Brad Mugg Digital Retailing MP
Transcript
Sean :nSo when the pandemic hit right, digital retailing was kind of crawling along, did you guys have a digital retailing solution in place? And if so, what kind of jump? Did you see in sales from it? n
nBrad:nYeah, we use a company called Digital Motors. Before that we were with Roadster. For years and years. We were one of the first guys get on the Roadster program. You know, I think it’s a, it’s a great tool, both of them are great tools. Did it increase our digital retailing? No, no, we’ll do four to five deals a month, out of 500 deals digitally, you know, I think the digital retailing platform is I look at it as another mousetrap, you know, on your website, it’s another way to capture a lead. And that’s how I see it. Someday will digital retailing be, you know, over 50%? Someday, but when I can tell you that, I think it’s going a lot slower than anyone ever imagined. And I think that if it was gonna go big, it would have went big during the pandemic. And I mean, don’t get me wrong, a lot of the digital retailing companies have done very, very well, because a lot of manufacturers are really pushing it saying, hey, we need to get into this. But you know, I’ve been in it for five, almost eight years. And and it’s a good tool to have. It’s nice for customers to go that direction. But we don’t have very many people doing it. Yeah. What’s your take on that, by the way?n
nSean :nBut as you know, I think that customers have a lot of expectations, concerns, questions as it relates to buying vehicles. And I think at the end of the day, they’re still buying a vehicle, which is a big one of the biggest purchases, actually, I believe, when you add up the total cost of ownership of all the vehicles to have in a lifetime, I think vehicle purchasing is bigger than even the house. So I think there’s just so many things that people still want, to drive it, smell it and feel it before they pull the trigger. And I think they want a reliable human being to answer their questions and address their concerns. So that’s my take on it. Do you feel that they do feel the same way?n
nBrad:nKind of said, the same way.n
nSean:nNow that being said, I mean, you can see what Carvana’s recent ads are all about, right? They’re all about Susan, the customer service person who’s helping, you know, so of course, why wouldn’t they go that way? Knowing that that’s their biggest gap and their biggest challenge? I think.n
nBrad:nSo, real quick, if there’s if that’s the only way you have to sell a car, they’re gonna go that direction, right? Doesn’t mean they want you the right. They just want that car.n
nSean:nMm hmm. Good point. Good. That’s a really good point. So you’re what you’re saying is like, they might be doing it just specifically for the vehicle because sometimes cars can and do sell themselves. Right? Right. So what happens when you have the person and then the relationship and the dealership service in the mix? I mean, I don’t know how anyone could ever end that.n
nBrad:nI can’t, I haven’t seen I agree. It’s you know, we’re gonna be here. We have to be here and at the end of the day, they’re showing up rightnn
nBrad:nYeah, we use a company called Digital Motors. Before that we were with Roadster. For years and years. We were one of the first guys get on the Roadster program. You know, I think it’s a, it’s a great tool, both of them are great tools. Did it increase our digital retailing? No, no, we’ll do four to five deals a month, out of 500 deals digitally, you know, I think the digital retailing platform is I look at it as another mousetrap, you know, on your website, it’s another way to capture a lead. And that’s how I see it. Someday will digital retailing be, you know, over 50%? Someday, but when I can tell you that, I think it’s going a lot slower than anyone ever imagined. And I think that if it was gonna go big, it would have went big during the pandemic. And I mean, don’t get me wrong, a lot of the digital retailing companies have done very, very well, because a lot of manufacturers are really pushing it saying, hey, we need to get into this. But you know, I’ve been in it for five, almost eight years. And and it’s a good tool to have. It’s nice for customers to go that direction. But we don’t have very many people doing it. Yeah. What’s your take on that, by the way?n
nSean :nBut as you know, I think that customers have a lot of expectations, concerns, questions as it relates to buying vehicles. And I think at the end of the day, they’re still buying a vehicle, which is a big one of the biggest purchases, actually, I believe, when you add up the total cost of ownership of all the vehicles to have in a lifetime, I think vehicle purchasing is bigger than even the house. So I think there’s just so many things that people still want, to drive it, smell it and feel it before they pull the trigger. And I think they want a reliable human being to answer their questions and address their concerns. So that’s my take on it. Do you feel that they do feel the same way?n
nBrad:nKind of said, the same way.n
nSean:nNow that being said, I mean, you can see what Carvana’s recent ads are all about, right? They’re all about Susan, the customer service person who’s helping, you know, so of course, why wouldn’t they go that way? Knowing that that’s their biggest gap and their biggest challenge? I think.n
nBrad:nSo, real quick, if there’s if that’s the only way you have to sell a car, they’re gonna go that direction, right? Doesn’t mean they want you the right. They just want that car.n
nSean:nMm hmm. Good point. Good. That’s a really good point. So you’re what you’re saying is like, they might be doing it just specifically for the vehicle because sometimes cars can and do sell themselves. Right? Right. So what happens when you have the person and then the relationship and the dealership service in the mix? I mean, I don’t know how anyone could ever end that.n
nBrad:nI can’t, I haven’t seen I agree. It’s you know, we’re gonna be here. We have to be here and at the end of the day, they’re showing up rightnn