® THE SALE! Are Dealers Obsolete? By Mark Rodgers
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esla sells direct. Carvana and Vroom promise a dealer free car buying experience. Setting aside state franchise laws, and servicing, here’s the question: Is the current dealer distribution model obsolete? Twenty-five years ago, retail consumers’ expectations were framed by doing business with the likes of Fed Ex, Subway, and Disney theme parks. Overnight delivery, make-it-your-own sandwiches, and precision, familyfriendly experiences seemed like the height of retailing. Those days are gone. Today retail consumers’ expectations are set by one primary source: Amazon. The Amazon Effect From the comfort of my own couch, wearing my Amazon acquired Mighty Mouse PJs, and drinking my Amazon subscriber delivered Lion’s Mane coffee, if I want to buy something, anything really, I can do it on Amazon. And my experience has been scientifically engineered to make me do one thing: Buy.
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From the products that I’m shown (If you like that, you’ll love this!), to the way the price is presented (List price no! Current price low. Savings shown in both pragmatic dollars and mathematician percentages.), to the butwait-there’s-more! offer to get a lower price I sign up for a new Mastercard in my Amazon wallet, it’s all designed to for one objective: click the buy button. It’s a no pressure shopping utopia. I can put items in my cart and easily take them out. I can create lists for just me to see and lists I may want others to see. If it’s a book or music, I can sample it. I can set my purchases aside, to think about because at Amazon apparently there is a be-back bus. If it’s a complicated purchase I can instantly see FAQs posed by other curious shoppers. I can instantly see a rating system and read purchasers reviews, organized by most positive and most critical (man, these guys are good). There are close up photos, there are videos, and I can even pose a question to someone whom, presumably, knows something about the product. Then there is the add-on selling second swing. Comprised by “frequently bought together” suggestions (always compelling), products related to this item (kind of compelling), and suggestions based on your shopping trends (now, we’re talking!). Now that’s one enticing rabbit hole. Not to mention Amazon even figured out the subscription trend with the ability to schedule regularly used items (often household consumables like coffee, paper towels, etc.) under their “Subscribe and Save” option with predictable sales for Amazon and an additional 15% price reduction for you. Combine this retail precision, with a fragmented, polarized, tech connected society, mix in a bit of pandemic lockdown and you have a recipe for retail world domination.
