Published by Gbaf News
Posted on November 29, 2017
4 min readLast updated: January 13, 2026
Urban car buyers may be exposed to more marketing messages than their suburban and rural counterparts, but CitNOW research shows that vehicle retailers are now in a stronger position than ever to reach out to them with video.
City dwelling motorists are the keenest audience for video content when making a purchase, with more than half (57%) referring to video to aide their next buy.
Dealership
The survey also found that urban customers favoured their mobiles as sources of video, as one in three named their smartphone as the top viewing device. The smartphone was ranked ahead of laptops, preferred by 28%, with desktops and tablets coveted by 18% and 10% of urban customers respectively.
Customers outside of the city – as well as in – are similarly within the grasp of enthusiastic video presenters. Just under half – 47% – of suburban customers said they view product videos when researching a purchase, as well as 46% of rural dwellers.
The survey found that overall sentiment was overwhelmingly positive, with four in five consumers open to using video during the car-buying process. For those who had bought a car in the last 12-months, video was used to research, watch reviews and for communication with the retailer.
A third-party study** also recently showed that city dwellers spend more time browsing the internet than elsewhere in the UK. Their high internet consumption means retailers have a challenge and an opportunity to cut through the white noise and build a relationship with them through video.
Alistair Horsburgh, CEO at CitNOW commented: “In a challenging marketplace, retailers are able to cast the net wider than ever and tempt buyers out of their living room seat into the driving seat of their next car.
“City dwellers are exposed to more marketing messages than anyone else, but their positive attitude towards video highlights the sales potential of a personalised approach.”
CitNOW has released the latest insights on the state of video in the automotive industry in the first CitNOW Vision Report. This can be downloaded at: https://www.citnow.co.uk/citnow-vision-report-2017/
Urban car buyers may be exposed to more marketing messages than their suburban and rural counterparts, but CitNOW research shows that vehicle retailers are now in a stronger position than ever to reach out to them with video.
City dwelling motorists are the keenest audience for video content when making a purchase, with more than half (57%) referring to video to aide their next buy.
Dealership
The survey also found that urban customers favoured their mobiles as sources of video, as one in three named their smartphone as the top viewing device. The smartphone was ranked ahead of laptops, preferred by 28%, with desktops and tablets coveted by 18% and 10% of urban customers respectively.
Customers outside of the city – as well as in – are similarly within the grasp of enthusiastic video presenters. Just under half – 47% – of suburban customers said they view product videos when researching a purchase, as well as 46% of rural dwellers.
The survey found that overall sentiment was overwhelmingly positive, with four in five consumers open to using video during the car-buying process. For those who had bought a car in the last 12-months, video was used to research, watch reviews and for communication with the retailer.
A third-party study** also recently showed that city dwellers spend more time browsing the internet than elsewhere in the UK. Their high internet consumption means retailers have a challenge and an opportunity to cut through the white noise and build a relationship with them through video.
Alistair Horsburgh, CEO at CitNOW commented: “In a challenging marketplace, retailers are able to cast the net wider than ever and tempt buyers out of their living room seat into the driving seat of their next car.
“City dwellers are exposed to more marketing messages than anyone else, but their positive attitude towards video highlights the sales potential of a personalised approach.”
CitNOW has released the latest insights on the state of video in the automotive industry in the first CitNOW Vision Report. This can be downloaded at: https://www.citnow.co.uk/citnow-vision-report-2017/
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