Guide To Modern Car Shopper Journey

A Guide
to the Modern
Car-Shopper Journey
Connecting the Dots from their Screens to your Lots
eBook: The Modern Car-Shopper Journey
Contents
02
04
The Consumer Journey:

Adding it all up
07
The Four Stages

of Car-Shopping
13
Explore Real
Car-Shopper Journeys
24
The Big Ideas Behind the

Modern Consumer Journey
29
In Conclusion
Science Sells Cars

The data were sharing represents
real shopping behavior as analyzed
by Cobalt data scientists.
Cobalt employs over
80
car-buying behavior analysts
03
The Consumer Journey:

Adding it all up
Until now, weve measured the car-shopper journey in terms
of website metrics: visitors and visits, leads, and phone calls.
But these standalone metrics represent mere snapshots in
time. Its time to start viewing this journey in a more
complete way, by stitching together those snapshots to
produce a true continuous experience, a movie of the new
consumer journey.
This ebook will investigate real car-shopper journeys.
Throughout this book, well show you a handful of these
shoppersmodern families, Gen Yers, and even truck
driversunique behavioral segments youll ultimately want
to advertise to in a targeted way.
04
So, how do we have all of this insight into

the consumers car buying digital journey?
There isnt another company on the planet that has as much inmarket car-shopping data as we do.
COBAlt data: A Peek Behind the Curtain
1.3
Every day our network sees
Each week, we track
million leads.
million visits to our website properties.
Every month, over

billion online ads are served to local
shoppers and tracked in our advertising systems.
All resulting in
1/2
billion inventory searches per year.
Want More?
See Real-Time Car Shopper Search Activity in Action
05
So, what does this all mean?
All of this tells us a lot about shopper

behavior. It tells us how they engage
with online information. It tells us what
they respond to, or dont. We know
what vehicles they are interested in, and
what actions they take as they get closer
to buying. And most importantly for
dealers, we now know unequivocally how
to deliver shoppers from their screen to
your lots.
This information also allows Cobalt to

paint an amazing picture of the journey
that each individual shopper takes. Heres
a high-level view, and then well break
down three individual journeys.
This data is the petri dish from which

these three modern consumer personas
were extracted. We saw numerous
patterns across all buyers, and these
three composite personas represent
of the more common patterns
we observed.
Take Me Straight to
Real Consumer Journeys
06
Disclaimer: The Cobalt Business Intelligence team

collects activities, not identities. No personally
identifiable information is collected in our
business intelligence.
The Four Stages

of Car-Shopping
During the average car-shopping journey, most consumers
spend 19 hours shopping (60% of it online1). While every
shoppers journey is unique, they experience four phases
Read tips for providing
a better in-store experience
18.2
sources2 of
information influence the
decisions shoppers make
along the way.
Google / Shopper Sciences, June, 2011
07
RL Polk / AutoTrader Auto Buying Study, 2011
1. Inspiration:
This is what makes someone aware of your brand and

ultimately inspires them to consider it. Theyre not in-market
yet; but they are being influenced by advertising and social
media as they go about their daily lives.
Maybe it was their friend who drove them to the
mountain to go skiing in their brand new 4 wheel drive.
Maybe it was an ad during the holidays
Maybe it was a Super Bowl TV commercial
New car buyers typically start the shopping process with 2-4
models3 in mind. Over 60% start with a focus on one model
but may expand their consideration set as they discover
alternatives.4 They are likely inspired to consider these brands
because of national advertising and social influences.
3
4
08
2010 CapGemini / Cars.com study

2. Discovery:
This is where shoppers begin to research brands in their initial

consideration set. They are pulling for information in this
phase. Our Cobalt Business Intelligence reveals 75% of
car-shoppers visit manufacturer websites, and most of those
shoppers visit the OEM website and the dealer website in the
same thirty minutes.5
They also visit 3rd party websites for model reviews and
comparison shopping, as well as multiple dealer websites to
explore inventory and pricing (61% search inventory on dealer
websites6). Shoppers are more aware of their options than
ever before, and theyre likely to ADD more brands to their
consideration set before whittling it back down.
75
Of car-shoppers that
visit both a dealers site and a
manufacturer websites, 75% do
so within the same day. Most of
those do so within the same 30
minutes.5
Cobalt Business Intelligence
09
Discovery Contd:
According to Google research, 50% of shoppers select a dealer
during this phase of the journey. Theyre most likely to engage
with the dealer who makes frequent impressions through
online advertising and positive consumer reviews.
Did you know that 7 of the top 8 influences in the Discovery
phase occur online?7
1
2
Searched online, used search engine

Searched the inventory of a dealership
61%
Sought information from an automobile brand/manufacturer website
59%
Comparison shopped automobiles online
59%
Sought information from a dealership website
56%
Talked with friends / family about automobiles
56%
7
8
Requested a quote on an automobile

Searched online for a dealership
71%
53%
49%
These digital influences have more impact than TV, newspapers

and radio. When it comes to influencing the purchase decision,
online influences are second only to the experience consumers
have in the dealership8.
10
3. Engagement:
This is when a shopper is done researching and initiates contact.
Congratulations, you are officially in their consideration set.
The consumer makes contact with you, virtually, by phone,

email, and/or by visiting your dealership.
Remember that shoppers are getting more and more selfsufficient due to new technology and platforms (smart
phones, tablets, social media).
Most never call or email you; 69% first contact you when they
walk on your lot.9
If they have a positive experience, they purchase a vehicle.
69
of shoppers first
contact you when they walk
on your lot.9
9
AutoTrader Auto Buying Study, 2011
11
RL Polk / AutoTrader Auto Buying Study, 2011
4. Ownership:
They accessorize their new vehicles and return for

maintenance. Their ownership experience influences
someone elses discovery; as owners, they write
reviews and influence their social circles.
12
Without further ado, lets take a look at our first journey:
Explore Real
Car-Shopper Journeys
Remarketed
customers are
3x
& 4x
more likely
to click on your ad
more
likely
to convert than
new customers
13
Shopper #1
Miss Pop Culture is an Internet

savvy shopper.
She embarked on a 36 day shopping
journey, about half the average
length. She cared deeply about color,
features, trim and style of the cars.
She looked at:
5 different models.
8 different dealersNOT of the same
make, but of competing brands.
Over her journey, she looked at a
whopping 127 different VINS.
At the end of her journey she
bought a car.
14
Miss Pop Culture
Like a large majority of shoppers,

Miss Pop Culture never filled out
a lead form on a dealer website.
For more information about this journey, visit:

www.cobalt.com/consumerjourney
She looked at these different models. The model she bought

was model E. She spent 40 minutes on this single VIN.
You can tell based on these patterns where she was leaning.
A digitally savvy dealer will show her targeted ads based on
the models shes looking at.
JAN
FEB
40 Minutes
on this Day
36 Days
Model A
Model B
Model C
Model D
Model E
Each color represents a different car model searched over the span of 36 days.
The size of the bubble represents the amount of time Miss Pop Culture spent researching that particular VIN.
Why didnt she buy the light blue modelmaybe it wasnt the right
segment of vehicle (ie SUV vs sedan). Maybe it was the way the dealer
was or was not advertising to her. We can show that the dealer with
model E on the lot was keeping ads in front of Ms. Pop Culture with
the right message.
15
Key Insight #1:

Email Leads are not the Holy Grail.
Its all about Inventory. Not one of these shoppers

submitted an email lead. Our Cobalt Business Intelligence
shows that Hours and Directions page views, VIN views,
number of vehicles viewed, and time spent on VIN are all
true sales indicators.
Best Practices: Drive emotional attachment! Add as much
detail to your inventory pages as you can to create a rich
experience and drive deep engagement.
16
Lets take a look at our second journey:
Shopper #2
Mr. Big Wheels is a brand buyer.

He shopped for 45 days
Looked at 2 models, both of the
same brand.
He consistently went back and forth
between the brand website and
multiple dealer websites.
At the end of his journey he
bought a car.
Mr big wheels
In one day Mr. Big Wheels shopped

20 different dealers. Although he
was clearly loyal to the brand, he
shopped around.
17

Across the board, we found that 75% of shoppers who go to

both a brand and dealer website do so within the same day
most do that within the same 30 minutes.
20 dealers
shopped in
ONE DAY.
45 Days
Each color represents a different dealers website visited over the span of 45 days.
75
%
of Shoppers who go
to both a brand and dealer

website do so within the same
daymost do that within the
same 30 minutes.
18
Key Insight #2:

You are One with the Manufacturer
Still think shoppers are loyal to you? All of these shoppers

shopped a minimum of 8 dealers, and Mr. Big Wheels
shopped 20 in a single day. Online retail makes ruthless
comparison shopping a way of lifeit takes less than a
minute to drive from dealership to dealership.
Best Practices: Have a strong Why My Dealership message
on your dealer website. Retargeting is key to keep your
dealership top-of-mind.
Online retail makes

ruthless comparison
shopping a way of life.
19
Key Insight #3:

Think About the Consumer
Consumers experience the dealer website as an extension

of the manufacturer website, offering complementary
information they need to make a purchase decision.
To maximize shopper confidence and purchase intent,
consistency between manufacturer and dealer website is
critical. Discordant style, models, or incentives will confuse
shoppers and lower conversion.
Still think ALL you need to do is align with your OEM?
Not true. Mr. Big Wheels shopped a single brand and 20
dealership websites. Hes hungry and he knows he wants a
hamburger, but hes not picky about where he gets it.
Translation: Brand alignment just gets you
in the consideration set, then its all about your
competitive advantages.
Best Practices: Balance OEM alignment with a strong
Why Me? Message.
20
Lets take a look at our final journey:
Shopper #3
Throughout The Modern Familys

90-day journey, we saw that they
engaged with:
8 different dealership websites.
Every single day throughout the 90
day journey they had interaction
with a dealershipvia website visits,
inventory searches, digital ads, etc.
They were exposed to digital ads 329
different times.
At the end of their journey they
bought a car.
The modern family
The dealership that this shopper

bought from was one who began
interacting with the family from the
beginning of their 90 day journey
and kept the line tight.
21

You can see in the graph below that the dealer The Modern
Family purchased from began building an online relationship
early on in the journey with advertising and then kept the
line tight through every phase of the purchase process with
continuous online advertising.
Exposed to
329 different
dealer ads
90 Days
Each color represents a different dealers online ad exposure over the span of 90 days.
22
Key Insight #4:

The Ever-Present Bird gets the Worm
Still think you can swoop in at the low funnel and

capture the sale? Our data shows that consumers buy from
the dealer who messages them first and most frequently.
Savvy dealers are building a relationship with the shopper
long before they call or walk in your store.
Best Practices: Start your digital marketing efforts early
and be present throughout the entire journey.
Consumers buy
from the dealer who
messages them first
and most frequently.
23
The Big Ideas

Behind The Modern
Consumer Journey
While there is plenty of tactical strategy to be
gleaned from these three individual personas,
there are also some high-level insights we
can conclude about how the overall nature of
modern car-shopping has changed.
24
Here are just a few top-level takeaways:
The Modern Car-Shopper Journey

is a Road Trip, not a Commute
As weve seen from these paths to purchase, to call the
modern car-shopper journey non-linear would be an
understatement. Rather, todays car shopping journey
is dynamic, digital, and consumer-driven.
To put this in context, its helpful to contrast the difference
between a commute and a road trip. Rather than a speedy
journey from point A to point B, the modern car-buyer
journey is self-paced, meandering, and riddled with sensory
distractions. From inspiration to destination, online research
is the steady fuel throughout the journey.
25
Contd
Modern car shoppers are digital tourists who, like most
travelers, start out their automotive research road trip
armed with a clear plan, which inevitably falls apart.
The path becomes riddled with wrong turns, backtracking,
scenic distractions, and breaks to stretch your legs.
The digital journey is no different: Modern car-shoppers
may make a reviews pitstop, then travel to the dealer
website, then backtrack to reviews, and so on. As a dealer,
your goal is to put enough signage on the highway to keep
drawing shoppers down the path to purchaseyour path.
26
There is no Virtual
There are no virtual shoppers. There are just shoppers.

Our research shows that 64% of your website visitors are likely
to purchase a vehicle within 60 days.9 Online and offline exist
in one single experience, which is why we talk so much about
connecting the dots from screens to lots.
64%
days
60
9
27
Its an Online World
While the in-store experience remains critical, the sheer

volume of online car-shopping activity is staggering. We
know from Googles ZMOT playbook that seven of the eight
automotive buying influences are online, and our shopper
journeys underscore this in mind-blowing ways:
Miss Pop Culture alone completed
The Modern Family viewed
Mr big wheels shopped
329
20
249
Online activities.
dealership ads and interacted Online everyday for 90 days.
dealership websites in a single day.
We know what youre thinking: dont these people have lives?

The answer to that is debatable, but we can tell you these
in-market shoppers are voracious for automotive shopping
information, so its more important than ever to shine online.
28
In Conclusion:
Know what makes them Tick
to know what makes them Click
A true understanding of digital car-buying behavior is now
available, you as dealers have a responsibility to immerse
yourselves in understanding these journeys.
Do you speak digital?
Become fluent in online buying behavior for more car sales.
DONT WAIT!
See real consumer
journeys right now
29

Guide To Modern Car Shopper Journey

Încărcat de

Informații document

Drepturi de autor

Formate disponibile

Partajați acest document

Partajați sau inserați document

Opțiuni de partajare

Vi se pare util acest document?

Este necorespunzător acest conținut?

Drepturi de autor:

Formate disponibile

Guide To Modern Car Shopper Journey

Încărcat de

Drepturi de autor:

Formate disponibile

A Guide

eBook: The Modern Car-Shopper Journey

The Consumer Journey:

The Four Stages

The Big Ideas Behind the

eBook: The Modern Car-Shopper Journey

Science Sells Cars

Cobalt employs over

car-buying behavior analysts

eBook: The Modern Car-Shopper Journey

The Consumer Journey:

eBook: The Modern Car-Shopper Journey

So, how do we have all of this insight into

COBAlt data: A Peek Behind the Curtain

Every day our network sees

Each week, we track

million visits to our website properties.

Every month, over

billion inventory searches per year.

eBook: The Modern Car-Shopper Journey

So, what does this all mean?

All of this tells us a lot about shopper

This information also allows Cobalt to

This data is the petri dish from which

Disclaimer: The Cobalt Business Intelligence team

eBook: The Modern Car-Shopper Journey

The Four Stages

RL Polk / AutoTrader Auto Buying Study, 2011

Google / Shopper Sciences, June, 2011

eBook: The Modern Car-Shopper Journey

This is what makes someone aware of your brand and

2010 CapGemini / Cars.com study

eBook: The Modern Car-Shopper Journey

This is where shoppers begin to research brands in their initial

Cobalt Business Intelligence

Cobalt Business Intelligence

Google / Shopper Sciences, June, 2011

eBook: The Modern Car-Shopper Journey

Searched online, used search engine

Sought information from an automobile brand/manufacturer website

Comparison shopped automobiles online

Sought information from a dealership website

Talked with friends / family about automobiles

Requested a quote on an automobile

These digital influences have more impact than TV, newspapers

Google / Shopper Sciences, June, 2011

Google / Shopper Sciences, June, 2011

eBook: The Modern Car-Shopper Journey

The consumer makes contact with you, virtually, by phone,

If they have a positive experience, they purchase a vehicle.

AutoTrader Auto Buying Study, 2011

RL Polk / AutoTrader Auto Buying Study, 2011

eBook: The Modern Car-Shopper Journey

They accessorize their new vehicles and return for

Without further ado, lets take a look at our first journey:

eBook: The Modern Car-Shopper Journey

eBook: The Modern Car-Shopper Journey

Miss Pop Culture is an Internet

Miss Pop Culture

Like a large majority of shoppers,

For more information about this journey, visit:

eBook: The Modern Car-Shopper Journey

She looked at these different models. The model she bought

eBook: The Modern Car-Shopper Journey