Urban Science/Harris Poll study reveals increase in dealer relevance, dealers' readiness for the future

DETROIT, May 8, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Urban Science and The Harris Poll today released the 2024 Urban Science Dealership Transformation Index™ (DTI). Now in its third year, the DTI employs a science-driven methodology to capture and analyze the evolving views of the auto-buying public regarding sales and service in the traditional automotive dealership network in the U.S. The research conducted not only determines the DTI score, but also provides actionable insights to help automakers and dealers identify emerging trends, enhance buyer brand experiences and boost operational efficiency and profitability.

DTI score ranges: critical (<45), weak (45-54), average (55-64), strong (65-74), resilient (75+)

2024 DTI score

The 2024 Urban Science DTI score stands at 56, marking a one-point year-over-year (YOY) improvement, bringing it closer to the "strong" (65-74) range dealers and OEMs should strive for. This progression promotes consideration, trial and positive customer interactions, fostering short- and long-term service and sales loyalty, and in turn business relationships that promote healthy dealerships and retail networks.

The DTI is derived from an average of three key dimensions informed by U.S. auto-buyer survey responses across the categories: dealer relevance, trend resistance and actions. U.S. (franchised) auto dealers were also surveyed.

DTI dimension #1: dealer relevance

Dealer relevance gauges how auto buyers perceive the role of dealers, the expertise of salespeople and other aspects of the increasingly complex vehicle-buying journey. This year's dealer relevance score rose to 62, a two-point increase from last year.

Perspectives on dealer relevance

Dealership optimization

Auto buyers and dealers increasingly believe traditional dealerships are optimized for the future.

Gen Z's Influence on dealer relevance

DTI dimension #2: trend resistance

Trend resistance measures how likely auto buyers are to resist new innovations in the automotive retail space, from new vehicle technologies to evolving car-shopping and -buying experiences offered to them. In 2024, trend resistance dropped one point YOY to 52, primarily influenced by growing preference for online car-buying and ride-sharing services. This shift signals a change in auto-buyer behavior toward embracing digital platforms and shared mobility options.

However, it's important to note some level of trend resistance can be seen as positive for traditional dealerships, indicating auto buyers still value the experience and reliability offered by brick-and-mortar locations in certain aspects of the car-buying journey.

Perspectives on trend resistance

DTI dimension #3: actions

Actions describe what auto buyers are doing – or considering – regarding their vehicle purchases, from visiting a dealership to submitting online quotes. This year's actions dimension score is 54, a one-point increase over 2023.

Perspectives on actions
When auto buyers were asked:

Online purchase consideration

Across the board, auto buyers prefer traditional in-person purchasing over other options. The following are the buying formats respondents would consider:

EV owners (58%) are twice as likely as ICE vehicle owners (29%) to strongly agree they are open to purchasing a vehicle fully online.

Small incentives, significant impact

Auto buyers responded positively when asked about the impact of cash incentives on motivating them to visit a dealership for specific reasons. A $35 incentive offer prompted the following levels of motivation (somewhat motivated or extremely motivated):

About Urban Science
Urban Science is a leading automotive consultancy and technology firm that serves automotive original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and dealers, and the advertising technology companies that support them, around the world. Headquartered in Detroit and operating in 20 office locations globally, Urban Science taps the power of its science – and its unrivaled data, solution offerings and industry expertise – to create clarity and business certainty for clients in even the most chaotic market conditions.

Visit UrbanScience.com for more information about how Urban Science helps automotive manufacturers and dealers gain a competitive edge by taking the guesswork out of critical business decisions. This in turn drives improved efficiency and profitability industrywide.

About The Harris Poll
The Harris Poll is one of the longest-running surveys in the U.S., tracking public opinion, motivations and social sentiment since 1963. It is now part of Harris Insights & Analytics, a global consulting and market research firm that strives to reveal the authentic values of modern society to inspire leaders to create a better tomorrow. We work with clients in three primary areas: building 21^st Century corporate reputation, crafting brand strategy and performance tracking, and earning organic media through public relations research. Our mission is to provide insights and advisory to help leaders make the best decisions possible.

Source: Urban Science Online Auto-Buyer and Dealer Studies, February 2024. These surveys were conducted by The Harris Poll on behalf of Urban Science among 3,005 U.S. adults aged 18+ who currently own or lease or plan to purchase or lease a new or used vehicle in the next 12 months and 250 U.S. OEM automotive dealers, whose titles were Sales Manager, General Manager, or Principal/VP/Owner.
For complete survey methodology, including weighting variables and subgroup sample sizes, please contact Amy Bowering ([email protected]).

Contact: Adrienne Lenhoff 
+1-313-580-5349
[email protected]