Contrary to the growing belief that social media will soon
replace traditional automotive dealerships, a recent Maritz
Research New Vehicle Customer Study (NVCS), revealed that the
salesperson at the dealership is still the most influential
source of information for car buyers. In fact, salespeople were
ranked significantly higher in 2011 than in the past five
years.
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The NVCS, which is the largest
automotive study in North America, asked customers what sources
of information they found most influential in their buying
decisions.
The top ten sources in the U.S. were as follows:
Salesperson at the dealership (21.9 percent)
Family/ friend/ word of mouth (18.7 percent)
Consumer guides (18.4 percent)
Dealer’s/ manufacturer’s websites (8.6 percent)
Third-party websites (6.4 percent)
Automotive magazine reviews (6.1 percent)
TV advertisements (4.0 percent)
Dealer’s/ manufacturer’s brochures (3.2 percent)
Dealer/Manufacturer-sponsored event (2.4 percent)
Newspaper advertisements (1.7 percent)
“People buy from people,” said a
href="http://www.searchautoparts.com/aftermarket-
business/opinion-commentary/industry-study-worth-
reviewing">Chris Travell, vice president and strategic
consultant for Maritz Research. “Social media can certainly
support the selling effort, but I believe it would be a mistake
to believe that social media will usurp it.”
Recommendations from family, friends and word of mouth were also
ranked statistically higher than in past years, while consumer
guides such as Consumer Reports still remain the third most
influential source of information.
