Edmunds.com recently released its first Millennial Mobile Car Shopping Report and, contrary to popular belief, the majority of young car-buyers still value meeting with dealership sales staff face-to-face and taking test drives.
While the study found that 80% of millennial car buyers used their mobile devices in the car-buying process, 64% of them said they prefer face-to-face interaction with dealerships and 96% said it’s important to test drive a vehicle before buying.
According to the study, 41% of millennials consult their mobile devices for “critical shopping activities”, compared to only 20% for all other adults. The report said 34% of millennials use their mobile devices to locate vehicles for sale compared with 20% for other adults and 33% use mobile devices to research vehicle pricing, compared to 21% of other adults.
Autotrader.com also recently released its Car Buyer of the Future study, which found that 84% of those surveyed want to buy a car in person, although they want to see changes to the car buying process.
The study found that 88% of consumers won’t buy a car without a test drive, but the majority doesn’t like test drives with a sales person. It also found that 72% of consumers want to complete a credit application and financing paperwork online to save time at the dealership and feel less pressured. More than 56% of consumers want to negotiate a car deal according to the study. Approximately 73% of respondents said they would drive farther for a great salesperson versus 65% who would drive farther to get the cheapest price.
Dealers who create a better shopping and buying experience may benefit, according to Autotrader’s findings. The survey found 72% of consumers surveyed said they would visit a dealership more often if the buying process improves; 66% would be “much more likely” to buy from a dealership that offers “a preferred experience;” and 53% would buy a vehicle more often if the buying process improved.