3 automotive trends to look out for in 2024
The auto industry, along with many others, has seen its fair share of ups and downs in the last few years. With global events such as the pandemic and Brexit affecting stock and parts availability, in addition to the current cost of living crisis, sales have been affected. But despite this, we’ve witnessed dealerships rising to the challenge, helped along by several exciting environmental and technological advancements.
The industry itself has remained relatively stable over the last decade but we see this changing as we move into the new year and beyond. Here’s our top 3 industry trends to look out for in 2024.
Sector growth
November 2023 saw a 16th successive month of growth for the automotive sector, with over 156,000 new car registrations recorded. This is a 9.5% year-on-year increase, proof that the market is continuing to recover and stabilise post-pandemic.
In 2024, we are likely to see the industry continuing to grow as research indicates new car sales are likely to top the 2-million-mark next year, a 4.3% year-on-year increase.
Electric Vehicles
With sales of electric vehicles (EVs), including plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) set to account for almost a fifth of all new cars worldwide by the end of 2023, you can’t argue that EVs are not on the rise! In fact, despite reports of sales slowing, shifts in government policy and public opinion, these numbers are a 35% increase on sales in 2022.
Despite these growing numbers, the government’s U-turn on extending 2030’s deadline for the ban of sales of combustion engine vehicles to 2035 has left many questioning how the decision will impact buying behaviour and sales of EVs. This remains to be seen as we move into 2024 and is certainly a trend we will be watching closely.
A change in retail tactics
As the world moves increasingly online, it comes as no surprise that this has also affected the automotive sector. Recent research suggests that the majority of consumers (80%) wish to combine online and in-person steps within their car buying journey for an ‘omnichannel’ experience. This means that customers can interact with retailers at ease, in a way that works for them, using a mix of dealerships, websites, social media channels and even apps. For the retailer, this could mean lower costs and the opportunity to use customer data to reinforce retention.
A quality website, video walkarounds, high-quality photography and the ability for consumers to be notified about changes to stock are all recommendations for a true omnichannel retail experience are things that we expect to see more dealerships adopt as we move into 2024 and beyond.
We’d like to wish all our customers a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Thank you for all your support this year, we’ll see you in 2024!
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