How Chevrolet Buick Uses TEGNA’s Auto Study to Sell Cars Amid Uncertainty

It’s no secret that the pandemic hit the auto industry hard, facing causing challenges such as production delays, chip shortages, and lack of inventory. Despite these supply-side challenges, consumer demand remains high, fueling industry growth. On top of that, many dealerships face challenges with the evolving habits of the car consumer, as direct-to-consumer brands and online-only buying options grow.  

What’s a dealership to do?  

“When it comes to buying a car, we know that consumer journeys are becoming increasingly diversified; at the same time, many auto buyers also share a set of pain points that needs to be addressed,” says Dave Neway, Vice President, Ad Sales Marketing at TEGNA.

“Knowing how to make the message match the (preferred) medium of your target audience, coupled with a keen awareness of the problems and need-states for which you’ve solving will really help you be more strategic with marketing and better convert shoppers into buyers,” says Neway.  

To help understand the diverse needs of this buying cohort, TEGNA partnered with Provoke Insights to create an in-depth profile of today’s automotive consumer sentiment and intent toward the car-buying experience.  

Unlocking the Car Buyer of Today is designed to help dealerships and automotive marketers better understand today’s car owners and buyers and better equip them with new insights to capture the hearts and minds of this audience.   

And this study has already put the gears in motion for Bill Dickason Chevrolet Buick, located in Texas.  

“I wanted to get ahead of the curve and talk to my audience proactively,” says Bill Dickason of Bill Dickason Chevrolet Buick. “I looked at some of this information and applied it to my own dealership. I tweaked my messaging for my TV commercials and online to make my local messaging a little bit stronger.” 

Thanks to the partnership between TEGNA and Bill Dickason Chevrolet Buick, the dealership is constantly seeing results.  

“In my 20-plus years, I don’t think I’ve ever had a TV vendor or radio vendor bring me something like this research study,” says Dickason. “It’s really made a difference. With TEGNA, my store’s up 40% year over year. I have moved the needle, and I think with consumers, once inventory gets better, I will be top of mind.”  

Sound Good?  

If you’re looking to learn more about the attitudes and behaviors of today’s auto-intenders, click here to download Unlocking The Car Buyer of Today.