For the Canadian auto dealer team, the first part of the year is always a frenzied blur of events, conferences and auto shows.
This year it started with NADA in January, the CADA Summit and various auto shows in Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver in February and March, and assorted conferences.
When the dust settles, I like to replay the conversations and new learnings to try to take stock of what to expect next. This year at NADA I interviewed 37 different suppliers and analysts to get their perspectives, and heard from dozens of speakers at various conferences.
You’d think after talking to and hearing from so many people that a clear picture would emerge. Not quite. Sometimes it’s like talking to dozens of people about a popular TV show and everyone is trying to guess the ending. Well, spoiler alert: I don’t know the ending either.
But what I can tell you are some of the key trends I see:
Mobility and future mobility: These are still terms that are not well understood, particularly how they will impact the world of the auto retailer. Dealers need to invest their own time and better understand how to play a role in this new ecosystem. They can start small, but need to get a foot in the door.
The digital shopping journey: If you don’t have some sort of working digital retailing tools on your website, where shoppers can start and fully complete aspects of their car buying journey online — you need to. Your competitors will or soon will, and they will attract and keep your customers who want convenience and efficiency.
In several conversations at NADA, it became clear that some dealers are concerned that an elevated customer experience could come at the expense of dealer profitability
Digitize your showroom: I was so impressed with many of the digital displays, immersive experiences, and self-directed digital shopping tools on the auto show circuit. OEMs invest to make sure their booths are engaging, interactive and loaded with the latest digital sales and marketing information that attract consumers. But these tools don’t seem to make it to dealership showrooms. Dealers should be agitating for more of these tools, and insisting they remain updated and that OEMs foot at least part of the bill.
Electrification of the vehicle: Between government incentives, rising consumer demand, and a wave of new products, electric vehicles are going to be an ever bigger part of the new vehicle equation. Attending the Vancouver auto show was an eye-opener as there were so many displays and lots of consumer engagement for electric and hydrogen fuel cell vehicles. Dealers need to start planning for an electric future, which has lots of implications for sales training, adding charging stations and technician training.
Data, data and more data: I sympathize with dealers if they can’t quite fully grasp
the concept of how data is going to transform their world. From connected and autonomous vehicle data, to various forms of digital data fed in from online sources and assorted third parties, it’s hard to figure out what it all means. But at its very core data does two things: it allows for better decision making in real-time, and when aggregated it provides insights on consumer patterns and behaviours that will be highly sought after and valuable to new entrants and tech players. Dealers need to know what data they are collecting, who they are providing it to, and what’s being done with it.
These are just a few of the things swirling around my head, and it suggests to me that the best days for auto dealers lie ahead as they adapt to these new opportunities and thrive.
