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Reputation.com Ranks Top Auto Brands, Dealerships, Dealer Groups in "2020 Automotive Report Update"REDWOOD CITY, Calif., Oct. 26, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Reputation.com, provider of the first — and only — complete Reputation Experience Management (RXM) platform, today released an updated analysis of 33,000 automotive OEM brands, dealer groups and dealerships across the United States, Canada and Europe in its “2020 Automotive Reputation Report Update.” In a year dominated by change and uncertainty amid the COVID-19 pandemic, consistent and effective reputation management emerged as an important factor in increasing sales volume, inspiring trust among customers and driving operational improvements. The “2020 Automotive Reputation Report Update” validates that the way consumers are buying their cars has drastically changed in a short amount of time. Many have opted to use virtual car-buying tools and contactless home delivery options, for example. For those that do venture into dealerships, hygiene has been a big concern that is consistently reflected in customer feedback online. In fact, mentions of personal health and safety in online reviews have grown 100X since the pandemic hit. Dealerships have responded in part with valet service, which minimizes customers’ interactions with others inside brick-and-mortar locations. A dealership’s valet service is the No. 1 new driver of positive sentiment during the pandemic, according to the report. Conversely, complaints about price drove many negative reviews: unfortunately, manufacturer shutdowns due to COVID-19 resulted in a lower inventory of both new and used cars, driving up auto prices. Prices will remain high for the foreseeable future, as it will likely take the auto industry two years to restore sales and production numbers seen pre-pandemic. The “2020 Automotive Reputation Report Update” uncovers insights from an analysis of unstructured data found in online customer reviews, surveys and more. Based on these insights, OEM brands, dealer groups and dealerships can make operational adjustments to improve their sales and service performance and raise their Reputation Scores — even during a global pandemic. In fact, the report revealed that a 10% increase in average sales volume can be mapped back to dealerships’ effective reputation management. “In the Feedback Economy — and especially during the COVID-19 era — customers are turning to rankings and reviews to inform their car-buying decisions, making online reputation management more important than ever before,” said Joe Fuca, CEO of Reputation.com. “While the economy will likely continue to struggle through the pandemic, dealerships must do what they can to boost sales and reassure customers. This includes tapping into tools like Reputation.com to help identify problem areas and take action to remedy them, all in the service of inspiring customer trust and improving the customer experience.” Auto industry perseveres in a challenging economic environment "The Reputation Score continues to be a critical benchmark in helping us understand customer satisfaction, and also measuring how our associates are contributing to the overall experience," said Marc Cannon, executive vice president and chief customer experience officer at AutoNation. Despite the auto industry’s continued perseverance amid COVID-19, it has experienced some significant setbacks. U.S. car sales have remained depressed, dropping 9.7% in the third quarter. But the automotive industry is tenacious, with monthly sales slowly rising. “Online reputation is a reflection of a company’s culture. We take tremendous pride in the way our nearly 11,000 teammates serve our customers and represent our values each day,” said Greg Gach, president of Hendrick Automotive Group. “Being recognized with the No. 1 overall ranking is only possible because of their dedication to our customers and to one another.” Familiar faces take top rankings in U.S., Canada and Europe In Canada, top performers in Reputation Score include Lincoln, Ford and Hyundai, although at 550, their average Reputation Scores are lower than those in the United States. In Europe, Porsche nabbed the top Reputation Score with 664 in France; Mitsubishi was top in Germany, Austria and Switzerland with 666; and Lexus earned the top spot in the United Kingdom with 675. “We’re thrilled to be the UK’s number one-ranked dealer group for Reputation Score,” said Claire Canard, group marketing manager at Vantage Motor Group. “It’s a great testament to the entire organisation’s dedication and commitment, and speaks volumes for how we’ve embraced our digital front door, and the importance we place on customer feedback.” Methodology The “2020 Automotive Reputation Report Update” report is now available for download. Browse our other industry reports, including retail, retail banking, healthcare and property management here. For more information on Reputation Score and the Reputation.com RXM platform, please visit our site at www.reputation.com. About Reputation.com Media Contacts: Brigit Valencia A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/ccf2b29a-2331-48f4-9b28-998920173c60.
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