5 Automotive Consumer Trends that can be noted from AutoDeal’s 2014 data.

In our short time on the web we have helped hundreds of thousands of users find and compare information, book test-drives and request vehicle quotations from hundreds of car dealerships all across the country.

In the process we’ve been able to learn a lot about the interests and priorities of Philippine customers based on their actions in our car guide, car comparison tool and promo pages. While sales reports are good evidence in supporting facts related to what has already happened, data pulled from the web and mobile devices prove to be a good indicator to suggest developing trends in any specific industry

The bulk of our data will be included in our first white label, which is being published at the end of January 2015. You can subscribe to receive it ahead of time by inputting your details into this form.

In the meantime, we’ve took time to list five consumer trends that are immediately noticeable from glancing at the data sheets.

1. The 25-34 male demographic is the most active consumer group; and they’re doing their research online first.

Accounting for 35% of our users; it’s clear to see that the 25 - 34 year old male demographic is by far the biggest audience group represented on the AutoDeal website. However, aside from their sheer viewing numbers, it’s also noteworthy to observe that this group are well and truly doing their homework when it comes to researching their next vehicle purchase online. This is indicated by the group accounting for 51% of all comparisons made in our dynamic car comparison tool and by their status as the most frequent return visitors to AutoDeal.com.ph.

2. Hatchbacks are catching on, especially among younger demographics.

Is the Filipino love affair with the sedan coming to an end? It’s probably too early to tell for sure, but based from our information, the volume of searches made for hatchbacks were just 1% less than those searches made for their four doored sedan counterparts. Leading the way in this trend were the younger consumer groups, indicated by the hatchback being the number one body type search criteria in the 18-24 age range group. 

3. Pricing and value for money are some of the most important factors for female buyers.

When looking at gender, it’s a notable trend that women are more engaged with factors related to price and value for money than their male counterparts; who prefer to engage in more technical content. This gender stereotype was reinforced by data indicating that 39% of female users were more likely to check out our deal pages in comparison to our car guide and car comparison tool. Value for money and questions regarding topics like fuel economy and maintenence costs were also relevant for our female audience.

4. Brand preference is still important, but consumers are beginning to look at alternatives.

Brand search accounted for 63% of our guided search queries in 2014. Many customers would prefer to select their preferred vehicle brand ahead of anything else. However, from this group, 30% of users chose to select more than one brand of choice, meaning that a high volume of consumers are now beginning to look at a number of alternatives before buying. 

5. Low Downpayment Promotions wet the biggest appetites. 

According to the data sourced from our promo pages; both low downpayment and low monthly promos sparked a similar degree of interest. However it was the low downpayment promotions that resulted in the biggest customer conversions. As the annual sales figures rise, interest rates drop and per capita income increases, could we see more mainstream brands and banks adopt even more affordable plans to mobilize more Filipinos? Well, the data is certainly there to suggest that the consumer is looking for it.

So there it is, a brief glimpse at our first round of data from a very insightful year. For more information, be sure to the Subscribe to the AutoDeal 2014 Report. For more information on AutoDeal.com.ph, drop us a line at info@autodeal.com.ph