Hyundai announced on Wednesday that it would be the first car brand to open a digital showroom on Amazon Vehicles. Using it, shoppers can browse, compare prices, look at reviews, book test drives and check inventories at local dealerships without having to interact much with salespeople.
The S. Korea-based automaker is the first to offer this service, but it almost certainly won’t be the last. The digital showroom also seeks to educate consumers about Hyundai’s service benefits, including Shopper Assurance, which provides upfront pricing and three-day exchange guarantees for its vehicles. It also allows for flexible test drive scheduling from locations such as homes.
The aim of the digital showroom is to take prospective car buyers on a journey, starting with a “brand experience,” highlighting the automaker’s technologies. Then they are presented with details for vehicles that best fit their personal preferences and buying habits, with the option to purchase directly on HyundaiUSA.com.
Other collaborative features found on the showroom include a video showing how owners can operate the Blue Link app using Alexa, using it to remote start and set the temperature remotely using voice commands in addition to smartphones and smartwatches.
In a statement, Hyundai Motor America senior group manager for digital marketing Tim Maxwell said, “This collaboration with Amazon provides customers with the ability to learn about Hyundai vehicles in a way that matches their expectations for nearly every other type of purchase. Hyundai and its dealers are modernizing the car buying process, so it made sense for us to be the first car company with its own digital showroom.”
This isn’t the first time Hyundai has partnered with Amazon, having teamed up with the retail giant in 2016 for the “Prime Now, Drive Now” campaign. It too was the first of its kind collaboration which offered on-demand 2017 Hyundai Elantra test drives to prospective car shoppers in the Los Angeles/Orange County area through the Prime Now service, which is usually used for local store and supermarket deliveries.
