The majority of dealer groups are still not using video to help drive used car sales.
Research carried out by CitNOW found that 80% of the top 100 dealer groups by turnover are not offering the option to request a personalised video within their used car listings.
In a survey of 1,000 UK motorists commissioned by CitNOW Group, 43% said they would be more likely to buy a used car if the retailer sent a personalised video guiding them around the specific vehicle they enquired about.
That number rises to over half (53%) among 18- to 24-year-olds, hinting at the demand for video among future generations of car buyers.
CitNOW Group’s research also found that 80% of car buyers visited less than three dealerships when making their most recent car purchase, with a third of those (33%) only visiting one, highlighting the need for retailers to effectively utilise video to engage with sales prospects. Of those sales videos created by dealers using CitNOW tools in 2022, 70% were watched by the recipient and 93% received the highest possible rating of five stars.
“The speed of response when video is part of the customer communication is helping workshops maximise conversions and clear their service bays more rapidly,” said Carol Fairchild, chief customer officer, CitNOW Group.
“There is a clear demand from consumers for personalised digital communications, and that is reflected in increased usage levels among our retail partners.
“Video production using our tools reached new record levels last year, with over 12.1 million videos created. That trend is also evident in dealer feedback, with 62% of dealers in our latest poll saying video communications is the most valuable digital tool for dealership operations.