Shift Magazine - September 2021 - 10

ONLINE
OPTIONS
Porsche Finder, above, and Lexus' Monogram allow full
online auto purchases; Ford Express Buy, bottom, does
the same, but only for the Mustang Mach-E for now.
Changing consumer shopping preferences
spark factory digital retail programs
F
or a new generation of car shoppers,
going to a physical lot and
kicking the tires seems to have lost
some of its appeal, a trend that accelerated
with the coronavirus pandemic.
A Cox Automotive report released in
January said 64 percent of vehicle shoppers
wanted more of the purchase process
to take place online, and 76 percent
were open to the idea of buying a vehicle
completely online.
People are visiting fewer dealerships
before making a purchase and spending
less time in them. Recognizing this
change in consumer preferences, several
major automakers have rolled out digital
retail programs. Here are some of them.
Ford Motor Co.: Ford Express Buy
(Ford brand)
The one-stop system allows a customer
to purchase a vehicle completely
online in partnership with Ford Credit,
although they can take the process offline
into a physical dealership at any point. It is
10 shift * september 2021
currently available only with the Mustang
Mach-E but will be rolled out more broadly
across Ford's lineup.
Lincoln, Ford's luxury brand, is expected to
launch its own digital retail tool based off the
Ford Express Buy model, although the company
has not announced a name or timeline.
- Michael Martinez
General Motors: Shop.Click.Drive
(Cadillac, Chevrolet, Buick-GMC)
General Motors launched Shop.Click.
Drive in 2013, primarily as a lead-generator.
Over the past two years, GM has
made the platform more transactional.
Shop.Click.Drive now includes pricing
transparency with third-party websites, an
option for customers to test drive a vehicle
and a real-time credit application. Cadillac,
Chevrolet and Buick-GMC dealers can
access the platform.
GM also has plans to launch a digital
retail tool, powered by Tekion, to facilitate
electric vehicle sales. But sales of GM's
Shift Magazine - September 2021

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