New-vehicle buyers remain focused on getting better deals from authorised ealers and are increasingly seeking recommendations from friends and relatives prior to visiting showrooms, according to the J.D.Power 2017 Thailand Sales Satisfaction Index (SSI) study.
Overall satisfaction of 12458 respondents with the sale and delivery process has increased to 822 (on a 1,000-point scale) this year from 811 in 2016. Satisfaction improved the most in the deal factor (809 in 2017 vs. 793 in 2016); however, it remains the lowest-scoring of all six SSI factors (delivery process; dealer facility; sales initiation; deal; delivery timing; and salesperson).
Offering the best deal/lowest price is the main purchase driver in 2017 and is cited by 27% of new-vehicle buyers as the reason that most influenced them buyiing from a particular dealer. The study is based on new buyers from August 2016 through April 2017.
Additionally, in 2017, 48% of customers surveyed negotiated the price of their new vehicle (up by 8 percentage points from 2016) and 66% received a discount (an increase of 14 percentage points from 2016).
As a result, the average vehicle price paid has decreased in 2017, as the average discount value has increased and more freebies have been offered to customers.
However, an increasing number of new-vehicle buyers felt an uncomfortable level of pressure from the salesperson during their most recent purchase experience (11% in 2017 compared to 6% in 2016), most notably pressure to buy on the same day, which is most frequently cited.
“Providing better deals, discounts and freebies remains important in ensuring that more shoppers are converted into actual buyers; however, dealers must also stay focused on delivering excellent service to their customers and maximizing satisfaction in the longer term, while achieving sustainable returns,” said Siros Satrabhaya, Country Manager at J.D. Power.
The study finds that an increasing proportion of new-vehicle buyers use multiple sources to gather information while shopping and prior to visiting authorised dealerships. Among the sources of information used, recommendations from friends/relatives is most frequently cited (68% in 2017, up from 55% in 2016), followed by websites (58%) and recommendations from dealer owners or salespeople (42%).
Isuzu ranks highest among the 10 ranked brands for a third consecutive year, with an average SSI score of 832, followed by Mazda (827), Toyota (824) and Suzuki (823).