With digital increasingly becoming the first contact in the sales funnel, a nationwide survey conducted for Impel found dealers continue to struggle with providing timely and complete responses to online shopper inquiries.
Almost half of recent car buyers (49 percent) said that their most recent experience was no better than previous experiences, driven by significant gaps in dealers’ ability to effectively respond to them. This as 45 percent reported visiting three or more dealer websites, and 49 percent spent five hours or more conducting online research before their most recent purchase.
According to Impel officials, the survey reveals insight into American car buyers’ online research habits as well as their perceptions regarding dealer responsiveness and views of artificial intelligence’s (AI) role in the future of automotive sales.
Michael Quigley Comments
“Consumers continue to conduct a significant amount of the car shopping process online, where competitive alternatives are just a click away” said Impel Co-Founder and Chief Strategy Officer Michael Quigley in a press statement released with the survey results.
Almost one in four buyers respondents (24 percent) submitted their contact information received no acknowledgement, and 45 percent had to follow-up with at least one dealership due to a lack of timely response to their questions.
Impel officials highlighted the dealerships who responded more quickly to consumer inquiries won eight times more deals—34 percent vs four percent. But 58 percent of car buyers waited for more than an hour to hear back from a dealership after supplying their contact information.
“It’s clear that answering shopper questions quickly and completely has a significant impact on customer satisfaction and business performance,” said Quigley. “Unfortunately, dealers that continue to run their operations with outdated systems and processes are failing to meet even basic consumer expectations.”
The Rise of AI
When asked what parts of the car buying process shoppers wanted AI to improve, the most requested enhancements included reducing paperwork (39 percent), cutting down time spent at the dealership (34 percent) and providing 24/7 availability to answer questions (30 percent).
In order to overcome consumer concerns, Impel officials stressed dealers need to ensure that their chosen AI solution delivers a personal touch (55 percent), provides accurate information (47 percent) and demonstrates an understanding of their needs (25 percent).
“As more consumers experience firsthand the benefits of interacting with AI-enabled retailers, they will increasingly migrate more of their business, and their loyalty, to those businesses that able to leverage the technology to deliver an enhanced customer experience,” said Quigley.
Marrying Online to Showroom
Impel offers automotive dealers, OEMs, and third-party marketplaces AI-powered customer lifecycle management platforms that serves 8,000 dealerships in more than 50 countries. The company’s end-to-end omnichannel solution leverages proprietary shopper behavioral data and generative conversational AI technology to deliver hyper-personalized experiences at every touchpoint.
Impel commissioned Pollfish to conduct an online survey between August 21–22, 2024 of 1,000 U.S. adult car buyers who purchased or leased a vehicle from a dealership within the last three years.
Results of the survey included that both digital and physical showrooms play a critical role for consumers. Nine out of ten car buyers visited a dealer website before buying or leasing their last vehicle, with 45 percent spending time on three or more dealer sites.
Additionally, 84 percent visited a physical showroom to test drive a vehicle before buying, and 62 percent set foot in two or more dealership locations.
Other Survey Results
Further insights that Impel officials pointed to include:
- 65 percent shared their contact information with a dealer; however, 24 percent received no acknowledgement or follow-up from least one dealership.
- 45 percent of car buyers who submitted a question regarding a vehicle of interest had to follow up with at least one dealer due to a lack of response. Only half of those who received an automated reply were satisfied with the response they received.
- Nearly one in five dealership chat users (19 percent) were less than satisfied with their experience, driven by issues related to speed, completeness and accuracy of responses, as well as ease of use.
“Relying on human staff, traditional chatbots or basic autoresponders is simply not enough to meet the needs of today’s consumer,” said Quigley. ‘Many of the shopper frustrations that still exist in the car buying process, including lack of follow-up and after hours availability, slow response times, and impersonal responses to questions, can be directly addressed with generative AI solutions that are available today.”
