SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -

Consumer interest in offers and discounts on social media networks is growing: 44 percent of sales customers and 47 percent of service customers who use Twitter follow a dealership for access to offers and discounts, according to recent study.

That is one of the multiple trends social media and digital engagement company Digital Air Strike found in its sixth annual Automotive Social Media Trends Study released on Tuesday.

The study highlights consumer behaviors on social networks, review sites, and mobile devices related to the car shopping, buying, and service experience throughout all major U.S. geographic regions.

Digital Air Strike includes findings from 2,000 car buyers and 2,000 service customers who purchased or serviced a vehicle within the past six months.

“The annual Trends Study gives us very useful insights that help us build the industry’s most ROI-driven social media and digital engagement solutions,” said Digital Air Strike co-founder and chief executive officer Alexi Venneri in a news release.

“It also helps us evaluate which social media networks, including review sites, will continue to play an increasingly large role in the vehicle sales and service process.”

Top trends covered in the study include:

  • Shoppers’ increased their reliance on online research. 79 percent of car buyers and 68 percent of service customers responded that the internet helped the most when researching car dealerships.

  • 87 percent of car buyers and 90 percent of service customers who participated in the study said online review sites influenced and helped their dealership selection process.

  • Cars.com and Kelly Blue Book were selected by car buyers as the top and most helpful review sites.

  • 68 percent of sales customers and 51 percent of service customers used a mobile device to research dealerships.

Digital Air Strike executives will be at the NADA Convention and Expo in New Orleans to answer questions regarding the study at booth 3553.