The way people buy cars and automotive spares and accessories is changing, with online retailers and marketplaces taking an ever-increasingly large market share. Of course, the driving public was already moving towards this online model, but automotive sales saw incredible acceleration during the pandemic like so many other verticals.
A recent report published by Frooition’s eCommerce partners, BigCommerce, suggested that prior to the lock-down in 2020, upwards of 32% of car buyers in the US were open to buying a car online. In 2021 that figure had grown to a staggering 61%.
While there will be some adjustment to those figures as the world emerges from the pandemic, the genie isn’t about to climb back into the bottle. Online automotive sales will continue to drive a significant percentage of the automotive market, and manufacturers, dealerships, and retailers that don’t jump aboard will be left behind.
Automotive sales – an accelerating market
Even without taking the boost the pandemic gave the auto industry online, the market was already speeding up.
Way back in 2018, eBay UK reported that, on average, the online marketplace sold a car every two minutes.
More recent global data shows the automotive spares and accessories market is even more impressive with:
- Three parts or accessories are sold every second
- One vintage car or truck part is sold every 11 seconds
- A wheel or tire part is sold every 6 seconds
- 14 complete engines are sold every hour
- Seven suspension or steering parts are sold every minute
To demonstrate the sheer size of the market on eBay alone, that means 94,608,000 automotive spares and accessories are sold every year.
But just because the online sales of cars and automotive spares and accessories are moving at pace, it doesn’t mean that it is an easy market to master.
A complex market where trust is hard-won
Frooition is regularly called on to help automotive sellers access this highly complex market.
Consumer trust and reassurance is perhaps the biggest challenge facing automotive sellers.
When buying a component for a car, consumers need to be sure that the individual component is a fit for their specific car model and year. Some parts will be specific to certain vehicles, while others will be more universal. The challenge is matching a particular component to an individual vehicle and then re-assuring the consumer that they have selected the right product to suit their needs.
If consumers are not 100% sure that they have placed the right component in their online shopping cart, they will almost certainly abandon their purchase.
Elegant eCommerce Solutions
Frooition were recently called on to help Vauxhall Accessories overcome this problem
Our solution was to integrate powerful vehicle lookup search functionality into their BigCommerce site. The consumer simply enters their vehicle’s registration number when searching for an item to guarantee that they will only ever be presented with products that match their needs.
This simple but elegant solution removes any uncertainty and enhances the conversion process.
eCommerce Optimisation
Delivering accurate search results is all part of the eCommerce optimisation process, including the following of design and build best practices, listing optimisation, and careful integration with smart technology, payment and logistic systems.
If you work in the automotive sector and would like to accelerate your eCommerce sales on online marketplaces like eBay and Amazon and your own website, schedule a 15-minute discovery call with one of our automotive eCommerce experts.
