auto industry earns high scores for customer satisfaction€¦ · scores for customer satisfaction...

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SEPTEMBER 2017 www.mediagrouponlineinc.com

Auto Industry Earns High Scores for Customer SatisfactionThe latest American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) for automobiles and light vehicles was released at the end of August – and the overall score (on a 100-point scale) remained high, at 81, a decline of a single point from 2016.

US and European automakers achieved the same score, or 80, while Japanese/Korean vehicles scored slightly higher, at 82. Among the US Big Three, only GM received a higher mark from customers, or a score of 82, than its 2016 score. Ford’s score declined to 81 and Fiat Chrysler was at the end of the pack, with a 77.

Lexus was tops among luxury vehicles, earning 2 additional points for a score of 86; followed by Mercedes-Benz, 84 (+3 points); Cadillac, 83 (+4 points); Lincoln, 83 (-4 points); Audi, 82 (-1 point); and Acura 80 (+4 points).

Consumers Continue Their Control of the Buying ProcessNetsertive Automotive’s July 2017 Google Consumer Survey of more than 500 adults 18–65 revealed three primary conclusions:

1. “Shoppers knew which brand they wanted, but were unsure from which dealership they would make a purchase.”

2. “Consumer reviews, search engines and local dealer Websites topped the list of online influence.”

3. “More than half (67%) of shoppers only visited 1 or 2 dealerships before making a purchase.”

The survey also discovered that the car-buying process is accelerating for many

consumers, as 40.9% required less than a month from starting their research to making a purchase. An interesting side note to this finding is that it was adults 18–34 who required less than a month while those 35–54 took two to four months.

AUTO BRAND WITH HIGHEST AND LOWEST ACSI 2017 SCORES

Highest Score Lowest Score

Toyota 86 Fiat and Dodge (each) 75

Subaru 85 Mitsubishi 78

Mercedes-Benz and GMC (each) 84

Volkswagen, Chrysler and Ford (each)

79

Cadillac, Hyundai and Lincoln (each) 83 Acura, Jeep, Buick

and Nissan (each) 80

Kia, Mazda, Audi, BMW and Volvo (each) 82 Chevrolet and

Honda (each) 81

MarketingCharts.com (American Customer Satisfaction Index), August 2017

SOURCES OF AUTO BUYING INFLUENCE, 2017

Source Percent

Did not see an ad 47.7%

Some referred me 18.5%

TV 14.6%

Newspaper 5.6%

Radio 4.9%

Billboard 3.9%

Netsertive Automotive, August 2017

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According to data from the NADA, the average domestic dealership spent $244,835 on advertising during the first half of 2017, a modest 1.5% increase, compared to $325,043 for the average import dealer – a considerably larger amount, but a 1.2% decrease.

Measured as a percentage of the dealerships’ gross revenues, domestic dealers allocated 8.2%, and import dealers 8.5%.

A different view of the industry – luxury versus mass market dealerships – reveals that luxury dealers spent $299,770 during the first half of 2017, or $762 per new retail vehicle, a decline of 5.2%. Conversely, mass market dealers spent slightly less, or $288,344, or $630 per new retail vehicle, but that was an increase of 3.9%.

More or Less Ad Spending

MARKETING FORWARD

US AUTO BRANDS’ CONTENT SOURCES, 2016

Brand Facebook Forums Twitter

All brands 9% 39% 52%

Chevrolet 9% 34% 57%

Ford 9% 51% 39%

Honda 7% 41% 51%

Nissan 9% 41% 50%

Toyota 10% 47% 43%Crimson Hexagon, July 2017

Crimson Hexagon, a social media analytics company, analyzed tens of millions of 2016 social media conversations and discovered some very interesting results. First, Honda had the largest total discussion volume, or 884,000; followed by Chevrolet, 843,000; Toyota, 763,000; Ford, 751,000; and Nissan, 395,000.

Next, Crimson Hexagon, compared three major US auto brands’ social media content sources. Somewhat surprisingly, Twitter scored much higher than Facebook, but online forums fared very well too, especially Reddit.

Of what should be of particular interest to you and your auto dealership clients are the topics that were most discussed online for these 5 brands.

Social Media Trends for the Largest Automakers

MOST-DISCUSSED TOPICS OF US AUTO BRANDS, 2016

Topic Toyota Ford Honda Chevy Nissan

Fuel efficiency 42K* 36K 35K 29K 29K

Dealership distress 29K 29K 17K 22K 22K

Reliability 35K 17K 26K 10K 17K

Sporty feel/Sleek design 17K 22K 19K 15K 17K

Performance/Handling 11K 19K 12K 17K 15K

Crimson Hexagon, July 2017 * posts per thousand

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A May 2017 survey from CARFAX revealed that although the majority of survey participants realized the value of in-car tech safety features, many of them didn’t think they were absolutely necessary; in fact, 53% cited them more as conveniences.

Consumers may have a positive opinion and outlook about tech safety features, but they are still apprehensive about self-driving vehicles, as 35%, the largest percentage, were concerned about the limited testing and in-market time of autonomous vehicles. This isn’t surprising, given how much more technological development and testing are still yet to be completed and government regulations yet to be determined.

Consumers’ concerns didn’t deter automakers from adding car tech safety features to its 2017 models.

Most Drivers Trust In-Car Safety Technology

ROAD SIGNS

For good or ill, self-driving technology may soon force the ubiquitous pizza delivery person to seek new employment. During late August, Ford and Domino’s Pizza announced it would begin testing a self-driving, pizza-delivery vehicle at a test site in Ann Arbor, MI.

Ford and Domino’s will also randomly select a few local customers to test the vehicle in a real-world setting. Initially, a Ford safety engineer will manually drive the vehicle, with customers able to track the vehicle via GPS on a smartphone app. It will also provide customers with a unique code to retrieve their pizza from the locked heated compartment.

Another critical element of the test is customers’ willingness to walk to the vehicle in their driveway or at the curb to retrieve their pizza, considering they’ve always been delivered to the front door. Maybe, the next step is pairing the vehicle with a robot, so customers don’t have to leave their home.

You’re Self-Driving Pizza Is on the Way!

“MUST-HAVE” STATUS OF TECH SAFETY FEATURES, 2017

FeatureCurrent Vehicle

Next Vehicle

Demand Increase

Cameras 43.2% 56.6% 1.31x

Alerts/Sensors 25.9% 43.4% 1.68x

Driver assist 13.0% 23.4% 1.80x

Driver override 14.6% 24.8% 1.70x

Hands-free/connectivity 41.2% 50.0% 1.21x

Security/Emergency 24.7% 31.5% 1.28xCARFAX, July 2017

STATUS OF TECH SAFETY FEATURES ON SOME 2017 MODELS

Feature Standard Optional Not AvailableForward-collision warning

19.5% 64.0% 16.5%

Forward autobrake 19.5% 50.0% 30.5%

Adaptive headlights 19.0% 31.0% 50.0%

Blind-spot detection 13.0% 70.0% 17.0%

Land-departure warning 9.5% 69.5% 21.0%CARFAX, July 2017

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RANK AUTOMAKER AUGUST 2017% CHANGE FROM

AUGUST 20162017 YEAR TO DATE

% CHANGE FROM 2016 YEAR TO DATE

#1 Ford 200,321 -1.9% 1,628,824 -4.3%

#2 Toyota 196,824 +8.0% 1,411,384 -0.2%

#3 Chevrolet 196,007 +11.4% 1,316,391 -3.3%

#4 Honda 132,883 -1.8% 987,701 0.0%

#5 Nissan 97,340 -14.8% 955,340 -1.5%

#6 Jeep 73,191 -15.4% 548,833 -13.0%

#7 Subaru 63,215 +4.6% 423,728 +8.1%

#8 Kia 53,323 -1.7% 405,462 -8.4%

#9 Hyundai 52,507 -25.5% 441,367 -15.1%

#10 GMC 47,718 +12.4% 358,305 +2.9%

#11 Dodge 43,608 -1.7% 335,852 -4.6%

#12 Ram 43,322 -2.5% 367,007 +5.3%

#13 Volkswagen 32,015 +9.0% 220,344 +6.4%

#14 Lexus 30,801 -0.4% 193,463 -8.0%

#15 Mercedes-Benz* 28,954 -8.2% 235,381 -2.8%

#16 Mazda 25,846 -1.0% 194,559 -2.4%

#17 BMW 23,553 -7.7% 194,604 -5.0%

#18 Audi 19,811 +2.8% 141,606 +5.2%

#19 Buick 16,811 -22.5% 143,093 -3.9%

#20 Cadillac 15,016 -8.1% 98,316 -5.4%

#21 Acura 13,132 -7.8% 101,180 -5.4%

#22 Chrysler 12,652 -32.6% 128,050 -23.6%

#23 Infiniti 10,986 +5.2% 100,969 +18.3%

#24 Lincoln 8,708 -5.8% 73,290 +3.2%

#25 Mitsubishi 8,164 +11.3% 70,765 +5.4%

#26 Volvo 7,994 +4.1% 49,066 -7.2%

#27 Land Rover 6,320 +4.8% 48,074 -1.4%

#28 Porsche 4,709 -9.1% 36,178 +1.1%

#29 Mini 4,448 -10.5% 31,051 -11.0%

#30 Jaguar 3,101 -6.0% 26,932 +52.3%

MONTHLY AUTOMOBILE SALES CHART

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Source: Automakers and The Truth About Cars

* Includes Mercedes-Benz vans: increased 13.6% to3,581 for August; decreased 0.2% to22,139 during YTD.

† Includes Audi, Bentley, Porsche and Volkswagen brands

‡ Industry total takes into account Automotive News figures/estimates for brands, such as Tesla (4,400 August units) and other low-volume, high-priced manufacturers.

© 2017 Media Group Online, Inc. All rights reserved.

Sources:

MarketingCharts.com Website:http://www.marketingcharts.com/industries/automotive-industries-79920?utm_source=Marketing+Charts+Newsletter&utm_campaign=da94448ff3-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2017_02_22&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_77b507436c-da94448ff3-16117785&mc_cid=da94448ff3&mc_eid=8523bb9698

The American Customer Satisfaction Index Website:http://www.theacsi.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=147&catid=&Itemid=212&i=Automobiles+and+Light+Vehicles&sort=ChangeAnual

Lucid Press Website:http://pub.lucidpress.com/netsertiveautosurvey/#v4dh_kkPFnF6

Insideradio Website:http://www.insideradio.com/free/ad-insider-here-s-how-much-average-auto-dealer-spends/article_abffe5e0-830d-11e7-a408-f7cd89ebf0bb.html

Crimson Hexagon Website:http://pages.crimsonhexagon.com/rs/284-XQB-702/images/US-Auto-Brands-Report.pdf

CARFAX Website:https://www.carfax.com/press/resources/car-tech-safety-study

Automotive News Website:http://www.autonews.com/article/20170829/MOBILITY/170829769/ford-dominos-to-study-autonomous-pizza-delivery-vehicles?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+autonews%2FAutomakerNews+%28Automotive+News+Automaker+News+Feed%29&ito=792

MediaPost Website:https://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/306631/dominos-ford-test-pizza-delivery-using-self-driv.html

The Truth About Cars Website:http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/2017/09/usa-auto-sales-brand-by-brand-results-august-2017-ytd/

RANK AUTOMAKER AUGUST 2017% CHANGE FROM

AUGUST 20162017 YEAR TO DATE

% CHANGE FROM 2016 YEAR TO DATE

#31 Fiat 2,120 -22.6% 19,046 -14.2%

#32 Genesis 1,803 +20.4% 13,366 +793%

#33 Alfa Romeo 1,140 +2,981% 6,084 +1,514%

#34 Maserati 1,103 +15.1% 8,884 +27.4%

#35 Smart 229 -35.1% 2,394 -30.4%

General Motors 275,552 +7.5% 1,916,105 -2.4%

Toyota Motor Corporation

227,625 +6.8% 1,604,847 -1.3%

Ford Motor Company 209,029 -2.1% 1,702,744 -4.0%

FCA/Chrysler Group 176,033 -10.6% 1,404,872 -7.7%

American Honda Motor Company

146,015 -2.4% 1,088,881 -0.5%

Nissan Motor Company/Infiniti /

Mitsubishi116,490 -11.7% 1,127,074 +0.4%

Hyundai-Kia Automotive Group

107,633 -14.8% 860,195 -10.7%

Volkswagen Group† 56,748 +4.6% 399,644 +5.5%

Daimler AG 29,183 -8.5% 237,775 -3.1%

BMW Group 28,001 -8.2% 225,655 -5.8%

Jaguar/Land Rover 9,421 +1.0% 75,006 +12.9%

TOTAL‡ 1,484,826 -1.8% 11,358,405 -2.7%

auto industry earns high scores for customer satisfaction€¦ · scores for customer satisfaction...

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