Automotive marketing statistics to drive your strategy

In the world of Digital Marketing, nothing would be possible without data. It provides the foundations for all marketing strategies, and also measures their success. In this day and age, we’re fortunate enough to have access to a wealth of data at our fingertips that can be used to lead marketing strategies for all kinds of brands.

With automotive search marketing being one of our specialisms here at Honchō, we’re always looking out for automotive marketing statistics that we can turn into strategies to help our clients flourish.

We’ve compiled some of the statistics we’ve found particularly interesting recently, to give you an insight into the current automotive search landscape.

The automotive research stage

Did you know that 72% of car buyers are undecided on the brand and model they want when researching for a new car? This opens up loads of opportunities for brands to shape the journey users will take, by providing guidance and relevant information to help them with their search.

Starting from the beginning of the research phase, 53% of car buyers begin their research online, with 39% starting with a search engine.

It’s vital that automotive brands remain visible through these early stages, especially because new car buyers typically consider 3.3 vehicle brands while they’re researching.

Out of people who use media during the research stages of the car-buying process, 19% are influenced by ads online and 40% are influenced by search engines. Using a combination of Paid Media and SEO, brands could potentially influence 59% of potential car buyers online. It’s never been more important for automotive brands to implement a solid search marketing strategy.

The typical car buyer

In this day and age, car buyers are digitally savvy. In fact, 65% of smartphone users used their phones to conduct car research. On average, a car buyer uses 3.7 connected devices while they look for their new vehicle.

Car buyers also conduct research at a variety of different times, resulting in spontaneous, non-linear micro moments. At least 23% of new car buyers researched on their smartphones while watching TV, and 34% researched while they were waiting for something.

They also tend to prefer professionally-produced content over amateur content. 54% of car buyers watched professional video content by manufacturers and 40% watched professional video content produced by independent 3rd parties, but only 16% watched amateur video content.

The car purchase stage

Although most of the research is conducted online, as much as 95% of purchases still happen at dealerships. However, 36% of car buyers looked online to find a dealership, so being visible online is crucial at this stage. 

Also, 53% of car buyers made their purchase from a dealership they had no previous relationship with, which offers opportunities for dealerships to use digital platforms to engage new customers.

Before visiting a dealership, 53% of car buyers researched prices online, and 42% searched for promotions and deals. This could perhaps be the perfect time to include price-led ads, title tags and content to capture these searches.

Does your digital marketing measure up?

In light of these automotive marketing insights, it’s clear that it’s more important than ever for automotive brands to have an established presence online.

At Honchō, we’re automotive specialists offering SEO, Paid Media and Content services. Check out our Service Pages to find out more about how we can help your business grow online.

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Check out our Automotive Statistics Infographic below: