ONLINE CAR BUYING - NO LONGER JUST A TREND, IT IS FAST BECOMING 'NEW NORMAL'
- Online car purchases made through UK franchised retailers using GForces platform - NetDirector Auto-e - increased 1228% during 2020 and worth £500m
- GForces forecasting UK online car sales via its platform to double
- Online UK car purchases during first lockdown months (April and May 2020) quadrupled
- One third of UK franchised car retailers now using GForces ecommerce platform, following 290% growth in two years
LONDON, Jan. 26, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Industry-leading automotive ecommerce solution provider, GForces, has released a series of key findings revealing how online car purchase behaviour has changed dramatically during the pandemic.
"As with many other industries, COVID-19 has accelerated the shift to online," explains Tim Smith, Chief Commercial Officer at GForces. "Customer trust levels when using digital technology are increasing daily, as is their willingness to make large ticket purchases, such as cars, online. Naturally, they have appreciated the ease, simplicity and personal safety that ecommerce brings, particularly in these uncertain COVID-19 times.
"However, we firmly believe there was latent demand there all along. Often the missing key ingredient was the lack of easy-to-use, seamless systems for consumers to interact and transact with. The pandemic has been the catalyst for change and we are proud to have supported so many of our customers in adapting to the rapidly evolving automotive retail landscape. Online car buying is no longer just a trend, it is fast becoming the new normal for sourcing your next car."
The GForces data reveals that the number of cars sold online in 2020 using its technology rose 1228% (2,199 in 2019 to 29,209), worth over £500 million.
The UK lockdown also had an effect. The number of cars purchased online using GForces technology averaged 640 transactions per month between January and March. In April and May, the first full lockdown months, they more than quadrupled to 2,675 per month.
Other highlights:
- Average price of UK used car purchased online via its platform rose 5% from £14,983 in 2019 to £15,723 in 2020. Over £2900* higher than offline purchases
- Number of car buyers looking at car model pages globally on its Auto-e platform rose from 10.7m in 2019 to 26.8m in 2020
GForces is forecasting the UK car transaction numbers it will handle throughout 2021 to double to 58,000, before growing to 72,000 in 2022.
*Auto Trader 2019
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