Car dealers and manufacturers risk losing online sales, Forrester says
Dealers and manufacturers must do a much better job with lead generation
if they ever hope to close more online sales, says a new report from
Forrester Research.
The report says that customers are flocking to the Internet, with 27% of
online auto shoppers requesting a price quote from a dealer. But while
the Internet generates about 1.8 million total monthly online sales
leads, only about 165,000 monthly sales are closed.
"An appalling lack of control means that this potentially profitable
channel instead costs original equipment manufacturers and dealers
hundreds of dollars per vehicle sold," says Mark Dixon Bunger, Forrester
automotive analyst. "Automakers and dealers must tighten lead management
processes and merge online leads into their overall marketing strategies
to boost sales and drive down costs."
Many valid leads are dropped because no dealer owns the territory where
a car buyer is located, the lead is sent to a dead e-mail inbox or the
lead is simply ignored by dealer personnel who are too busy to be
bothered, says Dixon Bunger.
"If OEMs and dealers tighten up processes and accountability they could
sell 40% more cars online and get better data," he says.
To close more online sales, Forrester suggests that dealers upgrade
their lead management technology and make generating and closing
Internet leads a top sales training priority.
"If necessary changes don`t happen, the online lead landscape will
collapse," the Forrester report says.
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