eXtéresAUTO Blog
Total Posts: 29
BM
eXteres
Nov 11, 2010
Google Patent Granted Shows Google May Start Rating the Raters, With Algorithm Assigning a “Reputation Score” to Online Reviewers
As many have noted, it’s become crystal-clear that a business’ online reviews have been given exponentially more power and visibility with the new Google Places format.
And Google’s ramped-up focus on online reviews has seemingly just been further confirmed by a patent they were recently granted in November called “Systems and Methods for Reputation Management.” According to a recent, interesting wrap-up of the news (See: http://www.seobythesea.com/?p=4550)
…it seems Google is working on a way to devise an algorithm to, essentially, rate the raters – by ascribing a “Reputation Score” to online reviewers that could impact whether their reviews are included at all, along with assigning more or less “weight” to each review at Google Places.
The legalese/tech-ese of the granted patent is dense, and includes verbiage like this:
“A reputation management system…that assigns reputation scores to various types of entities including, but not limited to people, products, advertisers and merchants.
“…the reputation function is modified so as to remove portions of the function corresponding to nodes with negative reputations.”
“Upon convergence, reputation values for at least the reviewers and reviews corresponding to nodes that have not been removed from the reputation function are generated.”
As the blog author above points out, it remains unclear if this process of creating “Reputation Scores” applies only to reviewers who directly post at Google, or whether it would apply to reviewers at the sites Google Places pulls in.
But, as the blog notes, a few interesting concepts emerge:
*Reviews and ratings from reviewers that have “negative reputations” may not count in the final score for businesses, products, etc. they rate - and other reviewers they may score.
* If a reviewer only posts negative reviews, their reviews may be “removed” and not count.
* Reputation Scores aren’t just for reviewers, they’ll be assigned to individual reviews themselves.
It’s clear that Google is trying to hit upon an algorithmic solution that could address people trying to game the system - and one that would try to provide greater context for each review’s value. The patent suggests they’re reaching towards a pretty complex method: if a reviewer’s reviews are highly rated by others, then their Reputation Score goes up. But that Reputation Score, in turn, depends on the other Reputation Scores of people that rated that person’s reviews. And if a reviewer got bad ratings on their reviews by a rater that had a poor reputation, they wouldn’t be affected much, or at all. Etc., etc.
Google, of course, already lets people rate reviews, with this familiar question appearing under each review: “Was this review helpful? Yes - No - Flag as Inappropriate”
So, while this new patent activity strongly hints that Google is working on a solution that will provide a “score” to reviewers/reviews (based on some version of user feedback)…where it’s exactly headed, and how this would ultimately play out remains to be seen.
For instance…would the system essentially penalize people who don’t leave a high volume of reviews, because they won’t achieve a lot of positive ratings? (Should people who leave a lot of reviews be more highly rated/valued?)
And, even with some complex, situational algorithm - big questions remain about how any system would be able to filter out fake or “motivated” reviews if the reviewer is leaving positive reviews? I.e., unless a situation reached the levels of online consumer backlash that came crashing down on reviews posted by “Reputation Management” company, ReviewBoost, over the last few months? The outraged consumers who may have been wildly clicking “review not helpful” would, seemingly, in the Google equation, lower the value/score of those fake, positive reviews…
But how would an algorithm register/quantify their actual (enraged) comments, “This dealership SUCKS. All their reviews are fake…” Except as a “negative review”?
Online reviews have a huge impact on consumers, and the seriously increased visibility they’re given at the new Google Places just compounded that reality. This patent activity provides fresh evidence that the review/ratings component will keep evolving at Google, and continue to be a critical aspect of their local search model.
I think anyone would applaud ATTEMPTS to SOMEHOW provide better transparency to online reviews, and somehow zero in on all the inauthentic activity.
Fact: it didn’t take an algorithm for consumers reading fake reviews for dealerships posted by Review Boost to figure it out. It was absurdly simple: they clicked on the reviewers’ names and clearly saw that these “reviewers” left 5-star ratings for 10 dealerships in 10 different states - for a dozen hotels in a dozen different states - a bridal salon in California - a hair salon in Massachusetts – a skin diving company in Texas, and house cleaner in Utah – on the VERY SAME DAY!
(Question: why, after the online consumer uproar around the fake ReviewBoost postings, did Google then take down the user’s names, so consumers could no longer check what other reviews these people posted and figure out the “game”? Strange…)
Another fact: with whatever system is rolled out…with Online Reputation Management, an organically-driven, authentic process that generates believable, helpful, real reviews is inevitably going to be more important in the future.
The new Google patent makes one ponder in general: just what kind of system would work best to identify online review manipulation? What would represent the most meaningful way to ascribe a “Reputation Score” to reviewers? (I.e., somehow, when you think of new reviewer-rating systems to prevent gaming, new ways to manipulate the system do seem to multiply in one’s inventive mind...)
Any thoughts?
1595
BM
eXteres
Nov 11, 2010
Google Patent Granted Shows Google May Start Rating the Raters, With Algorithm Assigning a “Reputation Score” to Online Reviewers
As many have noted, it’s become crystal-clear that a business’ online reviews have been given exponentially more power and visibility with the new Google Places format.
And Google’s ramped-up focus on online reviews has seemingly just been further confirmed by a patent they were recently granted in November called “Systems and Methods for Reputation Management.” According to a recent, interesting wrap-up of the news (See: http://www.seobythesea.com/?p=4550)
…it seems Google is working on a way to devise an algorithm to, essentially, rate the raters – by ascribing a “Reputation Score” to online reviewers that could impact whether their reviews are included at all, along with assigning more or less “weight” to each review at Google Places.
The legalese/tech-ese of the granted patent is dense, and includes verbiage like this:
“A reputation management system…that assigns reputation scores to various types of entities including, but not limited to people, products, advertisers and merchants.
“…the reputation function is modified so as to remove portions of the function corresponding to nodes with negative reputations.”
“Upon convergence, reputation values for at least the reviewers and reviews corresponding to nodes that have not been removed from the reputation function are generated.”
As the blog author above points out, it remains unclear if this process of creating “Reputation Scores” applies only to reviewers who directly post at Google, or whether it would apply to reviewers at the sites Google Places pulls in.
But, as the blog notes, a few interesting concepts emerge:
*Reviews and ratings from reviewers that have “negative reputations” may not count in the final score for businesses, products, etc. they rate - and other reviewers they may score.
* If a reviewer only posts negative reviews, their reviews may be “removed” and not count.
* Reputation Scores aren’t just for reviewers, they’ll be assigned to individual reviews themselves.
It’s clear that Google is trying to hit upon an algorithmic solution that could address people trying to game the system - and one that would try to provide greater context for each review’s value. The patent suggests they’re reaching towards a pretty complex method: if a reviewer’s reviews are highly rated by others, then their Reputation Score goes up. But that Reputation Score, in turn, depends on the other Reputation Scores of people that rated that person’s reviews. And if a reviewer got bad ratings on their reviews by a rater that had a poor reputation, they wouldn’t be affected much, or at all. Etc., etc.
Google, of course, already lets people rate reviews, with this familiar question appearing under each review: “Was this review helpful? Yes - No - Flag as Inappropriate”
So, while this new patent activity strongly hints that Google is working on a solution that will provide a “score” to reviewers/reviews (based on some version of user feedback)…where it’s exactly headed, and how this would ultimately play out remains to be seen.
For instance…would the system essentially penalize people who don’t leave a high volume of reviews, because they won’t achieve a lot of positive ratings? (Should people who leave a lot of reviews be more highly rated/valued?)
And, even with some complex, situational algorithm - big questions remain about how any system would be able to filter out fake or “motivated” reviews if the reviewer is leaving positive reviews? I.e., unless a situation reached the levels of online consumer backlash that came crashing down on reviews posted by “Reputation Management” company, ReviewBoost, over the last few months? The outraged consumers who may have been wildly clicking “review not helpful” would, seemingly, in the Google equation, lower the value/score of those fake, positive reviews…
But how would an algorithm register/quantify their actual (enraged) comments, “This dealership SUCKS. All their reviews are fake…” Except as a “negative review”?
Online reviews have a huge impact on consumers, and the seriously increased visibility they’re given at the new Google Places just compounded that reality. This patent activity provides fresh evidence that the review/ratings component will keep evolving at Google, and continue to be a critical aspect of their local search model.
I think anyone would applaud ATTEMPTS to SOMEHOW provide better transparency to online reviews, and somehow zero in on all the inauthentic activity.
Fact: it didn’t take an algorithm for consumers reading fake reviews for dealerships posted by Review Boost to figure it out. It was absurdly simple: they clicked on the reviewers’ names and clearly saw that these “reviewers” left 5-star ratings for 10 dealerships in 10 different states - for a dozen hotels in a dozen different states - a bridal salon in California - a hair salon in Massachusetts – a skin diving company in Texas, and house cleaner in Utah – on the VERY SAME DAY!
(Question: why, after the online consumer uproar around the fake ReviewBoost postings, did Google then take down the user’s names, so consumers could no longer check what other reviews these people posted and figure out the “game”? Strange…)
Another fact: with whatever system is rolled out…with Online Reputation Management, an organically-driven, authentic process that generates believable, helpful, real reviews is inevitably going to be more important in the future.
The new Google patent makes one ponder in general: just what kind of system would work best to identify online review manipulation? What would represent the most meaningful way to ascribe a “Reputation Score” to reviewers? (I.e., somehow, when you think of new reviewer-rating systems to prevent gaming, new ways to manipulate the system do seem to multiply in one’s inventive mind...)
Any thoughts?
1595
No Comments
BM
eXteres
Oct 10, 2010
Texas TV news station investigation: "Are Local Dealership's Rave Reviews Fake?"
A news story that was 100% bound to break, and now has...
A dealership in San Antonio, TX in hot water because (it appears quite strongly) of the review-posting practices of the Reputation Management company Review Boost they hired. Read on (and watch the TV news clip) to see how the investigation uncovers these suspicious 'reviewers' bouncing around the ENTIRE nation writing 5-star reviews about all kinds of businesses and dealerships ON THE SAME DAY!
It's not the dealership's fault - they were probably told the company would be gathering and POSTING reviews of their real customers...This is really a SERIOUS, emerging issue, as more companies/dealerships, understandably, need help with the heavy-lifting of Online Reputation Management/Social Media.
Authenticity is KEY and it's going to get more CRUCIAL - and when it comes to Reputation Management/Social Media solutions there are NO 'magic wands' - there are good tools and good 'wands.'
These kind of consumer backlashes against dealerships' inauthentic reviews have been brewing online for quite some time - and now the news media is running with it....
The Story: Longtime BMW Owner Calls For Defenders Investigation Of 5-Star Reviews
April Molina, KSAT 12 News Reporter - POSTED: Thursday, October 14, 2010
SAN ANTONIO -- A consumer is questioning the online ratings of a local auto dealership.
Watch April Molina's Report: http://www.ksat.com/video/25398360/index.html
"They're just five-star ratings, five-star ratings -- five-star after five-star," said BMW owner, Greg Kinney of some dealership reviews he found posted online.
Kinney said he was a little surprised, as his own experience with BMW of San Antonio fell short of the exceptional reviews he found online Though he is quick to note, no dealership is perfect, Kinney said he questions the number of great reviews and the suspicious pattern.
"It's really very thinly veiled," said Kinney.
Skimming through some online posts, Kinney clicked on the profile of a person who'd given BMW of San Antonio a glowing review on City Search, and soon found all the other reviews posted by the same person on the same day referring to different businesses in different cities.
"(There are) 20 reviews by him. Here's one for backpackers Vacation Inn and Plantation Village. Nob Hill Hotel was posted on the sixth, so I guess he was there too. The Bridal Superstar by Posie Patch got five stars on the same date," said Kinney.
Wondering whether the profile was actually a paid service, Kinney contacted the KSAT Defenders.
Reporters contacted BMW General Manger John Bruns, who confirmed they did hire a service through Review Boost. Bruns said he was under the impression Review Boost would be in contact with their customers, generating actual reviews, but they too questioned the authenticity once they viewed them online.
"Obviously, there's a business out there that's decided to make money by writing five-star reviews," said Kinney.
BMW has since canceled the service and is working to remove questionable reviews taken from the various websites. The dealership also said they do conduct interviews with actual customers and that those reviews are the real deal. They attributed suspicious reviews to other companies.
Copyright 2010 by KSAT.com All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed
4693
No Comments
BM
eXteres
Oct 10, 2010
Texas TV news station investigation: "Are Local Dealership's Rave Reviews Fake?"
A news story that was 100% bound to break, and now has...
A dealership in San Antonio, TX in hot water because (it appears quite strongly) of the review-posting practices of the Reputation Management company Review Boost they hired. Read on (and watch the TV news clip) to see how the investigation uncovers these suspicious 'reviewers' bouncing around the ENTIRE nation writing 5-star reviews about all kinds of businesses and dealerships ON THE SAME DAY!
It's not the dealership's fault - they were probably told the company would be gathering and POSTING reviews of their real customers...This is really a SERIOUS, emerging issue, as more companies/dealerships, understandably, need help with the heavy-lifting of Online Reputation Management/Social Media.
Authenticity is KEY and it's going to get more CRUCIAL - and when it comes to Reputation Management/Social Media solutions there are NO 'magic wands' - there are good tools and good 'wands.'
These kind of consumer backlashes against dealerships' inauthentic reviews have been brewing online for quite some time - and now the news media is running with it....
The Story: Longtime BMW Owner Calls For Defenders Investigation Of 5-Star Reviews
April Molina, KSAT 12 News Reporter - POSTED: Thursday, October 14, 2010
SAN ANTONIO -- A consumer is questioning the online ratings of a local auto dealership.
Watch April Molina's Report: http://www.ksat.com/video/25398360/index.html
"They're just five-star ratings, five-star ratings -- five-star after five-star," said BMW owner, Greg Kinney of some dealership reviews he found posted online.
Kinney said he was a little surprised, as his own experience with BMW of San Antonio fell short of the exceptional reviews he found online Though he is quick to note, no dealership is perfect, Kinney said he questions the number of great reviews and the suspicious pattern.
"It's really very thinly veiled," said Kinney.
Skimming through some online posts, Kinney clicked on the profile of a person who'd given BMW of San Antonio a glowing review on City Search, and soon found all the other reviews posted by the same person on the same day referring to different businesses in different cities.
"(There are) 20 reviews by him. Here's one for backpackers Vacation Inn and Plantation Village. Nob Hill Hotel was posted on the sixth, so I guess he was there too. The Bridal Superstar by Posie Patch got five stars on the same date," said Kinney.
Wondering whether the profile was actually a paid service, Kinney contacted the KSAT Defenders.
Reporters contacted BMW General Manger John Bruns, who confirmed they did hire a service through Review Boost. Bruns said he was under the impression Review Boost would be in contact with their customers, generating actual reviews, but they too questioned the authenticity once they viewed them online.
"Obviously, there's a business out there that's decided to make money by writing five-star reviews," said Kinney.
BMW has since canceled the service and is working to remove questionable reviews taken from the various websites. The dealership also said they do conduct interviews with actual customers and that those reviews are the real deal. They attributed suspicious reviews to other companies.
Copyright 2010 by KSAT.com All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed
4693
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BM
eXteres
Oct 10, 2010
eXtéresAUTO Ranks as #1 Dealership SEO Provider - Again in 2010
“Highest-Rated” Across 2009 and 2010 at DrivingSales’ Vendor Ratings Program
Riverside, CA - October 19, 2010 - eXtéresAUTO, the leading “Search Asset Management” provider for auto dealerships, announced today that according to DrivingSales Vendor Ratings, the company ranks as the “Highest-Rated” SEO provider for auto dealerships in 2010. In the recently published DrivingSales Dealership Innovation Guide, the company retains its #1 ranking this year, after winning the award for #1 dealership SEO provider in 2009.
DrivingSales’ Vendor Ratings are determined by thousands of dealerships that are part of the DrivingSales community. According to the 2010 Innovation Guide, eXtéresAUTO SEO achieved a 5-star overall rating - with a dealer recommendation rate of 98%. The company also currently ranks as the #1 Online Reputation Management provider (with a 100% dealer recommendation rate) at DrivingSales.com.
“It’s a special honor to rank as the top SEO provider for the second straight year at DrivingSales, because their ratings program is unique in measuring the real-world opinions of dealers nationwide - the people who actually use these products and services,” noted eXtéresAUTO CEO, Richard Winch.
SEO and Online Reputation Management are critical components in eXtéresAUTO’s comprehensive “Search Asset Management” approach, which also integrates online piracy solutions and website analytics. Each of the company’s solutions is designed to ensure that dealerships have the most powerful, positive visibility wherever their customers happen to be searching online.
1324
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BM
eXteres
Oct 10, 2010
eXtéresAUTO Ranks as #1 Dealership SEO Provider - Again in 2010
“Highest-Rated” Across 2009 and 2010 at DrivingSales’ Vendor Ratings Program
Riverside, CA - October 19, 2010 - eXtéresAUTO, the leading “Search Asset Management” provider for auto dealerships, announced today that according to DrivingSales Vendor Ratings, the company ranks as the “Highest-Rated” SEO provider for auto dealerships in 2010. In the recently published DrivingSales Dealership Innovation Guide, the company retains its #1 ranking this year, after winning the award for #1 dealership SEO provider in 2009.
DrivingSales’ Vendor Ratings are determined by thousands of dealerships that are part of the DrivingSales community. According to the 2010 Innovation Guide, eXtéresAUTO SEO achieved a 5-star overall rating - with a dealer recommendation rate of 98%. The company also currently ranks as the #1 Online Reputation Management provider (with a 100% dealer recommendation rate) at DrivingSales.com.
“It’s a special honor to rank as the top SEO provider for the second straight year at DrivingSales, because their ratings program is unique in measuring the real-world opinions of dealers nationwide - the people who actually use these products and services,” noted eXtéresAUTO CEO, Richard Winch.
SEO and Online Reputation Management are critical components in eXtéresAUTO’s comprehensive “Search Asset Management” approach, which also integrates online piracy solutions and website analytics. Each of the company’s solutions is designed to ensure that dealerships have the most powerful, positive visibility wherever their customers happen to be searching online.
1324
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BM
eXteres
Sep 9, 2010
Mercedes-Benz USA Names eXtéresAUTO “Preferred Vendor” for SEO for Nationwide Dealer Network
One of Only Two SEO Providers Honored, eXtéresAUTO Tapped To Ensure Best-in-Class Search Performance for MBUSA’s Dealer Websites
eXtéresAUTO (www.exteresauto.com) announced today that Mercedes-Benz USA has named the company a “Preferred Vendor” for Search Engine Optimization (SEO) for its entire U.S. dealership network.
The automaker’s selection of the top SEO providers comes as part of MBUSA’s comprehensive revamping of its dealerships’ digital platform, with all franchises launching new websites this month. One of only two SEO companies selected, eXtéresAUTO also represents the only U.S.-based, automotive-specific, “designed-for-dealerships” provider Mercedes has named.
“Luxury auto shoppers are traditionally the heaviest users of the Internet and Search in their dealer and vehicle selection processes,” noted eXtéresAUTO CEO, Richard Winch. “We’re very honored by Mercedes’ recommendation, and the opportunity to provide Mercedes dealerships with the most powerful online search visibility possible, so they ‘own’ the top real estate across Google, Yahoo! and Bing.”
SEO is a core component in eXtéresAUTO’s comprehensive “Search Asset Management” (SAM™) approach, which also integrates advanced Online Reputation Management and Piracy Solutions for dealerships. In the only national awards program where dealersrate the vendors, eXtéresAUTO ranks #1 for SEO[1], and dealerships using the company's SEO now achieve, on average, 84% first-page search engine placement rates, up from 14% before.
Mercedes dealerships already using the company’s SEO report on the dramatic impact it’s had on their businesses. Randy Powell, General Manager of RBM of Atlanta-North (and Member of MBUSA’s Regional Dealer Advisory Board) notes: “We tried several SEO providers before getting it right with eXtéresAUTO, and it's made a huge difference in our new, used, service and parts sales – proving to be the highest-impact, highest-ROI marketing we can do."
And RBM North’s Internet Manager, Bethany Johnson, further testifies to the powerful results they’ve seen by combining eXtéresAUTO’s SEO and Online Reputation Management solutions: “We dominate the first-pages at the search engines - we stand out as the #1 customer choice in our market. And the result is we've gained significant market share, and now drive 60%-plus of our total store business directly from the search engines and review sites."
To access dealership case studies, contact Beth McGroarty, 213.300.0107, beth@rbicom.com
1624
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BM
eXteres
Sep 9, 2010
Mercedes-Benz USA Names eXtéresAUTO “Preferred Vendor” for SEO for Nationwide Dealer Network
One of Only Two SEO Providers Honored, eXtéresAUTO Tapped To Ensure Best-in-Class Search Performance for MBUSA’s Dealer Websites
eXtéresAUTO (www.exteresauto.com) announced today that Mercedes-Benz USA has named the company a “Preferred Vendor” for Search Engine Optimization (SEO) for its entire U.S. dealership network.
The automaker’s selection of the top SEO providers comes as part of MBUSA’s comprehensive revamping of its dealerships’ digital platform, with all franchises launching new websites this month. One of only two SEO companies selected, eXtéresAUTO also represents the only U.S.-based, automotive-specific, “designed-for-dealerships” provider Mercedes has named.
“Luxury auto shoppers are traditionally the heaviest users of the Internet and Search in their dealer and vehicle selection processes,” noted eXtéresAUTO CEO, Richard Winch. “We’re very honored by Mercedes’ recommendation, and the opportunity to provide Mercedes dealerships with the most powerful online search visibility possible, so they ‘own’ the top real estate across Google, Yahoo! and Bing.”
SEO is a core component in eXtéresAUTO’s comprehensive “Search Asset Management” (SAM™) approach, which also integrates advanced Online Reputation Management and Piracy Solutions for dealerships. In the only national awards program where dealersrate the vendors, eXtéresAUTO ranks #1 for SEO[1], and dealerships using the company's SEO now achieve, on average, 84% first-page search engine placement rates, up from 14% before.
Mercedes dealerships already using the company’s SEO report on the dramatic impact it’s had on their businesses. Randy Powell, General Manager of RBM of Atlanta-North (and Member of MBUSA’s Regional Dealer Advisory Board) notes: “We tried several SEO providers before getting it right with eXtéresAUTO, and it's made a huge difference in our new, used, service and parts sales – proving to be the highest-impact, highest-ROI marketing we can do."
And RBM North’s Internet Manager, Bethany Johnson, further testifies to the powerful results they’ve seen by combining eXtéresAUTO’s SEO and Online Reputation Management solutions: “We dominate the first-pages at the search engines - we stand out as the #1 customer choice in our market. And the result is we've gained significant market share, and now drive 60%-plus of our total store business directly from the search engines and review sites."
To access dealership case studies, contact Beth McGroarty, 213.300.0107, beth@rbicom.com
1624
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BM
eXteres
Sep 9, 2010
RBM North: How a new Mercedes store started out 85% digital and achieved stellar results
RBM North’s Challenge:
How’s this for bone chilling? You’re a brand-new Mercedes dealership, whose gorgeous brick-and-mortar doors open the exact month the financial markets collapse (Oct. 2007), the long recession digs in, and auto sales begin their dizzying 30%-plus declines. That’s the story of RBM North of Alpharetta, GA, the newest store of a family-owned Mercedes dealership group that has been operating in Atlanta for 45 years. Their story began exactly as the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression dug its heels in, and their grand-opening balloons were set against the backdrop of bank bailouts and a bursting housing bubble.
And not only was RBM North by far the youngest Mercedes dealership in a metro market with four well-established Mercedes players, it was a ‘destination’ store situated in a near-rural exurb on the rim of ever-expanding Atlanta - with limited, natural physical traffic and visibility. While their location touched on affluent zip codes, Internet Manager, Bethany Johnson, likes to joke: “many of our ‘drive-bys’ are cows.”
A nightmare? It didn’t turn out that way. In fact, RBM North has been extraordinarily successful, and has now staked out 10% more market share than any of their far more established, larger regional competitors. The key to their success: while most dealerships have slowly migrated to digital strategies, under the leadership of GM Randy Powell, RBM North embraced a nearly-100% digital marketing plan from ‘hello.’ Specifically, Powell knew that given the overwhelming consumer realities, his remote destination location, and the fact that they were an entirely unknown entity in a brutally competitive market, he had to focus intensely and cost-efficiently on being ‘found’ online. And the core pillars of their ‘online visibility’ campaign, while they have evolved significantly, have always been to establish: 1) powerful, first-page search engine visibility 2) rich, robust used inventory listings/reach across the Web 3) Adding a new focus on Reputation Management/positive review site visibility in early 2009.
While RBM North’s situation may seem unique, their case study shines a wider light on what an integrated, and near-100% focus on SEO and Reputation Management can accomplish for a dealership. As Powell put it, “Being an unknown entity was a huge challenge, but in many ways it proved an advantage: we were totally unencumbered by old ways of thinking, legacy marketing strategies and processes. We flew out of the gate with an 85%-digital-dedicated plan, attacking first our search and inventory presence, and then the review sites. And we’re pulling exponentially more customers not only from the Atlanta region - but across the South, and even the nation, every month.”
This case study touches on the dealership’s early strategies, but has a special focus on the results of their evolved SEO, review site and inventory campaigns, tracked from Feb. ’09 through Jul. 2010.
Forging A New ‘Triple-Pillar’ Strategy:
RBM North’s GM, Randy Powell, has 34 years experience in the car business, and currently serves on MBUSA’s Regional Dealer Advisory Board. Unlike many GMs, Randy comes from the Fixed Ops side, moving from service technician, to Service Director, into Operations Management and heading up the parent store’s BDC Department, before ultimately being named GM at RBM North.
Powell explains that his decision to forge a new ‘triple-pillar’ strategy, making organic search; a rich, visual inventory presence; and the review sites the bedrock of his marketing plan, came not so much from his expertise as ‘a car guy,’ but from being a regular consumer and keenly observing what the vast majority of regular consumers actually did – and sought - when they were buying anything. For Powell, the rise of the Internet changed everything, ushering in a new era where the person who could ask the best questions, query the best, was suddenly the most informed. Powell emphasizes that each of these three ‘backbones’ must be in place: “Putting up a million cars but having a bad online customer service reputation, or having a great reputation and only a handful of vehicle listings, doesn’t work. It all has to be integrated, and search engines are the portal.”
Bethany Johnson, Internet Manager at RBM North further notes that, with so much endless buzz around the next, newest technology solutions, it’s easier than ever for dealers to get distracted before they have the fundamentals of a high-ROI strategy in place.
“Our dealership is always evolving: there’s room for online chat, we have a Facebook and Twitter presence, and we’re really preparing for mobile, and location-based inventory search to be big,” said Johnson. “But with so many flavor-of-the month industry discussions, SEO can seem ‘so 2008,’ even Reputation Management so ‘last month,’ and getting your inventory strategy right, downright passé. But getting the core strategies – the ones that have the very highest impact on the very largest number of consumers – right, is key.”
I) The Quest for First-Page Search Placement: From PPC, to SEO, to Innovative SEO
Back in late 2007 Randy Powell had a brand new URL that desperately needed to be ‘found’ (and fast), but, as he put it, “we were, by nature, appearing on the 400th page at Google.” He hired a company to do SEO to boost his organic placement, but initially “bought” his way onto the first page by spending on PPC. “I had to let the world know we were here, and I spent on PPC and direct mail,” said Powell. “I knew I was buying short-term visibility, when I wanted the sustained visibility only really good SEO could provide.”
Powell never wavered in his belief that SEO should form the backbone of his digital business. Determined to make it work, he selected eXtéresAUTO in early ‘09, to try a more innovative, customized campaign that cast a much wider ‘optimization’ net across ten cities around Atlanta. Given the state of new vehicle sales, the new plan also heavily optimized new search profit centers like used and service, reaching far out-of-state for pre-owned inventory and wholesale parts.
New SEO Results:
Bethany Johnson reports that by March ‘09, this newly targeted and expanded SEO campaign had made a “huge, dramatic difference for new and used sales, service and parts. We have since dominated the first-pages across our metro region for these searches, and we’ve seen a huge kick in our out-of state wholesale parts and pre-owned sales business.” And Powell notes that it’s allowed him to cut/refine his PPC spend by at least 50% across the last year-plus, saving him a lot of money. That ‘spend refinement’ is reflected in the dramatic decline in the dealership’s cost-per-click: falling from $38 in early ‘08, to $4 in early 2010.
RBM North’s first-page placement rates have more than doubled: from 32% in Feb. ’09, to 75%-plus over the last ten months. Their three biggest competitors range from 4% to roughly 35% first-page search placement.
SEO is directly responsible for 600 sales, service and parts calls/leads/inquiries a month and 44% of the dealership’s unique website traffic.
II) Focus on Customer Reviews/Online Reputation:
By 2009, both Powell and Johnson realized the extraordinary impact online reviews were having on every breed of purchase, whether a $30 toaster or a $50,000 car. Johnson: “We constantly monitor our first-page visibility, so we knew our reviews were the first thing our potential customers saw, right on top at Google Local and all across the first pages.”
Before RBM North began a systematic Online Reputation Management campaign (in March ’09), they already had a very positive 4.5 out of 5 star rating, but had just a handful of reviews, so the few negative posts really stood out. Powell notes: “You’re always going to get a few negative reviews, especially on the service side. Our philosophy is don’t let negativity prevail, surround it with love – even a dealer with a 1-star rating today should take hope, with a review-generating process you’ll blanket the negatives with positives.”
RBM North’s System:
GM set the tone: everyone in the store knew this campaign was serious
Hit on the right sales/service team incentives: replace CSI survey bonuses with rewards for positive reviews
Constantly track reviews, so you can verbally respond to any unhappy customer immediately and try to resolve.
Hit on the right review-gathering process for your clientele ‘mindset’. Since their customers tend to be busy professionals, they are not overly aggressive. For each positive CSI survey, the simply follow-up, politely requesting a review
Use email templates customized for both sales/service, with links to many review sites, making it very easy for a customer to post
Make sure the template comes from the sales/service person they had rapport with
Set up dedicated online pages for each salesperson to showcase their reviews, convert customers, etc.
Include reviews in all email signatures
Give great customer service in the first place
Johnson notes that within a few months, the campaign had a major impact on walk-in traffic, but also phone and email inquiries. And RBM North’s case keenly illustrates that it’s not just a dealership’s overall positive rating, but the high volume of reviews, across many sites that ignited the business generation difference.
III) Inventory Listings – Robust, with Wide Reach:
The third ‘pillar’ for RBM North is having the richest, most robust inventory listings – with the widest reach/optimization across the Web. Randy Powell explains that the situation on the used side for a Mercedes dealer is unique. If there’s a level playing field on the new side, on the used side the car is the big ‘story,’ and that ‘story’ matters more than location. “Because each used Mercedes we have is unique, I can cast a national net. Say a person in LA is looking for a 2008 CLK convertible, and a local dealer has a red one with 20,000 miles, but I have a black and tan one with 8,000. It’s supply-and-demand, and if I create powerful visibility for the right cars, and post them the right way, I’ll get that sale.”
RBM North’s inventory listings are designed to create an emotional connection to the cars, to tell that ‘story’ through numerous photos and engaging text. To control the look of their images, they converted a service bay into a dedicated photo studio, and they write detailed comments on every single vehicle.
So, while the dealership doesn’t work with new-vehicle lead providers, they devote the majority of their digital budget to 3rd-party, used-lead providers/inventory site marketing.
Results:
* 60% of overall business is used, 40% new
* 70% of pre-owned business is not only out of their AOI, it’s out-of-state
* While average dealer saw used sales drop 3% last year, RBM North drove 31% growth
Analyzing ROI/Results:
RBM North has never experienced that ‘happy time before the recession,’ and as a new store, the traditional ‘before-and-after’ business success measurements can prove irrelevant. How is their 85%-digital marketing strategy working? Amazingly well. While the average Mercedes dealership experienced 15.3% new-sales declines in ’09, RBM North fell only 6%, and their incredible 31% gains on the used side have been detailed. With the leanest marketing budget among their local competitors, they still have managed to corner 10% more market share.
The power of SEO/the website(s) in driving business stands out starkly, and when combined with review-site-generated business, it constitutes three-quarters of their Net-generated business, and 63% of total store business.
And SEO/Website/Reputation Management’s cost-efficiencies/ROI really jumps out: while it drives 74% of their total online business it represents only 15.5% of their digital spend – or a 5:1 ROI. While 3rd-party inventory sites represent a much larger 72% of the digital spend, they deliver 20% of total Internet-generated business. So, taken together, these ‘three pillars’ generate 94% of their online business and 80% of total store business.
Summary:
RBM North’s innovative, three-pillar digital strategy was 100%-designed with people and consumer behavior in mind: firmly built around what car shoppers are actually doing (searching online) and what they seek most: the right dealership (with a positive online reputation) and the right car (rich, widespread inventory postings).
Randy Powell sums up: “This integrated strategy is simply the highest-impact, most cost-efficient, highest-ROI marketing we can do. There were so many ridiculous odds stacked against us, but we’re thriving. And how many stores that started at the beginning of a recession can say that.”
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eXteres
Sep 9, 2010
RBM North: How a new Mercedes store started out 85% digital and achieved stellar results
RBM North’s Challenge:
How’s this for bone chilling? You’re a brand-new Mercedes dealership, whose gorgeous brick-and-mortar doors open the exact month the financial markets collapse (Oct. 2007), the long recession digs in, and auto sales begin their dizzying 30%-plus declines. That’s the story of RBM North of Alpharetta, GA, the newest store of a family-owned Mercedes dealership group that has been operating in Atlanta for 45 years. Their story began exactly as the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression dug its heels in, and their grand-opening balloons were set against the backdrop of bank bailouts and a bursting housing bubble.
And not only was RBM North by far the youngest Mercedes dealership in a metro market with four well-established Mercedes players, it was a ‘destination’ store situated in a near-rural exurb on the rim of ever-expanding Atlanta - with limited, natural physical traffic and visibility. While their location touched on affluent zip codes, Internet Manager, Bethany Johnson, likes to joke: “many of our ‘drive-bys’ are cows.”
A nightmare? It didn’t turn out that way. In fact, RBM North has been extraordinarily successful, and has now staked out 10% more market share than any of their far more established, larger regional competitors. The key to their success: while most dealerships have slowly migrated to digital strategies, under the leadership of GM Randy Powell, RBM North embraced a nearly-100% digital marketing plan from ‘hello.’ Specifically, Powell knew that given the overwhelming consumer realities, his remote destination location, and the fact that they were an entirely unknown entity in a brutally competitive market, he had to focus intensely and cost-efficiently on being ‘found’ online. And the core pillars of their ‘online visibility’ campaign, while they have evolved significantly, have always been to establish: 1) powerful, first-page search engine visibility 2) rich, robust used inventory listings/reach across the Web 3) Adding a new focus on Reputation Management/positive review site visibility in early 2009.
While RBM North’s situation may seem unique, their case study shines a wider light on what an integrated, and near-100% focus on SEO and Reputation Management can accomplish for a dealership. As Powell put it, “Being an unknown entity was a huge challenge, but in many ways it proved an advantage: we were totally unencumbered by old ways of thinking, legacy marketing strategies and processes. We flew out of the gate with an 85%-digital-dedicated plan, attacking first our search and inventory presence, and then the review sites. And we’re pulling exponentially more customers not only from the Atlanta region - but across the South, and even the nation, every month.”
This case study touches on the dealership’s early strategies, but has a special focus on the results of their evolved SEO, review site and inventory campaigns, tracked from Feb. ’09 through Jul. 2010.
Forging A New ‘Triple-Pillar’ Strategy:
RBM North’s GM, Randy Powell, has 34 years experience in the car business, and currently serves on MBUSA’s Regional Dealer Advisory Board. Unlike many GMs, Randy comes from the Fixed Ops side, moving from service technician, to Service Director, into Operations Management and heading up the parent store’s BDC Department, before ultimately being named GM at RBM North.
Powell explains that his decision to forge a new ‘triple-pillar’ strategy, making organic search; a rich, visual inventory presence; and the review sites the bedrock of his marketing plan, came not so much from his expertise as ‘a car guy,’ but from being a regular consumer and keenly observing what the vast majority of regular consumers actually did – and sought - when they were buying anything. For Powell, the rise of the Internet changed everything, ushering in a new era where the person who could ask the best questions, query the best, was suddenly the most informed. Powell emphasizes that each of these three ‘backbones’ must be in place: “Putting up a million cars but having a bad online customer service reputation, or having a great reputation and only a handful of vehicle listings, doesn’t work. It all has to be integrated, and search engines are the portal.”
Bethany Johnson, Internet Manager at RBM North further notes that, with so much endless buzz around the next, newest technology solutions, it’s easier than ever for dealers to get distracted before they have the fundamentals of a high-ROI strategy in place.
“Our dealership is always evolving: there’s room for online chat, we have a Facebook and Twitter presence, and we’re really preparing for mobile, and location-based inventory search to be big,” said Johnson. “But with so many flavor-of-the month industry discussions, SEO can seem ‘so 2008,’ even Reputation Management so ‘last month,’ and getting your inventory strategy right, downright passé. But getting the core strategies – the ones that have the very highest impact on the very largest number of consumers – right, is key.”
I) The Quest for First-Page Search Placement: From PPC, to SEO, to Innovative SEO
Back in late 2007 Randy Powell had a brand new URL that desperately needed to be ‘found’ (and fast), but, as he put it, “we were, by nature, appearing on the 400th page at Google.” He hired a company to do SEO to boost his organic placement, but initially “bought” his way onto the first page by spending on PPC. “I had to let the world know we were here, and I spent on PPC and direct mail,” said Powell. “I knew I was buying short-term visibility, when I wanted the sustained visibility only really good SEO could provide.”
Powell never wavered in his belief that SEO should form the backbone of his digital business. Determined to make it work, he selected eXtéresAUTO in early ‘09, to try a more innovative, customized campaign that cast a much wider ‘optimization’ net across ten cities around Atlanta. Given the state of new vehicle sales, the new plan also heavily optimized new search profit centers like used and service, reaching far out-of-state for pre-owned inventory and wholesale parts.
New SEO Results:
Bethany Johnson reports that by March ‘09, this newly targeted and expanded SEO campaign had made a “huge, dramatic difference for new and used sales, service and parts. We have since dominated the first-pages across our metro region for these searches, and we’ve seen a huge kick in our out-of state wholesale parts and pre-owned sales business.” And Powell notes that it’s allowed him to cut/refine his PPC spend by at least 50% across the last year-plus, saving him a lot of money. That ‘spend refinement’ is reflected in the dramatic decline in the dealership’s cost-per-click: falling from $38 in early ‘08, to $4 in early 2010.
RBM North’s first-page placement rates have more than doubled: from 32% in Feb. ’09, to 75%-plus over the last ten months. Their three biggest competitors range from 4% to roughly 35% first-page search placement.
SEO is directly responsible for 600 sales, service and parts calls/leads/inquiries a month and 44% of the dealership’s unique website traffic.
II) Focus on Customer Reviews/Online Reputation:
By 2009, both Powell and Johnson realized the extraordinary impact online reviews were having on every breed of purchase, whether a $30 toaster or a $50,000 car. Johnson: “We constantly monitor our first-page visibility, so we knew our reviews were the first thing our potential customers saw, right on top at Google Local and all across the first pages.”
Before RBM North began a systematic Online Reputation Management campaign (in March ’09), they already had a very positive 4.5 out of 5 star rating, but had just a handful of reviews, so the few negative posts really stood out. Powell notes: “You’re always going to get a few negative reviews, especially on the service side. Our philosophy is don’t let negativity prevail, surround it with love – even a dealer with a 1-star rating today should take hope, with a review-generating process you’ll blanket the negatives with positives.”
RBM North’s System:
GM set the tone: everyone in the store knew this campaign was serious
Hit on the right sales/service team incentives: replace CSI survey bonuses with rewards for positive reviews
Constantly track reviews, so you can verbally respond to any unhappy customer immediately and try to resolve.
Hit on the right review-gathering process for your clientele ‘mindset’. Since their customers tend to be busy professionals, they are not overly aggressive. For each positive CSI survey, the simply follow-up, politely requesting a review
Use email templates customized for both sales/service, with links to many review sites, making it very easy for a customer to post
Make sure the template comes from the sales/service person they had rapport with
Set up dedicated online pages for each salesperson to showcase their reviews, convert customers, etc.
Include reviews in all email signatures
Give great customer service in the first place
Johnson notes that within a few months, the campaign had a major impact on walk-in traffic, but also phone and email inquiries. And RBM North’s case keenly illustrates that it’s not just a dealership’s overall positive rating, but the high volume of reviews, across many sites that ignited the business generation difference.
III) Inventory Listings – Robust, with Wide Reach:
The third ‘pillar’ for RBM North is having the richest, most robust inventory listings – with the widest reach/optimization across the Web. Randy Powell explains that the situation on the used side for a Mercedes dealer is unique. If there’s a level playing field on the new side, on the used side the car is the big ‘story,’ and that ‘story’ matters more than location. “Because each used Mercedes we have is unique, I can cast a national net. Say a person in LA is looking for a 2008 CLK convertible, and a local dealer has a red one with 20,000 miles, but I have a black and tan one with 8,000. It’s supply-and-demand, and if I create powerful visibility for the right cars, and post them the right way, I’ll get that sale.”
RBM North’s inventory listings are designed to create an emotional connection to the cars, to tell that ‘story’ through numerous photos and engaging text. To control the look of their images, they converted a service bay into a dedicated photo studio, and they write detailed comments on every single vehicle.
So, while the dealership doesn’t work with new-vehicle lead providers, they devote the majority of their digital budget to 3rd-party, used-lead providers/inventory site marketing.
Results:
* 60% of overall business is used, 40% new
* 70% of pre-owned business is not only out of their AOI, it’s out-of-state
* While average dealer saw used sales drop 3% last year, RBM North drove 31% growth
Analyzing ROI/Results:
RBM North has never experienced that ‘happy time before the recession,’ and as a new store, the traditional ‘before-and-after’ business success measurements can prove irrelevant. How is their 85%-digital marketing strategy working? Amazingly well. While the average Mercedes dealership experienced 15.3% new-sales declines in ’09, RBM North fell only 6%, and their incredible 31% gains on the used side have been detailed. With the leanest marketing budget among their local competitors, they still have managed to corner 10% more market share.
The power of SEO/the website(s) in driving business stands out starkly, and when combined with review-site-generated business, it constitutes three-quarters of their Net-generated business, and 63% of total store business.
And SEO/Website/Reputation Management’s cost-efficiencies/ROI really jumps out: while it drives 74% of their total online business it represents only 15.5% of their digital spend – or a 5:1 ROI. While 3rd-party inventory sites represent a much larger 72% of the digital spend, they deliver 20% of total Internet-generated business. So, taken together, these ‘three pillars’ generate 94% of their online business and 80% of total store business.
Summary:
RBM North’s innovative, three-pillar digital strategy was 100%-designed with people and consumer behavior in mind: firmly built around what car shoppers are actually doing (searching online) and what they seek most: the right dealership (with a positive online reputation) and the right car (rich, widespread inventory postings).
Randy Powell sums up: “This integrated strategy is simply the highest-impact, most cost-efficient, highest-ROI marketing we can do. There were so many ridiculous odds stacked against us, but we’re thriving. And how many stores that started at the beginning of a recession can say that.”
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