Top 3 Factors Impacting Customer Satisfaction of Modern Car Buyers

According to the Cox 2018 Car Buyer Journey Study, car buyers spend 60% of their time online, and less time in the showroom. This is because the car buyers of the digital age consider going to a car dealership, standing in long queues, dealing with salespeople, and making purchase decisions to be a tedious, time-consuming, and boring process.

Instead, they spend their time online researching car prices, comparing various car models, and locating a dealer or getting dealer info. They look for information that is easily accessible to them, solutions and services that help them in decision making and a simplified procedure at the car dealership.

Here are the key factors that influence the car buying process.

Purchase Process

Car buyers spend on an average 3 hours at the dealership during the purchase process. According to the same study, only 46% of customers are satisfied with the amount of time the entire process takes. The financials, paperwork, negotiating the details and making final decisions can become too time-consuming and challenging for the customers.

Hence, it is important for dealerships to make the purchase process more convenient and faster. This can be achieved by implementing digital tools that allow customers to carry out most processes online. Dealerships can improve their processes by shortening the negotiating exercise and eliminating paperwork.

Dealership Experience

Customers are well-informed about the car they wish to buy through digital mediums. They research well for their choice of the car before stepping into the dealership. At the dealership, they expect the salespeople to be a true resource who answer their questions, give them insights about the vehicle make and model, and provide them with a hassle-free test drive experience.

Dealerships need to understand that customer experience is the key to making the sale. It is therefore important to prioritize customer needs by taking the time out to understand their requirements and guide them in the right way, without rushing them to make a decision.

Communication with the Dealer

One of the key factors that impact the car buying processes is how well the dealership or the salesperson understands the customers’ requirements and how well they execute their needs. The customer walks in after several digital interactions with the dealership. When he has to deal with multiple people in the dealership and have to explain each one of them his requirements separately, it gets frustrating.

It is, therefore, necessary to have a centralized system which captures and stores all the needs and specific details of the customer. This way, everyone in the dealership is on the same page and aware of the customers’ choices. It also improves the overall car selling process and saves a lot of time for both, the customer as well as the dealer.

Revolutionize Dealership Experiences with Digital Solutions 

Car dealers of today need to focus more on making customer experiences flawless. This can be done by implementing automotive digital solutions and emerging technologies.

At Gateway Digital, we offer innovative solutions for the dealers of tomorrow and help them to offer seamless customer experiences. Our digital dealership solutions improve workflow efficiency, increase customer touchpoints, and reduce the sales cycle, thereby offering a queue less dealership experience to car buyers. To know more, visit www.thegatewaydigital.com or write to us at hello@thegatewaydigital.com.