Dealerships must prepare for online F&I
Monday March 20, 2017
The prospect of U.S. consumers making vehicle purchases completely online without setting foot inside dealerships raises many issues for auto retailers, but especially for finance and insurance managers.
Their concern is straightforward. Can they effectively sell the F&I products so vital to most dealerships’ profitability without face-to-face contact?
The worry is that price-conscious consumers scrolling through a long list of online purchase options will bypass F&I products without giving them much consideration. “Everybody is scared about the loss of profitability online,” says Jim Maxim, president of MaximTrak and chief digital officer at RouteOne. “Once you go that route, there’s nothing to retain those F&I profits.”