3 Car Buying Trends Your Dealership Marketing Can't Ignore

By the time a shopper walks into your showroom, they've already decided. The question is whether your VDPs — your listings, your photos, your vehicle stories — are what convinced them. Or if that was your competitor's job.

With online tools, dealers and consumers can form relationships earlier in the sales process. And by leaning into modern car buying habits, you can position your dealership to be with the customer every step of the way.

Use the following car buyer habits and tips to learn how to improve dealership performance by appealing to prospective customers on their terms.

Shopping Habits of Today's Car Buyers

1. Shoppers Are Spending More Time Researching

In-depth independent internet research has become the first step for consumers looking to buy a car. In fact, 95% of car buyers are using digital channels in their decision-making process. In addition to traditional OEM sites, third-party sites are a frequently used online resource. Car buyers visit an average of 4 automotive websites during their research. 

Social media also plays a key role in customer research, especially among Millennials and Gen Z. While these platforms are not usually used to research specific automotive information, they are frequently consulted for unbiased dealer reviews, information from other vehicle owners, and for viewing other automotive-related content such as videos, photos, and blogs.

2. Shoppers Are Spending Less Time Shopping

OEM sites, third-party websites, and social media platforms offer consumers a wealth of information when researching their perfect car. This information is readily accessible through smartphones and mobile devices, meaning car buyers are now spending less time shopping and fewer days in-market.

Research suggests that consumers are currently spending just 85 days in-market. As a result, dealerships must develop strategies to effectively compete online and appeal to consumers from the very beginning of their car-buying journey.

3. Shoppers Are Comparing Their Options

On average, new car buyers visit 1.4 dealerships before purchasing, which is down from 4.5 a decade ago. As consumers research and make more decisions ahead of time, many are ready to purchase before even stepping on the lot. 

Tips for Attracting Today's Car Shoppers

As a dealership in this highly competitive market, it is important to stand out to potential customers. Knowing that the majority of consumers are now less likely to visit a dealership, it’s vital to pivot your focus to where buyers are researching and making decisions: online.

1. Meet Buyers Where They Already Are

Today's car buyers expect convenience at every step of the car buying process. From online research to test drives to financing, everything should be easy and accessible. Dealerships can offer increased accessibility by providing interactive tools for analysis, online test drives, and completing financing applications. If more steps are available online, customers spend less time at the dealership, leaving with a more positive experience.

2. Give Shoppers a Reason To Choose Your Listing

Buyers want a personalized experience that caters to their unique needs and preferences, regardless of whether they’re shopping for vehicles, shoes, or homes. To influence them, consider personalizing your marketing strategy and make inventory recommendations based on their content preferences. By providing quality vehicle photos, 360° walkarounds, specs, and links to additional resources such as independent reviews and vehicle stories, you can build a relationship before you ever meet face-to-face.

3. Build Trust Before They Set Foot on the Lot

It shouldn't come as a surprise that people value transparency and honesty in a car buying experience, and dealerships can offer it with detailed information about the car's features, pricing, and financing options. Providing independent assessments or vehicle condition reports on VDPs is a great way to give shoppers comprehensive details, visual evidence, and disclose imperfections. Access to reliable information empowers shoppers to make informed decisions and build confidence in your dealership.

What Today's Buyers Expect Visually

Today's car shopper isn't comparing your listings to the dealer down the road. They're comparing them to Carvana, CarGurus, and AutoTrader — platforms with professional photography standards, clean backgrounds, and interactive digital experiences built into every listing. That's the bar your VDP is being measured against, and it's a lot higher than it was even two years ago.

With 75% of car shopping activity now happening on mobile devices, photos and visual content are doing the heavy lifting before a buyer ever reads a word of your vehicle description. Small, dark, or inconsistent photos don't just look bad — they create doubt. And a shopper with doubt clicks away.

What moves the needle: professional photography that loads fast and displays cleanly on a phone screen, distraction-free backgrounds that keep the focus on the vehicle, and interactive tools like 360° virtual tours that let buyers explore the car on their own time.

Dealers using Dealer Specialties® combine all three — professional on-lot photography, AI-enhanced backgrounds, and DealerSpin360's interactive walkarounds — so every listing looks like it belongs on a national platform.  Your VDP is your digital showroom floor. Make sure it's worth walking into.

These habits don't just change how buyers feel — they change what your VDP needs to do. Fewer in-person visits means your listing is your sales floor. If a shopper can't get the full picture from your photos, your 360° tour, and your vehicle details, they'll get it somewhere else.

Update Your Digital Merchandising Efforts

As a trusted automotive merchandising partner for over 3,000 dealerships, Dealer Specialties® offers the expertise and tools to keep you competitive in the current vehicle market. From interactive 360° tours to comprehensive vehicle condition reports, our resources capture interest, engage, and establish trust with car buyers right from the start of their journey.

Contact our experts to align your listings with how buyers shop today.