Will Ford's Online Car-Shopping Tool Click With Consumers?
Buying a car at the dealership can be painful. Between awkward haggling and endless rounds of paperwork, it often seems like the process takes much longer than it should. Ford is hoping to make it quicker, easier and more enjoyable with a new online shopping program.
Related: What’s the Best New-Car Deal in March 2018?
Ford’s Ready.Shop.Go. program will allow customers to search inventory, view pricing and incentives, lock in a deal for 48 hours, apply for financing through Ford Credit, estimate trade-in values with Kelley Blue Book and schedule a test drive — all without leaving home.
According to Ford, there’s a market need for such a service. In a 2017 trends survey commissioned by the automaker, Ford says 57 percent of people ages 30 to 44 are more impatient today than they were in the past, and those ages 18 to 29 are 63 percent more impatient. Fifty-four percent of respondents also said surfing the internet is a productive use of time.
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“Our customers are busy people, whether with daily work demands or spending time with their families. Quality time is scarce and downtime is even more so,” Mark LaNeve, vice president, U.S. Marketing, Sales and Service, said in a statement. “Ready.Shop.Go. allows them to find the perfect vehicle online, spend significantly less time at the dealership and drive away with their new ride sooner.”
How are prices set? Ford says participating dealers set vehicle pricing, including taxes and fees. Which vehicles are involved in the program? According to the automaker, vehicles are subject to dealership availability. Customers will also be assigned one single point of contact at the dealership to facilitate the process.
Ready.Shop.Go will rollout “in the Midwest” this month and then be available across country by the end of 2018.
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