Value-Added Services and Target Marketing Will Proliferate Vehicle Purchases by Women in North America

By 2020, more than 40 percent of female vehicle purchase decisions will rely on digital retail platforms and showrooms at dealerships, finds Frost & Sullivan's Mobility team

SANTA CLARA, California, Aug. 17, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Vehicle purchasing by women in North America is rapidly increasing. Automotive original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and dealerships are racing to develop compelling new value-added services and business strategies to harness varied preferences. Their success will depend on developing targeted marketing in social media and smart retail outlets that offer women a first-hand experience of the vehicle and its unique features and capabilities.

Frost & Sullivan's analysis titled, Women as Vehicle Customers – Voice of North America Consumer Findings, examines the growing trend of North American (United States and Canada) women vehicle purchases and the factors they consider while making their buying decisions across three different categories: design and technology, sales and retails, and vehicle ownership. Preferences among different age groups of women and opportunities for dealerships and automotive OEMs to improve customer satisfaction are also presented.

To access more information on this analysis, please visit: https://goo.gl/UEpytE 

"By 2020, 40 percent of women will consider digital retail platforms, automotive OEMs' websites and showrooms at dealerships, as their main source of information when considering a vehicle purchase," said Frost & Sullivan Mobility Research Manager Vishwas Shankar. "Vehicle buying preferences vary significantly among women of different age groups; the majority female vehicle seekers are more internet-savvy and prefer luxury sports cars rather than regular, personalized vehicles."

A major challenge for automotive OEMs is understanding what women customers want in vehicles. Even if the vehicles are designed to reflect a woman's personality, women feel that the process of vehicle buying is extremely cumbersome, hence a major revamp of the entire vehicle buying process is essential to better suit women customers.

Further strategic imperatives for success include:

• Developing a powerful interactive website with multi-vehicle model compare features;
• Focusing on in-store experience and improving customer experience through the employment of women sales staff;
• Being receptive to feedback to increase customer satisfaction;
• Conducting experience sessions that target women customers to test new technology prior to purchase;
• Developing dealerships in shopping malls with play areas to increase the footfall of women visiting dealerships;
• Driving sales through a focus on reliability, fuel economy, and safety improvement across cars, SUVs, and sedans;
• Partnering with financial technology companies online to help improve customer experience and sales, and make the process of vehicle financing less intimidating; and
• Launching specific vehicle models that target women and offering women-centric interior features for SUVs and sedans.

"Overall, women are less likely to be early adopters of new vehicle technology and give importance to powertrain; they are more likely to seek safety, manoeuvrability, and automatic vehicle access," noted Shankar.

Women as Vehicle Customers — Voice of North America Consumer Findings, is part of Frost & Sullivan's Mobility Growth Partnership subscription.   

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Women as Vehicle Customers—Voice of North America Consumer Findings, 2016
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