Snows Motor Group has secured top spot in the newly-published Automotive Reputation Report – the third year running it has achieved that distinction.

Chairman and CEO of the company, Stephen Snow, said he ‘‘couldn’t be more delighted’’ by the firm’s impressive hat-trick.

The important report gives automotive dealers and brands a Reputation Score, a proprietary, AI-powered metric that measures brand health and business performance at brand and location level, and assesses customer sentiment and online reputation.

The 2023 Automotive Reputation Report highlights the top public and private dealer groups in the United Kingdom. Their scores are based on feedback from thousands of consumers, a metric that has proved increasingly important for the automotive industry in recent years.

The report reveals which dealerships lead the pack on the key touchpoints of the car-buying experience, highlighting the importance of customer feedback from acquisition to loyalty.

Stephen Snow, Chairman and CEO of Snows Motor Group, said: ‘‘We couldn’t be more delighted that Snows Motor Group is the UK's number one-ranked dealer group for the third year running – it’s an outstanding achievement.

‘‘Our company-wide commitment to delivering exceptional customer experiences has allowed us to achieve the highest consumer sentiment among dealerships across the UK. We’re pleased to see a continued steady increase of new and returning customers and this is no doubt a reflection of our focus on online reviews.’’

As well as coming top in the dealer group listings, Snows enjoyed success in the individual dealerships category, with Snows Mazda Portsmouth taking a very creditable second place.

Reputation is the only platform that measures consumer feedback from acquisition to loyalty. Functioning as a business’s eyes and ears in the spaces where customers talk, post, review and recommend, Reputation analyses vast amounts of feedback data to uncover predictive insights for companies to act upon.

Joe Fuca, CEO of Reputation, said: ‘‘A car is one of the most significant purchases many consumers make, and a highly emotional one. People are willing to pay the higher prices we’re seeing today, but expect a premium experience – which means where they buy their car matters now more than ever.

‘‘With reviews of dealerships spiking and 84 per cent of consumers saying that reviews are a crucial factor in their purchasing decisions, dealerships can build trust and boost sales by listening to customer feedback and acting on it. The OEMs, dealer groups and dealerships that focus on consumer feedback to improve their reputation are all top-ranking organisations in this year’s Automotive Report.’’

Measured on a scale of 0 to 1,000, Reputation’s Reputation Score is a comprehensive index of the digital presence of business locations across more than 70 industries.

The scores are calculated by taking into account multiple factors measuring overall review sentiment on review sites, business listing accuracy, and other indicators that reflect consumers’ experiences and opinions – both online and on site. Snows’ impressive score of 818 secured its place at the top of the table and ahead of all the other dealer groups in the top half of the AM100.