The AEO Whisperer Dealer Reputation Score

The formula

Score = Σ (platform rating × platform review count) ÷ Σ (platform review count)

Each platform's rating is multiplied by its review count, those products are summed across all platforms, and the total is divided by the total number of reviews. A platform that reports a rating but no review count is given a weight of one review so it still counts, but never outweighs high-volume platforms. The result is rounded to two decimal places.

Why volume weighting

A simple average treats a 5.0 from three reviews the same as a 4.7 from four thousand. Volume weighting fixes that: the platforms where the most customers actually left feedback have the most influence on the final score. It is the same principle AI assistants use when deciding which dealership to recommend — consistent sentiment at scale beats a small, perfect sample.

Platforms we check

• Google
• DealerRater
• Cars.com
• Edmunds
• Yelp
• Facebook

Platforms where a dealership has no listing or no rating are excluded rather than counted as zero.

Worked example

27,250 ÷ 5,700 = 4.78. The weak Yelp rating barely moves the needle because so few customers reviewed there.

Rankings and ties

The national rankings sort dealerships by score. When two dealerships share the same score, the one with more total reviews ranks higher.

Verification badge

Every scored dealership gets a public score page at /dealer/[slug] and a downloadable badge that links back to it. The badge is regenerated from live data, so it always reflects the most recent scan.