Top Auto Execs and Senior Managers Less Than Satisfied With Web Use, According to New Industry Survey

Company-Specific Web Data Very Accessible ... but Seldom Acted Upon ... and Rarely Shared

Inability to Maintain Up-to-Date Information, Abundance of Superficial Info Symptomatic of Commitment-Related Issues

DETROIT, Jan. 5 -- Senior automotive executives and mid-level managers are less than satisfied with the performance of company web sites within their industry.

Yet, according to results of a survey released today by Chicago-based web- solutions provider Gorilla Polymedia, many of these same individuals (25.2%) are unaware of the availability of customized reports that provide detailed information on traffic patterns to company web sites -- information that could offer insight on how to implement the very web improvements executives are seeking.

Such reports are rarely shared across corporate functions (only 6.1% of survey participants so indicate); are used by only 26.3% of respondent companies to help shape web-based marketing strategies, and play a contributory role in determining annual budget allocations for web-related investments in less than one in 10 companies queried (9.1%).

Concerned about the ability of a dynamic and global automotive industry to effectively harness the power of the World Wide Web, Gorilla Polymedia commissioned Clarkston, MI-based Manhattan-on-Rouge Communications, LLC, to conduct a detailed survey on the web-based strategies of auto sector businesses.

Field work was conducted from July 10 through November 9, 2004, with respondents completing questionnaires via direct mail and e-mail, by going online, and as part of in-person interviews.

Asked to grade their industry's web sites regarding communication quality and information availability, 70 percent of the 104 auto executives and senior managers surveyed indicate that all too often "information has not been updated." Five of eight respondents (63.6%) say that information is "superficial."

Roughly nine of 10 survey participants (91.9%) report that, at best, there are "periodic" difficulties in navigating web sites, while nearly half (48.0%) note that information is often obscured because of cluttered web pages.

"These (navigation and clutter) problems can be overcome through refinements in web architecture, tightening copy and creative but judicious use of charts, photos and other visuals," says Eric Walter, principal of Gorilla Polymedia. "Some obstacles, however, appear to be symptomatic of commitment-related issues -- most often expressed in terms of capital and human resource deficiencies."

As examples of resource-induced barriers, Walter cites out-of-date information in areas ranging from product pricing to job postings, and superficial technical information that creates more confusion than clarity.

Other survey findings support Walter's assertion: only about a third (34.6%) of all respondents say that "dedicated professionals" -- irrespective of business function -- are responsible for managing their organizations' web sites on a daily basis. More often than not, web-site responsibility is among a list of tasks assigned to IT, PR or marketing communications staffers with little web-management experience and even less time to effectively manage the task.

"As a result," says Walter, "automotive companies are seeing their web sites used largely as tactical communication tools geared primarily toward delivery of outgoing information and acceptance of incoming messages." Instead, he believes automotive businesses should be using the data-generating potential of the Internet, which would enable web sites to work smarter in their interactions with the market place.

Neighborhood Streets and the Information Highway

More than 90 percent of survey participants say that brochures, print advertising and trade shows, along with web sites and web-based strategies, are the most common marketing communication tools used to help their organizations achieve sales objectives.

When it comes to evaluating their effectiveness, however, respondents score the three time-tested tools noticeably higher than the "new kid on the block." Trade shows, brochures and print ads are rated either "extremely effective" or "effective" by majorities of 67.4 percent, 66.4 percent and 51.1 percent, respectively; web sites and web-based strategies, on the other hand, are rated either "extremely effective" or "effective" by less than half of the survey participants (47.5%).

Says Rob Hilliard, principal of Manhattan-on-Rouge Communications and author of the opinion research report: "We should keep in mind that automotive companies have been using brochures, print ads and trade shows far longer than the World Wide Web, which was born not quite a dozen years ago. The business community, at large, and automotive industry, in particular, are in the pioneering stages of a still rapidly evolving technology. As an example, one need only look at the recent emergence of 'Blogs' (web logs) and the PR challenges and opportunities they hold."

Hilliard, who spent five years as Director of Marketing Communications for global automotive components manufacturer GKN Sinter Metals, notes the Internet is not a panacea for dealing with an organization's marketing or sales deficiencies, and explained that it is best viewed as a very powerful weapon to be added to the marketing communications arsenal.

"The information highway should be on the communication road map of every business within the automotive industry. But successfully reaching the planned destination," he concludes, "will require the ability to drive through the streets of the 'old neighborhood as well.'"

Copies of the full report, Web-based Strategies for the Auto Sector, are available from Manhattan-on-Rouge Communications, LLC, at a cost of $95. Companies may request a purchase order by visiting http://www.manhattan-on-rougecommunications.com/ , providing the requested information, checking the "Market/Opinion Research" box and typing "Web-based Strategies for the Auto Sector" in the "if other" space.