Researchers Say More Car Shoppers Tuned In to Video

A U.K. automotive video-specialist company predicts dealerships will become nothing more than a take-out service, with buying and selling done almost entirely remotely within five years.

CitNOW says 75% of car buyers already use video to research their next purchase before setting foot in a showroom.

CEO Alistair Horsburgh says the industry is waking up to the importance of using video to communicate with their customers.

“But, by 2020, it will be a two-way conversation,” Horsburgh says in a statement. “We are already seeing how drivers are starting to expect and demand video as part of the service they get from dealers.

“Within five years, the entire process of buying a new car, from researching different models to agreeing (on) a price and a specification, will be done remotely. Motorists won’t ever have to visit the showroom, except perhaps to pick up the car they’ve ordered.”

He says the trend is expected to accelerate as smartphone software becomes more sophisticated and super-fast 5G technology is introduced.

“Motorists will be haggling with dealers, agreeing part-exchange prices remotely and selling cars privately, all using video communication rather than face-to-face negotiation,” Horsburgh says.

CitNOW, which has published a research paper on the current and future roles of video in the automotive business, says more than 50% of franchised U.K. dealer networks use some form of personalized service to help customer relations in both sales and service.

The CitNOW research finds personalized video not only makes motorists more likely to return to the same dealership for future purchases, but also speeds transactions.

Some 86% of dealers interviewed by CitNOW say video has improved customer retention, with 88% of used-car sales and 70% of new-car purchases completed within four weeks using video.

“Consumers these days expect this level of convenience, speed and quality of service,” Horsburgh says.

CitNOW, which operates in Europe, Asia, Africa and the U.S., is a personal video presentation service. It says its suite of apps can result in sales executives converting 50% or better in new-car sales and aftersales work increasing 20% in just eight weeks.