NEW YORK—Crowdtap, the people-powered marketing platform, conducted a study examining millennial vehicle purchasing and driving behavior, exploring preferences between millennials in both suburban and urban areas. The study’s findings, summarized in a report titled “Millennials Behind the Wheel,” correlate directly to key tactics that can help auto brands connect with millennial consumers.

The study calls out practicality as the catalyst for millennial vehicle purchasing decisions and driving behavior. Whether renting or buying, millennials are seeking a practical choice for either their short or long-term investments.

KEY FINDINGS FOR AUTO BRANDS:

  • Millennials are buying cars rather than investing in rental cars, and are buying more used cars than new.
    • Millennials in both urban and suburban areas are purchasing vehicles, usually used. 86 percent bought cars, compared to a combined 14 percent who leased or rented a vehicle. Used car sales under $25,000 made up 65.9 percent of millennial car owners.
    • 89.6 percent of millennials currently living in urban areas are planning to buy a car in the future, while 76 percent of current car owners plan to own between 1 and 6 more cars in their lifetime.
    • Cost, space and environmental efficiency matter the most to both millennial buyers and renters.
  • Millennials’ renting and buying decisions are driven by trust.
    • Both urban and suburban millennials base their vehicle decisions on trust, including online reviews and recommendations from friends and family.
    • When renting, 39.8 percent of millennials refer to online reviews from other drivers, and 31.5 percent refer to recommendations from friends and family. When buying, 44.7 percent rely on online reviews from other drivers, while 50 percent rely on recommendations from friends/family.
    • Test driving guides 56.7 percent of purchasing decisions when buying. In those test drives, 68.8 percent prefer to have an expert on the vehicle they are driving in the car throughout, while 48.4 percent want to hear or see content from other who’ve bought that car previously.
  • Millennials view cars as a necessity rather than a luxury.
    • Millennials in big cities are relying on cars for quicker travel (47.4 percent), quick trips to the store (43 percent) and for trips outside of the city (47 percent).
    • Suburbanites use their vehicles for a mix of commuting, running errands, and weekend travel (65 percent). 26.7 percent use their car mainly for running errands, 15.3 percent only use their car to commute, and 15 percent mainly use their car for weekend travel.

“With millennials being a key demographic that auto brands want to reach, it’s vital for marketers to understand what they are looking for in vehicles, as well as what influences their buying and renting decisions,” says Peter Storck, SVP of research and analytics at Crowdtap. “Our research shows that millennials are buying used cars, compared to renting, and investing in practical, spacious and environmentally efficient vehicles. Moreover, trust is becoming an increasingly critical aspect when investing in a car. Brands and marketers can build trust throughout the car-buying journey by leveraging authentic peer-to-peer ratings & reviews.”

Crowdtap’s full “Millennials Behind the Wheel” report can be found here.

Methodology

Crowdtap’s study polled over 200 male and female millennials (avg. age 29) in November 2016 living in either dense urban cities or more sprawling suburban areas about the ways in which they use and view automobiles, from renting to buying. The study was fielded within Crowdtap’s member community, and utilized the platform’s agile research tools.

About Crowdtap

Crowdtap is an award-winning technology company that connects brands with people to make marketing more effective. The Crowdtap platform combines community and technology to generate agile brand research, authentic peer recommendations and influential brand storytelling at-scale. The company builds passionate crowds of people to share their ideas, opinions and stories with brands in social media.

With a growing community of passionate members, Crowdtap works with leading brands including General Mills, Heineken, Kraft Foods, P&G, Verizon, Walmart and Yum Brands. Crowdtap is headquartered in New York.

Visit corp.crowdtap.com for more information.