TEST: Shoppers Don't Know Cars... do you?

[LotPop]

@JoePistell I was one of those stragglers

 

[joe.pistell]

Test takers are still coming in (44 so far).


Vendor/Consultants are tied with Dealerships.


Lots of ppl give up

 

[joe.pistell]

One of the test takers, Keith Theisen, included a link to a blog post he wrote.



https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/tip-week-going-back-collage-keith-theisen?trk=prof-post

Great ideas in the "Differentiate or Die" theme.

 

[joe.pistell]

update: I haven't forgot ya. I've been crazy busy, but, tests are still coming in.

If you think you're smart and can withstand 10min of humiliation. Take this test.

Link to the test

There are 10 questions.
I'll show you pics of 2 SUVs stripped of badges (like below),

you get 60 seconds to guess the make and model.

 

[joe.pistell]

Last call! I'm scoring answers and compiling the results this week. You still have time to get in!

194 have taken the 10 MINUTE test, only 66 have made it thru the end. It's a timed test, grab a cup of coffee and give it a try, you'll discover how little you know about cars (i.e. you'll feel like a shopper feels!)

Link to the test

There are 10 questions.
I'll show you pics of 2 SUVs stripped of badges (like below),

you get 60 seconds to guess the make and model.
Score
1 point p/Answer & bonus if you get both

• +1 Correct Make
• +1 Correct Model
• +1 Both Make and Model Correct.
• Max score = 3 per car.

 

[joe.pistell]

This is fun to watch.

After the 1st question, I ask you "How'd You Do??"

​

42% said "Easy Peasy"(a shout out to Joe Webb .

Then, 5 minutes into the test, I ask "How's it going and how do you think your average car shopper feels?"
42 replies to this Word Cloud:

​

Horrible, terrible, poorly & bad our number good by 4:1. Hmmm... think about it


About the 3/4 mark, I ask you "can you see how important photographs are?"
Word Cloud:

Everyone understood that great photos will help shoppers make better decisions... faster.


Final Thoughts Word Cloud:

​

My summary:
This simple test... wasn't. Any take aways?

"we, as an industry, under weight the difficulty of car shopping. If you want proof, walk into any dealership in the USA and just... listen."
-Uncle Joe

 

[joe.pistell]

recap: Guess the make and model of 20 SUVs (side profile, all white, all Debadged & wheels masked) 61 ppl took the test, errr... suffered thru the test . I'll have the ppl scores done soon.


Here's how the SUVs scored.

TOP 5 Most recognized SUV body profiles:

1  Porsche Cayenne
2  Honda CRV (LX)
3  BMW X5
4  Jeep Grand Cherokee
5  Buick Enclave​

BOTTOM 5 Least memorable SUV body profiles

15  infiniti QX50
16  Audi Q5
17  Hyundai Santa Fe
18  Volvo XC60
19  Mitsu Outlander
20  Acura RDX​

Cart of all SUVs:


Most recognizable body at the left, to the least recognizable to the right.


Most expensive SUVs with the least memorable body profile lines:

• MB GL
• BMW X1
• infiniti QX50
• Audi Q5
• Volvo XC60
• Acura RDX

This test is a call out to the OEMs. Over the years, we've devolved down to a grill or a badge to set your car apart. Dare to be different... or die.

 

[ryan.gerardi]

WE've got 98 ppl that have started the test. Only 30 have finished the test!

Tried taking test on iPhone but couldn't view the two vehicles in the image. Will try again next time on a desktop and have time. Big "if" there though.

 

[craigh]

I'm not 100% on this pre-conclusion.

Most recognizable body at the left, to the least recognizable to the right.

I'm being nitpicky here, but there's some conclusion bias here.

Example:
Volvo launches the totally redesigned XC60 and spends essentially no money marketing it.
Customers never see it in commercials and if they do, the commercial only shows the side profile for 2 seconds.
Volvo has less than 1% market share and lower production than almost every other car.

With that in mind, we can't possibly conclude that people didn't recognize the Volvo XC60 due to it's lack of defining body profile lines.
Volvo has the most distinct tail lights in the industry IMHO. I think if you had a drop down of all the SUVs in the test people would have known the Volvo.

Other than that, the results are quite interesting.
The Audi and Porsche have very distinct profile designs so they deserve to be recognized.
The Escape, Santa Fe, Rav4 and CR-V I think have borrowed far too much from each other.

The RDX was the big surprise to me. I don't think I've ever seen one of these model RDX, because I know the model exceptionally well and didn't see it anywhere in the test.

 

[Chris Cachor]

IOW, they see what your seeing now... SHAPES & COLORS (not models & trims).

Maybe I'm misunderstanding this...but I don't agree that shoppers see shapes and colors. I think shoppers see and respond to social signals. For example, if you stripped a Lincoln MKT of it's color and badging, most people couldn't tell you the make or model. But I think most people wouldn't buy it because it's "a limo drivers car". People are surprisingly aware of who drives what car and what it says about them. I think this is ultimately what drives purchasing decisions.

From these observations, here's what I've believe to be true:

• Old school: Shoppers use the Internet to decide which car to buy
• New school: Shoppers use the Internet to setup a productive dealership visit.

I think these are ultimately three phases: 1. What brand and model do I want to associate with? 2. Who sells the brand and model near me? 3. Who do I want to do business with?