Data Science Solutions to Evolve Automotive Digital Retail

The modern business world runs on data, and this is no exception for automotive retail. When applied correctly, data science can provide a lens into both consumer needs and inventory decisions. Leveraging data science can enable OEMs to target buyers with the products they actually want, customized to suit their needs.

Behavior and actions on websites, apps, or product recommendations to anticipate customer needs and preferences all provide data points to consider when developing a personalized product discovery journey. To enable such a journey and make an impact on lead engagement and conversion, API-based tools that can connect inventory information with buyer needs, can showcase recommendations, and offer customization are key for consideration. A software expert like S44 offers a product, AutoIntel that does just that.

How Does Data Science Help Develop Software Solutions for Automotive OEMs?

Data science unlocks insights into customer preferences and behaviors as well as inventory information, which can in turn drive more efficient marketing and sales. When you target customers with the products they are likely to consider, you boost the likelihood of lead conversion.

Synthesizing a combination of sources from first and third-party data such as:

• Demographic information
• Behavior and actions on websites, apps, or products
• Social media conversations
• Customer purchase history and more

Companies are able to tailor marketing and product recommendations that anticipate customer needs and preferences. Moreover, it places the user in the driver’s seat without overwhelming them with too many product suggestions and options to decide on.

Benefits and Use Cases of Utilizing Data Science in User Experience

With buyers having a whole breadth of the internet at their fingertips, they have come to expect seamless user experience across platforms and aided product discovery. Consider the information overload that comes with having every possible solution thrown at you—even when these solutions don’t match your problem.

Data science helps automotive OEMs understand user behaviors and preferences in a holistic way. This enables their marketing efforts to be super targeted so that no dollar is wasted.  To narrow it down a bit - you’ve spent money getting prospective buyers to your website. Your agency created a shiny storefront that features your products beautifully.  The missing piece is a tool that can determine which product should be displayed to which buyer, as to maximize their conversion and provide a hassle-free user experience.

The data behind such a tool is the engine that powers your entire customization operation.  Digital retailing offers tremendous opportunities for those who understand the market’s present needs. But automotive OEMs and dealers need to provide engaging experiences in this channel.

Let’s take a closer look at the ways in which data science can help automotive OEMs better tailor their marketing. What can a site backed by science offer you?

Customer Information, Preference, and Behavior

Data science helps you better understand customer preferences. Automotive companies can use demographic information to refine their offerings; for instance, you can take into account people’s age range, location, or income—all important factors that affect purchase decisions.

Insights gained from a data science solution can inform marketing teams which cars to feature online in which region, zip code, or to individual users. Better yet, product development teams can know which cars to customize and feature, and which is most likely to be selected during the customer online exploration. It’s easy to see what’s working and what isn’t when you have all the processed data right in front of you. Then your team can make data-driven decisions that maximize the potential of marketing dollars and boost lead conversion.

Customers also receive better information thanks to data science. The system automatically shows prospects relevant products catered specifically to them. Preferences revealed by their demographic cohorts will help target the offerings shown to them, dialing in on their exact needs.

Vehicle Demand

Data science’s insights into demand simplify the process of maintaining inventory. Instead of tying up excessive capital in unsold inventory—or disappointing a customer when a product’s out of stock—you can make data-backed decisions regarding optimal inventory levels.

The software assesses which vehicles will most likely be in demand, building on past data. Then you can make accurate determinations of which products to stock.

Supply Chain Management

Analytics from customers and suppliers already have upended logistics—and the trend will only grow over time. To adapt to the rapid digitization and global business pressures now confronting the industry, innovators rely on software solutions that organize big data into actionable insights. For example, product innovation teams at S44 derive insights from the AutoIntel tool which are fed back to OEM decision-makers spanning marketing, sales, supply chain, and other departments.

4. Personalized User Experience

With personalization needs on the rise, automotive companies can use data science to provide customers with hyper-personalized digital experiences, in which every aspect of the buying journey focuses on their needs.

Software like S44’s AutoIntel streamlines personalized, interactive product discovery and actively helps convert prospects into buyers.  It showcases a vehicle through the Recommender System, and then offers the prospective buyer options to customize the vehicle's features.  In addition to buyer data, the solution incorporates real-time inventory data points to curate a personalized product exploration experience that significantly increases lead submission rates.

For example, a “customize your car” feature enables vendors to draw buyers’ attention to features they may like. As the customer makes selections, the software continues to steer the experience through the sales process to completion.

Automotive companies employing this technology see a 40% average lift in lead conversions when starting from the pre-configured vehicle build recommendation. Additionally, buyers who engage with the features recommendations ultimately configure a higher price-point vehicle which has a direct impact on revenue.

Advance Your Automotive Sales With Data Science

Personalization runs modern digital retail—and data science is the engine that powers that personalization. From targeting demographics to predicting demand and supply chain flow, data can help automotive OEMs run their operations more efficiently than ever before.

S44 offers the industry’s leading data science solution, purpose-built for automotive retail. Running behind the scenes, it automatically extrapolates the data points you need to successfully direct both demand and supply traffic. This helps you meet shoppers where they are—and increase your conversion rate accordingly.

The Recommender System is the only one of its kind for the automotive sector. It identifies specific makes and models for prospects, as well as feature configurations. The system also checks inventory before making a recommendation, so you can be sure you’re feeling efficiently—and selling products you actually have currently.

Get in touch today and find out how S44 can help you deliver optimized digital experiences through custom software.