Online Research Influences Indian Car Buyers’ Purchase Decisions, Study Finds

MUMBAI – Some 65% of car buyers in India use the Internet to research vehicles before making a purchase decision, a recent study finds.

The Google India study of online consumer behavior, conducted from January through March, shows searches for cars are rising faster than for travel, electronics or finance, says Rajan Anandan, vice president and managing director of the regional search-engine company.

Ford India increased digital advertising 7% this year.

Online vehicle searches in India jumped 84% in 2010, but already were up 72% in first-half 2011, he says in the study.

Noticing this, Ford India has increased its digital advertising 7% this year.

“Digital communication is the crucial part of our marketing, and we aim to harness its power fully,” Executive Director Nigel Work tells Ward’s.

Adds Jnaneswar Sen, vice president-Honda Siel Cars: “Brand surveys on the Internet generate aspirations.”

Suzuki Maruti also is investing more money in digital media, says Shashank Srivastava, chief general manager, noting sales of the auto maker’s most-popular car, the Alto, “reflect consumer interest online.”

Google India says revenue from vehicle advertising increased 150% in 2010 over the previous year. The company’s entire e-commerce revenue last year was $5 billion; the biggest spenders were mobile phone makers followed by auto makers.

Anandan expects it to rise to $40 billion by 2015, now that advertisers are starting to understand buyers’ digital behavior.

Analyzing its Indian advertisers, Google India says the most-popular brands searched online during its study were Suzuki, Honda and Hyundai, in that order. Volkswagen and Fiat received the least number of hits.

Vehicles with high fuel efficiency and small hatchbacks priced Rs200,000-Rs600,000 ($4,444-$13,000) were the car segments most often searched online.

Consumers were able to compare performance and features of 75 cars and variants, Google India says.

The next most-searched segment was super-luxury cars, with more than 30 models and variants available for online review.