CrossCheck Blog

CrossCheck Blog

Check Processing & Payments Information

Auto Dealers: Vehicle Technologies that Increase New Car Sales

Posted by Heather Brautman | Thu, Feb 27, 2014 @ 10:00 AM

Vehicle Technologies that Increase Sales
Your day may be so crunched that you barely have time to sip a morning coffee before tossing the cup aside, much less keep up on the slew of facts, figures, and fiction that the auto industry publishes throughout the year. Let us save you some time. We distilled down the Department of Energy's most current Vehicle Technologies Market Report into some bite-sized statistics you can use to sell more cars today.

Bigger May Be Better

A common eco-concern used to come from families who needed bigger vehicles, but worried about what they were doing to the environment. You can share good news for those who want to live large, per the report: several examples of 2012 model year cars have decreased the amount of CO2 they produce, despite being larger in interior volume than they were 10 years ago. The report calls out the Kia Optima, Nissan Sentra, and Volkswagen Jetta as some of the leading environment helpers. And in general, the automobile industry is being kinder to Mother Nature: From 1990 to 2012, carbon monoxide emissions declined by 72%.

The Green-Engined Monster

CheckGuarantee

Chances are, you’re selling more hybrids than ever (269,000 across the country in 2011) and if you’re not offering these, you can be sure your competitors are. If you’re worried about pigeon-holing your inventory, don’t: there were 62 different flex-fuel vehicle models available in 2012. Another selling point for customers who are inching towards going green? Let them know they’re in good company, with over 14,500 electric vehicle charging stations and 93 electrified truck stop sites throughout the States.

The Good News About Gas

No, we don’t have any salve to the skyrocketing gas prices, but the report offers some happier news on how people are using gas. Per the report, this is going to be at the top of your customers’ minds. 29% of survey respondents claimed that fuel economy would be the most important vehicle attribute, more than the 25% who chose vehicle dependability! If you’re getting customers who just don’t want to switch to electric or hybrid yet and are concerned about paying for their commutes, let them know that the amount of fuel used per mile has declined by 27% since 1970. We may not be able to do anything about the price, but we’re using less overall, which can have an impact on the end cost.

Online, It’s the Time

Your dealership probably has a website, whether it’s maintained by your umbrella brand or someone on site. Regardless, internet sales should be a major part of your game plan. The study states that when 4,000 new and used car buyers were surveyed, more than half answered that the internet led them to their final purchase site. Researching vehicle price and model comparisons were two of the biggest activities prospective buyers perform online. This means that you need to ensure that you’ve got accurate prices (want to see customers leave your site in droves? Use “Call Us!” or some other form of masked pricing) and an up-to-date appealing inventory (with pictures!) ready for those browsers.

Ready to start selling? Before you send your team off to the lot, arm them with these nine scripts that can help them combat those sticky car sales stereotypes. Our free eBook gives them great techniques on what to say and who to say it, all while preserving that customer relationship. Start your engines here:

car sales stereotypes

Topics: Auto Dealerships, Increase Sales

Written by Heather Brautman