J.D. Power and Associates Reports: Online Advertisers Are More Likely to Effectively Reach New-Vehicle Buyers at Special Interest Than Most Automotive Shopping Sites

WESTLAKE VILLAGE, Calif., July 31 -- Targeting new-vehicle buyers at travel, special interest and finance Web sites is considerably more effective for upper-funnel brand marketing than placing advertising on most automotive shopping sites, according to the J.D. Power and Associates 2006 Online Media Study(SM) -- Wave 1 released today.

The inaugural study is the only online media research in the industry that is based on a random national sample of 10,724 verified new-vehicle buyers with Internet access who purchased a vehicle in September or October 2005. The study takes an in-depth look at the Internet usage and behavior of new-vehicle buyers to identify Web sites that most effectively target desirable advertising audiences in terms of reach, scope and cost.

"In terms of Internet advertising, once consumers visit an automotive shopping site, they've already narrowed their vehicle consideration set, which means that online advertisers are missing an ideal branding opportunity," said Steve Witten, executive director of automotive research at J.D. Power and Associates. "By focusing on new-vehicle buyer behavior on the Internet before they begin actively shopping for their next new vehicle, automotive marketers can identify the Web sites with the highest probability of reaching prospective buyers more effectively than ever before."

While most Internet users are reached by the most popular sites such as Google and Yahoo!, the study finds new-vehicle buyers can be found following their interests and lifestyles at sites such as WebMD and Home Depot five times more often than general Internet users. Given their affluence, these buyers use financial sites such as Yahoo! Finance and MSN Money six times more often than general Internet users. They are also four to five times more likely to use travel sites such as Expedia.com or Travelocity than general Internet users. The Online Media Study uses general Internet user behavior from Compete, Inc. to demonstrate comparisons with new-vehicle buyers.

"While new-vehicle buyers are a niche of only 6 percent of adults in any one year, they are a highly desirable group of consumers for advertisers, and they behave very differently online than general Internet audiences," said Witten. "This is a significant opportunity for marketers, especially when they can analyze down to the vehicle segments from which these buyers cross-shop. Marketing is often the most inefficient part of any business in terms of spending. By understanding where certain consumers spend their time online rather than relying solely on general Internet visitation numbers, marketers are able to reach key audiences, often at fees that provide more bang for the buck."

The study finds that visitation to particular Web sites can vary greatly by the type of vehicle consumers are likely to purchase. For example:

  *  Large pickup buyers have above-average visitation rates to NASCAR.com
     and many home improvement sites
  *  Midsize pickup buyers are much more likely than others to visit
     sports-related sites
  *  Female prospects for mini vans and large SUVs frequent Disney Online
     and game sites
  *  Those interested in sports cars not only visit auto enthusiast sites,
     but also are frequent visitors to several travel-related Web sites
  *  Luxury buyers are more than twice as likely as non-luxury buyers to
     visit Apple's iTunes music store, due in part to high ownership levels
     of MP3 players in this segment

Percentage of Web Site Visitors among General Internet Users and Verified New-Vehicle Buyers

                 General Internet  Verified New-Vehicle  Index (New-Vehicle
                     Users(1)             Buyers         Buyers vs. General)

  MASS MARKET/
   PORTAL SITES
  Google               75%                  82%                  109
  Yahoo!               69%                  72%                  104

  SPECIALTY SITES
  Expedia.com           9%                  40%                  444
  Travelocity           7%                  35%                  500(2)
  Web MD                5%                  27%                  540
  The Home Depot        5%                  26%                  520
  Yahoo! Finance        3%                  20%                  667
  MSN Money             3%                  19%                  633

  AUTOMOTIVE SITES
  Kelley Blue Book      4%                  19%                  475
  Edmunds               3%                  12%                  400

  (1) General Internet user data provided by Compete, Inc.
  (2) Verified new-vehicle buyers are five times more likely to visit a site

       like Travelocity than general Internet users.

  About J.D. Power and Associates

Headquartered in Westlake Village, Calif., J.D. Power and Associates is an ISO 9001-registered global marketing information services firm operating in key business sectors including market research, forecasting, consulting, training and customer satisfaction. The firm's quality and satisfaction measurements are based on responses from millions of consumers annually. J.D. Power and Associates is a business unit of The McGraw-Hill Companies.