Press Release
Chicago — October 14, 2016
Cars.com ranked the highest in overall satisfaction among third-party websites in J.D. Power’s 2016 Automotive Mobile Site Study℠. This is the second time the company has earned the top spot in the study (previously in 2013), which examines the features and content of automotive manufacturer and third-party mobile websites and their usefulness in the vehicle-shopping process. This achievement coincides with Cars.com gradually unveiling a new, responsively designed website. That process will be completed later this month.
“We could not be prouder to claim the highest ranking in this year’s mobile study,” said Alex Vetter, president and chief executive officer of Cars.com. “We know consumers are using mobile more than ever during the car-shopping process. Our goal was to meet the needs of today’s shoppers by providing a responsive, seamless experience regardless of screen size or device preference. Ranking highest demonstrates that consumers like what they see and our hard work has paid off.”
Today, half of Cars.com’s site traffic comes from a mobile device. More than a year ago, the company started tracking the volume of shoppers using Cars.com from a mobile device on dealership lots, as well as the behaviors of those shoppers, with its exclusive geo-fencing technology. Using these findings, Cars.com launched Lot Insights, the first-of-its-kind analytics report that helps dealers better understand the activity behind and source of walk-in traffic, which is critical as email and phone leads become less significant to the shopping process. Since starting to track (and increasingly geo-mapping more dealerships across the country), the number of Cars.com mobile shoppers on dealership lots across the country has skyrocketed 34 percent (September 2015 to September 2016).*
“Mobile has completely changed consumer behavior,” said Vetter. “To reach and influence today’s shoppers, auto advertisers must be positioned in the right place at the right time and our Lot Insights analytics are leading the way in tracking and insights. We are the first in our space to quantify mobile shoppers on dealership lots across the country and capture their shopping behaviors.”
Cars.com scored 751 on a 1,000-point scale, up 18 points from the 2015 Automotive Mobile Site Study℠.
*Cars.com Internal Data, Omniture
Cars.com is a leading online destination that helps car shoppers and owners navigate every turn of car ownership. A pioneer in automotive classifieds, the company has evolved into one of the largest digital automotive platforms, connecting consumers with local dealers across the country anytime, anywhere. Through trusted expert content, on-the-lot mobile app features, millions of new and used vehicle listings, a comprehensive set of research tools and the largest database of consumer reviews in the industry, Cars.com helps shoppers buy, sell and service their vehicles.
Cars.com companies include DealerRater, Auto.com, PickupTrucks.com™ and NewCars.com™. The company was founded in 1998 and is headquartered in Chicago.