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02:43
In February, empty city streets in China became an iconic image synonymous with COVID-19. The outbreak dealt a visible blow to the nation's car market which was already suffering from a lackluster 2019.
According to the China Passenger Car Association, February car sales stood at around 250,000 in China. That was close to an 80 percent drop compared to the same period last year. Experts believe the decline is linked to the epidemic and not very indicative of a long-term trend.
"Basically people cannot go to the 4S stores. They cannot really purchase their cars, the demands that are suppressed actually will recover in the following months because for such a large, durable consumer good, people won't just give up purchasing because they cannot go to the store," said Bruno Zhao, the head of Industrial Goods, Manufacturing and Auto practices at Bain Company Greater China.
Many dealerships are fighting to survive the short-term blow. In Shanghai, district governments and the administrative bureau of the Lujiazui financial district offered more than 850,000 U.S. dollars in rental waivers to two Porsche dealerships.
"It's a help in order to make it possible for our dealerships to run well," said Jens Puttfarcken, president and CEO of Porsche China.
On the other hand, brands are actively innovating to boost sales, for example, by embracing the digital world. By the end of February, over 15,000 dealerships that cover more than 80 brands have joined the online virtual showrooms on Autohome, one of China's biggest car websites.
Many brands are also doing the same on their official channels. "Now with the outbreak, there is a very strong demand from customers as well as from our dealers to move online and go digital," said Puttfarcken.
One of the online showrooms at Autohome.com. /Autohome
Online channels used to be more about advertising for car brands. But Chinese auto group Geely says they are taking internet-based services to the next level: A car key delivered by drone to new customers.
CGTN got in touch with one such buyer. "The Geely staffers live-streamed me with how they disinfect the cars at the dealership before shipping mine to my place," said Xiang Lei of Shanghai.
Geely says the idea of contactless services goes beyond car purchases. "From when you pick a car, make reservations, to when you apply for insurance and mortgages, we take care of the whole service chain," said Feng Qingfeng, vice president of Geely.
A drone delivers a set of car keys to a customer. /Geely
Some experts remain skeptical about the appeal of moving the entire car-buying process online.
"It is a huge purchasing decision, and many people still prefer to go to dealerships physically to fully experience the cars in person," said Bruno Zhao, an expert in the auto sector.
But this outbreak has prompted car brands to divert more resources to digital channels to improve customer experiences in many ways.
"The war between different brands is to control people's 'mind-share', rather than market share. Those 'mind-shares' will turn to actual sales after the virus situation," said Zhao.
