The rise of electric vehicles (EVs) has significantly shifted consumer expectations, demanding new and innovative purchasing experiences. According to McKinsey’s Future of Auto Retail consumer survey, more consumers are considering EVs, with the proportion of those planning to buy battery-electric vehicles (BEVs) increasing by five percentage points to 20 percent between December 2021 and December 2022. Similarly, the intent to purchase plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) rose by four percentage points to 22 percent over the same period. This shift in consumer intent underscores the need for a car-purchasing experience that matches the excitement and innovation of EVs themselves. Consumers now expect a seamless, personalized, and flexible experience that combines online transactions with the option to negotiate with a real person, while still being able to take test drives.

Seamless, Personalized, and Flexible Experience

Consumers expect an experience that is both exciting and innovative, yet reliable and predictable. They want to transact online and negotiate with a real person while still needing to take a test drive. Creating a seamless, personalized, and flexible purchasing experience is crucial:

• Enhanced Customer Satisfaction: Personalization and flexibility cater to individual preferences and needs, leading to higher customer satisfaction and loyalty.
• Increased Sales Conversion: A seamless process reduces friction and makes it easier for consumers to make purchasing decisions, thereby increasing conversion rates.
• Competitive Advantage: Offering an innovative and personalized buying experience sets a brand apart from competitors, attracting more customers.
• Improved Brand Perception: A sophisticated and user-friendly purchasing journey enhances the overall perception of the brand, fostering trust and credibility.
• Efficiency and Convenience: Combining online and offline interactions provides a convenient and efficient process, saving time for both the consumer and the sales team.

Offering immersive product configurators and dynamic 3D websites allows consumers to explore, customize, and purchase EVs online, while still providing the option to interact with real sales agents through text, voice and video chat. Additionally, consumers can have their own GPT AI agent to assist them throughout the buying process, providing instant answers to their queries and personalized recommendations. This hybrid approach ensures the reliability of human interaction while leveraging the efficiency and excitement of digital platforms.

Simplifying the Configuration Process

Consumers are concerned about opaque pricing, complexity in the configuration process, and variability between dealer offerings. Simplifying the configuration process with intuitive, user-friendly interfaces will significantly enhance the consumer experience. An interactive car configurator should be immersive and multiplayer, allowing customers to bring their friends, dealers, or even tuners to configure the vehicle together. This social functionality is especially important for younger buyers who value collaborative and engaging experiences, and not just for Gen Z / Alpha but also for parents who want to include their children in the process of choosing the next family car. By ensuring price transparency and consistent offerings across dealers, consumers can customize their EVs effortlessly. A seamless integration of an e-commerce system ensures a smooth transition into a sale, reducing complexity and enhancing the overall buying experience.

Additionally, there is an issue with too many configuration options overwhelming customers. To address this, we suggest providing visualizers with hero configurations curated by famous influencers or through special brand collaboration campaigns. These hero configurations offer pre-configured options that simplify the decision-making process and add an element of exclusivity and style, This approach is a win-win for OEMs and clients: the OEM reduces complexity and increases simplicity for the user, while including limited editions makes the configurations still unique and personalized, appealing particularly to younger, trend-conscious buyers.

Offering Innovative Test Drive Formats

Test drives remain a critical aspect of the car-buying process, with 87 percent of consumers wanting to test drive a vehicle before purchasing. Often, there are no test drive vehicles available, which can be a significant hurdle for consumers. Providing virtual test drive experiences can overcome this issue. Interactive virtual test drive experiences enable consumers to test drive vehicles in a multiplayer environment from the comfort of their homes. Complementing these virtual test drives with immersive AI-generated product reels and social media integration can broaden the impact and reach of each interaction, making the test drive experience more accessible and engaging.

Providing High Levels of Personalization

According to recent research, future EV buyers place more emphasis on simplicity and personalization in the vehicle-selection process compared to traditional car buyers. Offering high levels of personalization both during and after the purchase is essential. Detailed customization options during the configuration process and the ability to modify configurations post-purchase but pre-delivery ensure that consumers can tailor their EVs to their preferences even after making the initial purchase decision. This customization extends throughout the ownership lifecycle, allowing consumers to add accessories, change tires, wheels, and more, akin to how iPhone users frequently try new apps, change backgrounds, or get new features from operating system updates to enhance their device experience.

Additionally, addressing delivery wait times can transform a typically frustrating period into an enjoyable one. By making waiting time fun through exciting gamification with their own digital vehicle, consumers can remain engaged and entertained. Offering opportunities to learn more about the product, identify more with the brand, and strengthen the buyer's decision. Offer digital, phygital, and physical experiences to bond with the brand and turn buyers into fans.

Emphasizing Price Transparency and Simplified Purchasing Process

Of consumers who bought a car in the past three years, only 53 percent say they were very satisfied with the experience. Top pain points included price transparency, vehicle availability, and process complexity. According to McKinsey’s Future of Auto Retail Survey, common issues include the lack of transparent pricing, no dealer-standardized pricing, and complex purchasing processes. These pain points highlight the need for clear, upfront pricing and a streamlined buying journey.

Future EV buyers emphasize simplicity and personalization in the vehicle-selection process. Providing clear, upfront pricing and a streamlined buying journey meets the demand for a straightforward and transparent purchase process. This approach enhances the overall consumer experience and builds trust in the brand. Additionally, providing a virtual AI-powered avatar to answer EV-specific questions can significantly improve the buying experience by offering instant, accurate, and personalized information to consumers.

Addressing Brand Loyalty Challenges

In times of systemic change, brand loyalty is being tested, with more than 50 percent of respondents indicating they may try a new brand when they switch to electric. In fact, 75 percent of consumers in China are likely to switch brands when moving to an EV, compared to a global average of 52 percent. To retain brand loyalty, enhancing customer engagement through digital brand activation and reputation building is essential. Creating the most beautiful branded virtual worlds—next-generation 3D websites—and enhancing customer engagement through immersive and interactive experiences that strengthen emotional connections with the brand is vital. Virtual environments, gamified experiences, and loyalty programs ensure that consumers remain engaged and loyal, even as they explore new EV options.

Loyalty and community

Loyalty programs can be expanded to include rewards for spending more time in your car or on the brand's website. The brand acknowledges and pays back loyal customers who actively engage and support it over time, fostering a sense of community. Through these programs, customers can be seen and help others, gaining reputation within the community and receiving rewards from the brand. This community aspect not only strengthens individual connections but also builds a network of brand advocates.

Increasing Comfort with Online Buying