Digital Dealer - April 2019 - 36

Road Trip to DD26 | April 9-11, 2019 | Orlando

DD26

M A R K E T I N G & A DVERT ISING: Dig ita l Re ta ilin g

Facilitating
Online Car Buying
Without Losing
Profit or Control
More than 80 percent of
consumers say they
want to complete one or
more steps of the purchase
process online, yet many
dealers are dragging their
feet when it comes to
implementing digital retailing
solutions. Their primary
concerns include:
 Losing control of the
sales process
 Decline in gross profit,
especially from F&I products
 Significant investment
required
 Process changes and
training required
 Integration issues
Many of these fears are
unfounded, and ultimately, digital retailing offers
dealers more benefits than
drawbacks. Although consumers want to complete
some of the process online,
80% of consumers would
never purchase a car without a test drive, and 89%
want to sign final documents
at the dealership.
Additionally, variables
such as credit scores and
state laws affect a car shopper's ability to transact a vehicle purchase online. Some
consumers will always find it
36

APRIL 2019

easier to let dealership staff
manage the process.
This means that in the
near-term, dealers are well
positioned to remain central
to the online car-buying
process. However, that
doesn't mean you should

third-party websites that
plan to offer consumers the
ability to purchase a vehicle
online. Their proposed
format is to sell you the
almost-completed deals as
leads.
The fact is, car shoppers

IF YOU CAN FIND
PEOPLE WITH A
CUSTOMER-CENTRIC
MINDSET TO HELP
WITH YOUR DIGITAL
RETAILING PROCESS,
YOUR CUSTOMERS'
ENTHUSIASM AND
SATISFACTION LEVELS
WILL SKYROCKET."
adopt a wait-and-see
mentality. The faster you
embrace digital retailing, the
more control you will have
over the car-buying process
by lessening the impact of
solutions designed to cut
your dealership out of the
process. You are essentially offering car shoppers
another channel for lead
generation right from your
website.
You've likely heard about

D I G I TA L D E A L E R . C O M

want to complete the transaction at your dealership.
They need you. Why bother
with a third-party solution
when you can have your
own, giving you control of
the entire process from start
to finish?
PREPARING FOR
DIGITAL RETAILING

One of the first questions
that dealers should ask
when implementing a digital
retailing solution is, "How

FEATURED SPEAKER
By Bill Wittenmyer
VP of Sales,
CDK Global

can we best serve our customers during their online
car-buying journey?"
The first thing to consider
is that until now, your websites and marketing strategies have been designed to
encourage customers to call
or submit a lead, make an
appointment and come to
your dealership.
The goal is different with
digital retailing. You want
customers to visit your
website to begin the purchase process. How will you
seamlessly transition the
online process to an offline
process?
This is where your staff
comes in, and why dealerships will remain central to
the digital retailing process.
Online car shoppers need
you. They need you for
your inventory selection,
they need you to accept
their trade-ins, and many
will need your help as a
consultant and to arrange
financing.
What they don't need is a
salesperson trying to close
them. They've already made
the decision to buy. Online
customers need guidance
and information; not closing
or phone tactics designed to
"just get them in."
It's important to realize
that digital retailing is much
more than a lead generation tool. It's a solution
that allows the customer to
complete one, some or all
parts of the purchase process at their convenience,
not yours.
CHANGING STAFF
RESPONSIBILITIES

Buying a car is still a
pretty complex process, and
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Digital Dealer - April 2019

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Digital Dealer - April 2019
