MG Motor India ranked the highest with a score of 881, followed by Toyota with 877 points and Hyundai India with 875, on 1,000 points, in 2021 India Sales Satisfaction Study, released by the American data analytics and consumer intelligence company J D Power, in collaboration with NielsenIQ.
The study identified that online information search emerged as one of the key activities done by shoppers during their vehicle purchase journey, with 48% of survey respondents saying they watched YouTube videos or used search engines to gather information online.
In addition, over one-third (35%) said they reviewed social media advertisements as an online information source.
However, offline sources, such as peer recommendation and test driving a vehicle, remain strong sources of information about the new-vehicle selection process, the study noted.
A recommendation from peers or family with 61% remains the leading driver for dealer choice, followed by dealership location with 54% and immediate delivery with 49%.
With the current scenario, it was found that shoppers are looking forward to getting back to the showrooms for their next vehicle purchase, as 68% said they would want to go through the entire journey in-person while 20% said they would like a complete online experience.
Sandeep Pande, Lead - Automotive Practice India, NielsenIQ, said that the customers think at two levels. Firstly, the readiness of the dealers to seamlessly transition from one mode to another and, secondly, the robustness of the technology integration to handle high-value purchases.
As the pandemic continues its fluctuating waves, a transition from online to offline is likely to make customers strike a balance between the two modes of purchase.
“At the end of the day, all the customers want is whether dealerships are able to anticipate their needs and fulfill them accordingly,” he added.
Besides, shoppers expect a prompt response when they make an online request to be contacted back.
Currently, dealerships take an average of seven days to respond, whereas the customer expectation averages five days. In addition, about 11% of shoppers said that they did not hear from their dealer following an online request, the study noted.
Interestingly, the study found that, on average, customers take 51 days to complete the purchase journey.
The first 20 days are spent on information gathering online, and the remaining 31 days are spent on interaction with the dealer, culminating in the delivery of the vehicle.
The 2021 India Sales Satisfaction Study (SSI) is based on responses from 5,593 new-vehicle owners who purchased their vehicle from January through December 2021.
The agencies stated that the months of April-June 2021 were not considered on account of the severe pandemic situation in India. The study was fielded from September through December 2021.
A release from the data analytics company said that the study measures new-vehicle owners’ satisfaction with the sales process by examining their satisfaction on six factors (listed in order of importance); delivery process (20%); dealer facility (18%); paperwork completion (17%); working out the deal (15%); sales consultant (15%); and brand website (14%).