6 Tips to Attract First-Time Car Buyers
to Purchase from Your Dealership
1. Know Your Buyer
In many ways, capturing first-time buyers is no different than any other type of customers in that it
starts with knowing their wants and needs.
However, engaging first-time car buyers means understanding what is driving their purchase
decision without indicators such as previous purchases or vehicle preferences to guide the way.
This requires analyzing other factors, such as life-events or finances.
Take the previous example: With transit
ridership down by half from its pre-COVID
high, many first-time car buyers will likely
be people who had once relied on mass
transit for their transportation needs. These
transit riders typically have a higher median
income than other workers.
These figures do vary widely from market to
market but help illustrate why effective car
sales prospecting among former transit
riders, including first-time buyers, requires tailoring your approach to each prospect, with
personalized and actionable offers based on high-quality data – not assumptions.
Fact: consumer behaviors and buying habits are changing. A recent
study found 28% of consumers said they would use public transit less
often as a result of COVID-19, with 17% saying they intend to use
their personal vehicle more often.
Similarly, those who didn't have a vehicle are now increasingly
exploring their purchasing options.
With 2020's disruptions forcing dealers to investigate every potential
opportunity to sell more cars, there's no better time to look at how
your dealership can identify, sell to and retain consumers who've
never before owned their own vehicle.
Here are six critical tips to attract first-time car buyers.
PLANNING TO
PURCHASE A
CAR IN 2020
HAD NOT
PLANNED TO
BEFORE THE
PANDEMIC
20%
OF
THOSE
CARGURUS U.S. COVID-19 SENTIMENT STUDY
ACCORDING TO THE LAST CENSUS,
THE MEDIAN AMERICAN PUBLIC
TRANSIT RIDER'S SALARY WAS
$40,519, WHILE THE MEDIAN CAR
OWNER'S SALARY WAS $40,184
