A
well-designed manufacturer Website can be integral in motivating
automotive shoppers to visit dealer showrooms for a test drive, according
to the J.D. Power and Associates 2002 Manufacturer Web Site Evaluation
Study released in May.
The
study, now in its third year, finds that 42 percent of respondents
who rate a manufacturer's Website as "outstanding" indicate
they are more likely to visit a showroom for a test drive than they
were prior to visiting the site. Nearly 90 percent of shoppers also
feel that manufacturer Web sites, combining sight, sound and motion,
are more useful than traditional brochures.
A
Web site's usefulness is primarily a function of three factors:
navigation, appearance/presentation, and relevance of the information
provided. The Mercedes-Benz Web site, which ranked sixth in 2001,
ranks highest in the study, with top scores in appearance/presentation
and navigation. The site scored particularly well on its home page
design, which the study finds critical to the success of any manufacturer's
Web site.
"We've
all heard the saying, `Don't judge a book by it's cover,'
but it is clear that many shoppers do just that when visiting Web
sites," said Todd Wilson, director of retail distribution research
at
J.D. Power and Associates. "The top-performing sites have visually
stimulating home pages that provide a sufficient number of links to
the site's most relevant features and information. A home page should
entice and enable the user to confidently explore the site."
Kia
makes a big jump in the study's rankings and places closely
behind Mercedes-Benz, earning the study's highest scores in the
relevance factor. Rounding out the top five are Mini and Saturn in
a tie and Suzuki.
A
good manufacturer Web site not only inspires test drives, but
also increases a visitor's likeliness to request an online price quote
-- an indication of purchase intent. While consumers trust
manufacturer sites more for specific vehicle information, they
overwhelmingly rely on independent third-party sites for pricing
information such as dealer invoice and market-value estimates.
Currently 13 percent of new-vehicle buyers request an online price
quote, but only 4 percent do so through a manufacturer site.
"Manufacturer
Web sites are competing with many independent sites for the attention
of vehicle shoppers," said Wilson. "Manufacturers could
better control the online distribution channel by offering more pricing
information to consumers through their Web sites, in addition to easy-to-find
rebate and incentive programs and links directly to local dealers
for online price quotes."
The
2002 Manufacturer Web Site Evaluation Study is designed to
evaluate overall site functionality and the importance of site
features to online shoppers. It is based on responses from more than
4,300 Internet users who intend to purchase a new vehicle within 24
months. Survey respondents were recruited primarily from the Kelley
Blue Book site and Yahoo!
Autos.
(Source:
J.D. Power and Associates)
