Consumers shopping for electric vehicles and battery electric vehicles have pretty high standards when it comes to OEM websites, and they consistently rate their user experience lower than their counterparts who are shopping for conventional ICE vehicles, according to a new study by J.D.Power released Thursday. The report, called J.D. Power 2022 U.S. Manufacturer Website Evaluation Study, found that “fast-loading technical specifications, comparison tools and payment/lease calculators are having a big effect on satisfaction among online shoppers, specifically those researching battery electric vehicles (BEVs).”
“While inventory shortages continue to be a major source of frustration, we’re seeing vehicle shopping tools have a greater effect on the BEV experience than ever before,” said Eric McCready, director of digital solutions at J.D. Power. “Consumers don’t want to visit multiple sites when researching a vehicle. With more than half of BEV shoppers using technical specification tools, there’s an opportunity for manufacturers to boost the shopping experience with tools to cover range, time to charge details, charging locations and calculators that reflect tax credit information and fuel savings.”
The J.D. Power U.S. Manufacturer Website Evaluation Study—Summer is a semiannual study that measures the usefulness of automotive manufacturer websites during the process of shopping for a new vehicle by examining four key measures (in order of importance): information/content; visual appeal; navigation; and speed.
This wave finds that overall satisfaction averages 711 (on a 1,000-point scale) for the premium segment and 705 for the mass market segment, down 13 and 6 points, respectively, from the previous wave.
Lincoln ranks highest among premium manufacturer websites with a score of 737. Lexus (734) ranks second and BMW (730) ranks third.
Kia ranks highest for the mass market manufacturer website segment with a score of 729. Subaru (724) ranks second and Jeep (721) ranks third.
The U.S. Manufacturer Website Evaluation Study, initially released in 1999, is based on responses from 11,398 new-vehicle shoppers who indicate they will be in the market for a new vehicle within the next 24 months. The study was fielded April through May 2022.
