Car-Buying Intentions Robust, Global Survey Shows

A Nielsen survey reveals a promising outlook for the global auto industry, with 65% of online consumers saying they plan to buy a new or used car in the next two years.

The market researcher’s poll of more than 30,000 Internet respondents in 60 countries found auto demand will be strongest in Latin America (75%), Middle East/Africa (75%) and Asia-Pacific (72%).

Some 56% of those polled in North America and 50% in Europe expect to buy a new or used car in the next 24 months.

Total car-buying intentions, new and used, are greatest in developing countries, led by India (83%), Brazil (82%), Indonesia (81%), Thailand (79%), Mexico (79%) and China (78%).

New-car purchase intent is strong in the Asia-Pacific, where 65% of respondents say they will buy new in the next two years, compared with 7% who plan to buy used cars. In Latin America, 47% say they will buy a new car, while 28% plan to buy used.

The Malaysian government’s Bernama news agency says car-buying intention figures are high in Southeast Asia, where car ownership is low everywhere except for Malaysia, which places third regionally.

“Historically, automotive demand in Southeast Asia has been relatively low, and for many households owning a car has been financially out of reach,” Chang Par, Nielsen managing director-Automotive Industry Group in Southeast Asia, North Asia and Pacific, is quoted as saying in a statement.

“We have seen those tables turn in a big way in recent years, however, largely due to rising income levels across the region as more and more households join the middle class and attain the financial means to make their first car purchase.”

In the Middle East/Africa the ratios are 45% new to 30% used, while in North America it’s 34% new and 22% used. In Europe, more respondents plan to buy a used car (28%) in favor of new (22%).

Nielsen Automotive President Pat Gardiner says linking global automotive demand with consumer sentiments and media habits is vital for developing marketing strategies that connect the right buyers with the right brands.

“The Asia-Pacific and Latin American regions, as expected, represent large areas of growth opportunity for the industry, but this hinges on marketers successfully identifying, understanding and effectively connecting with the needs and desires of these buyers,” Gardiner says in a statement.

Findings from the survey are integrated with an 11-country media-consumption study to determine the media platforms where automotive advertising resonates strongest and which websites can be most helpful for car-buying consumers.

Some 46% of respondents to the media survey say automotive advertising on websites is very helpful when considering the purchase of a new car. Some 42% say the same about advertising on TV, followed by 32% for magazines, 29% for newspapers, 21% for mobile and 20% for radio ads.

Online use is strongest in India, where 74% find websites very helpful, followed by Brazil (69%), China (60%), Thailand (58%) and Russia (51%).

Nielsen found the websites considered most informative when making a car purchase are those of automotive brands (65%), professional product review (41%), other third-party information sites (38%) and dealer websites (38%). Some 34% find social-media sites most helpful, and 23% cite video sites with product demonstrations as the most useful.