Women-Drivers.com: Mercedes-Benz Is Leader with Female Buyers, Site Touts Dealership Reputation Tools

Women-Drivers.com has released a list that will perhaps give dealers some insight into what the site’s primary audience is looking for in a vehicle, as well as which brands they tend to lean towards.

By releasing its annual report showing the top car brands as rated by women, the site aims to also highlight which dealerships and nameplates are best treating females — illustrated by the report results.

And with women now accounting for over half of all car purchases, the site contends dealers need to hone in on what female buyers are looking for. The site also noted that women even “influence and initiate up to 80 percent” of transactions at dealerships throughout the country.

After tracking thousands of consumer reviews with regards to womens' purchasing and browsing experiences at dealerships, the site found that one luxury nameplate took the highest score in both categories.

Mercedes-Benz scored a 4.89 for purchasing experience and a 4.59 for browsing at a dealership experience on the Women Satisfcation Index (WSI), which runs on a 1.0 to 5.0 scale.

The Purchasing Experience

And though Mercedes topped the list for purchasing experiences among women, they were followed closely behind by Dodge (4.86) and Lexus (4.83).

Interestingly, even those brands who scored the lowest (BMW and Hyundai), which tied for 15th, still received a score of 4.24.  And the average WSI score for all brands in this category was 4.36.

“These top brands ranked consistently high with women customers who were very satisfied with the engagement and treatment by the sales person, their overall dealership experience, as well as the financing process,” site officials explained.

Commenting on the results, Women-Drivers.com president Anne Fleming noted, “It is a pretty straightforward equation — car manufacturers and dealerships that highly engage, respect and treat women well during the purchase process are placing themselves in an extraordinary position to get their future business.

“Clearly these dealerships are doing a great job with customer engagement at the point of sale,” she added.
   
Here are the top 15 brands for purchasing experiences for women at dealerships, according to Women-Drivers.com:

1. Mercedes: 4.89
2. Dodge: 4.86
3. Lexus: 4.83
4. Lincoln: 4.73
5. Chrysler: 4.63
6. Jeep: 4.61
7. Buick: 4.45
8. Chevrolet: 4.42
9. Cadillac: 4.39 and Toyota: 4.39
10. Mazda: 4.36
11. Acura: 4.32
12. Honda: 4.29
13. Nissan: 4.27
14. Ford: 4.26
15. BMW and Hyundai: 4.24

The Browsing Experience

And the score dealerships receive in the browsing category might be even more important than their purchasing score.

Why? The site contends that since the average female car buyer will visit three dealerships when in the market for a new vehicle, a higher browsing score can potentially result in a consumer returning to a dealership for purchase.

If disappointed, a potential buyer is bound to continue the search and discount a dealership if she was not given the proper treatment while walking the lot.

Again, Mercedes dealers scored the highest WSI ranking,  pulling in a 4.59 score from browsers  — female customers who went to a dealership but did not purchase that day.