Automotive / studies

Rick Case Honda partnered with Car-mercial.com to produce YouTube TrueView in-stream ads encouraging vehicle trade-ins. After launching the ads, the dealership doubled the number of trade-ins from a competing make from 10 per month to 20 per month. Rick Case Honda was now earning an incremental $50,000+ for online videos that cost $0.20 - $0.30 per view. Monthly unique site visitors also increased by over 18%.

Chevrolet launched a series of YouTube videos for the Chevy Sonic "Firsts" campaign, supported by a full suite of YouTube Google ads. They saw a net increase in subscribers on their YouTube channel, as well as increased brand lift and consideration. The Sonic also became the best-selling sub-compact car in the US.

• Campaign was supported with TrueView ads, standard in-stream, YouTube homepage masthead, YouTube mobile roadblock, and the Google Display Network
• Increased brand lift and consideration within the target audience; Chevy Sonic became the best-selling sub-compact car in the US
• Positive net change in subscribers on YouTube channel, one of the biggest increases in months
• Chevy Sonic "Skydive"; video targeted against Red Bull's Stratos led to 9.7 million impressions, over 80,000 clicks, and a 93% standard in-stream video completion rate

Digital is changing the habits of auto shoppers, turning pre-market, in-market, and post-market phases into a cycle of constant consideration in which brand influence can be won or lost at any point. Though 63 percent of consumers enter the market with a brand in mind, only 20 percent will ultimately purchase that brand. This study reveals where the greatest opportunities for influence arise and how to take advantage of them.

What do tire buyers look like today? According to this Google/Compete 2012 study, today's tire shoppers:

• Shop for regular maintenance and just 8% purchase for a particular season. They look for durability, they research on the go, and they buy within a week.
• 84% purchase in store but 46% of tire purchases involve digital engagement. Top 2 of 3 tire shopping resources are digital.
• Tire purchasers are typically the decision makers themselves. They are married, more educated, and skew only slightly male and otherwise look similar to the American population.

Download the full study to learn more about how tire shoppers use brand sites and utilize video and mobile.

Google studied tire shoppers' use of different types of queries within the 6 months prior to conversion to better understand how tire purchasers approach the shopping process. Here are the key findings:

• 34% of maintenance shoppers start with a non-branded term and 33% of shoppers switch from the first brand searched to the brand they ultimately purchase.
• While 60% of maintenance search volume is related to the brand purchased, shoppers continue to investigate alternatives, with 40% of query volume related to non-branded terms and competitor brands.
• 55% of maintenance schedulers' final searches involve the brand they buy. Actual maintenance scheduler query paths indicate that late brand queries are used to locate, price and confirm brand choice.

Google studied new vehicle purchasers' use of different types of queries within the 6 months prior to purchase to better understand how vehicle purchasers approach the research process. Here are the key findings:

• Shoppers enter the market with an initial consideration set, and an open mind: 37% start with a non-branded term and 43% of shoppers switch from their first brand searched to the brand they ultimately purchase.
• Vehicle research involves heavy cross shopping: A third of vehicle research involves competitors to the brand ultimately purchased.
• Shoppers compare to the very end: While most (35%) of purchasers' final searches involve the brand they buy, 33% last search for a competitive brand and 32% last search for a non-branded term.

Google studied tire shoppers' use of different types of queries within the 6 months prior to conversion to better understand how tire purchasers approach the shopping process. Here are the key findings:

• Tire shoppers enter the market with an open mind: 37% start with a non-branded term and 43% of shoppers switch from their first brand searched to the brand they ultimately purchase.
• Tire research involves heavy cross shopping: 71% of tire search volume deals with cross-shopping. A greater share of queries involve brands not purchased versus the conversion brand.
• Shoppers compare to the very end: While most (38%) of purchasers' final searches involve the brand they buy, 33% last search for a competitive brand and 29% last search for a non-branded term.

The purpose of this 2011 Google/Compete study is to quantify consumers' use of the online channel for automotive services research and shopping. Today's vehicle service shoppers:

• Typically purchase for routine maintenance or repair prefer to buy in-person when they need service quickly
• Buy online for price, selection and convenience.
• Compare two or more brands across sites.
• Increasingly watch videos to educate themselves

Groundbreaking cross screen research helps reveal the full branding benefits of advertising beyond just TV. This case study with Volvo reveals:

• 74% of those exposed to Volvo's ads across multiple screens - TV, mobile and video - recalled the brand successfully (vs. 50% of those exposed on TV only).
• 39% of those exposed across multiple screens were able to tie the ad back to the four-door sedan being advertised (vs. 22% for TV only).
• 37% of those exposed across screens associated Volvo with Top Rated in Safety (vs. 25% for TV Only).

Today's vehicle shoppers research and decide faster than ever. They use a diverse set of online tools in their research process and have high expectations from brands throughout the path to purchase. Insights from this year's auto buyflow study include:

• 81% of auto shoppers decide within 3 months (vs. 67% in 2009).
• Safety, utility and fuel efficiency are among the attributes top of mind for shoppers.
• Searching inventory and obtaining trade-in information were among the top shopper behaviors that increased this year on 3rd party sites.

What's the best way to balance precision and scale when targeting the auto insurance customer? We looked at the effectiveness of reach with Compete and found:

• 66% of auto insurance seekers can uniquely be reached via a one-day Google Display Network Blast that cannot be reached on the top portal homepage
• A one-day Google Display Network Blast + YouTube Homepage Takeover reaches 88% of all auto insurance seekers

Auto part shoppers are a very specific target customer. A study commissioned with Compete finds out how many can be targeted with the Good Display Network relative to traditional homepage takeovers:

• The Google Display Network exclusively reaches 35% of auto part shoppers that do not visit the top performing portal homepage
• The Google Display Network custom channel has a higher concentration of auto part shoppers than any of the top portal homepages