Using VR technology and specialized apps, almost every showroom in any dealership can become a virtual reality showroom. Brands like Audi and BMW have already jumped on this phenomena.
Vroom has even created a virtual reality showroom to showcase their available assortment that allows users to view car models from the comfort of their home.
80% of the future purchasing generation will tend to visit stores that offer interactive experiences via AR and VR technologies.
Takeaway: For dealers, investing in VR technology is something to consider. With a VR demo station, dealers can offer customers immersive test-drives which can enhance the customer experience but also help sell more cars to existing customers and drive more referrals.
Mobile Plays a Huge Role
More than half of automotive shoppers use a mobile device in their quest for automotive information.
According to the research by Weve Automotive, the mobile journey starts with:
Awareness: 57% browsed for car inspiration on their mobile.
Consideration: 59% researched and compared prices/specifications on their mobile.
Intent: 61% searched for nearby dealerships, requested brochures, and booked test drives on their mobile.
Purchase: 9% purchased a car on their mobile.
Loyalty: 9% explored aftersales on their mobile.
Additionally, 58% of auto shoppers agree that in the future their smartphone is likely to be the only device they will use for vehicle research.
Solution: When it comes to mobile, customers are becoming less tolerant of websites that do not take the smartphone journey into account. To provide the necessary information and customer experience, mobile needs to be accounted for (or even prioritized) in the digital journey.
Digital Advertising is on the Rise
When it comes to advertising, automotive competitors are using digital as the number one channel in their marketing campaigns.
Industry experts estimate that the average digital ad spend for automotive will break $14 billion by 2020, representing a 200% increase in just 3 years.
Using a vast range of integrated marketing tools backed by experimentation and innovation, this gives dealers the ability to attract more customers.
Two effective examples include:
Social Media Platforms – It’s important to understand where consumers are researching potential vehicles. Social media is an essential tool for any business, but for the automotive industry, it is a chance to target specific buyers based on their research habits. Platforms like Instagram, Twitter and Youtube allow brands to be creatively innovative with their campaigns.
For example, with an average of 34 posts per day and a massive 19.8k engagements per post, Mercedes-Benz recently generated over 424k engagements every 24 hours over the course of a week – more than any of its competitors.
To stand out from the crowd, many of Mercedes’ Facebook posts contain information about its cars’ fuel consumption and CO2 emissions, and their video content often features celebrity drivers which portray a common comedic theme, gaining hundreds of thousands of views.
Stay Integrated and Get Specific – Integration is vital when it comes to digital. The most successful and engaging automotive campaigns succeed because they’re more than just social media campaigns.
For example, Lexus took to social media, specifically, Facebook, to better understand their different consumer segments and, as part of their Beyond Utility campaign, created 1,000 separate Facebook ads targeted at different individual groups of people. By doing this Lexus ensured the ads resonated with end consumers. This allowed individual consumers to see versions of the ad that would be more likely to entice a purchase.
Conclusion
With digital now more of a necessity than a choice, automotive brands and dealerships must commit to introducing and integrating digital technologies and strategies into their business.
The key to embarking on or progressing digital transformation is to have a workforce that understands the fundamentals of digital so they can execute effective marketing campaigns and influence customers through successful social selling techniques.
Ultimately, the goal of digital techniques should be to ensure the buyer journey is interactive, engaging and enjoyable.
Shop Smart Autos is not responsible for any errors in price or vehicle information provided to us from our dealer partners. We take every precaution to ensure the information is accurate and correct. Any questions please contact the dealer.
