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The automotive buying journey has changed dramatically over the last few years.
Today’s consumers spend far more time researching online before ever contacting a dealership. They compare vehicles across multiple sites, watch reviews on YouTube, browse inventory on mobile devices, research financing options, and move fluidly between digital and in-person experiences throughout the process.
And increasingly, buyers are entering the market without a fully formed decision.
According to Cox Automotive’s Car Buyer Journey Study, 71% of buyers said they started the shopping process unsure of exactly what vehicle they wanted, while 66% considered both new and used vehicles during their search.
That creates a major challenge for marketers:
How do you identify likely buyers before they actively raise their hand?
That’s where marketers need better visibility into buyer intent.
Automotive Buyers Are More Flexible Than Ever
One of the biggest shifts happening in automotive shopping is how flexible consumers have become during the buying process.
Many buyers are no longer loyal to a single brand, vehicle category, or even purchase type. Consumers are weighing everything from leasing versus financing to gas, hybrid, and EV options throughout the shopping process.
Affordability pressures are also reshaping decision-making.
Cox Automotive found that 62% of buyers believe vehicle ownership or leasing has become too expensive, driven by rising vehicle prices, insurance costs, financing rates, and maintenance expenses.
As a result, marketers can no longer assume buyers will follow a predictable purchase path.
Brand consideration now changes constantly throughout the journey.
That means timing and audience relevance matter more than ever.
Digital Behavior Is Becoming a Stronger Purchase Signal
Modern automotive shoppers leave behind a large number of behavioral signals during the research process.
Consumers now regularly:
- Browse vehicle listings online
- Compare models across multiple websites
- Visit dealership sites
- Watch automotive reviews
- Research financing options
- Interact with automotive content across channels
In many cases, these behaviors reveal stronger purchase intent than demographics alone.
This is one reason behavioral data has become such an important part of automotive audience targeting.
Instead of waiting for a dealership lead form submission, marketers now look for earlier signals that suggest a consumer may soon enter the market for a vehicle.
That shift is especially important as shopping journeys become longer and more research-driven.
According to Cox Automotive, buyers visit an average of 4.6 websites during the vehicle shopping process, with third-party automotive sites now playing a larger role than dealership or automaker websites.
The earlier marketers can identify likely buyers, the more opportunities they have to influence brand perception, vehicle consideration and dealership selection.
Automotive Marketing Is Now Omnichannel
Consumers no longer shop for vehicles through a single channel.
A buyer may:
- See a Connected TV ad at home
- Research vehicles on mobile later that night
- Compare pricing online
- Read reviews on a third-party automotive site
- Visit a dealership days later
- Respond to a follow-up email offer afterward
According to Cox Automotive, 63% of buyers say their ideal shopping experience combines both online and in-person interactions.
At the same time, fully digital shopping continues to grow.
Cox Automotive’s Digitization of Car Buying Study found that 65% of car buyers now complete at least part of the purchase process online.
This has fundamentally changed how marketers approach automotive audience targeting.
Today, campaigns need to work across Connected TV, mobile advertising, social media, email marketing, digital display, and direct mail.
The goal is not simply to reach more consumers.
It’s to reach likely buyers with messaging that feels relevant to where they are in the shopping journey.
How In-Market Automotive Audiences Help Marketers
In-market automotive audiences are designed to help marketers identify consumers showing signals associated with vehicle shopping behavior.
At PGM, Auto Factors combines:
- Vehicle ownership data
- VIN-level intelligence
- Household insights
- Behavioral signals
- Online browsing activity
- Purchase intent indicators
- Cross-channel identity data
Powered by 217M+ vehicle records, 250M+ consumer profiles, and 170M+ email addresses, Auto Factors helps marketers better understand:
- What consumers drive today
- What they may purchase next
- Which audiences are actively showing shopping intent
Marketers can build audiences based on:
- Vehicle make and model
- Mileage
- Fuel type
- Luxury vs. standard ownership
- New vs. used vehicle interest
- Household vehicle mix
- Demographic and wealth indicators
This gives marketers a more complete picture of who may actually be preparing to buy.
What This Means for Automotive Marketers in 2026
Today’s automotive marketers are paying closer attention to how consumers research, browse, and shop across channels.
Buyers expect faster research tools, more personalized experiences, and smoother transitions between digital and in-person shopping. Many consumers now spend weeks researching vehicles online before ever speaking with a dealership.
AI is also starting to influence the shopping process. Cox Automotive found that 83% of consumers believe AI will impact car buying in the future.
At the same time, shoppers are moving fluidly between devices and platforms throughout the buying journey. A consumer may research vehicles on mobile, compare pricing online later that night, and visit a dealership days afterward.
For marketers, this means timing and relevance matter more than ever.
Marketers that identify likely buyers earlier in the process are in a much stronger position to influence consideration and purchase decisions.
Want to learn how PGM’s in-market automotive audiences can improve your marketing strategy?
Contact PGM to learn how automotive intent data and audience insights can help you reach likely vehicle buyers earlier in the customer journey.
