand for online marketing strategies and advice on digital spending, the Pasch Consulting Group is co-sponsoring an Automotive Marketing Boot Camp.  The one-day hands-on skills based training will include classes in social media, search engine optimization, video marketing, pay-per-click marketing and microsites.

The Boot Camp is schedule for February 12, 2010 and is one day prior to the official start of the 2010 NADA Convention in Orlando Florida.  Automotive professionals looking to enhance their 2010 digital marketing strategies are encourage to fly into Orlando a day early and attend the Boot Camp.  The event will be held at the Rosen Centre Hotel adjacent to the Convention hall.

Boot Camp classes will be lead by the industry’s leading experts in all categories, including Brian Pasch, JD Rucker, Eric Mayhew, Paul Rushing and Tim Jennings.  Pasch is also taking appointments from dealer professionals who want to meet with him to discuss digital marketing strategy development for 2010. 

Complete information on the Automotive Marketing Boot Camp can be found online at: http://www.automotivemarketingbootcamp.com

The new buzz words on the street are SEO, IRM and social media; all which promise to drive more customers to your website.  In all the articles we have read, one simple element is left out; how the calls are being handled!

Do you have a system in place for call center training, monitoring and skills development?  The single most important resource a company has is its people. So, the more focused and driven employees are, the more likely a company is to be successful.

Companies should not assume that their employees have the organizational phone skills to move a prospect into a sale.  Call center management strategies and procedure manuals are an important part of your total CRM solution.

Listening to Tracking Numbers

Many car dealers and business owners own a few dozen call tracking numbers from companies such as CallSource or WhosCalling.  These numbers are placed on different websites, newspaper ads or print publications.  These calls are recorded and can be played back via a web browser to review how calls are being handled by your staff. 

The fact though is that many business owners have not set processes in place to score the calls to improve their customer service and sales processes.  Companies are driving more calls and web visits through SEO, SEM and Social Media but have neglected to test new call scripts and to measure the impact of professionally managed call center operations.

Do you have a weekly process in place to listen to a subset of your sales, service and parts calls?

Improved Performance Solutions

If you are looking for an outside review of your call center operations, we recommend Improved Performance Solutions.  Their company helps executives, managers and teams refine their interpersonal and management skills to achieve their goals and get results.  This includes call center management and measurement as well as a review of your entire customer experience.

Their company can asssist your business improve CSI and sales; call them if:

• You are new to management and want to hone your leadership style
• You are an experienced manager and need new management tools to further your career
• You or your company needs to re-energize its leadership
• Your company’s teams and departments need help working more efficiently and effectively
• You need an evaluation on your call center processes
• You would like them to develop call center training materials.

Let IPS be your coach.  They can help you identify and resolve any issues that may be blocking your path to success so you can focus more fully on achieving your short and long-term goals.

Call 732-261-5472 for additional information on the services that IPS can offer your business.

Improved Performance Solutions
16 Mt Bethel Rd #181
Warren, NJ 07069
www.ipsforyou.com

In these cases, employees decide to hang out the employer’s dirty laundry, that most companies, have in the public eye.  In the automotive industry, consumers would be hard pressed to put in perspective some of the behinds the scenes “language”  or strategies crafted by car dealers.  

Former employees use this knowledge to paint their former employer as a bad person, a liar or characterizations that are much worse.

Car Dealer Reputation Management

Car Dealer executives and owners need to have a proactive Internet Reputation Management campaign in place to defend their good name.  In the summer of 2009 we were approached to help one automotive executive fight back against the unsubstantiated claims of online bloggers, many of which were former employees.  Five months later, the results of our Automotive Reputation Management strategies are paying off.

When you do a search for Carol Grossinger, on Yahoo and Bing, the first page of search results now display the good works Caroline is doing in the community as well as leading her business.  This summer there were multiple attacks on Caroline’s reputation that appeared on Yahoo and Bing Page One search results.  That has been corrected by the IRM team at the Pasch Consulting Group.

10 out of the 10 organic listings for Carol’s name on Yahoo and Bing now properly represent her integrity, business success and her charitable work in the community.

In Yahoo and Bing, we have a complete Page One Management (POM) success story and you can see that from the screen shots below:

Google and Rip Off Report Website

On Google we have 9 out of the 10 organic listings on Page One updated with positive news except for the infamous “RipOffReport.com” website.  Google and this website have a long history of high rankings and this site is challenging to remove from Page One.  It will be pushed off of page one over time but it is not a fast process for some posts.

When stubborn posts like this “compliants” site are on Google Page One, we have to employ even stronger measures to promote our clients reputation.  The owner of the RipOffReport.com has allegedly been extorting cash from companies with negative posts for years and has been tied up in many lawsuits that allege the same.  There is no rational discussions with the staff at the RipOffReport.com; their business is tied to being on page one for company name or executive name searches.

The good news is that we are making progress as you can see from the screenshot below; the negative website is now under the fold when before it was #2 on the first page.  The photos were never there before we started and new videos that we will be adding will also help in 2010.

If you or your automotive dealership has been attacked by former employees or disgruntled consumers, give the IRM team at Pasch Consulting Group a call.  You can ask for Jessica Guida, IRM specialist or Brian Pasch, CEO and founder of the company.  We will review your specific situation and help you implement a proactive Internet Reputation Management (IRM) solution.

A new website  called SurChur (http://surchur.com)  can actually be used as an Automotive Internet Reputation Management tool.

The tabs make it easy to quickly see what is being said about your dealership across the web.  This is a very convenient dashboard for what is currently being written about any search phrase and I recommend that dealers use it regularly along with Google Alerts and Google Reader.

Internet Reputation Management and monitoring will need to be part of auto retailers standard operating procedures in 2010.  If dealers are looking for assistance and training in Automotive IRM, call the Pasch Consulting Group for a free consultation at 732-450-8200.

Consumers have tremendous power today to express their opinions about their experience at your business and make that voice heard. With dozens of popular websites containing a listing of your business that allows for consumer reviews, car dealers can no longer ignore the feedback that is being shared online.

Automotive studies have confirmed that dealers who focus on good online customer service reviews see a measurable increase in calls and leads referred from review websites. Since Google Maps is now rolling up review scores from multiple websites, the consolidated dealer “score” is front and center for any search that includes a city or state search word and the brand that you sell.

Give it a try. Type in “Denver Toyota Dealers” and see that Google Maps is at the top of the organic search results, and under each address is a review count. This data encourages consumers to see how well you are doing. When you click on your review score, are you proud of what you see?

Which Websites Should I Monitor?

There are a number of review websites that need to be monitored because of how the search engines rank their content. Google, Yahoo and Bing may show a different priority when a consumer searches for your business name. Some of the websites that I suggest you monitor include:

• DealerRater.com
• InsiderPages.com
• CitySearch.com
• Judysbook.com
• Yelp.com
• MerchantCircle.com

Since new sites are always being created, the rule of thumb is that you should monitor any websites that have review capabilities that show up on Google Page One and Page Two for a search on your dealership name. Also check searches for your OEM brand and the city name where you are doing business from.

DealerRater.com is the only site that has a paid system which gives dealers a two week window to resolve complaints with consumers before they are posted. Since DealerRater.com is highly optimized for organic search, most dealers will find the site on Google Page One for searches on their name.

The search visibility of review websites make them difficult to ignore, especially if they have unbalanced negative reviews. Let me emphasize this point again; do not ignore review websites.

How To Increase Your Positive Review Counts

Like any digital marketing endeavor, you must honestly assess if you have the proper staff in place that will not be distracted from this important task. An effective Automotive IRM program, once launched, will require about 3-4 hours a week for the first six months to really see a difference. These hours are spent contacting satisfied customers and getting their buy-in to post a review on one of your targeted review websites.

If you don’t have the right staff in place or you know that your IRM staff member will be unable to isolate time each week for this important task, hire someone to do it for you.

Dealers do not have the luxury to ignore online review websites. They have to have a process in place that ensures that online comments reflect the true percentage of positive and negative feedback in their store.

Proactive IRM Starts With a Friendly Phone Call

My staff has found that starting with a phone call makes the process more intimate and meaningful. Call through a list of customers that have purchased in the last 7 days and ask first about their experience at your dealership. Thank them for their business and find out if they need assistance.

Ask them if they would recommend your dealership to family and friends. If they say yes, explain that consumers start their car research on the Internet and that their peers will value their opinion if they found it online. Ask them to help you educate their peers by sharing their positive experience online.

If the phone call is handled professionally, most customers will agree to help. Tell them that you will make it easy by sending them an email with links to two websites where they can post their review. Don’t overwhelm them with six review websites; rotate which two sites are used so you cover all sites over time. Ask them if they can write their review in the coming week. Most will say yes. This is an important buy-in question to reinforce in your email.

Thank them specifically for their commitment to open the email and post a review in the next week. Once you send the email, keep a log on when they said they would post their review. Check back to the sites you included in your email with links and see if they made a post.

If they did not post, send them a very brief email saying that you were following up and that maybe the email was caught up in their spam filter. Remind them how easy it is to click on the link and post a review. Ask them nicely to honor their commitment to help educate others. The second notice gets more people to keep their promise. Everyone is busy and a friendly reminder is just that.

It’s A Process That Yields Results

If every week your dealership’s proactive IRM program adds two new reviews, at the end of the year you will have over 100 positive statements that you can leverage. More likely, you can get 4-5 reviews a week with a few hours of dedication. This will yield over 250 reviews in a year.

When Google Maps displays your dealership and your competitors on a list which shows that you have 100 more reviews than your closet competitor, you will be amazed at the results. If you place a unique tracking phone number on your Google Maps listing today and start this process, you will be pleased to see how an increase in positive reviews equates to more calls. These calls may even be considered “warm leads” because of the positive reviews that they have most likely read.

With an emphasis on advertising your customers positive experiences, you are well positioned when a negative comment is posted. The reality is that if you don’t start an IRM process, the majority of posts that you will read online will be negative. Life is about balance. No dealership can be perfect. For most dealers the negative customer experiences are a small percentage of their sales. Make sure your online review scores accurately reflect that same percentage.

Don’t Buy Votes

Starting December 1, 2009, a new law, which will be enforced by the FTC, has guidelines for people who write online reviews, endorsements and testimonials. The law is focused on online posts where the writer has been compensated in some way for the review. (Download FTC Rules)

Take a moment to make sure that your dealership is in full compliance. To simplify the matter, never pay for an online review or endorsement. Never offer a free oil change, a free tire rotation, a discount or a gift card in exchange for a review or testimonial. If a reviewer is compensated according to the new law, that must be disclosed in the review.

Compensation cheapens the experience for your customers and it may get you in trouble. You don’t want to be the first auto dealer that the FTC sues under this new law because a competitor reported you. Just wait, every industry will have its turn under the FTC magnifying glass.

If a customer is not compelled by a friendly voice to share their experience online, move on to another customer. Most dealers have hundreds of customers each month that they can draw upon for IRM assistance. Some dealers have utilized a business card which lists popular review sites, and they encourage their staff to get customer commitment when they deliver the car. Just make it easy to get your customer involved.

It goes without saying, never implement a system where your sales staff receives monetary or cash equivalent rewards for having their customers post the most reviews. This system will always result in cheating and fake reviews being posted by sales staff and their friends from their home computers.

Never encourage customers to post reviews from inside your Internet café since many sites will notice multiple posts from the same IP address and ban your account.

Dealers that have an active Facebook page or Twitter account can also post links to the reviews written by their satisfied customers. By praising customers who have helped spread the word, you create a desire in other customers to receive that same praise.

You can ask your followers to post a review by adding easy links to the websites previously listed. Make it easy for them to participate. People who are already online and who are asked to help promote their experience at your dealership are likely to follow a link and post a review if done properly.

Defensive Internet Reputation Management Tactics

An effective IRM program has an offensive and defensive strategy. The defensive team knows when a new comment, blog post or article has been indexed on the Internet by Google. The defensive mantra says: ” The sooner you know about a problem, the better chance you have to diffuse the matter.”

If you would like to receive email notifications when someone writes a review or a blog post that includes your dealership name, I highly recommend Google Alerts. You can use this free service to monitor your dealership name and the names of key executives. When set up, you will know via email when a new post is indexed in Google, and then decide how to respond.

There are tools on the market to automate this process. You just have to decide if you need anything more than Google Alerts. If you have an active campaign to post positive reviews each week, your staff will be on all the top review sites every week checking what has been posted.

The need to pay for a monitoring service may not be justified for a single point dealership. Larger dealer groups that have one person managing multiple dealer properties may be better served to purchase an automated tool or just outsource the process.

Internet Reputation Management = Brand Protection

I started the article with this question:

If a customer came to your dealership in the still of the night and spray painted “Liar” and “Cheat” in large letters on your street facing signage, would you leave it untouched when you arrived in the morning?

An Internet Reputation Management (IRM) program is also a brand protection process. As more of your customers start and end their car shopping experience on the Internet, your online brand becomes vitally important.

I predict that customer reviews will be further leveraged and consolidated by savvy entrepreneurs because of the influence that they yield. Imagine what would happen if someone created a customer “score” and made that score a household name.

When used car shoppers want to know about a vehicle’s history, they often ask for a CARFAX report. Imagine the impact if a company invested the money to nationally brand the concept of a DEALERSCORE report; a consolidated summary of your online customer satisfaction scores. What would your consolidated score look like?

From my search experience, less that 20% of car dealers across the USA have implemented a healthy proactive IRM program.

Over half of the dealers in America have “You Suck” written on their Internet billboards and they don’t seem to care. The rest may have no reviews at all, which means they are even more vulnerable for that first negative post.

There is no better time to get started than today.

Your competitors hope you do nothing.

Copies of This Article

If you would like a PDF copy of this article to use at your dealership, you can download it here: Automotive Internet Reputation Management

About The Author

Brian Pasch is the CEO of the Pasch Consulting Group and an active writer for the automotive community. You can find him on:

Twitter http://www.twitter.com/automotiveseo

Facebook http://facebook.com/paschconsulting

You can also reach Brian in his New Jersey offices at 732-450-8200.

The RSS feed will allow you to place the stream of customer reviews on a blog using a RSS widget. Of you prefer a full screen version of the reviews, you can use the DealerRater.com Javascript snippet which can drop into most any blog page. The great thing about these two choices is that they update in real-time as more positive reviews are posted on DealerRater.com.

The DealerRater.com RSS feed can look like on a WordPress Blog:

The DealerRater.com Javascript Snippet can look like on a wider website page:

Auto Dealer Reviews

Keep in mind that this is just one source for reviews posting. You can display great reviews from multiple review websites if you create a compilation of multiple RSS feeds and weed out any negative reviews.

It is very important to leverage your positive reviews on the static pages of your website. Reviews from customers that live in the towns in your PMA can be a fantastic way to create search optimized pages that include your brand and the city names that surround you.

Setup Google Alerts and Google Reader

All dealer principals and members of the senior management team should be using free tools like Google Alerts or Google Reader to track what people are saying about you online.

You can be notified by email as soon as your dealership name or the name of your employees are used in an article that Google indexes. There are paid services that offer a nice interface to view articles that use your name for a fee but until you decide to spend for that convenience, please setup these free tools.

The sooner you know what is being said about your dealership, the sooner you can decide how to respond. One nice advantage to being a DR Certified Dealer is that you have two weeks to resolve any compliant before anything harmful gets permanently posted.

Business owners often feel helpless in protecting their online reputation from valid blog posts and  negative posts planted by competitors.  On the flip side, businesses often fail to leverage positive commentary and testimonials posted on the Internet. Having a proactive strategy for disseminating positive commentary can often be the best defense against future negative attacks.

Internet Reputation Management services have a bright future. New web content is growing in direct relation to the explosive growth of social networking portals.   Each month new tools are being made available to allow a non-technical Internet user to create their own website, blog and social networking portal.  With the ease at which content can be created, organized and shared on the Internet, business owners need to be mindful of what is being written about their company.

Free Basic Reputation Tracking Tools

Protecting your reputation on the Internet can start with using a simple and effective tool called “Google Alerts”. Once you create a free Google account, you can enter specific search phrases into your own watch list.  Google will then send you an email with links to articles that include the phrases in your watch list.  You can request notifications as they happen or summarized daily, weekly or monthly. I would recommend that you start with the “as it happens” choice for a week, and then decide if you want to move it to “once a day”.

For our company, our watch list includes ‘Brian Pasch”, “Pasch Consulting”, “Pasch Consulting Group”, and “NJ SEO”. We also include in our watch list some of the buzz words in the niches we cover.  For our Automotive Marketing Division our watch list includes: “Automotive SEO”, “Automotive Digital Marketing”, “Car Dealer Websites” and “Automotive SEO Specialist”.  We use Google Alerts for both reputation management as well as tracking what other companies are posting in our competitive space.

Creating your Reputation Management Watch List

 A recommended strategy for a business watch list would include your business name, your product names and the names of your key executives.  Knowing what is being said, both positive and negative, is the first step in creating a sustained reputation management plan.

Your Internet Reputation Management strategy should have a clear escalation plan for positive and negative commentary.  Positive commentary should be evaluated and the very best should be included on your own company blog or website news page.  You may want to get permission from the individual to repurpose their commentary in your marketing materials.

Negative content should have an immediate response strategy which is best handled by a seasoned SEO and Reputation Management Consultant (RPC). Every post will have a different strategy depending on where the post was made and the policies of the website host.

Reputation Management for Professional Services

Recently, a New York City executive coaching and placement firm called the Pasch Consulting Group about a barrage of vicious attacks on the firm’s founder and on the services they offer for executives in transition.  The negative posts were well planned and well placed so that they appeared on Google Page One, when consumers issued a search on the company name.  The CEO said that these comments were directly hurting their business and needed immediate relief.

 The company’s lawyer had already pursued legal action against the individual who posted the verbal assaults under different names and aliases.  This disgruntled individual eventually signed a retraction letter and promised to stop this Internet reputation attack.  In reality, he never stopped posting.  So we were called in to help. Within 30 days we were able to have the most visible articles removed from the various websites. We also found additional negative posts on business portal sites that we were able to remove directly.

PCG created an offensive plan to get articles posted about the hundreds of satisfied clients the company had from its long history.  For this client, they never invested the time to post their client testimonials and case studies on the Internet.  Using various techniques, PCG was able to add significant content in Google page 1 and 2 for searches on their company name.

Reputation Management for Car Dealers

For Automotive Dealers, online reputation management must be part of your Internet Marketing Strategy to protect your PMA from neighboring car dealers.  If a car dealer’s visible Internet reputation is poor, consumers may very well shop at a neighboring dealership.  

I have seen posts on the Internet that were outlandish and shocking.  If I were in the market to buy a car, these negative posts would give me second thoughts about buying from certain dealers.  It only takes a few angry consumers to make any dealership look like the devil.  You can search Google yourself to find dealers being called racist, discriminatory and deceptive. 

Often, consumers have a choice between two dealers that are 15 miles apart. If one car dealer has glowing reputation scores and one has low scores, reputation can sway their final pick.  I recognize that other factors play a part in that final decision like price, convenience and availability.  However, if your Internet reputation can be improved, taking remedial action is mandatory to continue to grow your Internet sales leads.

Sites like DealerRater.com, Yahoo Local, Insider Pages, Google Maps and Yelp all have review engines that can appear on Google Page One when consumers search your business name.  General Managers need to implement a system to regularly request positive review from their customers.  This can include new car customers as well as service customers.

Businesses should create a list of all review pages in an email and send these links to satisfied customers.  The email should request that they post an honest review of your company.  Do not attempt to post customer reviews from your own business computers.  Many of these sites track IP addresses and you could be banned from the directory for review spamming.

Empowering Your Satisfied Customers

Reputation Management requires both an offensive and defensive strategy.  The longer your offensive strategy is in place, the harder it is for negative commentary to drastically affect your business.  If you have been lax at posting positive commentary, then ANY negative commentary will look out of proportion.

Business owners can no longer ignore public commentary and commercial review websites.  A restaurant owner that has a comment posted on the Internet about a food poisoning episode, without balanced commentary, will be affected for consumers looking to try a new restaurant using Internet based searches.   A hotel that has posts about dirty bed linens and mildew will see their online bookings drop.  Simply stated, any post with your company name needs to be reviewed.

The Pasch Consulting Group has effective methodologies and strategies to assist business owners in implementing  a solid reputation management action plan.  If you would like additional information, visit http://www.paschconsulting.com

First of all, the name of these websites, when they appear on a page of search results for your business name, is enough to unnerve you alone. When your business name and RipOffReport.com is in the title of a Google search result page, it immediately implies that you have done something wrong.  When these complaint posts are resolved to the satisfaction of the consumer, you will find that the post still stays up.  You might infer that the end game of these websites it to have something “bad” on every business name to drive traffic to their advertising campaigns.

Second, these websites make their living off of being sensational and controversial, so don’t expect any common courtesy or concern as to how a post is negatively affecting your business.  The owners of these websites get daily threats and letters from lawyers but most are ignored.  This can be incredibly frustrating especially when businesses could be losing hundreds or thousands of dollars each week the post remains visible. 

Is there any protection from your competitors who decide to make false reports?  Not really.  If someone wants to attack there are numerous ways to defame another company anonymously.  So what is a company to do when the Internet has created a virtual soapbox for anyone to instantly create a negative global message? 

Companies need to have a strategy that includes offensive and defense measures to control what consumers are writing about them on the Internet.  Companies that stand to be hurt by sites like:

• 1. www.ripoffreport.com
• 2. www.complaintsboard.com
• 3. www.pissedconsumer.com

should implement a proactive Internet Reputation Management strategy that includes positive reviews on the Internet to create a balanced view of their company and its products or services.

The defensive elements of an Internet Reputation Management strategy would start with ensuring that your business listing is correctly represented in all the top consumer review websites.  Once this task has been completed, an email needs to be drafted to your customers that would request and simplify the task of posting positive reviews on these sites. 

The customer participation email should have a few versions since there are so many places that you will eventually want to have reviews. You would not want to have only one version that shows links to 10 different review websites; it would overwhelm your customers.  I would recommend that you don’t put more than 3 choices in a customer email.

Since there are about a dozen websites that should be considered for your IRM platform, your first email could link to the highest value review sites like Google, Yahoo and Yelp.  Once these websites had ample reviews posted, you could send a second version of the email to target sites like InsiderPages, CitySearch and JudysBook.  The goal will be to have at least six positive reviews on the most popular public portals in your industry.

Do your research since every industry has specific high value web review properties.  For car dealers, that website is www.dealerrater.com.  For restaurants, they have a few high value sites like www.opentable.com and www.chowhound.com .  So, in addition to the big national review websites, don’t overlook industry specific websites.

Keep in mind that only REAL customers should be posting.  Often computer IP addresses are checked when a review is posted so 10 reviews from the same IP address would most likely raise a flag and the posts would be removed. 

Fake reviews are often easy to spot.  Encourage your customers to be specific in their reviews and write about whom they dealt with in your company and what was their specific interaction with your business. In your email, ask them to close the review with their full name and the State/City they live in.  By adding a name the post has an extra degree of credibility rather than a review being signed as “J. Smith”.

The offensive elements of an Internet Reputation Management (IRM) campaign will be proprietary to the firm that you hire to assist you with your specific problem.  However, in effect, an Internet Reputation Management consultant will often employ highly focused SEO strategies and content publishing platforms to push these negative reviews off of page one.

If you have not carefully reviewed what has been written about your business on the Internet, take the time to assign that task immediately.  Then formulate a company IRM policy that addresses any immediate needs and protects your business from future attacks. Ignorance in this area of Internet Marketing can be costly.

For more information on Internet Reputation Management, visit http://www.automotiveirm.com/