Subaru Is Still Among The Best Car Brands Responding To Your Online Inquiries

How does Subaru interact with new car shoppers looking for a 2022 Subaru Forester, Outback, or Crosstrek shopping online? Subaru is tied for the best mainstream car brand. Check out where all automakers rank.

Which car brands are the most responsive to your online car search? According to the 2022 Pied Piper PSI Internet Lead Effectiveness (ILE) Study, Subaru ties with Mazda as the best mainstream (non-luxury) car brand in customer responsiveness. Subaru dropped from second to fourth place overall from last year's rankings.

What does it mean for Subaru shoppers?

Most if not all of today's millennial customers first use their smartphone or tablet to shop before ever visiting a dealership in person. Subaru still ranks highest among car brands in responding to customers who visit retailers' websites. The new report says that despite inventory shortages and COVID-19, Subaru retailers respond faster by text, phone, and email than other mainstream brands.

photo credit: Cross Creek Subaru

With Subaru's tight inventory, responding to customers' questions quickly is more important. Fran O'Hagan, CEO of Pied Piper, says, "Dealers who respond quickly, personally, and completely to website customer inquiries on average sell 50 percent more vehicles to the same quantity of website customers as opposed to dealers who fail to respond."

How often did a Subaru retailer email or text answer a website customer's question within 30 minutes? Subaru was more than 50 percent of the time on average, along with Infiniti, Lexus, Chrysler, Alfa Romeo, and Cadillac.

photo credit: Pied Piper

How often did the Subaru's retailers respond by phone to a website customer's inquiry? Subaru was more than 65 percent of the time on average, along with Acura, Lexus, Lincoln, and Mazda.

Previous studies reveal that text messaging's growth increased to 48 percent of customers who now receive retailer text messages in response to website questions. This affects millennial shoppers (age 24-35), who are more likely to grab their cell phone and look up information on a Subaru retailer's website.

photo credit: Cross Creek Subaru

Subaru has the tightest inventory of any automaker in the U.S., and it's even more critical now that retailers communicate well with customers. O'Hagan says, "Most dealers had less inventory in 2021, but dealer treatment of sales prospects was still critical, as it determines not only sales today but also the dealership's success tomorrow."

Shoppers looking for a 2022 Subaru Forester, Outback, Crosstrek, or another new model should find the Subaru of America and retailer website easy to use. More importantly, the local retailer will be quick to respond to inquiries. Subaru ranks number one among mainstream car brands overall in responsiveness in the new Pied Piper PSI Internet Lead Effectiveness Study.

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Denis Flierl has invested over 30 years in the automotive industry in a consulting role working with every major car brand. He is an accredited member of the Rocky Mountain Automotive Press. Check out Subaru Report where he covers all of the Japanese automaker's models. More stories can be found on the Torque News Subaru page. Follow Denis on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

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Photo credit: Cross Creek Subaru