Cars Get Digital
The number of consumers using their phones to research cars has doubled in one year, but are automotive brands ready? Jessica Kennedy investigates
The fight for car buyers’ attention is set to migrate to mobile as a new study reveals the number of new and used car buyers using mobile to research has doubled in one year.
Almost a third of car buyers (29%) used their mobile phone to access online content about a vehicle they were considering in 2012, up 15 percentage points from the previous year.
Tablet usage also increased, growing 5% in 2011 to reach 26% in 2012.
Nielsen’s Australian Automotive Report 2012 found online resources are now second only to visiting car dealerships among new car buyers.
The majority of new car research still takes place on laptops (64%) and desktops (62%), but the rapid rise in mobile proves that mobile is “where the game is”, according to News Australia’s general manager of automotive sales, Agostino Giramondo.
However, auto brands have been slow to break into mobile in Australia, putting us behind the US and the UK.
“In this country we kind of wait a little bit longer than others, but we are not that far behind,” Giramondo says. “We will be seeing some mobile only campaigns from manufacturers this side of the financial year.
“The idea of mobile advertising is on everyone’s radar but just getting their head around it not being a typical banner and what you can do in that space has been the big challenge.”
Getting it right should be a priority, as a 2011 report from Millennial Media and comScore Automotive Study says: “Mobile users who access auto content tend to be more affluent than the general mobile population. ComScore finds that mobile auto users over index in both the $US75,000+ and the $US100,000+ annual income brackets, providing auto brands – including those promoting luxury vehicles – an affluent audience.”
Mobile devices need to be part of a strategy that includes paid media, owned media and social environments, according to Melanie Ingrey, research director of Nielsen Media Division APMEA.
“Mobile devices are opening up all sorts of opportunities for location-designed content – for example, content designed to be browsed while at the dealer – and more opportunities to keep the consumer highly engaged and moving through the decision making tunnel,” Ingrey explains.
Channelling the experience of his clients, Giramondo says mobile advertising tends to work well early in the week, “so it raises the awareness, and then it becomes more of a desktop and newspaper execution.”
While mobile devices are used on the go, Ingrey says “marketers should be mindful that a lot of consumption is taking place in the home on a mobile device, particularly as the second screen while watching TV in the evening, which presents a lot of cross-screen marketing opportunities.”
For 41% of new car buyers, television is still an important source of information. That percentage may increase, not diminish, in the future as Smart TVs infiltrate the market.
“Internet connected TVs hold the potential to be used as shared online devices in the living room,” explains Ingrey. “This new connected screen, once penetration increase, holds opportunities for marketers and content providers to support ‘family’ or group experiences to move car buyers through their decision making process.”
Giramondo describes Smart TVs as “unchartered territory” and says “the mind boggles” when imagining the possibilities.
Hugh Page, who works as a strategist on the Volvo Cars account at Mindshare, believes the NBN will fuel consumers’ appetite for interactive content and drive the growth of Smart TVs.
“When consumers aren’t concerned about data caps or wasting 10 minutes trying to download a minute-long clip, we will see some very clever marketing campaigns taken out of the lounge room and into any location,” he says.
And by all accounts, car buyers are ready and willing to interact with car manufacturers.
Nielsen’s study revealed that the number of new car buyers who engaged with an auto brand on social platforms rose 18% last year, to 28%.
A quarter of used and new car buyers also used social media as part of their decision making process, pointing to the importance of word-of-mouth and peer reviews.
“Reviews and word-of-mouth have always been vitally important to a car’s success and social media has made anyone a critic,” explains Page.
“The challenge for media is not just to get people talking about a car but taking those conversations and then feeding them back to people that might be looking to buy that car.”
Auto brands’ marketing is not the only thing going digital, according to Giramondo who believes ‘connected cars’ will be the next big thing.
Connected cars are wireless internet connected cars, or ‘smart cars’, which are set to act like giant smartphones on wheels.
The number of connected cars is predicted to rise to more than 60% globally by 2017, from 11.4% this year, according to RBI Research.
Car manufacturers are likely to have apps built into their vehicles’ consoles. The app could remind drivers about upcoming
services due for their vehicle and allow them to book their car in, among many other things. “This is all about keeping customers, and how your car becomes your device for keeping customers,” Giramondo adds.
Regardless of the technological advancements in store, creative conversations and stories around cars should still be the goal of ads.
“Consumers will test drive your competitor’s car and that car is likely to be as good as your car, despite your designer’s rhetoric,” says Kevin Macmillan, creative partner of Sydney advertising agency The Works, which counts Skoda as a client.
“So a good car salesman will steer the conversation away from the car and onto the customer and their needs. The successful car marketer will have to do the same thing, steer the conversation beyond the car.
"Talking to my client, I always say that, in a nutshell, we have to have a story that is beyond the 59 air bags.”
Kia Australia is one manufacturer that has achieved this with its ‘Fathertism’ push. The campaign, for the Next Gen Kia Sorrento, was built around the idea of children giving their fathers preferential treatment because they chose Kia.
“I just thought that was wicked,” Macmillan says.
“If you think about Volkswagen you could argue that they have a story that is about them, Kia have had to create one.”
Car sales were up 10.3% to 1.112 million last year, according to the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries, and manufacturers have their fingers crossed that the momentum can be maintained. With forecasts going either way, only time will tell if sales increase or decrease.
One thing does remain certain though: Australia is one of the most cluttered automotive markets – and that drives a higher level of competition.
To stand out, automotive brands need to shift their move to mobile up a gear, start to think about the potential that SmartTVs hold, and focus on story-driven advertising.
From an advertising point of view, Macmillan sums up the year ahead: “It is going to be noisy, retail heavy and one or two brands will stick their heads above the parapet with smart, story driven communication.”
This feature was first published in the March 15 issue of B&T Magazine.
Please login with linkedin to comment
Latest News
Sydney Comedy Festival: Taking The City & Social Media By Storm
Sydney Comedy Festival 2024 is live and ready to rumble, showing the best of international and homegrown talent at a host of venues around town. As usual, it’s hot on the heels of its big sister, the giant that is the Melbourne International Comedy Festival, picking up some acts as they continue on their own […]
Global Marketers Descend For AANA’s RESET For Growth
The Australian Association of National Advertisers (AANA) has announced the final epic lineup of local and global marketing powerhouses for RESET for Growth 2024. Lead image: Josh Faulks, chief executive officer, AANA Back in 2000, a woman with no business experience opened her first juice bar in Adelaide. The idea was brilliantly simple: make healthy […]
Is Meta’s New AI Chatbot Too Left-Wing?
Meta's chatbot accused of being left-wing after being caught wearing a Che Guevara T-shirt & listening to Billy Bragg.
TV Ratings (23/04/2024): Why Did No One Tell Angela That Farmer Wants A Wife Is Set On A Farm?
As wonderful as this headline is, let's face it, we all know an 'Angela', don't we?
PubMatic Unveils New AI Partnership To Turn Social Posts Into Ads For Any Digital Channel
Here's some nifty tech for turning social posts into ads. Assuming said posts aren't one-star character assassinations.
Intuit Mailchimp Makes A Splash With Its First Australian Brand Campaign
Ever laugh along at a gag you didn't get so as not to appear dumb? Get ready for more feigning with this new work.
GumGum’s Rob Hall: Advertisers Can No Longer “Rely On Binary Descriptions” Of Consumers
If anyone's got their finger on adtech's pulse, it's Rob Hall. He also avoids using the good paper in the office printer
Mastercard Nabs Florencia Aimo From Marriott International
Marriott International's Florencia Aimo jumps from the hotel business to the exploitative credit card one.
Bastion Agency Appoints Cheuk Chiang As New ANZ CEO
Cheuk Chiang takes the reins over at Bastion Agency. But not the rains down in Africa.
Spotlight On Sponsors: Major Sponsorship Wins After A Disappointing Week In Sport
B&T continuing our deep dive into local sport sponsorships & that's despite not a single offer of a free ticket as yet.
Macca’s Marketing Director, Samantha McLeod On Big Mac Chant: “What Was Once Old Is Now Cool Again”
Macca's using the power of nostalgia in latest Big Mac campaign. Well, only for those who've ever eaten one sober.
World Premiere Of Midnight Oil: The Hardest Line To Open Sydney Film Festival 2024
Oil's biopic to open Sydney Film Festival. Here's hoping Molly Meldrum will take his pants down at the premiere.
Entries Are Now Open For The 2024 Brandies, IntelligenceBank’s Annual Brand Marketing Awards
The Brandies are, of course, a prestigious marketing gong and not the mystery tipple favoured by nannas everywhere.
The Fred Hollows Foundation Appoints Ardent For PR
Yes, we all like to have a joke at PR's expense. But sometimes it does important work, like this.
AI, eCommerce & Marketing Specialists Are In Increased Demand By Businesses, New Data From Fiverr Shows
Has your philosophy & anthropology degree left you with nothing but a huge HECS debt? Here's what you should've studied.
Perth’s First 3D Anamorphic Billboard Arrives Courtesy Of oOh!media
Do you love a buzzword? Now you can add anamorphic to the list as it relates to billboards, not a colleague's ears.
MasterChef Australia & Crown Resorts Launch Unique Dining Experience With ALUMNI
A pop-up restaurant staffed by MasterChef contestants! That's fine dining prices for first-year apprentice chef cuisine!
Amanda Laing Announces Resignation From Foxtel Group
Foxtel's chief commercial & content officer heads for the exits. Read nice things the bosses said about her right here.
The Lost Letters From Our Diggers: News Corp Unveils ANZAC Day Special
It's nice when brands respectfully acknowledge ANZAC Day.
Howatson+Company Acquires Akkomplice
Large indie acquires a slightly smaller indie. Much like a shark eating a tuna, just with less thrashing and blood.
Google Delays Third-Party Cookie Deprecation Again
In good news for the sale of picture library biscuit photos, Google continues to tease over the end of cookies.
Education A Low Priority For Aussies More Concerned With Cost Of Living Forethought Study Reveals
Study finds Aussies cutting back on education due to cost of living. Booze & Uber Eats sales remain largely unaffected.
“I’m Still The Same Person That I Was”: Rikki Stern Says “Fucc It” To Cancer Stereotypes
B&T always happy to promote the anti-cancer cause. Even brands that massively overdo it with the hot pink.
The Unapproved Climate Certification Allegedly Causing Mass Greenwashing
Are you left flummoxed in the canned tuna & free range eggs aisle? Just wait till this green certification gets up.
TV Ratings (22/04/2024): Fans Mock “Over The Top” Reaction To New MasterChef Judges
MasterChef returns for its 2024 season. B&T stands by putting peppercorns in Gravox & no one will be any the wiser.
Dentsu Restructure: Muddle, Harvey & Johnston Take Leadership Baton As Bass & Yurisich Exit
A large broom has swept through Dentsu's local ops this morning, taking with it some big names & the air con's cobwebs.
Industry Shares Trends Shaping The Industry This International Creators Day
B&T's asking adland creators to reveal their top trends. And it's not good news for your Jenny Kee cardigan collection.
Mable Extends HOYTS Sensory Screenings Partnership
Mable has extended its HOYTS sensory screening partnership. Vigorously defends its two-star Oppenheimer review.
Orphan Launches ‘They Need Our Help. We Need Yours’ For Children’s Cancer Institute
Anything to do with childhood cancers has B&T's 110% support. That said, we do ignore the red meat & alcohol warnings.
Smile Team Orthodontics & Keep Left Collaborate On Smile-Inducing Campaign
As parents would attest, given the cost of orthodontics you'd expect this campaign to be a lavish production indeed.
Opinion: How Video Calls Neglect Learning Diversity
Need an excuse to duck out of a video call this arvo? Show this to your boss.
DoubleVerify Achieves First-Of-Its-Kind Responsible AI Certification From TrustArc
DoubleVerify receives responsible AI certification. However, not its robotic vacuum that's been seen menacing the cat.
Smile For A Good Cause: The Social Media Campaign Giving Back To The Community
Are you known as the office Austin Powers? More for you teeth than shagability? Get snappy new fangs with this news.
Elon Musk Mocks Albo After ESafety Wins Court Injunction Against X
Albo's 2024 from hell continues - Rabbitohs in crisis, down in the polls and now feuding with world's richest man.
Real Estate Developer In Hot Water Over “Sexually Exploitative” OOH Campaign
Real estate agents again tops in the 'least trusted profession' polls, nudging used car salesmen & ad creatives.
Epsilon’s Shane Hanby: Post-Cookie Era Relies On “Teamwork” Between Brands, Marketers & Tech
This pro predicts more "teamwork" in a post-cookie era. Which spells bad news for the uncooperative or plain stubborn.