In MotorK things can (and do)

Digitisation, web-marketing strategies, e-commerce, new technologies and artificial intelligence: these are just some of the topics discussed during the latest two editions of Internet Motors.

Two occasions entirely dedicated to dealers, car manufacturers and the entire automotive supply chain in which they had the opportunity to listen to experts and opinion leaders speaking about the future of the sector, asking themselves the steps to be taken to accelerate the process of digitisation.

If you read the news these days about automotive sales and marketing, it seems that everyone is selling cars online or about to do so.

Tesla just announced plans to close most of its showrooms and switch to online-only sales. BMW, Peugeot, Toyota, Fiat and others are all piloting some form of online sales in at least one European market. Meanwhile, waiting in the wings is online retailing giant Amazon, which is expected to move aggressively into car sales in the near future.

The common wisdom is that millennials are less interested in owning a car than previous generations. It’s time to ignore the common wisdom.

The standard thinking goes that millennials are more likely to use Uber or another form of shared transportation. They are more interested in spending their money in other ways, on experiences rather than things. Or they are put off by the growing cost of car ownership, congestion and the many drawbacks that confront the contemporary driver.

There’s something interesting happening in the world of digital retail, and car brands and dealers would do well to pay attention.

Amazon recently opened the first Amazon 4-Star store in New York City selling a variety of items that received (you guessed it) a 4-star rating or better on the e-commerce giant’s site. It’s the latest bricks-and-mortar initiative from Amazon, which has already opened 17 bookstores and has plans for more.

The Geneva Motor Show recently concluded, and there were some notable absentees from previous editions. Ford, Hyundai, Opel, Volvo and Jaguar Land Rover were among the many brands skipping Europe’s biggest car show. What’s surprising about this is that it’s not so surprising.

Audi chose to unveil its first all electric vehicle, the e-tron SUV, at a mid-September event in San Francisco. Mercedes held its own special event in Stockholm to unveil its all-electric SUV, the EQC.