David Santamaría, head of Telecommunications, Energy and Auto at Google
Sumauto is present in 60% of VO purchases made online
Gradually, consumers have been changing their purchasing behavior as digital devices have entered their lives, and the vehicle has not been an exception. One of the consequences that digitization has brought is that the purchasing process experienced by a consumer, that is, from when they start looking for a car until they make the final decision, has been shortened and
in half of the cases the purchase was made in less than a month.
This is one of the main conclusions of the annual report on the purchase of a vehicle prepared by Google and Kantar, which, going into detail, figures that 7% of users decide to make a purchase in less than a week, compared to 21%. between one and two weeks, 23% from two to four weeks, the same from one month to two months, 13% from two to three months, 12% more than three months and 4% more than half a year.
David Santamaria, responsible for Telecommunications, Energy and Auto at Google, finds an explanation in his meeting with Sumauto, Vocento’s specialist in vertical automotive portals: more knowledge and better preparation. “Customers use the digital world to have a better knowledge of the product and, in the case of a car and before going to a dealership, to be able to find out information through searches, online content or videos on YouTube. They look at very specific data and increasing product discovery occurs long before they see it physically. All this causes them to arrive at the dealership much more prepared.”
Today, the time that a user spends before making a purchase decision has been reduced, which indicates that
advertisers must guide their marketing and communication strategies taking into account this new reality to be really effective.
We search by brand
One of the most interesting aspects of the car market for Google is that approximately
80% of searches are related to a specific make and model.
“In car searches, the discovery process is very relevant. You begin to search within your range of possibilities or initial desires, but then that preference can change throughout the journey on the network depending on the information or impacts that we are having, “explains the manager.
This difference between what the buyer aspires to and what they can afford is a major opportunity, especially for the used market, which has a strong aspirational component. And here the platforms, such as Autocasión or AutoScout24, have a very consolidated position,
not in vain only those of Sumauto are present in six out of ten purchases.
«In used cars, 85% of searches are brands and 15% are generic, but within brands, 53% are from platforms. The important thing is to see how market platforms such as Sumauto, with six brands, are able to capitalize on the demand, which in the auto sector enters a lot through search engines, including video platforms for car tests.
In this sense, David Santamaría highlights that the weight of platforms in the automobile market is much greater than in other sectors, highlighting in particular second-hand vehicles, “more developed in the digital world than in the physical world.”
Is the full online purchase close?
All this digitization could bring the full online purchase of the vehicle closer, something that Santamaría still sees as something far away. «It is on the table by the entire sector, but it will not be overnight. There are many things to look at, the role of the dealer in this matter is still very relevant, it is important to see the car, touch it, sit in it.
However, the Google executive highlights the growing importance of technology that delves into the experiential factor, such as 360 videos, which, although it is not the same as the physical experience of touching the vehicle, does allow certain knowledge and information about an immersive way. Without forgetting the digital configurators, which allow you to go to the dealership with the vehicle digitally predefined and stored in a code with an enormous saving of time, digitally obtaining an advantage for the physical world.
From here, precisely, the role that the concessionaire will have to assume is deduced, which
“Without a doubt it goes through the omnichannel business”David Santamaría concludes. And, in a second derivative, to make the digital leap for the many dealers that have not yet done so, given that eight out of ten still do not have a shop window on the network.
“These businesses must be helped to define their strategy, their objectives, how to measure the results, gauge the impact and how to obtain a return”, clarifies Santamaría. If a small business does not have the capacity or knowledge to operate online, it is convenient to rely on partners to be able to obtain better results and profitability than if it does it on its own, running the risk of investing money in users who are not interested.
Small dealers who regularly advertise use traditional media such as radio or local newspapers, but neglect search. The consequence is that, if a potential customer in your area is searching for a car that that business can sell, but does not have a digital presence, they are at a clear disadvantage compared to another that is impacting the buyer at that time.