Stephanie and her husband have narrowed their search down to two cars, but which one will win? She's trying to break the tie by spending her lunch break on her smartphone, comparing both cars for everything from safety to ease of car seat installation.
Who wins the battle of the auto micro-moments when consumers are choosing between two car options? Spoiler alert: It's always going to be the brand that responds best to consumer needs at each point of the purchase journey. Today, consumers are making decisions before they even walk into a dealership. Come crunch time it's the brands that have been there in which-car-is-best moments, and best answered people's upper and lower-funnel questions that are most likely to turn a "maybe" into a "definitely."
Stephanie and her husband have narrowed their search down to small SUV crossovers from different brands, but are seeking some final information on family-friendly features. This is a crucial moment for the brands to respond, since Stephanie is almost ready to make a purchase decision. But brands also need to think about how Stephanie got to this point. She wouldn't have landed on these two vehicles if these brands hadn't won micro-moments at every step of the way. Now, more than ever, capturing consumers in their upper-funnel activities is just as important as being there for their lower-funnel ones.
The first brand auto shoppers search for is the same brand they purchase only 22% of the time.
Source: Millward Brown Digital and Polk, Automotive Shopper Path to Purchase, US, September 2015.
