Audi forays into digital auto retailing

MANILA: Ingolstadt-based automaker Audi, quoting a study done by professional services firm Deloitte, said the automotive industry needs to develop new retail models and to update “a distribution channel that has not changed much in the last 100 years.”

Releasing a paper entitled “The foundation of automotive retail: Omni-channel customer engagement,” Deloitte asserted that the automotive ecosystem is being impacted by evolving competition, digitalization and connectivity, and “increasingly empowered consumers.”

This mirrors the trend in other industries, Deloitte said, and foresees carmakers moving towards omni-channel retailing where customers will “experience seamlessly integrated shopping, buying, and owning processes regardless of the channel in which they interact.” It’s earlier study, entitled “Digital Divide,” found that cars are the third most digitally influenced purchase, coming in only after electronics and home furnishings.

Nonetheless, Deloitte said this trend does mean the end of brick-and-mortar stores. The formula is “a truly omni-channel approach that fuses the offline and online experience is key to success for retailers,” according to Audi’s release. It also noted that automotive companies can learn from industries that have already adopted omni-channel retailing so that they could continue to stay relevant in the digital age. 

Audi claims to be cognizant of the shift, and declares that customers in today’s digital era demand seamless, individual care at all times and via all sales and communication channels. The company reports “moving toward this direction through some programs—like the Audi Retail Experience (it is already in place in select markets).” It describes the move as a win-win situation offering maximum convenience for customers and attractive business potential for the brand and its sales network.

Audi dealerships, “increasingly becoming places where customers can discover all technological and emotional aspects of the Audi brand individually,” continue to serve as the central touchpoint with the customer in the physical world and a venue that provides comprehensive information, plus exciting product and brand experience. The company insists it puts out the same service standard and brand identity that are offered to Audi customers across all markets and platforms.

To this end, the company is training its sales partners to “act as hubs for digitally based mobility services.” There will always be customers who would want to be a showroom and to take the car on a test drive before making a purchase, even as the internet is becoming increasingly more important as a sales channel. Deloitte calls the digital ecosystem as an “important information source and purchase influencer.”

The report noted “kicking tires may have been replaced by clicking tires” in some markets, and that customers resorting to digital means are “generally more likely to make a purchase, not less.”

Photos from Audi Philippines

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