The customer journey map is a digital way of seeing when and where customers interact with your website, social media posts, or digital media.
Navigating this map can be the key to seeing the various customer touchpoints, which are the optimal times for your dealership to engage with a customer. Today’s shoppers experience the digital world more thoroughly than ever before. Very little can’t be done through digital media today. That said, it’s essential your company know when and how to engage with these shoppers.
It’s a Long Journey of Instant Communication
The average car shopper takes 5-12 weeks to research and shop before buying a car. This can mean a lengthy investment by a dealership to continually engage with customers. If their timeline is this long, do car companies need to respond immediately to inquiries? Yes, they do. Your dealership should have a 24/7 communication system open for your shoppers. This can be an advanced messenger system that allows shoppers to receive answers to some of the most frequently asked questions. If the system doesn’t have the answer, a message can tell the shopper that a dealership rep will contact them the next day.
The Digital Customer Base Continues to Grow
Understanding the customer journey map is more important than ever. The number of millennials buying cars is increasing, and this generation will make up more than half of all car buyers before we know it. This generation grew up working with Amazon, Airbnb, and Uber. They expect your single-location car dealership to operate with the same digital efficiency as these giants. If you understand when and where to engage your shoppers, this can happen for you.
The Steps Taken to Car Ownership
Studies tell us how a customer moves online and where they look for information. There are several stages to buying a vehicle, but they can be broken down into four main parts. These are:
- Research –This is when a customer begins to build a list of vehicles they’re interested in buying. Almost all research starts with an online search of cars and their features.
- Review –Taking that list from the research phase, the shopper narrows the list by using opinions, reviews, and availability.
- Test Drive –This could be the first time many shoppers appear in the dealership. They want to drive the car they might purchase.
- Purchase –Its time to buy that car; the job is done
Yes, this process can take 5-12 weeks. The research and review phases typically take the longest as shoppers consider the vehicles offered. During this time, the customer journey map has up to 20 touch-points, both digital and physical. Is your dealership ready to handle some of these touch-points?
What are Some of the Touch-points for Automotive Customers?
When customers engage with your dealership looking for the following items, they have created a touch-point that should either offer them instant information or make an engagement opportunity for your dealership. These touch-points are the guide to reading the customer journey map.
- Model Comparison
- Vehicle Search
- Visit Dealer Site
- Video Search
- Request a Quote
- Watch a Video
- Consumer Review Research
- Locate a Dealer
There are many ways to ensure your dealership is ready to engage in any touch-points. According to Armchair Marketing, there are now 24 touch-points in buying a car, and 19 are digital. These are your key to reading the customer journey map and becoming the dealership of choice for a digital customer base.
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