With more and more consumers heading online to do research ahead of their next new vehicle purchase, automotive manufacturer websites are more important than ever. It’s also the justification behind J.D. Power’s semi-annual U.S. Manufacturer Website Evaluation Study, which measures customer satisfaction with automaker websites for both mass market and premium brands. In that study, the Ford website ranked above average in summer 2022, but fell below that mark in the winter. Now that the summer 2023 version of the study has been released, it reveals that Ford website satisfaction has plummeted in dramatic fashion, ranking below the segment average just like its premium counterpart, Lincoln.
While Ford scored a 697 out of 1,000 possible points in the winter version of the U.S. Manufacturer Website Evaluation Study – good enough for 16th place among all mass market brands – The Blue Oval finished this latest version with a score of 684, which dropped it all the way down to 17th place – behind all of its competitors, save for last-place Volkswagen. Meanwhile, the mass market segment average rose by five points compared to the winter 2022 version, as well as eight points versus summer of last year.
The most recently version of J.D. Power’s U.S. Manufacturer Website Evaluation Study – which ranks sites based on information/content, visual appeal, navigation, and speed – is based on the responses of 10,202 new vehicle shoppers who are in the market to buy such a vehicle in the next 24 months.
“Website satisfaction can be volatile and automotive websites are not immune to changing preferences,” said Jon Sundberg, director of digital solutions at J.D. Power. “However, manufacturers have shown to be very agile when it comes to website design and ensuring their sites meet modern standards, more so than many other industries, as exemplified through the study data.”
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Comments
Regarding Ford quality: my 2022 Maverick hybrid has had 5 safety recalls in the one year I owned it. The latest…engine failure…a real risk in 120 degree desert heat, was the last straw. I sold it. Half of the recalls, neither the dealer nor Ford knows how to remedy. Brakes and engine failure. Would you risk your family under these circumstances? For me, no.
Maverick is a price point truck if you call it a truck. , plus its so new and untested. it will be 5 years before they figure it out. I would not put my family in anything that small.
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