Digital influences auto sales

"Access to new-vehicle information through the internet and apps ... is having a greater impact on many aspects of the purchase decision than ever before," said Arianne Walker, a senior director at JD Power & Associates.

"It is important for brands and websites to provide consistency across their sites and apps, no matter what device is being used to access the information.  The shopping experience should be equally usable and the shopping information equally complete, no matter the device."

The most popular sources of information among the digital media audience were manufacturer websites on 98%, followed by third-party sites on 81% and online platforms run by dealers on 73%.

But social media had a rather more limited impact, with just 5% of respondents relying on services like Facebook and Twitter for information.

Brand owner websites were usually favoured when it came to researching specific car models. Independent online sources, on the other hand, typically served as tools to compare products and read consumer reviews.

Dealer websites were generally accessed to find out about availability, as well as for researching opening hours, contact details and directions.

Elsewhere, the analysis discovered that 59% of internet users only narrowed down their consideration list to one car during the final week before making a purchase.