WALTHAM, Mass. -

DealerRater recently announced two key additions to its senior management team on the heels of the company’s unprecedented growth throughout North America in 2011.

The company tabulated the number of consumer reviews posted on DealerRater has more than doubled in the past year to more than 550,000. Meanwhile, the number of visitors to the site jumped from 3 million to 5 million per year, and the certified dealer count grew from 2,500 to 4,200.

In anticipation of continued growth, DealerRater recruited highly regarded industry veteran Brett Lippel to join its executive team as senior vice president of sales and business development.

In this new role, Lippel will direct corporate sales strategy and provide executive-level management to the company’s global sales and business development efforts, spearhead strategic product planning and secure continued growth for the organization through development of national and international partnerships.

“I am thrilled to join DealerRater at such an exciting time in the company’s 10-year history,” Lippel insisted.

“With over half a million consumer reviews and strong customer loyalty among dealerships across North America, I look forward to evolving our sales strategy and continuing the development of best-in-class leveraging tools for our dealer partners worldwide,” he continued.

Previously, Lippel served as vice president of sales and customer service for CRM provider Peak Performance Marketing Solutions where he led the company’s large nationwide sales force and was the key driver behind the company’s sales growth.

In addition, Lippel also served as vice president of dealer sales and client services with Zag.com/Autoland where he managed all inside and outside sales teams.

Officials also mentioned Lippel has significant experience building businesses internationally through his involvement in various executive roles with Enterprise Rent-a-Car in Canada and the United Kingdom.

Also joining the DealerRater executive team as director of business development for the U.S. and Canada is Angelica Jeffreys, who holds more than 20 years of industry experience.

Jeffreys previously served as a top-performing regional account manager for DealerRater since she joined the company in 2010.

The company said Jeffreys will be primarily responsible for identifying and developing potential strategic partnerships, as well as expanding current key relationships.

Prior to her success at DealerRater, Jeffreys held various sales management roles at Cox Enterprises and AutoTrader.com and also served as general sales manager at AutoFair Automotive Group.

“To support our rapid growth, DealerRater is expanding its management team. With our continued push into the Canadian market and extensive partnership opportunities, the addition of senior-level industry leaders with demonstrated expertise in the sales and business development areas is critical for us,” explained DealerRater president Chip Grueter.

“Brett will be a wonderful addition to the team given his leadership skills and demonstrated success at driving market share both at the U.S. and international levels,” Grueter continued. I am also very excited to promote Angelica to director of business development as she has already proven her outstanding ability to generate new business and growth for the company.

For more information about the company, call (800) 266-9455, visit http://www.dealerrater.com or stop by Booth No. 2993 at the upcoming National Automobile Dealers Association Convention and Expo in Las Vegas.