Today’s car buyers not only want, but expect an efficient, personalized shopping experience. Digital retailing is retailing, whether consumers are buying clothes, coffee or cars.
When shoppers can go online anytime to find incentive information, apply for financing, calculate their monthly payment and see what kind of car they can really afford, they’re not only more satisfied, they're also a more qualified lead. But we know that digital retailing doesn’t just benefit customers; 90% of dealers surveyed in Cox Automotive’s 2023 Digitization of Car Buying study said digital retailing has positively impacted at least one area of their business. Dealers report the top benefits include:
1. Improved customer experience
2. Ease of completing the deal
3. Reduced time spent on a sale
Digital = Personal
Dealers and buyers benefit from digital retailing in another meaningful way: The connections it makes. In 2023, 43% of dealers said digital retailing creates a more personal connection with shoppers—up from just 25% the previous year. Fewer dealers than ever view digital retailing as a barrier to forming personal connections with buyers. This significant shift represents a breakthrough: Digital saves time and helps drive leads to the store, but now more dealers recognize that it also helps establish, build, and nurture a personal, more meaningful connection with the shopper. What’s driving this change?
Consumers are becoming more willing to share information with dealers online.
The Repetition Problem
To save time and help dealers provide more relevant recommendations, 74% of consumers are comfortable sharing more personal information, including personal data like income and credit score, vehicle data and online/social media data.
Despite receiving valuable information from customers online, 97% of dealers report that customers complete steps online and repeat them in-store.
Not only does this kind of repetition add time to the sale, but also it decreases customer satisfaction (46%) and decreases employee satisfaction (26%).
If we know that repeating steps online and in-store makes everyone unhappy, why is it happening? And what can dealers do to change it?
Close the Gap in Trust
According to our research, the primary reason customers repeat steps in-store is that dealers want to verify the accuracy of the information submitted online. In short, dealers don’t trust what consumers are submitting digitally. In fact, less than 10% of dealers say they completely trust the information customers submit online and a 61% majority say they “somewhat” trust the information submitted.
If a dealer doesn’t trust their own digital tools, they’re repeating steps the consumer has already completed, costing them time and eroding the customer’s trust. This situation creates a frustrating experience for all parties, reducing efficiency and potentially costing a dealership the deal.
The key to closing the gap? An omnichannel retail approach—that is, a seamless shopping experience for car buyers, whether they’re in the dealership, on the phone, or online.
Owning Omnichannel
We’ve already determined that repeating steps of the purchase process negatively impacts everyone’s experience, and our study shows that shoppers and dealers prefer to complete some of the car buying steps in-person. The largest percentage of customers prefer to sit with a dealer and review the information they’ve submitted online before moving forward. And more than 75% of shoppers and dealers indicated interest in working together to finalize the deal on a tablet or other digital tool.
By reviewing the information together, customers don’t feel like they’re wasting time by repeating steps, and dealers get the opportunity to verify the information they’ve been hesitant to trust. This type of personal engagement, while leveraging digital retailing tools, helps develop a personal relationship and build trust and transparency.
When a customer trusts a dealer, they’re more likely to close the deal, come back for service, recommend the dealership and continue to purchase cars there in the future.
The days of guarding pricing details are over, with dealers and shoppers agreeing that price transparency positively impacts the overall car buying experience for everyone.
Gear Up to Get Started
Shifting to an omnichannel retailing approach requires a shift in mindset and practice; it’s not a switch you can just flip. It also takes effective technology, real consumer insights and guidance.
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