Skip to main content
ECOMMERCECURIOSITYNEWS

Automotive: Customers now buy first on the web

The automotive consumer it is increasingly digitized and, before making a purchase, consult numerous advertisements online.

The sector ofAutomotive is witnessing a major shift in the way motorists buy cars. Statistical data show that, nowadays, the motorist wishing to buy a car, whether it is new or used, carries out the first online searches, trying to capture as much information as possible on the new or used car of his interest, both under the technical and economic profile (online phase).

Once the first information has been collected, the potential buyer goes to the dealership in order to confront the seller for information not available online (offline phase).

A similar process occurs in the second-hand sector. Indeed, the search for the used car, referring to much more complex parameters, such as eg. the year of registration or the kilometers traveled, sees a greater involvement ofonline user.

The motorist intending to sell his car, before entrusting the negotiation of his used vehicle to a dealership, spends a lot of time online among the dealer channels in order to identify which of these offers an interesting evaluation of his four-wheeler and, only one once the parameters have been defined, he goes to the company to formalize the negotiation.

Why do motorists prefer the online channel? Simple!

First of all, because mobile devices satisfy consumers' need for immediate information at any time of the day, generally during the journey home - work, during a wait, after a confrontation with another person or to allow themselves a few moments of distraction during a demanding work activity.

A second reason, but not least, must be sought in the reliability of a responsive site well structured and in the preventive service that in addition to being fast does not bind to the sale.

Interesting data emerge from research conducted by Accenture in 2014.

The study carried out on a sample of 10,000 motorists belonging to eight countries, highlighted how the 75% of users would prefer to benefit from a loan, buy the car and negotiate on the price exclusively online and the 69% of consumers bought the car of interest directly. online or has thought about doing so.

It's obvious! The purchasing dynamics in the automotive sector are changing!

The Internet is a hotbed of information and fully satisfies the motorist's need to find accurate information in order to bring home the best deal. The consequence of this is that, compared to a few years ago, the dealerships recorded a lower turnout and, above all, the motorist who goes to the dealership is already an informed user.

Digital is revolutionizing not only the purchasing process of the sector automotive, but also the sales one.

The traditional presentation of the car by the dealership, for example, to date, turns out to be an unnecessary marketing strategy, as the driver has already visited the car manufacturer's site several times and when he enters the dealership. it is only to acquire further technical details or to satisfy the curiosity to drive it.

In short, a digital change that many thought was still distant from the sector automotive, by now, it is a reality and, to demonstrate this, it is sufficient to observe that the initial phase of the purchase always takes place on web.

Big changes have always aroused perplexity, but when they simplify everyday life and offer great opportunities, the best step is to accept the change and adapt to customer needs.

Remember that if you don't let your customers drive you, maybe they won't drive your cars either.

As Bill Gates says:

“Every day we ask ourselves: How can we make this customer happy? How can we do this by continuing along the path of innovation? We wonder why, otherwise, someone else will do it. "