Geeky Tools That Enhance the Car-Buying Process
The auto industry has evolved quickly over the past decade.
As technology, innovation and media have improved, so has the industry. Car buyers’ shopping habits have changed to the extent that 59% of them now spend most of their time researching online before visiting a dealership.
In the United States, vehicle sales have slowed down. People retain their cars for longer and buy cars less often–after 6.5 years compared to 4.3 years ten years ago. Automotive dealers who want to overcome these challenges must create a digital experience that works in conjunction with the dealership one.
This article reviews 2 key tools transforming the car buying experience.
1. Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality
Because of the pandemic, we’ve all gotten pretty used to virtual environments. Some car retailers are using this environment to give car buyers a feel for new cars through VR and AR. Car shopping is often difficult. Consumers have very many choices or have to deal with pushy salespeople. Some dealerships are now using technology to make the experience more engaging for consumers, which is great.
Virtual Reality is now being used to give customers a personalized, close-up experience of driving a car. They see things from the driver’s perspective because VR creates immersive content to bring products to life. For instance, Audi now uses VR to let car buyers see how different features look on cars before they buy them. In 2019, the automaker worked with Disney to formulate a VR experience showing how technology can connect driving with interactive gaming.
2. Modified Car Images
“A picture is worth a thousand words.” We’ve heard these words numerous times, but they’ve never been more true than in the Instagram age. People are obsessed with images these days, and that’s why every dealership must think about how it can use images to boost business. Images are a vital part of building a brand, but choosing the right ones is never easy. You must be careful about every detail–from the color to the picture frame.
Your potential customers get bombarded by millions of images every day, and they easily overlook those that don’t pop. In this age of information, it can be hard to focus on one thing because there’s so much clamoring for our attention.
So, how do you stand out from the crowd? Use well-modified, high-quality, high-resolution images. Low-resolution images will reflect badly on your brand. Modified images look stunning and make people want to look a little longer. Modification also improves the overall quality of the images. Go for those that capture people’s attention and motivate them to take some sort of action: click to see more photos, linger on a website page, or buy a car.
People no longer shop for cars like they used to–even the car-buying process has changed, as has everything to do with cars. It’s even easy to access car title loans online these days, and that’s why auto retailers must start using digital tools to capture new customers.
