Auto Consumers Like Negotiation Process More Than Ever, According to a Survey by The Dohring Company
21 February 2000
Auto Consumers Like Negotiation Process More Than Ever, According to a Survey by The Dohring Company Almost 70 Percent Say They Enjoyed Their
Last Price Negotiation for a Vehicle
LOS ANGELES, Feb. 21 -- Despite nearly a decade of
predictions that one price, no hassle-no haggle selling would become the norm
in auto retailing, it still hasn't happened. According to a recent survey
conducted by The Dohring Company, almost seven of 10 auto consumers said that
they liked their last negotiation process when purchasing a vehicle.
"Our 2000 national survey shows that 67 percent of respondents who
recently negotiated the purchase of a vehicle liked the process. In eight
years of asking this question, this is the highest percentage of car and truck
buyers reporting that they liked negotiating the price," said Rik Kinney, vice
president of The Dohring Company, Inc.
Kinney also noted that 22 percent reported they disliked the negotiation
process, while another 11 percent said there were aspects that they liked and
aspects that they disliked.
"Both dealers and manufacturers have become more sensitive to consumer
concerns regarding the negotiation process. There has been a lot of training
and communication that has paid off," said Kinney. "We know that most people
like the idea of negotiating the final price of a car or truck. What many of
them didn't like was some of the pressure and other elements that went with
it. Clearly, a lot of this has changed and the process is becoming much more
consumer-friendly."
According to the survey, 39 percent of respondents to this year's survey
said that they prefer to shop at a dealership featuring one-price selling.
"Of those consumers who say they prefer one-price situations, almost nine
of 10 indicate that they would shop around after obtaining a price form a no-
hassle/no haggle store," said Kinney. "We've had a similar result on this
since the mid-90s. About a third of consumers indicate a preference for one-
price selling, but many of them use it to establish a negotiation point with
other dealers who are willing to deal."
In other results from the survey, 31 percent of respondents said that
purchase price of a vehicle on the Internet would be less than the
dealership's price. Another 34 percent said Internet and dealer prices would
be about the same. Twelve percent of those polled said a vehicle's price
would be higher on the Internet.
"There seems to be a belief among consumers that vehicles are and will be
priced lower on the Internet than at the dealership," said Kinney. Kinney
went on to note that the Internet has had an overall positive impact on the
automotive industry, as it has enabled consumers to access vehicle and pricing
information and compare vehicles prior to visiting the dealership.
The study was conducted in January of 2000 with a national random sample
of 1,287 qualified automotive consumers. The margin of error on the telephone
study is +/- 2.8 percent.
The Dohring Company is North America's largest provider of custom market
research to the retail automotive industry. Since 1986 the company has
conducted over 4,000 individual studies for automobile dealers, manufacturers
and suppliers in the U.S., Canada, Australia and England.
