Why AI-Powered Solutions are Essential for Automotive Customer Engagement
Turn casual browsers into lifelong customers with AI-powered digital engagement.
Omnichannel engagement is the cornerstone of retailing success.
The truth is that all vehicle sales involve significant digital engagement. In automotive retail, prospective buyers spend the vast majority of the buying journey online and have as many as 900 digital interactions over the course of the research and buying process. Automotive digital customer engagement is retail engagement and it impacts physical touchpoints like phone conversations and showroom appointments too. A dealer’s ability to optimize engagement across every digital channel will directly impact revenue and the bottom line.
Over 80% of the buying journey is online
The average car shopper spends well over 80% of the buying journey online, and dealer websites receive approximately 20 times the amount of traffic the physical showroom does. And the average number of dealerships visited during the shopping journey has decreased from 5.4 to 2 over the last few years.
End-to-end engagement starts with
effective digital merchandising
End-to-end engagement starts with effective digital merchandising. Dealers need immersive and interactive merchandising across every touchpoint to maintain engagement, beginning with their digital showroom. 88% of car shoppers use the internet as the primary research tool in their shopping journey (Autotrader, Kelly Blue Book) and the fact is that a dealer’s digital channels and website are their front door. Fail to capture shoppers online and you lose them forever. The conclusion is clear. Retailer websites, their vehicle detail pages (VDP’s) and all other digital touchpoints that feature inventory are critical to engaging, retaining, and converting shoppers.
That’s the power behind digital engagement.
134% higher purchase rate
An engaged shopper is a shopper who actually purchases: those who engaged
with specific lower-funnel digital merchandising products on dealer websites purchased at up to 134% higher rates.
The right touchpoints, at the right time,
in the right channel. For every customer.
But it doesn’t end with effective merchandising. To turn shoppers into buyers and buyers into life long customers dealers need scale and offer continuity across every part of the shopping and ownership experience. Automation powered by real AI is the key to unlocking an uninterrupted omnichannel experience that’s personalized for every customer from the moment they first contact the dealer to the moment they buy their next vehicle – and everything in between. Using Machine Learning (ML) and Natural Language Processing (NLP), next-generation conversational AI leverages first-hand behavioral consumer data to deliver customized applications across the dealership ecosystem, from sales to F&I to service. That means greater efficiency and productivity for every team in every department. And that’s something that old technology, like chat bots, auto-responders, and service reminder platforms just can’t match.
AI-powered digital customer engagement integrates with the dealership’s existing systems, processes, and technologies by working as the hub of the dealership’s ecosystem. It uses behavioral insights, engagement patterns, and continuous learning to infuse every interaction with intelligent automation, harmonizing touchpoints and enhancing the dealership’s customer journey.
A powerful always-on engagement solution
End-to-end engagement is interactive and personal for shoppers and customers alike. With an AI customer engagement platform orchestrating the customer journey, dealers can minimize disruptions, duplication, or information gaps across channels. Data is seamlessly integrated throughout digital and physical channels, resulting in a smooth and continuous customer experience. Whether it’s conversational sales AI that integrates with the dealer CRM to engage shoppers with personalization at scale, or AI-powered service automation that integrates with the DMS to maximize customer loyalty across the ownership lifecycle, these same capabilities can power every department in your dealership.
The future of digital engagement is here.
AI-powered automotive digital engagement is the future of vehicle retail success [link to fifth pillar blog]. A dealer’s ability to optimize engagement across every digital and physical channel will directly impact sales, revenue growth, and the bottom line.
Turns casual browsers into serious shoppers — and long-term, loyal customers — through personalized interactions that leverage first-hand behavioral data to create tailored customer journeys.
That’s seamless. That’s intelligent. That’s digital engagement.
Impel’s Digital Engagement Platform
• Omnichannel personalization
• Seamless continuity across channels
• Harmonized digital and physical touchpoints
• Automated communications at scale
• Enhanced engagement, immersion, and interaction
• Firsthand customer behavioral data
Everything you need to deliver better customer experiences.
Let us show you how Impel can drive your business forward.
