{"id":1530,"date":"2018-08-01T13:47:49","date_gmt":"2018-08-01T18:47:49","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/efgintelligence.com\/dealershipcorridor\/?p=1530"},"modified":"2021-12-03T13:47:18","modified_gmt":"2021-12-03T19:47:18","slug":"diving-digital-online-retailing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/efgintelligence.com\/dealershipcorridor\/diving-digital-online-retailing\/","title":{"rendered":"Diving Into Digital"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Eric
Contributing Author: Eric Fifield Chief Revenue Officer, EFG Companies<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Did you take advantage of Amazon Prime Day? Spend a little time investigating the online deals promoted by Amazon or a dozen other major online retailers? Did you have an enjoyable digital experience, or form an opinion about a retailer thanks to your online shopping trip?<\/p>\n

If you are like the majority of consumers, you relied on brand perception<\/strong> to point you to certain retailers. You researched your purchase<\/strong> against a couple of other online options. You vetted the product<\/strong> by checking reviews and ratings, and you hit the \u201cBuy Now\u201d button. You didn\u2019t visit a store or consult an expert.<\/p>\n

The importance of a digital presence is only continuing to grow in retail automotive. EFG Companies recently released a finding from its national consumer research study revealing the critical role of a dealership\u2019s online presence in making a sale. According to the 1,500 respondents, today\u2019s digital consumer begins their buying research process online.<\/strong> An Ernst & Young study showed that more than two-thirds of customers now spend less than 10 hours to research their vehicle purchase<\/strong> \u2013 down from 15 hours in 2016. This same study showed that consumers spend more time online researching a car than any other online purchase!<\/p>\n

So, how does your digital presence stack up against other major retailers? Does your brand have sufficient weight to make your website the go-to resource when a consumer is researching a vehicle?<\/p>\n

Like the old marketing adage says, \u201cYour brand is everything!\u201d This is especially important with today\u2019s digital consumer. But how do you assess your brand value? An established dealership owner might say, \u201cWe\u2019ve been in this community for 50 years! Everybody knows us!\u201d While that might be true for those consumers who have been in the same community for 50 years, it does not factor in new residents or younger demographics. And, honestly, folks who have been around for \u2018awhile\u2019 are not your greatest potential consumer base.\u00a0 Remember, by 2020, Millennials will be the largest vehicle purchasing population in the United States.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Now, your website is a top 3 point of engagement a customer has with your brand and your inventory. The site needs to be easy to navigate, represent current inventory, and offer touch points for access to your sales team. Providing a contact page with the dealership phone number and address are not sufficient. Your team needs to be digitally accessible via email, text or chatbots.<\/strong><\/p>\n

A Cox Automotive study showed that 7 in 10 consumers<\/strong> are more likely to buy from a dealership if they could start the process online. 83 percent<\/strong> of the nearly 3,000 consumers surveyed prefer to complete at least one aspect of the purchase process online, away from the dealership.<\/p>\n

What do they want to do online?<\/p>\n