Product-related information has become the primary focus for new-vehicle shoppers who use the internet to research models, significantly surpassing price information for the first time, according the to JD Power and Associates’ New Autoshopper.com study.
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The study finds that while some shoppers know which vehicle they are looking for before going online, 79% of automotive internet users are influenced in making their vehicle selection by information found online. This compares to 78% who are influenced by how much they paid or offered for the vehicle they purchased.
JD Power said automotive internet usage has gone through a tremendous transformation in its 10-year history. Initially it was primarily thought of as a tool for getting the best price on a vehicle but is now seen primarily as a way of choosing which vehicle.
Along with this trend, the number of visits to manufacturer web sites continues to increase among all new vehicle buyers, while visits to independent sites (sites not controlled by a vehicle dealer or manufacturer) remain flat. On average, buyers say they rely most on manufacturer-sponsored sites for product information and on independent sites for price-related information.
While the majority of buyers visit the brand’s web site before they purchase a model, they typically visit many sites before finalising their vehicle selection. For every manufacturer, at least 80% of their site visitors who buy a new vehicle will visit at least one other manufacturer site.
JD Power said there is tremendous market share at stake in the battle to turn site visitors into buyers and auto manufacturers will continue to move hundreds of millions of marketing dollars into their online efforts, becoming more efficient marketers in the process.
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By GlobalDataConsumers are using the internet to adjust to the fact that there are more models to choose from and more options and accessories to customise vehicles.
JD Power thinks this is a good thing. Vehicle depreciation is so high that the cost of buying the wrong vehicle can be far greater than the cost of paying a few hundred or even a few thousand dollars more than a better negotiator might have paid. In practice, most vehicle buyers are minimising the risk of buyer’s remorse by using the internet to find both the right vehicle and the right price.
The study found that a record high 67% of new vehicle buyers use the internet in their vehicle shopping process—up from 64% in 2004. Nearly all (89%) of these consumers visit a search engine or portal as part of their shopping process and 77% of these consumers visit at least one independent web site and typically visit this type of site first in their vehicle shopping process.
Independent sites are likely to add robust tools to help shoppers identify the right vehicle across all brands for their particular preferences or lifestyle and there remains a great deal of content opportunity for independent sites, JD Power concluded.
