Auto majors struggle to convert online bookings to sales | Economic Times

Mumbai: With no sales in April during the lockdown, automobile manufacturers Hyundai, Maruti Suzuki, BMW, Mahindra & Mahindra, Mercedes-Benz and Toyota recently announced digital vehicle-buying initiatives. However, online enquiries are yet to translate into major sales.Dealers are far from convinced about the digital strategy. While online enquiries have increased in the past few weeks, they’re not getting converted into sales, dealers said.“Web enquiries have overtaken walk-ins and are likely to continue post-Covid,” said Shashank Srivastava, ED, marketing & sales, Maruti Suzuki. “Conversion to sales continue to be highest for referrals on back of consumer loyalty.”Vinay Raghunath, head, auto practice, EY, said, “There is income uncertainty that is pushing consumers to postpone discretionary purchases.” Tarun Garg, director, sales & marketing, Hyundai, which launched its ‘Click to Buy’ platform last January, said despite online enquiries, it’s taking longer for consumers to decide and buy. A typical conversion to sales takes more than a month nowadays compared with 15 days earlier.Dealer Nikunj Sanghi said, “While we have digitalised almost 25 points, financing, test drives/registration and delivery need physical interface. Consumers want to physically see and inspect the vehicle before taking delivery.” Vinkesh Gulati, vice-president, Federation of Automobile Dealers Associations, said online sales won’t be easy.