Andrew Tai, CEO
The Amazon experience
Andrew Tai, CEO
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It’s no secret that consumers are seeking out the Amazon experience in retail — and it should come as no surprise that they now expect it from car dealers, according to Andrew Tai, CEO MotoInsight. Canadian auto dealer caught up with Tai at the NADA Show in San Francisco, where he offered some insights into where the company is headed and what their focus has been.
“That whole ‘buy online, pick up in store’ over the last few years in other retail sectors from groceries to electronics from Walmart has completely transformed the way mainstream consumers shop,” said Tai. “They now expect that in automotive. Digital retailing can deliver a differentiated customer experience, allowing the customer to shop whenever, wherever, and however they want on any device at any point in time online or in store — we’re going to deliver that.”
MotoInsight has been around for a little more than eight years, and with the company’s recent push in the U.S. over the last year or more, Tai felt it was important to build their presence at NADA and share what they have been working on. He said the there has been a lot of focus on their segment of the market in digital retailing, and so there have been a lot of good interactions at their booth.
Years ago, Tai said customers would go online and configure an exact price that they wanted to get — a real accurate final pricing from a dealer on an inventory with a penny accurate payment on a credit card, before and reserve it online. Then when customers walked into the store, the deal was done: they simply had to sign the papers, get the key and drive away. “We’ve been doing that since 2011 and now it’s finally becoming an area of focus for dealers that want to elevate their customer experience,” said Tai, who again referred to the “buy online, pick up in store” way of shopping anytime and anywhere, which consumers now expect from car dealers.
“I think automotive is kind of one of those things where the retail experience is the final domino to fall over, if you will,” said Tai. “Automakers and dealers are finally recognizing that opportunity and privilege. During a speaker session, it was great to talk about the five reasons why the physical storefront is more important than ever in the digital world. I think there’s a lot of attention on this evolution and the customer experience and that journey.”
He said that dealers are recognizing that other people — other dealers — are doing it. There can no longer be a “click here to call” that results in a generated lead. Consumers now want more steps that goes all the way to the purchaser.
“It’s about getting a richer experience when you’re trying to deliver,” said Tai. “Our group in Ottawa for example, I talked to the team there and one of the opportunities that they saw was really, ‘hey, if we’re going to deliver a differentiated customer experience, allowing the customer to shop whenever, wherever, and however they want on any device, at any point in time, online or in store, we’re going to deliver that.’ Because it’s a message that cuts through everybody”
Tai said all dealers typically have the same message about, having the best deal and being part of a family-owned store that offers great customer experience, zero hassle, and no pressure. The problem is that it ends up being the same old message: zero per cent financing, best traded values, etc.
“Whether you’re first in the market to be able to deliver an elevated customer experience anytime, anywhere online or in-store — that’s up to you. That’s the message that cuts through and what we’re hearing from our dealers that are embarking in their regions, how to deliver this kind of experience and deploy this kind of technology for the customer, is that that message comes through to customers (broadly speaking). It’s customers that aren’t necessarily using the online technology, but the fact that they hear this differentiated message, it makes them want to engage with the brand.”
Tai said the company has a full roadmap for 2019 and beyond of how they plan to continue to enhance their product to serve customers better. Right now, they are particularly focused on helping auto retailers deal with taking the first step of change, and recognizing that their business model “doesn’t need to turn on a dime overnight.”
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