In the world we live in today, almost every engagement you have with a customer will be digital in some form or another. But this is more than just a passing fad prompted by the response to COVID-19: the automotive industry has been moving towards greater digitisation for some time. The pandemic has simply acted as a catalyst.

In any case though, your digital strategy is now a vital part of acquiring new customers, managing the sales process and forging better relationships with your existing client base. As a result, every stage of the buyer journey, from enquiry to aftersales and everything in between, must now be supported by technology, even more so than it was before.

In short, you need an automotive digital toolkit. One which enables a customer-first digital strategy that is easy for you to use. Stocked with all of the tools and technologies needed to enable a seamless, consistent and enjoyable experience.

In this blog, we take a look at four key stages of the automotive buying process and give some examples of different technologies which can support each step.

Research

Now more than ever, customers are conducting some or even most of their car-buying research online. As a result, their visits to the dealership are saved for later in the process – often once they’ve gathered all of the information they require.

We know the use of classified websites for car purchases is growing. Our recent research* found that almost half of car buyers go to classified websites when researching – an increase from 33% in 2017. Whilst a visit to the retailer is still part of the process, a customer now only visits on average 1.5 times from initial interest to purchase.

This change demands that dealerships provide more detailed information and a greater range of high-quality digital assets from day one. While this may sound like a big job, it doesn’t have to be. Tools such as CitNOW Web enable efficient creation and distribution of digital assets – making it an essential part of your automotive digital toolkit.

Enquiry

In the virtual showroom, a dealer no longer has the captive audience they would have in a physical dealership. Any digital enquiry a customer makes will likely be one of many, and so it’s imperative that dealers stand out from the crowd and respond to customers before anyone else.

Research from Dealerweb, who recently became part of the CitNOW group, has found that 42% of buyers are more likely to purchase if they receive a response to an enquiry within 30 minutes – with 30% expecting response within just 15 minutes.

Tools like Dealerweb React enable this through efficient lead collection and notification – alerting dealers to new enquiries so they can respond as soon as possible. When they do respond, it’s important they make an impression. Following up enquiries via video, through tools such as CitNOW Sales, can help you do this – while forging an emotional connection with the customer that is hard for others to break.

Purchase

It goes without saying that the purchase is the most important part of the automotive sales process. It stands to reason then that ensuring a good experience here should be a key priority for managers and marketers alike. Providing a mix of digital communication at this point can be vital to customer engagement. A pre-recorded CitNOW demonstrating the simplicity of in-car tech or vehicle charging for example can help to overcome customer reservations.

Live Video, through CitNOW Sales, gives the ability to undertake a virtual appointment and deal with queries and objections in real time, while providing detailed information about the vehicle that is personalised to the interests of the specific customer.

Automotive lead management systems like Dealerweb Showroom also have a vital part to play at this stage, generating quotations and finance offers, as well as documents for digital signing. Removing the burden of receiving, printing, signing and returning physical documentation can make for a faster, smoother and more professional purchasing process. With tools like Desktop available through CitNOW you can also have a video conversation from your desk and share screens to easily run through these finance quotations and documents directly with the customer.

Ownership

Once the customer signs on the dotted line and drives away from the forecourt, the sales journey is far from over. Keeping the lines of communication open post-purchase generates opportunities for up-selling and cross-selling in the future – a loyal customer is a long-term customer.

When they move into the service side, CitNOW Workshop can help customers make the right decisions about important repairs or servicing their vehicles require, by giving them all the information they need in an accessible, well-explained video. Both of these efforts help give the customer the confidence they need to say yes, helping to boost conversions.

If you’re a CitNOW or Dealerweb customer already, the good news is you’ve already got many of the tools you need at your disposal. If not, then it’s time to start building your digital toolkit and preparing for the future of car buying. Get in touch today to find out more.

A new year gives you new motivation to take your CitNOW experiences and videos to the next level. Learn how to get more from CitNOW by registering for one of our free webinars or exploring the tips and advice available in our How2CitNOW video series on YouTube.

* CitNOW poll of 1000 UK motorists, October 2020.