RANK

Sales department negativity continues to creep up

The sales department, currently the fourth-highest source of negative reviews in Q1 (behind service, communication, and staff), saw a modest increase of 4.3% to start the year.

Zooming out, we’ve observed a steady rise in sales-related negativity over the past two years—up 16% overall.

This raises a critical question: why is negativity growing?

In our 2024 Voice of Customer Report, we pointed to increasing operational complexity and a faster pace of business as key stressors. These pressures appear to be affecting staff performance, especially in the wake of the post-COVID shift in customer expectations.

Staff-related negativity in general has seen a notable spike. In 2023, staff were mentioned in 21% of all negative reviews. So far this year, that figure has climbed to 37%.

This trend is even more pronounced within sales reviews: staff mentions rose from 27% in 2023 to 43% in 2025.

We’ve long known that when customers have a great dealership experience, over 70% of them name the individual staff member responsible in their review. That makes the current trend a clear call to action.

More in the Q1 2025 Voice of the Customer Report

EXPLORE

What car buyers are saying about tariffs

We analyzed 1.4 million Google reviews from January through April of 2025. Of those reviews, 450 directly mention tariffs.

The volume, though small, presents an obvious pattern: nearly every one of these reviews includes some version of “beating the tariffs.”

Many consumers framed their purchase as a savvy move:

“We were in a bit of a panic to purchase a new Honda before these ridiculous tariffs take effect.”

Or, “Fully intended to buy new and beat the tariff increases.”

Although a few negative reviews are present in this group, most focus on typical service or sales issues, rather than the tariffs themselves.

At this point, tariffs are functioning as a psychological motivator. Shoppers who mention them often emphasize the strategic nature of their purchase.

This urgency is evident in the numbers: Ford reported a record-breaking May, boosted by preemptive buying and its employee pricing offer.

For now, the industry is capitalizing on the momentum.