Training wheels

With the digital universe becoming the first point of contact, auto companies are coaching their staff to steer online leads to showrooms

- SOHINI DAS

Sameer wants to buy asmall sport utility vehicle (SUV);soona Saturday afternoon, he browses social media and automobile websites.

Several reels, popups, and links lure him to websites of original equipment manufacturers (OEMs). He clicks onone andis led into sharing his contact details — email and phone number.

He continues browsing for some moretime, and getsa call from the dealer ofaleading car OEM. He promptly books a test drive for Sunday, and his digital query is soon converted into a physical showroom visit by the dealer who was actively monitoring online leads.

Acouple of hours later, another OEM calls him, responding to the same query. By this time, Sameer has already booked his test drive and will not be available for the next few weekends for another. The process drags, and the lead goes cold.

Sameer is the quintessential Indian automobile buyer who isalmost always starting his purchasing journey online. and who then visits a showroom fora “touch and feel” of the features he has researched.

“The life ofa digital enquiry isaround 20 minutes. If we capture the buyer in those first 20 minutes, great; else, we have to spend more to convert them,” says the head of sales, marketing and operations of a leading carmaker who does not wish to be named. The logic is thatthe customerissittingin front ofthe laptop orsearching on mobile. “Theylike something and click on it. If there is no response within 20-30 minutes, they might move on,” says this person.

How India buys a car today has changed, and OEMs and dealers are adapting accordingly.