Nowadays, a significant portion of the car purchase journey is conducted online. Consumers will use the internet to research vehicles and dealers, and it is likely that they will make a decision about whether or not to consider your dealership before they have even visited it. This means that the service you provide through your website needs to be just as refined as the service you offer in person.
EfficiencyÂ
No one wants to wait around for web pages to load. To make users’ experience on your website the best it can be, load speed should be fast. You can reduce load times by optimising code and compressing images on your website.
Your website should also be easy to navigate through, with clear fonts and colour schemes and a simple navigation bar. Ensure that you have included plenty of call-to-actions to help users progress through your site and on their purchase journey.
Images and Videos
Images and videos of your vehicles should be plentiful on your website and they should be high definition and professional-looking. Clear photos provide customers with transparency, and if you upload enough photos and videos to cover every angle of the car, this shows consumers exactly what is on offer, so they have no reason to distrust your dealership.
ReviewsÂ
Another way in which you can be open and honest with your website users, is to display reviews on your site. This will show new prospects that you are proud of your products and service. Consumer research has revealed that third-party opinions are often a big influence for people considering making a purchase, so by not having the means for customers to leave reviews online, your dealership is severely limiting itself.
Provide an Out-of-Hours Service
The majority of consumers conduct product research in the evening, when your dealership may not be open. A number of dealerships offer an out-of-hours service for dealing with sales enquiries and if your dealership does not, customers may choose another rather than having to wait until the following day for a response.
You could assign staff members or a third-party company to answer the phone after hours, or alternatively, you could provide an online retailing platform. Online retailing has become hugely popular recently, with services like Engage, by Click Dealer, acting as digital salespeople.
