Jeff Wyler Automotive Family’s first 100% solution study- Kevin Frye

Because consumers today have so many options when it comes to purchasing a vehicle, the Jeff Wyler Automotive Family recently conducted a user experience study. On today’s episode of Inside Automotive, Kevin Frye, the marketing director at Jeff Wyler Automotive Family, discusses the results of their study and whether or not consumers are ready to make 100%  of their purchases online.

In July, the Jeff Wyler Automotive Family introduced their first 100% solution to compete with Carvana and Vroom. In August, the team completed a user experience study in which they recruited a wide range of participants and asked them to answer a series of questions by initiating notices on social media.  They were asked whether they would like to purchase a car entirely online. The outcome indicated that online shopping will continue to represent a small portion of the market for OEMs and dealers.

According to a UX study, consumers still want to engage with dealerships, test drive, and physically interact with the vehicles. Which motivates dealers because they still play a significant role in the overall car buying experience.

70% of customers said that if they had to make all of their purchases online, they would choose to purchase through a dealership rather than Carvana. Frye notes that despite Carvana’s recent stock struggles, “they still deserve respect for laying the groundwork for the first-class online shopping experience.”

Conversely, Frye points out that there are so many questions and concerns around EVs that buyers want to visit dealers to obtain clarification and take a test drive of what could be their next vehicle. According to Frye, “if we can get potential buyers behind the wheel of an EV, then we’re 90% there.”

Even though dealerships continue to be at the forefront of the post-purchase process, time seems to be the only drawback that dealers encounter. The main currency for customers is time. It was shown that customers who actively shop online tend to be well-off individuals with excellent credit who avoid visiting dealerships since the transaction takes too long. 

Frye concludes by pointing out that at Jeff Wyler, they are maintaining their current status quo. They are taking it month by month to avoid wasting money on unnecessary advertising because there is still a lot of demand despite the high unemployment rates and concerns about the future.