The pandemic has made clear that selling cars online is a prerequisite for dealers to compete in an industry under pressure from multiple fronts.
Yet the push to bring auto retailers into the digital age has some dealers feeling squeezed — and not just by the need to keep up with changing consumer expectations and disruptive rivals such as Tesla and Carvana. Automakers are investing in factory-branded digital sales tools and encouraging their dealers to adopt them.
Their efforts are landing in a market populated with similar tools from third-party software vendors as well as customized, branded shopping experiences from large public dealership groups. Automakers say they want to create consistency among their retailers and simplify transactions.