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In the last chapter of our “How to sell to Gen X and Y” series, we explored the phenomenon of the “initial consideration set”— the 3.8 cars (on average) that consumers include in their initial research as probable purchases.

While you can’t control whether or not one of your vehicle makes/models ends up in the initial consideration set, you still have a shot at capturing customers in the active evaluation phase — when their consideration set actually expands rather than narrows.

During this phase, consumers start exploring their options online. Our research shows that, on average, consumers add about 2.2 makes to their initial consideration set, bringing the grand total to six vehicles.

What matters to you is how they pick these additional vehicles; if your online presence is strong, you’ll have better control here. During the active evaluation phase, consumers count on Internet reviews; word-of-mouth recommendations from friends and family; in-store interactions and recollections of past experiences; product marketing/incentives; and general learning from their online experience.

Let’s revisit our two research participants, Trish and Sara, to get a better look into a typical active evaluation journey.

Sara

Search time: 54 minutes

Initial consideration set: Honda Civic sedan; Hyundai sedan; Toyota Corolla

Her expanded search started on Google:

Searched “Best SUV”

  • Got results from US News & World Report: top-selling cars
  • Clicked Honda Fit

Searched “2011 Best Used Cars”

  • Got results from Edmunds.com: 2011 Used Car Best Bets
  • Looked into Ford Fiesta and Ford Focus

Searched “Best Used Cars”

  • Got results from Consumer Reports about their reliability ratings

These Google searches lead to:

  •     AutoTrader.com searches on the Honda Fit, Ford Fiesta Hatchback and Ford Focus

Expanded her consideration set to include:

  •     Honda Fit
  •     Ford Fiesta Hatchback
  •     Ford Focus

Trish

Search time 41 minutes
Initial consideration set: Acura MDX; Kia sedan; Toyota sedans/crossovers

Her expanded search started on Google:

Searched “Carmax”

  •         Spent 1 minute on Google
  •         Clicked on Carmax

This Google search led to:

    Expanded searches on Carmax:

  •         2006 Buick Lacrosse CX5 sedan
  •         2009 Chrysler Sebring sedan
  •         2010 Dodge Avenger 4D sedan
  •         2008 Kia Sorento

A 2012 Mojo Motors study reinforced our findings about expanded consideration sets. It found that:

  •     Civic buyers searched 60 Honda Civics but also100 Honda Accords and 100 Nissan Altimas.
  •     Consumers who purchased a Honda CR-V viewed more RAV 4s and Toyota Highlanders
  •     Volkswagen Jetta buyers search more Jettas than anything else

The lesson: Consumer click-through data is useful in understanding which vehicles are considered, but misleading as a predictor of which vehicles are purchased.

So how can you get people to expand their consideration set to include one of your listings? Check back soon for the answer as we delve deeper into the consumer’s online decision journey.

Editor's Note: To learn more from this series, see Part I, Part II and Part III.

Patrick McMullen is vice president of sales at MAX Systems. This blog entry and others can be found at www.getrelevantordie.com.

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