Merit Mile
MARKET SCAN CONSUMER SURVEY EMPHASIZES IMPORTANCE OF OFFERING CONSISTENT PAYMENT QUOTES
MARKET SCAN CONSUMER SURVEY EMPHASIZES THE IMPORTANCE OF OFFERING CONSISTENT PAYMENT QUOTES DIGITALLY AND IN THE SALES SHOWROOM
Consumer interest drops dramatically when showroom offers are just $50 different from what consumer was quoted online
Market Scan Information Systems, Inc., an industry-leading automotive SaaS / PaaS solutions and data provider, today announced results from a recent consumer survey it completed focused on consumer behavior associated with automotive digital retailing. The survey highlights frustrations, expectations and provides valuable insight on how sales opportunities are lost when payment offers online differ from payments presented at a dealer’s showroom.
Market Scan commissioned an online survey during January, where it polled roughly 200 automotive shoppers on their pain points associated with the digital retailing process. The survey also took a pulse check on how payments and offers are being presented to consumers today.
Price and payment negotiation remain among the most important aspects of the car shopping experience for consumers. The survey showed that nearly half of all respondents (45%) say price and payments matter to them the most.
The disconnect between shopping online and the experience at a dealer showroom remains a major headache for many. In fact, when it comes to online shopping, 49% said they need to restart the entire process when they arrive at the dealership after doing all their homework online, ahead of time. Furthermore, 43% are frustrated that there are still discrepancies between the online offer, and the one they are presented with at the dealership.
Why does this matter? 21% of shoppers say they begin to lose trust in their dealer when the discrepancy between the online offer and showroom offer is $50 or less per month. In parallel, 21% said they will actually walk away from the deal if the discrepancy is $50 or less per month and 48% said they will walk if the difference is less than $75 per month.
Dealers should recognize that this does not mean technology will force a race to the bottom. In fact, consumers said they may be willing to pay a little extra for the convenience of a true online shopping experience. Just over a third (34%) said they would sacrifice a little negotiating power to offset additional costs required for an ideal online shopping process that transitions seamlessly to the showroom experience.
“Prompted by COVID-19, digital retailing proficiency has become a must and an integral part of automotive retailing”, said Rusty West, President and CEO of Market Scan. “Dealers now must have an omni-channel presence and it is imperative that they provide consumers payment transparency and consistency throughout the entire journey. The survey results emphasize the importance of providing a scientifically perfect solution for any conceivable automotive transaction. When science, technology, data and automotive insight are applied correctly, it enables manufacturers, lenders, and retailers to provide consumers a frictionless, modern retailing experience – both online and in the dealer sales showrooms. And when that happens, everyone wins.”
To learn more about Market Scan, visit www.marketscan.com
Merit Mile
Lease Credit Approvals Showing Slight Increase for February
SWAPALEASE.COM RELEASES LATEST FIGURES ON LEASE CREDIT APPROVALS SHOWING SLIGHT INCREASE FOR FEBRUARY
Lease Credit Approvals Reached 70.8% in February; Up Slightly from 68% in January
Swapalease.com, the nation’s largest car lease marketplace, reports car lease credit applicants registered a 70.8% approval rate in February. The approval rate is a slight increase from the 68.3% approval mark that opened up the new year in January.
The February number is just off slightly from the same time last year, when the approval rate was at 72.3% right before the beginning of the pandemic. The steady numbers indicate consumer credit levels are also holding steady, perhaps as a continued sign of the ongoing stimulus relief provided by the government.
According to recent Federal Reserve data, consumer borrowing decelerated again in January, which may suggest that Americans are using the latest stimulus checks to pay down debt. Total consumer credit decreased $1.3 billion In January, the Fed said. That’s an annual decline at a 0.4% rate and follows a 2.5% gain in the prior month.
Swapalease.com believes many of its site visitors and vehicle shoppers have solid credentials available to take over a person’s vehicle lease. The inclination to have more flexibility through leasing amidst economic uncertainly may contribute to a rise in shoppers who are looking to lease vehicles through the secondary market, where lease payments are more attractive than what is currently offered at the dealership.
“Given that the year has started out with credit-stability figures that were maintained throughout the third and fourth quarters, we believe in the short term this stability will continue,” said Scot Hall, Executive Vice President of Swapalease.com. “The latest and recently signed stimulus package, combined with the accelerated momentum we’re seeing with vaccine rollouts should further strengthen the outlook for credit in the months ahead.”
Swapalease.com matches a person wanting out of their existing vehicle lease contract with a car shopper looking to take over a short-term vehicle lease. The marketplace has thousands of cars and trucks available for transfer to anywhere in the continental U.S.
About Swapalease.com:
Headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, Swapalease.com is the world’s largest automotive lease marketplace and the pioneer in facilitating lease transfers online. More specifically Swapalease.com matches individuals who want to get out of their lease with people who are looking for short-term lease agreements. Prospective buyers can search the listings for the exact vehicle they want, and then register for a nominal fee, allowing them to use Swapalease.com’s safe online system to contact the prospective seller and close the deal. For more information about Swapalease.com or how to exit your lease early, call 866-SWAPNOW or visit www.swapalease.com.
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Merit Mile
SWAPALEASE.COM RELEASES ITS FOURTH QUARTER LEASE TRENDS REPORT FROM 2020
Tesla and BMW Continue to Steal Marketshare from High-End Competitors
Swapalease.com, the nation’s largest car lease marketplace, unveiled today its lease trends report from the fourth quarter of 2020, offering insight and perspective into the auto lease trends shaping today’s automotive retail and consumer preferences. Click here to download the report.
The report looks at vehicle lease payment, term, shopping consideration and driver preference trends within vehicle leasing in the fourth quarter of 2020. Among the most notable trends, consumer searches for Tesla vehicles on the Swapalease.com marketplace increased 55% over the last twelve months, among the largest increases by any brand in recent history for the marketplace.
“The consumer demand for Tesla is very real, and while Tesla doesn’t have a traditional retail network, the vehicle’s makeup positions it perfectly for a lease environment,” said Scot Hall, Executive Vice President for Swapalease.com. “As it’s in the luxury category, many drivers enjoy the ability to lease rather than finance a Tesla. Furthermore, drivers feel the battery technology is improving at a rapid rate and enjoy the ability to change or upgrade every few years.”
The report also illustrates where BMW’s percent of total traffic reached 19% during the fourth quarter, up from 17% during the third quarter. Conversely, Mercedes-Benz declined from 8% down to 7% during the same time period.
Other foreign brands such as Honda, Acura, Nissan and Infiniti also continue to see falling search numbers in the marketplace. While these brands have traditionally experienced higher-than-average lease rates, they continue to experience lower-than-average search traffic and demand in the marketplace due to their unfavorable lease and lease transfer policies.
According to the report, Americans paid an average of $519.46 per month on their leases during the 4th quarter, down from $521.90 in the 3rd quarter. The report also shows that the average incentive has dropped from $583.65 in the 3rd quarter down to $545.66 in the 4th quarter.
For a look at the lease trends please download the report here.
About Swapalease.com:
Headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, Swapalease.com is the world’s largest automotive lease marketplace and the pioneer in facilitating lease transfers online. More specifically Swapalease.com matches individuals who want to get out of their lease with people who are looking for short-term lease agreements. Prospective buyers can search the listings for the exact vehicle they want, and then register for a nominal fee, allowing them to use Swapalease.com’s safe online system to contact the prospective seller and close the deal. For more information about Swapalease.com or how to exit your lease early, call 866-SWAPNOW or visit www.swapalease.com.
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Merit Mile
JANUARY AUTO LEASE PAYMENTS UP ON SEVERAL SUV BRANDS WHILE OTHERS SLASH PRICES
While many SUV Brands Decrease Lease Payments, Others Increase Monthly Rates After the New Year to Meet the Segment Average
Wantalease.com, the nation’s first online car lease marketplace for new lease deals, reports the latest update on new lease offerings for the month of January. While many truck lease payments have remained steady, SUV lease pricing is experiencing a split in both increases and decreases – depending on the brand.
While Honda is increasing their lease payments on SUVs in the month of January, Toyota is decreasing lease payments on their SUVs. The three largest decreases were the Toyota 4Runner with a -17.78% decrease in payment, the Toyota RAV4 with a -12.62% decrease, and the Nissan Pathfinder with a -5.31% decrease. The 4Runner is offered at $299 per month, the RAV4 is offered at $209 per month, and the Nissan Pathfinder is offered at $329 per month.
The largest lease increases for SUVs in the month of January include the Honda Pilot, with a 12.06% increase from December, and the Honda CR-V with a 6.66% increase. The Honda Pilot is listed at $329 per month, and the Honda CR-V is listed at $239 per month.
“SUVs continue to be a category that garners a great deal of interest from new customers,” said Scot Hall, Executive Vice President of Wantalease.com. “It’s this demand that you continue to see some SUV brands increasing their lease offers, while others lower deals in hopes to sway potential customers away from the competition.”
Currently, the Ford Focus is priced the lowest of all leases coming in at just $159 per month. The Ford Focus is priced lower than the Nissan Sentra, which was the vehicle holding the lowest lease offer last month at $149. This month, the Nissan Sentra increased in monthly payments by 4.71%.
Other lease increases include those in the luxury category, which has seen an explosive increase in monthly payments. The BMW X5 M50i had a 20.88% increase and the Lexus IS 300 had a 20.34% increase. The BMW X5 M50i is now offered at $1,049 per month, while the Lexus IS 300 is now offered at $349 per month.
Wantalease.com is a sister marketplace to Swapalease.com, the nation’s largest online marketplace for leases.
About Wantalease.com:
Headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, Wantalease.com is the world’s first online automotive marketplace for new car leases. For more information visit www.WantAlease.com.
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Merit Mile
Lease Credit Approval Rates Rise to 72.7% in December
Swapalease.com, the nation’s largest car lease marketplace, reports car lease credit applicants registered a 72.7% approval rate in December. The approval rate is significant considering approval ratings hit a low of 63.8% in April, the lowest rate reported since January of 2018.
With the holiday season being an optimal time to buy or lease a vehicle, it is no surprise that approval ratings saw an increase in December. According to Experian’s State of the Automotive Finance Market Report, in the second quarter of 2020, nearly 26% of new vehicles were leased. While this number is down from pre-pandemic levels, Swapalease.com believes many of its site visitors have solid credentials available to take over a person’s vehicle lease. The inclination to have more flexibility through leasing amidst economic uncertainly may contribute to a rise in shoppers who are looking to lease vehicles.
December has historically turned out a higher lease credit approval rating, likely due to end of year sales and lease deals. In December of 2019, 72% of applicants were approved to take over another person’s lease, and in December of 2018, 71.4% of applicants were approved.
“The automotive industry took a hard hit in early 2020, especially as stay-at-home mandates were implemented and businesses were temporarily shut down,” said Scot Hall, Executive Vice President of Operations at Swapalease.com. “We’ve continued to see slight increases month-over-month since May, and we’re optimistic at the outlook for the 2021 calendar year.”
Swapalease.com matches a person wanting out of their existing vehicle lease contract with a car shopper looking to take over a short-term vehicle lease. The marketplace has thousands of cars and trucks available for transfer to anywhere in the continental U.S.
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Merit Mile
Wantalease.com: Pickups and SUV Lease Payments Increase Entering December
Wantalease.com, the nation’s first online car lease marketplace for new lease deals, reports the latest update on new lease offerings entering the month of December. While most automotive brand payments remained steady, many SUV and pickup models saw payment increases.
Among the most notable are the Ford Ranger, with a +14.86% increase from November, the Chevrolet Traverse with a +14.65% increase, and the Honda Pilot with a +11.15% increase. The Ford Ranger is offered at a payment of $325 per month, the Chevrolet Traverse is priced at $329 per month, and the Honda Pilot is also priced at $329 per month.
Other SUVs with payment increases include the Ford Expedition, Cadillac Escalade, Lexus RX, and Infiniti QX80. The Expedition increased by +6.52%, the Escalade increased by +5.46%, the RX increased by +1.92% and the QX80 increased by +1.59%.
The Nissan Sentra is currently priced the lowest of all vehicles, coming in at just $149 per month. The Sentra has held steady at the same payment for the past four months. The vehicle with the largest discount in December was the Cadillac CT5, with a decrease of -17.47%, bringing monthly payments to $349.
“We anticipate that manufacturers will be holding steady on new lease payments despite the uptick in demand for new vehicles,” said Scot Hall, Executive Vice President of Wantalease.com. “With the biggest shopping holidays of the year quickly approaching, its possible manufacturers may have increased prices entering December to make promotional offers seem more attractive to holiday shoppers.”
Other vehicles that experienced payment decreases for the month of December include the Audi A3, the Toyota Corolla and the Volkswagen Jetta. The A3 decreased by -11.26%, bringing monthly payments to $294 per month, the Corolla decreased by -7.56% bringing monthly payments to $189 and the Jetta decreased by -4.07%, bringing payments to $229 per month.
Wantalease.com is a sister marketplace to Swapalease.com, the nation’s largest online marketplace for leases.
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Merit Mile
PureCars and Facebook Conduct Joint Study on Dealers Advertising Expenses
Study Showed Higher Website Traffic and Retargeting Leads Through Lower Advertising Spend
PureCars, a leading provider of digital marketing and advertising insights for automotive dealers, today announced it has completed a joint study with Facebook on the impact social marketing tools have on dealers that are more heavily reliant upon digital retailing while cutting advertising expenses.
During Q1 of 2020, Facebook and PureCars studied online and offline engagement and sales rates resulting from Facebook’s automotive inventory ads and retargeting campaigns for 16 auto dealers.
The purpose of the study was to better understand how today’s digital advertising resources measure and attribute offline sales back to Facebook/Instagram and to show the overall impact advertising on those channels has for automotive retail clients. The study’s observers launched a lift test in January to attempt to show the incremental impact Facebook advertising has on a dealer’s business. Observers tracked both online actions (VDP views and leads) and offline actions (vehicle sales).
“A rising number of consumers today utilize digital retailing resources during the research, shop, and transact phases of buying a vehicle,” said Jeremy Anspach, CEO of PureCars. “At the same time, many automotive retailers have cut their advertising spending but are still looking for ways to connect, engage and convert automotive shoppers. Auto dealers are realizing there is great power and cost efficiencies found in social marketing today that’s even more robust than just a few short years ago, and today’s sophisticated attribution technology makes it more accurate to determine ROI.”
The study showed how Facebook’s Automotive Inventory Ads drove a 23% lift in vehicle sales, at a $136 cost per incremental sale, compared to the traditional dynamic product catalogs ads on Facebook. Based on the analysis conducted during the Q1 study, test dealers also achieved 83% of their Retargeting audience and 11% of their Prospecting audience – significant numbers for the average automotive retailer.
Furthermore, the extremely high lift in dealership web traffic (76.4%) means the campaign was responsible for driving a significant amount of traffic to the dealer’s site, which in turn populated the Retargeting audience. This helped fuel the Retargeting campaign, which subsequently was the engine behind attribution for clearer ROI identification back to the dealer’s advertising expenditure validation.
To learn more about the study, visit: https://read.nxtbook.com/digital_dealer/dealer_magazine/sept_oct_2020_issue/driving_your_dealership.html
To learn more about social marketing and retargeting campaigns visit https://www.purecars.com/solutions/purecars/
About PureCars
Get stronger, smarter intelligence with PureCars. Our proprietary automotive digital marketing platform is built on the expertise of a wide range of car people — from data scientists to digital advertising experts — working relentlessly to ensure your dealership keeps growing. We make decisions rooted in strategy, not speculation, and have the proof in every penny.
Take your numbers to the next level with our comprehensive suite of solutions that address every aspect of your business, from sales to fixed ops. With PureCars, you outperform the competition and are prepared for the road ahead. Learn more at www.purecars.com.
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Merit Mile
SWAPALEASE.COM LAUNCHES “MOBILITY LEASING BY SWAPALEASE" PROGRAM
Program Eliminates Dealers Turning Away Shoppers Who Have Time Left on Lease Contracts
Swapalease.com, the nation’s largest car lease marketplace, unveiled today its newest program aimed at helping automotive retailers whose customers are looking to change vehicle leases before the contract has fully expired. The new program, called “Mobility Leasing by Swapalease”, is a unique marketplace infrastructure dealers and OEM partners can utilize to help customers add more flexibility into their lease contracts.
For a variety of financial or life event reasons, it is estimated that nearly eight out of every ten1 lease drivers want to exit their lease contract before it is completed. However, buying out a car lease contract to change vehicles is a serious headache that comes with considerable financial consequences. Life events like marriage, a new child, job transfer and income changes have all prompted consumers to change into a new or different vehicle.
A recent Swapalease.com industry report1 found that dealers turn away roughly 38% of the customers who are interested in getting a new vehicle simply because they have more than a few months remaining on their lease contract. The new Mobility Leasing by Swapalease program is designed to immediately help dealers help these customers into a new vehicle.
How It Works
When a customer walks into a Swapalease-participating dealership and leases a new vehicle, their salesperson informs them they can return the lease after satisfying an initial grace period (usually 12 months). When the customer returns to exercise their option, the dealer immediately begins the process of helping them out of their lease by listing the vehicle on the Swapalease.com lease transfer marketplace, where there is historically more buyers looking for gently-used leases to take over. Shortly thereafter when a match is found, the customer is free to work out a deal on their next vehicle with the salesperson.
This process eliminates the frustration and expensive penalty consumers face when they want to buy out their lease early, and it helps dealers offer immediate assistance to those customers hoping to exit their lease because a life event has changed their automotive vehicle preference.
“Auto dealers have had several years of solid sales performance, including 2020 when the pandemic was believed to be far more destructive earlier in the year,” said Scot Hall, Executive Vice President of Swapalease.com. “Despite all of this, many dealers are still missing out on millions in additional or lost revenue by having to turn away customers who want to shop for a new vehicle but feel stuck in their lease contract. Our new program eliminates all of this friction on both sides and enables dealers to immediately help their customers add more flexibility into their driving needs.”
Dealers interested in participating in the Mobility Leasing by Swapalease program may call 866-792-7669 ext. 1000 for more details. Drivers interested in exiting their lease even if their local dealer is not a participant may utilize the Swapalease.com Consumer Direct marketplace located at www.Swapalease.com.
About Swapalease.com:
Headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, Swapalease.com is the world’s largest automotive lease marketplace and the pioneer in facilitating lease transfers online. More specifically Swapalease.com matches individuals who want to get out of their lease with people who are looking for short-term lease agreements. Prospective buyers can search the listings for the exact vehicle they want, and then register for a nominal fee, allowing them to use Swapalease.com’s safe online system to contact the prospective seller and close the deal. For more information about Swapalease.com or how to exit your lease early, call 866-SWAPNOW or visit www.swapalease.com.
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1: https://www.swapalease.com/mediacenter/leasing/files/2020_Lease_Trends.pdf
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Merit Mile
Compliance Considerations when Texting Automotive Customers
Texting consumers is a very effective means to drive engagement and, ultimately, sales. Text messaging has outpaced email when looking at conversion and click-thru rates. In fact, 95% of texts are read in ninety seconds or less after being sent. Texting is unquestionably a great tool to engage consumers, but it is not without legal and regulatory risks. Dealerships must be mindful of the FCC’s Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) – a regulation that has already put thousands of companies in the compliance crosshairs.
Car dealerships can put their business at legal and financial risk each time they act on a lead because the TCPA allows consumers and law firms to bring lawsuits over even minor compliance lapses. Over the past decade, the number of TCPA lawsuits has increased tenfold. With penalties of up to $1,500 per text/call in violation, and the cost of an average TCPA settlement over $6 million dollars, the potential threat the TCPA poses to a firm’s bottom line and reputation are real. Therefore, when a dealership sends a marketing message, compliance considerations should be top of mind.
Note - if the ultimate goal of the telephone call or text is to make a sale or promote a product, then the call must be deemed solicitous which means it is covered by stringent TCPA rules. Examples of telemarketing calls/texts are:
- Proactively reaching out to customers who purchased a vehicle because they are in an advantageous equity position such that they can trade-in their vehicle for a new model (Data/Equity Mining)
- “We are having a July 4th Sale!”
- Contacting a dealership visitor to follow up on a test drive
- Contacting a purchased lead list from a third party (cars.com / truecar.com)
- Contacting a referral
Here are the top compliance considerations to help your dealership avoid a TCPA lawsuit:
Honor do-not-call and opt-out requests. Train consumer-facing personnel on how to capture and log do-not-call requests. Additionally, when texting, provide instructions on how to opt-out and look for other common phrases like “stop/quit/cancel.” Opt-outs should occur immediately with most common texting platforms. Additionally, the FCC has commented that calls and texts (and prerecorded messages) are one in the same, so an opt-out of one should always apply to future calls and texts alike.
Keep records. Maintain all records that demonstrate compliance with the TCPA. This includes call or text logs that capture date/time, express written consent received from consumers, and opt-out or do-not-call request logs.
Only call or text consumers between the hours of 8 a.m. and 9 p.m. according to the consumer’s location. It is better to base a consumer’s location on their address and not their phone number due to cellphone mobility. For instance, if you call numbers with a California area codes at 8 p.m. PT, but the consumers live in New York, the consumers may complain about receiving calls at 11 p.m. ET (their local time).
Monitor compliance with these items. This is another one that may seem obvious, yet most companies fail to do so. It is a virtual guarantee that a company will find issues with most audits. Companies typically “don’t know what they don’t know.”
Bonus: Here is a more comprehensive compliance playbook designed for the automotive industry.
The TCPA has been around for more than 25 years but remains one of the most litigated consumer protection statutes. A quick Google search should shed light on the fact that the automotive industry is in the TCPA crosshairs. However, with proper compliance in place dealership can enjoy the benefits of contacting consumers with peace of mind.
Paul Gipson is the Director of Marketing Compliance Services for CompliancePoint, a subsidiary of PossibleNOW.
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Merit Mile
Autonomous Shuttles at Yellowstone National Park
Beep, a Florida-based autonomous Mobility-as-a-Service (MaaS) provider today announced they will deploy the first autonomous shuttles at Yellowstone National Park with the National Parks Service (NPS) in May 2021. The pilot program will test multi-passenger, electric automated vehicle platforms to provide visitors a safe, innovative and eco-friendly transportation alternative while exploring Yellowstone.
Beep will work in concert with both NPS Park Planning, Facilities and Lands Directorate, the Department of Transportation and Yellowstone National Park to safely plan, deploy and operate two autonomous shuttles in the Canyon Village. Exact shuttle stops, route locations and distance will be determined jointly between Beep and the NPS. According to a press release by Yellowstone National Park, the initiative is part of the Yellowstone Visitor Use Management Program, which is focused on testing a range of pilot projects around the park to enhance the visitor experience.
“It’s an honor to be the first in the country to provide autonomous shuttles to the NPS and its visitors. Yellowstone’s Visitor Use Management Program aligns with Beep’s mission to provide alternative, sustainable, and innovative transportation solutions meant to transform and improve mobility for all. This demonstration will help assess how emerging technologies can enhance the visitor experience while making the roads safer and less congested for everyone,” said Joe Moye, Beep CEO.
During the deployment, Beep will provide a full suite of services for the pilot including the autonomous vehicles, engineering, and mapping of the routes, complete operational, monitoring and management for regular oversight and to support ridership demand. By utilizing 100-percent electric autonomous shuttles that will have zero emissions, the deployment aligns with the park’s priority to improve visitor safety, access, and experience. The pilot will be supported and monitored by an onboard shuttle specialist, on the ground staff and Beep’s Global Command Center to ensure safe and reliable operation.
Beep has a perfect safety record with the largest and longest running single site AV shuttle fleet in the United States, located in Lake Nona, Florida, a 17 square-mile planned development in Orlando. Since launching in September 2019, Beep safely transported over 16,000 passengers in its first year of operation on its initial route eliminating the equivalent of nearly 9,400 vehicle trips with carbon emissions that would have required 170 trees to reverse. With over seven new routes and programs now in production, the safety and environmental impact is compounding. Beep, and their safety-first approach to successfully test this new technology, is also the first AV service provider currently participating in NHTSA’s AV TEST Initiative public portal launched in September 2020 by USDOT.
Passengers can also expect processes and procedures onboard that align with best practices for ridesharing and transit such as frequent cleaning procedures, modified seating capacity, onboard hand sanitizer and disinfectant wipes.
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