1/3 Indians consult the net before buying vehicles : J D Power's study

[hondafanboy]

Among new shoppers, only 69 per cent reported having visited a dealership in 2009 as against 82 per cent in 2008.

Besides, the percentage of shoppers who sought information from friends and relatives during vehicle selection process increased from 70 per cent in 2007 to 74 per cent in 2009, the study said.

"By gathering information from the internet and advice from friends and relatives, shoppers have the ability to examine models on their consideration lists at their own convenience and without necessarily visiting dealerships," J D Power Senior Director (Asia Pacific) Mohit Arora said.

The study said customers generally look for information like technical specifications, vehicle price, vehicle features or accessories and vehicle brochures or pictures on the internet.

"Due to the prevailing economic conditions, shoppers are carefully considering and researching their options and are increasingly seeking information from unbiased sources," Arora said.


An increased proportion of vehicle shoppers are rejecting certain models without visiting dealerships.

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At the same time, more number of prospective buyers who visit a dealership are actually buying vehicles. In 2009, 80 per cent such customers purchased a vehicle, up from 77 per cent in 2008.

"This increased rate indicates that buyers who visit a dealership are more likely to have pre-determined which model they intend to purchase," the study said.

While price is the main factor cited by customers as the main reason for rejecting a vehicle, other factors include exterior styling and long delivery period.

Among car manufacturers, Maruti Suzuki emerged as the most persuasive company, with 40 per cent of all shoppers eventually purchasing a model made by the company, J D Power said.

"Buyers of Mahindra-Renault and Hyundai vehicles tend to shop around the most before purchasing their vehicles, while buyers of Mahindra, Maruti Suzuki and Tata vehicles are least likely to consider another model during the shopping process," the study added.

Article from 1/3 Indians consult the net before buying vehicles: Study - Â*Business News - News - MSN India

[diffsoft]

Skoda India has probably used this research to move Fabia sales online. Skoda Fabia to inaugurate auto industry?s online booking chapter - Corporate News - livemint.com

[wildon]

According to TrafficEstimate.com - Traffic Estimate Website Traffic Analysis, Domain Tools and Traffic Analytics, which measures page views, CarWale.com registered an estimated 1,496,200 visits in the last 30 days, ahead of Zigwheels.com and Carazoo.com, which had 609,500 and 390,400 visits, respectively.

and what about T-Bhp its a whooping 1,216,700 visits in the previous 30 days. Thats more than the Zigwheels+carazoo combined
just have a look

[motor spirit]

Internet is creeping into common man's life very fast. the dependency is also increasing faster . hence a person in need / want to know some thing just googles.
Now though we have forum's like TBHP. People have access to any information before they conclude. IMHO its good,as a common man's knowledge increases on a subject. He can decide better &know the market well too. above all automobile is a prized possesion for 70% of indians. they will surely look out to stuff which will help their decisions better

[ACM]

Team BHP strength is the instant redirect via google search as it list top for most indian searches.

The Used car sites get listed more for the used car sales / purchase purpose rather than for research like team bhp.

Way to to TBHP.

[YVES]

Originally Posted by diffsoft

Skoda India has probably used this research to move Fabia sales online. Skoda Fabia to inaugurate auto industry?s online booking chapter - Corporate News - livemint.com

There is no word of Skoda mentioned in the article 1/3 Indians consult the net before buying vehicles : J D Power's study.
Diffsoft Don’t jump to conclusions.

I don’t know why the drum beating against Skoda.
Think more people envy Skoda

See the post I had put containing Fabia online sales.
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/test-d...-months-2.html (Initial Ownership Report - Fabia 1.2 HTP Elegance (8500 km) in 3 months)

[Gilead]

Originally Posted by hondafanboy

Among new shoppers, only 69 per cent reported having visited a dealership in 2009 as against 82 per cent in 2008.

That line was quite an eye opener. So a full 31% of the buyers either just send their representative to finalize the deal or finalize the deal at home. Amazing!

Pity the article does not have any interesting tidbits on Tata or Fiat buying behavior.

[prince_pervez]

Dunno about other things but, dealeships better gear up coz there are a plethora of reports and first hand accounts on Forums and blogs.

[diffsoft]

Originally Posted by YVES

There is no word of Skoda mentioned in the article 1/3 Indians consult the net before buying vehicles : J D Power's study.
Diffsoft Don’t jump to conclusions.

I don’t know why the drum beating against Skoda.
Think more people envy Skoda

See the post I had put containing Fabia online sales.
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/test-d...-months-2.html (Initial Ownership Report - Fabia 1.2 HTP Elegance (8500 km) in 3 months)

I was trying to say that such reports may have motivated some car buyers to try selling online, Skoda being one of them. I substantiated it with another report I read in another paper.

It is neither for or against Skoda.

Cheers,

[McLaren Rulez]

Now how come the other two third spend at least over a lakh and a half and not even bother getting reviews online? I'm pretty surprised that the figure is that low.

[Thad E Ginathom]

1/3 Indians consult the net before buying vehicles

...The other two thirds consult an astrologer?








(Sorry... no offence, I hope... couldn't resist )

[GTO]

Originally Posted by hondafanboy

Among new shoppers, only 69 per cent reported having visited a dealership in 2009 as against 82 per cent in 2008.

I'm so not surprised by this information. Think about it:

1. Dealers have started servicing clients directly from home.

2. Easy access to comprehensive information (online) makes you better informed, than any dealership visit could. Now bring in pt. no. 1 & consider the flood of new launches in the 4 - 6 lakh rupee segment. How many regular customers have the time to test 5 - 6 hatchbacks in detail and then decide?

3. Finance company DSA's : They typically do the footwork for you, including paperwork, arranging for delivery etc.

Besides, the percentage of shoppers who sought information from friends and relatives during vehicle selection process increased from 70 per cent in 2007 to 74 per cent in 2009, the study said.

Just goes to prove that word of mouth in India is KING! We will believe what our friend / family members have to say over any other source. Team-BHP offers inherent value here, after all its other actual car owners / enthusiasts who offer their opinions on Indian cars.

The study said customers generally look for information like technical specifications, vehicle price, vehicle features or accessories and vehicle brochures or pictures on the internet.

This would be a good time to bump up the fact, fact that ride quality / handling / engine power delivery etc. etc. are actually not major purchase influencers. Enthusiasts like us are finicky about these aspects of performance, the common man couldn't care less.

Another fact : Over 60% of cars are sold based on their market perception & looks. Of course, reviews & actual owner experiences are the ones that create perception. Still...

"Due to the prevailing economic conditions, shoppers are carefully considering and researching their options and are increasingly seeking information from unbiased sources,"

Key term here being : UNBIASED SOURCES! Go Team-BHP, tell it like it is!!

An increased proportion of vehicle shoppers are rejecting certain models without visiting dealerships.

This is bad news for brands that are trying to prove themselves.

Among car manufacturers, Maruti Suzuki emerged as the most persuasive company, with 40 per cent of all shoppers eventually purchasing a model made by the company, J D Power said.

Why? Simply because they have the widest range of cars in the 3 - 6 lakh price bracket. Its a known fact that Maruti isn't bothered with product overlap, their motto is "to offer something to everyone who walks into a car showroom". Think about this : A guy who wants to buy a 4 - 5 lakh rupee hatchback can choose from a plethora of options in one showroom itself (WagonR, Estilo, Ritz, Swift, A-Star etc.)!

"Buyers of Mahindra-Renault and Hyundai vehicles tend to shop around the most before purchasing their vehicles, while buyers of Mahindra, Maruti Suzuki and Tata vehicles are least likely to consider another model during the shopping process," the study added.

Interesting....but debatable.

Originally Posted by prince_pervez

Dunno about other things but, dealeships better gear up coz there are a plethora of reports and first hand accounts on Forums and blogs.

Took the words right out of my mouth, man! Not only do we cover cars in detail, but anyone searching for a dealer (by name) is pretty sure to see a link to Team-BHP in the search results.

Now how come the other two third spend at least over a lakh and a half and not even bother getting reviews online?

Internet penetration in India is still VERY low. A good number of this 2/3rds wouldn't comprise of internet users.

[Warhound]

Meh, 1/3 isnt a figure to be too proud about. I consult the internet on mundane things such as buying sneakers. A car is a huge investment.

Have you heard the sale reps at these dealerships !?. My mom worked for Tata for a few months as timepass and she would come home and tell us these hilarious stories. Each sales rep recites BS from a training manual over and over. You ask them anything of fthe ordinary and they give you blank looks.

If the indian public isnt depending on the internet and doing their research I sincerely hope they arent completely depending on these sale reps.

[ACM]

Originally Posted by McLaren Rulez

Now how come the other two third spend at least over a lakh and a half and not even bother getting reviews online? I'm pretty surprised that the figure is that low.

Not surprising at all, infact 1/3rd is actually a very high figure for India, a very large portion of Indian Car buyers are not tech savy and don't use the Internet at all - expecially for information.

They make do with word of mouth and dealer information, plus likes or dislikes based on what they see on the Road.

[Sahil]

It is pretty evident as Indian auto industry spends big bucks on online advertising !