The Automotive Industry Evolution: an Analysis of the Business Model of Today and Tomorrow

Unlike other markets, such as electronics, where the seller's importance is declining, the automotive sector will still need professional sales figures.

However, the digitalization process is necessary in order to support the dealer's activity: in fact, it helps in engage a bigger audience, getting more information about consumers making possible to provide a more efficient service to them increasing their loyalty. These factors are crucial for retailers to remain competitive and keep their business sustainable.

The choice to make more digital the experience provided to the customers, starts from a specific decision of the head of the car retailer. By the fact that it requires many changes among the corporate structure, retailers need to consider the digitalization process as a long term strategy that needs specific investments.

In order to implement a successful digital journey, car saloon need to re-build their strategy in order to coherently intervene on multiple levels on their business model. There are 4 pillars through which digitalized the process: 75technology, organization, process and marketing.

Technology is the first area where to intervene. It is necessary to own an adequate technological equipment to support the digital process such as a modern web site compatible with different devices (laptop, tablet and smartphones) and an effective CRM software for leads management.

Then is necessary to re-build the company organization. In fact, it is un-useful to develop an on line platform if there is nobody who manages the data generated. Retailers need to implement a unit in their organization that is always dedicated to keep up dated the contents on line and to transform the users in potential buyers in the car saloon.

It is also needed to formalized new purchasing process in order to optimize efforts and results.

Technologies, organization and process are fundamental in order to build a powerful digital marketing strategy that is the last pillar. The on line campaigns, to be successful, need data about consumers, so that, the others pillars are aimed to successfully integrate them.

That's why the first step to became digital leader is the creation of a digital unit.

The digital unit is fundamental to manage all the traffic generated by the web site, trying to convert on line users in potential buyers. The digital unit mat be divided in 2 sub-units: the business developer centre (BDC) and the digital developer centre (DDC).

As we have already seen, one of the key factors to build a long term customers' loyalty is to be able to provide the right information quickly. The mission of the BDC is to look for new leads and to commutate them into meeting in the car saloon. This objective isn't always achievable immediately, often needs a long time. That's why a long term customer loyalty strategy is essential in order to sell the greatest number of car as possible. In order to that, the client has always to feel comfortable, he needs to be cuddle, the BDC has to be able to always provide immediately the information that the user is looking for. [...]