ONE HAS TO WONDER about the future of car dealerships as more companies decide to sell direct online and introduce other sales techniques that circumvent the traditional sale approach.
Kia is one that is adopting technology to sell the Seltos. They’re using Google Assistant to answer questions and offer “dispassionate opinions” to intending buyers.
For the first time in Australia an automotive brand has teamed with Google to develop a Google Assistant action to allow an interrogative conversation based around a new model.
The use of voice technology is not new – more than 500 million people a month in 90 countries turn to Google Assistant to get things done through smart technology.
Millions more use similar technology in devices such as Siri and Alexa.
However, the conversation with Google Assistant around Seltos is a first for the Australian automotive landscape.
With voice assistant technology and acceptance growing at an exponential rate – there are already a billion connected devices across the world with more being added every day and 72 percent of those who have the technology admitting to using it every day – the potential as a connective marketing tool is enormous.
According to users, the three key benefits of voice assistants are that saying something is quicker than typing it; it becomes part of a daily routine where sending text messages, playing music and finding useful information are all easily to hand; and with improvements in voice technology and artificial intelligence users see the assistants as more human than machine (but, presumably, less “human” than a real human).
In the case of Kia, the Seltos has become an entity waiting to respond to and engage with somebody seeking answers during the purchase consideration.
By triggering the conversation through the Google Assistant app with a phrase as simple as “Ok Google, I want to speak to Kia Seltos” or “Ok Google, ask Kia Seltos” a conversation is instigated where questions ranging through safety, specifications, colours, design and much more are on the table.
It will also offer users the ability to find their nearest dealership and schedule a test drive through simple voice commands.
And while Seltos is the first to join the voice technology conversation, Kia is working towards similar opportunities for other new models. It may be progress, but call us old-fashioned … we’re not convinced it’s an improvement.