Auto Industry Slowly Unlocking New Ad Strategies

While auto marketing is quickly changing, TV and radio commercials still feel remarkably stale and undifferentiated…locked into 1980s paradigms. Ads shouting weekend and holiday clearances are ubiquitous. Yet, new auto marketing realities are shattering the many outdated notions behind car shopping. Consumers can check to see what other people in their area are buying and how much they paid for it. They can buy their car directly from the manufacturer, bypassing the middleman entirely. And with sites like Carvana, buyers don't even have to leave their home. This company lets buyers browse used cars and narrow down their choices from Carvana's online platform. If buyers want to take the cars for a test drive, Carvana has a concierge service to drive the cars to the customer's home so they can make a final decision, and in some cities new cars can be picked up from a vending machine – a large vending machine to be sure – but yes, a vending machine. And Ford now offers new car pick-up from a kiosk.