Traffic to General Motors‘ “Shop. Click. Drive” car shopping website has jumped 50 percent in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic as consumers look for ways to remain socially distant during the buying process.
The Shop. Click. Drive. the program allows car shoppers to search for a GM vehicle online through the automaker’s website, pick their preferred trim and accessories and choose from various extended warranties. They will then be put in touch with the dealership selling the car, truck or SUV to exchange their payment information and can schedule at-home delivery for a later date.
This week, GM CMO Deborah Wahl revealed the company has seen a 50 percent spike in Shop. Click. Drive. traffic due to the COVID-19 pandemic and said the current situation has “completely accelerated (GM’s) shopping online experience,” and its online shopping efforts.
“We have something called Shop, Click, Drive, which we’re seeing has like a 50% increase in traffic going on. That is enabling larger parts of the purchase cycle to happen remotely,” she explained, as quoted by Marketing Dive.
Dedicated Shop. Click. Drive. web portals are available for all of GM’s brands sold in North America, which include Chevrolet, GMC, Cadillac and Buick. Users are also able to input their geographic location to search for a vehicle that suits their needs and is close to them, allowing them to interact with a dealer that they know is within a reasonable vicinity. It also allows them to shop for cars that may be further away but have more options that they want.
Screenshot of the Shop. Click. Drive. website
While some GM dealers are beginning to reopen for business on a by-appointment basis, many are still only doing online and over the phone sales. Dealer service departments have remained open throughout the COVID-19 pandemic after they were deemed an essential service.
Wahl also said this week that she expects demand for personal car ownership to spike in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic as some consumers avoid ride-sharing apps like Uber and public transit for fear of contracting the disease. While this is good news for GM’s core business, it may be a bad sign for its Cruise subsidiary, which is hoping to launch a driverless ride-hailing service one day in the near future.
“[People] are going to be in this world of personal safety, of making sure you’re protecting yourself and your family,” Wahl said. “The demand for individual vehicle usage is accelerating. We’re seeing some trends that people are looking to moving back to the suburbs, for example — all things that would potentially drive the market up.”
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Comments
Why don’t they put this into an iPhone and android app?! GM needs to be able to start selling just like Tesla does.
Liberty for all except when the dealers sue GM. Clearly GM needs to be able to make and sell vehicles unencumbered from the UAW and the Dealers if they need to. The transplants all do not have to deal w/the UAW BS and clearly Tesla has established a method, and courts have supported, without dealers. Just because GM has, historically, had these 2 doesn’t necessarily mean they must in the future. GM needs to commit resources to ending both as this will free the company to move forward in a number of areas.