Auto dealerships can show their best side via kiosks

Car dealerships need elegant digital strategies to deliver information. Online, that means well-designed Web pages. In person, kiosks pick up the slack.

It can be difficult for car dealerships to demonstrate their unique value propositions to customers. This is especially true today, as the past few years have brought a change in shopper attitudes. Individuals eager to buy cars are no longer looking to staff members to guide them. Customers are leading their own searches for information, and thus dealers must build ecosystems that are open to independent exploration, interesting enough to attract attention from undecided buyers and stocked with all relevant information. What kind of system could suit this need? The answer may lie in a multi-channel digital strategy, delivered online through websites and in-person via interactive touchscreen kiosks.

"Information kiosks serve as beacons that attract consumers."

Everything there is to know
Auto dealers need to deliver a multitude of information to their respective audiences to make a complete pitch for business and stake a unique place in a crowded field. Fortunately, information kiosks serve as beacons that attract consumers and deliver these messages. With interfaces that are easy to use and displays that make multimedia look great, these devices are great additions to sales strategies. The following are some of the topics kiosks can display to explain more detail to curious buyers.

• Unique service offerings: Each dealership has its own auto service deals and practices. These can serve as great selling points, as shoppers can see that brands will take care of them in the event anything goes wrong. Kiosks can contain detailed descriptions of these service lineups, with time-sensitive screen saver images advertising limited deals and in-depth menus containing all the details. In an era when peace of mind and detailed research are consumer priorities, being forthcoming about service policies can be a selling point.
• Add-ons and accessories: Hardware for vehicles can be a lucrative market for auto dealers, provided they convince shoppers to buy from them instead of going online. A kiosk can be the channel that makes this connection, catching the attention of potential buyers while they are still in the store and giving them detailed views of items they can pick up while they are signing the papers for a new car or truck. Kiosks can even be programmed to promote items that are seasonally appropriate.
• Advanced systems: Contemporary car consoles are crammed with inventive and useful gadgets. Creating repositories of information about these features, both default offerings and options, can help make customers aware of the value they are getting when they buy a new vehicle. Delivering this information via a salesperson's explanation could seem overbearing, but employing a kiosk could convey data at a pace customers will appreciate.

Doubling up on content
When car dealerships invest in strong digital content, they will want to use this information in more than one place to maximize the return on their investment. By reusing assets on their websites and kiosks, they can unlock this value. Displaying the same multimedia online and in person also creates a consistent brand experience, wherein individuals who have perused a dealer's offerings online see matching information and brand marks when they visit a showroom in person. Building such an environment can build confidence in prospective car buyers.