Do you know about connected consumers?
“Connected Car” is the industry buzzword, but we should be talking about “Connected Consumer.”
The auto industry has been obsessed with the “connected car” and all the components needed to aggregate vehicle data and information for future product development, service opportunities, and more for over 10 years.
With all the talk about the connected car, we’ve lost sight of the goal: connecting with consumers and building a loyal, connected customer base.
Today’s car has 176 “connection points.” The automobile collects data like a software platform. Driving habits, vehicle performance, and communication with drivers, service providers, emergency operators, dealerships, OEMs, etc.
The consumer has hundreds of touchpoints, 36 of which are purchase and ownership touchpoints. DMV, insurance, F&I, lender, and dealership.
Dealers may interact with them personally and profoundly in many ways. Dealers, lenders, OEMs, and F&I suppliers all want to provide customers with fast, relevant messages via the best media. Technology and data are used throughout the customer journey. The vehicle is ideal for addressing captive audiences.
Connecting Consumers to Cars
SimpSocial released its 9th Annual Automotive Customer Experience Trends Study in March 2022. We asked 5,000 consumers about dealerships, vehicle inventory shortages, and car purchase and service decisions.
Four major observations showed consumers seek individualized communication.
High Need-to-Know. 20% claimed the dealer didn’t update them on their vehicle order.
Unanswered is bad. 31% stated a dealership didn’t respond to their vehicle buying inquiry. It rose from 6%.
They Said. Online reviews influenced dealership selection for 93% of vehicle buyers and 87% of service customers.
Be flexible. Streaming entertainment is preferred by many viewers. 70% streamed movies, sports, and entertainment. Consumer communication is unexplored in streaming commercials.
Modern technology is great. There’s absolutely no reason to skip a chance to meaningfully connect with consumers to improve the customer experience. Dealers may use car data and platforms to build loyalty, engagement, and service, sales, and F&I revenue.
How can you optimize the linked car-consumer relationship? Audit your consumer communications to find weaknesses. This examines a store’s online presence, communication, and audience. Most dealers are astonished by the gap between how they see themselves and how customers see them.
Request a sample or our free SimpSocial online reputation audit report to uncover the connected communications gap.
Back to Blog