• by Masha Geller , March 19, 2003

Good news for online automotive advertisers. According to the latest comScore report, 48 million Internet users - approximately 33% of all U.S. Internet users - visited the automotive category in February. People may not be buying cars online, but the data shows that online research has enormous importance in the pre-purchase decision process of new car buyers. Industry sources generally hold that 60% or more of new car purchases in the U.S. are preceded by online shopping and research. And, comScore says, the Web has produced a thriving market for used car buyers and sellers.

The online automotive landscape offers a rich mix of information from manufacturers, dealers, independent third parties, enthusiast groups and many more.

With 10.6 million unique visitors, eBay Motors was the traffic leader among not only third party sites, but also the entire Automotive category. The Big Three original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) expectedly maintain their standing online, with General Motors, Ford and DaimlerChrysler drawing 5.7 million, 4.2 and 3.2 million unique visitors respectively.

comScore says that many consumers shopping for cars depend on the "neutral territory" of online marketplaces to research and compare vehicle specifications, check prices and request referrals to local dealerships.

Interestingly, within a given month there is minimal overlap among visitors to automotive marketplace sites. In fact, only approximately 20% of the 12.5 million total visitors to Autobytel.com, Autotrader.com and Cars.com visited more than one of these sites in February 2003 - even as these shoppers researched multiple vehicle brands. comScore says that this level of focus explains the need for OEMs to effectively compete through multiple third party sites for share of voice and consumer awareness.