Alphabet Occasions: A webshop for cars
Cars. There are few products with a higher involvement. It therefore makes sense that the orientation phase takes so long. And that happens mainly online. Of course, the dealer and the test drive will stay for a while, but digital is becoming more and more relevant. This is why we asked ourselves the question: Can't we sell cars online and have them delivered to our homes?
Business case
Alphabet Occasions offers only the best selection of 20,000 ex-lease cars via three showrooms and an online platform. Alphabet's ambition is to become the first provider to sell cars to consumers online, which made this an incredibly cool project.
The buying process takes place entirely online. You search, look, compare, check, order and finally pay via iDeal. In literally 6 clicks, you are the owner of your new occasion! You can test drive the car for 14 days, with the first 100 km free (except for the fuel costs). The car is delivered to your home, or you can pick it up yourself in one of the three showrooms.
We helped Alphabet Occasions design an intuitive process to achieve an online purchase. From the psychology and emotion that comes with a 'high involvement purchase' to the functional process. From the trade-in and the RDW check for registration to the personalised purchase contract that is drawn up fully automatically and final payment via iDeal. Awesome, right?
There's another one of those...
Car salespeople (just like bankers and estate agents) are not at the top of the list of professions in which the Dutch population has the most confidence (EigenHuis study, 2017). The non-transparent image makes it even more challenging to gain consumers' trust online. Basically, it is not an ideal starting point for handling transactions completely online. How did we tackle that?
Full transparency
- Fixed all-in prices
- No additional costs
- Full service history is available online
- All used cars are always brand dealer maintained
- Small damages are shown online with photo
- Guaranteed mileage
- Car comes from 1st owner
- Always 6 months warranty at the dealership
- Free home delivery & 14 days test drive
- Free car check before delivery at home
Omnichannel
In order to prevent someone from buying a car online that is currently being tested, it is possible for sellers to 'lock' the car based on its registration number. This also works the other way around, when a consumer starts the online ordering process the car is locked up for 15 minutes. What about the price tags?
What they say
"The first online car sale arrived in my mailbox in the evening after work. Isn't it crazy? It is impossible to imagine our daily lives without e-commerce, including our industry. We are extremely busy in the showrooms, so every car that is sold fully online is a real time saver. Because we are the first and so far only owner of the car, we can be completely transparent about maintenance history and possible damages. Therefore, we are happy to give the car a 14-day trial with our heads held high. Here we have a big advantage in the industry. I am very pleased that Have A Nice Day is an online partner ensuring us a leading role in the market."
- Michael Bernsen, Manager Remarketing Alphabet Netherlands
Learn more about this case?
We would be happy to tell you more about our approach and see, together with our experts, how we can take your project to the next level.
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