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Half of New-Car Dealerships Market Sales, Services on Internet, NADA Finds

2 October 1997

Half of New-Car Dealerships Market Sales, Services on Internet, NADA Finds

    WASHINGTON, Oct. 2 -- More than half of the nation's
franchised new-car dealerships have a Web site on the Internet, and 40 percent
of the remainder plan to launch one within six months, according to a survey
by the National Automobile Dealers Association.  Although advertising
dealership products and location are the primary goals of the sites, nearly 40
percent of dealerships are exploring additional applications of Internet
technology.
    More than half of dealership Web sites allow visitors to view new- and
used-vehicle inventory, and 28 percent allow customers to schedule sales
appointments online.  Twenty-two percent accommodate new- and used-vehicle
orders online, and nearly 26 percent allow customers to fill out electronic
finance applications.  Reflecting a trend toward increasing convenience for
service customers, 24 percent of dealership Web sites allow on-line service
appointment scheduling.  Additional Web site services cited by dealers
surveyed include hot links to manufacturer Web sites and manufacturers'
suggested retail prices.
    Franchised new-car and -truck dealerships with Web sites credited their
Internet presence with an average of 5 new-vehicle sales per month, up from
2.5 vehicles a year ago.  Eight percent of dealerships report that their Web
sites net more than 500 hits per month; the majority get between 1 and 50.
    The National Automobile Dealers Association represents more than 19,500
franchised new-car and -truck dealers holding nearly 40,000 separate
franchises, domestic and import.

SOURCE  National Automobile Dealers Association