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Paul J Daly sits down with Jenni Newman, Editor-in-Chief at Cars Commerce, at her first NADA Show to discuss the evolving car buying preferences of younger generations, particularly Gen Z. Jenni, with her extensive experience in automotive journalism, sheds light on the surprising findings that despite growing up in the digital age, a vast majority of Gen Z (80%) prefers to engage with dealerships in person rather than buying online. She emphasizes the importance for dealers to understand that Gen Z buyers seek guidance and support throughout the car buying process. Jenni also touches on the inclinations of millennials, who, in contrast to Gen Z, show a greater interest in online car purchasing, albeit still less than 20%. The conversation highlights the need for dealerships to adapt to these generational shifts and provide the necessary information and assistance to cater to different buyer preferences.
0:00 - Intro
0:19 - Jenni's First Experience at NADA Show
1:03 - Gen Z's Surprising Preference for In-Person Car Buying
2:02 - Gen Z's Learning Curve and Automotive Knowledge Gaps
3:05 - The Continued Interest in Driving Among Gen Z
3:39 - Key Learning Areas for Gen Z in Car Ownership
4:29 - Millennial Preferences in Car Buying
5:03 - Closing Remarks and Jenni's Takeaways from NADA Show
Jenni Newman is the Editor-In-Chief at Cars.com
This interview was brought to you by Cars Commerce: https://www.carscommerce.inc/
Paul J Daly: 0:07
All right, I'm here with Jenni Newman editor in chief of cars commerce now.
Jenni Newman: 0:11
Yes, I know. Right? Yeah. Oh, sorry, is commerce. It's pretty exciting.
Paul J Daly: 0:15
Thanks for joining us today. And I think we are in the middle of your very first NADA show.
Jenni Newman: 0:19
We are this is the first time I come to this event. It's I met my 15 years with the company. So it seemed like it was about time. Well,
Paul J Daly: 0:27
did you get to witness like the condition everyone comes back from the NADA Show in? I think they come back. Okay. They come?
Jenni Newman: 0:34
Yeah, exactly. They come back a little happy, tired, right. But there's always that like, exhilaration that just keeps pushing them through the years. So this is the place where it all starts. We're really excited to be here. Well,
Paul J Daly: 0:44
good. We're at the midway mark right now, lots of dealers walking around lots of dealers in the booth visiting, I see it all over the place. What does what do dealers need to know about your specific area of expertise, you're very tied in with the consumer, you create content for them, you get the feedback. So what do you think dealers need to know about the consumer right now?
Jenni Newman: 1:03
The dealers need to be thinking about Gen Z,
Paul J Daly: 1:08
Gen Z, they're probably gonna have kids and they are thinking about Gen Z,
Jenni Newman: 1:11
right, myself included. So we're living with them. But as dealers, they're starting to enter the car market. And I think what's really interesting is the assumption might be because Gen Z. They haven't known life without the internet, the assumption would be that they wouldn't want to they would want to buy a car online. But what we've learned in our own research, here comes here we go, you ready? You ready? Yes. So what we've learned is actually 9% is interested in buying a vehicle online. 80% 80% wants to work with the dealer.
Paul J Daly: 1:43
Isn't it studied? Never, I would have lost all my money on that. All we should have bet on that. What was I thinking? Yeah, you need to start every conversation with a don't actually be a great start to any any keynote presentation you get. I'll work on that. I'm going to work on that. So 80% of Gen Z says I want to go to a dealership currently 9% said I want to do it only online.
Jenni Newman: 2:02
Exactly. And it's it's it really sets you back. It's surprising, right. But I think what they're looking for, and this is this is where dealers really are going to excel. They they're looking for someone to help them to guide them. We know car shopping is difficult. That's what we focus on. On the editorial side at cars, commerce, we're focusing on building up the shoppers knowledge so that when they go to the dealership, they're confident they're ready to buy Gen Z, they need a little more hand holding and when it comes to buying a car. So
Paul J Daly: 2:30
I mean, I have Gen Z kids, and I see how fast they learn things online. When you ask them like Do you know how to do something? They never say? No. They always say I can find out. Yeah. But I do love. The car buying process is intrinsically complex. And the fact that it's an expensive purchase. Do you see that? Gen Z has less interest in driving? Because I know for a while there we were talking about like, having a car started to wane in the numbers like people like it wasn't an aspiration for for late teens, early 20s. And what do you see? No,
Jenni Newman: 3:05
I see them still interested in driving. I think that they recognize like we all do at a certain age that there's a freedom that comes with driving. Just got his first car, and you can't keep them out of it. I'm guessing. So I think I think that they will be coming into you know, wanting to own a car scene that is an important part and an important life milestone in their lives. So they definitely are going to be jumping into that pool. Okay, 80%
Paul J Daly: 3:30
of them want to go to a dealership? What are they looking to learn? Like? What are the big things that they are looking for? That they can't find online? Because I'm assuming they start the process online?
Jenni Newman: 3:39
Right. So of course, I think like anybody, they're going to start the process online. But you know, there's a lot about vehicles that they just don't know. And it's sometimes it's hard to wade through all those specs and know what's important, right? Do I want it? Do I need to know the horsepower? Do I need to know what the fuel economy is? How do I learned these things? Honestly, with my own kids who are also Gen Z, I had to teach them a couple of times over how to pump gas. So there's, there's a big learning curve for them. I think every kid is a little bit different. Right? But, you know, really just walking them through the ownership of that vehicle. They might be really quick on the uptake with multimedia systems. Yes. But they might need a little more coaching on things like how to turn on the defroster, right be amazed.
Paul J Daly: 4:19
I don't think I would do that. But they probably can connect their
Jenni Newman: 4:21
phones really quickly. Yeah, I don't think you got to worry about Bluetooth problems. Any
Paul J Daly: 4:25
other insights whether Gen Z or not that they think dealer should be paying attention to I think
Jenni Newman: 4:30
the other group to call out as millennials. So in our survey, they were the largest group who said they thought they would prefer to buy online. So I found that surprising to interesting.
Paul J Daly: 4:40
I think I think I want to buy online. I see a lot of questions, that hesitancy
Jenni Newman: 4:44
Exactly. And you know, it still was under 20%. So it was the most out of all of the different generations that were surveyed but a little more than Gen Z.
Paul J Daly: 4:54
Jenny well, you're almost you're past the halfway mark of your first NADA. You look great. You look like you got Little more ideas so thank you so much for talking with us today
Jenni Newman: 5:03
thanks so much