Upload
carscom-dealeradvantage
View
661
Download
1
Embed Size (px)
DESCRIPTION
Buying a car isn't just about price -- a dealer's brand and reputation matter. Cars.com shares insights into consumer behavior when it comes to shopping for new vehicles.
Citation preview
Cars.com Insights
A New Age for Selling New Vehicles: the Role of Dealer Differentiation and Brand
The automotive landscape has changed since 2007, when new-vehicle sales were last near their high point, but consumer shopping behavior has changed as well.
New-Vehicle Sales Projected to Grow• U.S.new-vehiclesalescouldexceed14millionunitsin
2012,1reachingtheirhighestlevelsince2007.
• Thisrepresentsanincreaseof35%sincetheindustry’slowpointin2009,whentheindustrybottomedoutat10.4millionunits.
5
10
15
20
201320122011201020092008200720062005
Total U.S. New Vehicle Unit Sales(in millions)
A business’ reputation has moved into the forefront of the shopping process.
Local consumers like to read as many as 10 reviews before making a decision about which local business to use, and nearly half are more likely to use a local business after reading positive online reviews.2
Mobile devices have changed the way consumers shop, making information available from anywhere – even right on your lot.
Nearly 40% of Cars.com’s total new-vehicle searches come from mobile devices.3
Cars.com Insights
Be visible. BesuretoclaimyourlistingonGooglePlaces,FacebookPlaces,Foursquare,YellowPages.com,Angie’sListandotherbusinesslistingsandreviewsites.
Be accurate. Monitoryouronlinepresenceonbothfreeandpaidsites,andbesurethatallofyourinformationiscorrect.Nothingisworsethananincorrectphonenumber,abrokenURLoranemailaddressthatgoesnowhere!
Be consistent. Communicateanddeliveronyourbrandvaluethroughoutallcustomertouchpoints,fromin-storesignageandleadprocesstoyourwebsite,onlineadvertisingandemailcommunications.
Be trusted.Buildyourbrandbyaskinghappycustomerstowritereviewsabouttheirexperience,andhaveastrategyforrespondingtonegativereviewsthatshowsyourcommitmenttocustomersatisfaction.
A dealership having an online presence is as important as the dealership’s proximity to an online new-car shopper when deciding where to buy.4
Differentiate Your Brand
Understanding Today’s New-Car Shopper
Optimize your presence. Makesureyourdealershipwebsitecanbeseenonalldevices.Youcandoaquickcheckathowtogomo.com.
Tailor the experience. Onyourmobile-optimizedsite,makeiteasyformobileuserstoaccesstheinformationtheywant,includingphotos,features,price/incentivesinformationandinventory.
Don’t forget service. Consideraskingyourservicecustomersiftheywouldprefertoreceiveupdatesontheirvehicleviatext.
Of mobile car shoppers, 57% of recent purchasers said they used their devices on the dealership lot.5
Connect with Shoppers On the Go
Monitor. Assignsomeoneatyourstoretheresponsibilityoflisteningtofeedbackacrosstheinternet.
Respond. Replytofeedback,bothgoodandbad.Acknowledgenegativefeedbackpublicly,buttoavoidapublicdebate,strivetotaketheconversationofflinebyincludingyourcontactinformationandinvitingthecustomertocontactyoudirectly.
Ask.Goodreviewsstartwithagreatexperience,soincorporatereviewsthroughoutyourprocess.Includelinkstoyourreviewsitesinemailcommunications,handout“HowDidWeDo?”cardsinyourservicedepartmentandfollowupwithhappycustomersbytellingthemhowmuchyouwouldappreciatetheirreferralonareviewsite.
Promote. Sharepositivereviewswithyourprospectswithlinksonyourwebsiteandin-storesignage.Also,don’tforgettorewardstaffforgreatreviews!
Cars.com new-car shoppers who read reviews are 7x more likely to contact a dealer.3
Turn Your Customers into Advocates
35% 33% 3%4%25%
68% of Consumers considering purchasing a new vehicle are most or exclusively shopping brand new
Onlyconsiderbrandnewvehicles,sowillnotlookatusedvehicles
Focusonbrandnewvehiclesbutmayconsiderusedvehicles
Considerbothnewandusedfairlyequally
Mostlyconsideringpre-ownedvehiclesbutmaydecideonnewvehicleinstead
Notsureifnextvehiclewillbeneworused
The 411 on Cross-ShoppingNew-car shoppers are open to used, but most are focused on new.
Source: Cars.com/Synovate Online New Car Shopper Study, 2010
Sources:
1 J.D. Power and Associates – 2012 U.S. Auto Sales Forecast
2 BrightLocal annual Local Consumer Review Survey – Harnessing the Power of Online Customer Reviews for Local Business Growth, 2011
3 Cars.com Internal Reporting, 2012
4 Cars.com/Synovate Online New Car Shopper Study, 2010
5 Cars.com: Mobile Web and App Usage for Automotive Shoppers, 2011 (Source: Nielsen)
© 2012 Classified Ventures, LLC™. All rights reserved.
About Cars.comCars.comwasrecentlynamedthe“BestOverallCustomerExperience”byKeynoteSystems,theleaderininternetandmobilecloudmarketing.Cars.comisanonlinedestinationforcarshoppersthatoffersinformationfromconsumersandexpertstohelpbuyersformulateopinionsonwhattobuy,wheretobuyandhowmuchtopayforacar.Withpricelistings,side-by-sidecomparisontools,photogalleries,videos,unbiasededitorialcontentandalargeselectionofnew-andused-carinventory,Cars.computsmillionsofcarbuyersincontroloftheirshoppingprocesswiththeinformationtheyneedtomakeconfidentbuyingdecisions.
LaunchedinJune1998,Cars.comisadivisionofClassifiedVenturesLLC,whichisownedbyleadingmediacompanies,includingBelo(NYSE:BLC),GannettCo.,Inc.(NYSE:GCI),TheMcClatchyCompany(NYSE:MNI),TribuneCompanyandTheWashingtonPostCompany(NYSE:WPO).