This document provides a high-level overview of the U.S. automotive industry landscape and consumer behaviors. It summarizes that Americans drove over 1.4 trillion vehicle miles in 2012, with California, Texas, Florida, New York, and Illinois having the highest mileage. Consumers are keeping their cars longer, with the average age now over 8 years. Online searches for auto repair and new tires are in the millions each month. The document also analyzes automotive consumer research behaviors such as using search engines and websites when researching repairs or new tires.

1. AUTOMOTIVE INDUSTRY
PROFILE + LANDSCAPE

2. 2
WHY DO I CARE?
Glad you asked…
In this report you will find a high-level overview of the U.S. automotive landscape. It is important
that we keep a pulse on the industry and CONSUMER BEHAVIORS in order to identify
OPPORTUNITIES that transform our businesses.
At Levelwing, we specialize in analyzing the paths that contribute to meaningful BUSINESS
OUTCOMES. These paths are illuminated through the analysis of data collected via website
analytics, customer relationship databases, consumer research, phone call logs and even
recruitment application databases (yes, we actually enjoy working with the HR folks in addition to
the marketing teams).
Our team of analysts, statisticians and strategists are obsessed with data and are experts at
TRANSLATING THE DATA INTO A MEANINGFUL STORY that has real business applications and
implications.
Please enjoy some of the insights contained within.

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AUTOMOTIVE CATEGORY
CATEGORY OVERVIEW

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AUTOMOTIVE CATEGORY SEARCH DEMAND
KEYWORD COMPETITION US MONTHLY SEARCHES
AUTO REPAIR High 2,240,000
NEW TIRES High 165,000
NEW CAR High 3,350,000
AUTO PARTS Medium 6,120,000
Collectively, the automotive category has a substantial amount of monthly searches within the
United States. Online searches are often indicative of offline demand. This emphasizes the
need for visibility within search engines and search engine results pages in order to capture
this traffic.
Source: Google

5. 5
MILES DRIVEN - US
Vehicle-Distance Traveled (Billion Moving 12-Month Total on ALL Roads
3,000
2,800
2,600
2,400
Miles)
2,200
2,000
1,800
1,600
1,400
Jan-87
Jul-87
Jan-88
Jul-88
Jan-89
Jul-89
Jan-90
Jul-90
Jan-91
Jul-91
Jan-92
Jul-92
Jan-93
Jul-93
Jan-95
Jul-95
Jan-96
Jul-96
Jan-97
Jul-97
Jan-98
Jul-98
Jan-99
Jul-99
Jan-00
Jul-00
Jan-01
Jul-01
Jan-02
Jul-02
Jan-03
Jul-03
Jan-05
Jul-05
Jan-06
Jul-06
Jan-07
Jul-07
Jan-08
Jul-08
Jan-09
Jul-09
Jan-10
Jul-10
Jan-11
Jul-11
Jan-12
Jan-94
Jan-04
Jul-94
Jul-04
Year
Travel on all roads and streets increased by 0.4% (1.1 billion vehicle miles) for June 2012 as
compared with June 2011 and cumulative travel for 2012 increased by 1.1% (15.6 billion vehicle
miles). Cumulative estimate for 2012 is 1,455.7 billion vehicle miles of travel. As miles driven
increases so too does the need for routine car maintenance and new tires.
Source: U.S. Department of Transportation

6. 6
VEHICLE OWNERSHIP
61% of co
nsumers
car repair expecting
intended to s would h
52% of consumers professio
nal do all ave a
ep their cars 5 years or more “2011 Afte the work
ke Group, Feb 20
11
PD
rmarket O
utlook Sur
v
ey”, The N
rvey”, The N PD Group,
rk et Outlook Su Feb 2011
“2011 Afterma
otorists are Avg age of car driven
23% of m increased to 8 years
driving c ars from 1990s Consumer Reports N
ay 2011 ational Research Cen
Center, Apr-M ter, Apr-May 2011
al Research
Consumer R eports Nation
In addition to consumers driving more miles, they are keeping their vehicles for longer periods of
time so they are driving more miles on those same vehicles. As the average age of cars on the
road increases, the need for routine maintenance and new tires for those cars also increases.

7. INDUSTRY SEARCH DEMAND & VOLUME 7
Top cities searching for “auto repair” in the last 12 months include: San Diego, Minneapolis,
Seattle, Denver, Phoenix, Chicago, St. Louis, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Atlanta. Market
level search insights can assist can help fuel strategies in which there is high demand (and we
want to leverage this) or where there is low-demand (perhaps in a market we are trying to
dominate).
Source: Google

8. 8
MILES DRIVEN BY STATE – TOP 5
STATE
MILES DRIVE iN JUNE
(IN MILLIONS)
CALIFORNIA 28,401
TEXAS 19,844
FLORIDA 16,019
NEW YORK 11,145
ILLINOIS 10,582
When comparing the top twelve cities searching for “auto repair” to the top five states with the
most driven miles in June, three of the top twelve cities searching for “auto repair” are located
in California, the state with the most miles driven in June. As miles driven increases so too
does the need for vehicle maintenance and searches for service including, “auto repair.”
Source: U.S. Department of Transportation

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AUTOMOTIVE
CONSUMER
RESEARCH BEHAVIOR

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ONLINE RESEARCH HABITS
Automotive tire websites 65%
Search engines 48%
Professional online automotive review websites
Dealership websites
Consumer generated online reviews
3rd Party automotive websites
Online magazines/newspapers
Video sharing websites
Social networking websites
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70%
During online research for tires, 65% of consumers go directly to an automotive tire website
and 48% use a search engine. These online search habits indicate the need for visibility
within search engines and search engine results pages during this critical research period.
Source: Custom Compete Data

11. 13
ONLINE RESEARCH HABITS
23%
31%
Search Usage During the
8%
Research Process
42%
13% 51% 10% Used this source at the very
beginning of my research
Parts 12% Tires
Used this source in the middle of
my research
Used this source at the very end
of my research
Used this source throughout the
41% entire process
37%
41%
47%
10% 10% 4% 7%
Services Accessories
Over one third of users utilized search throughout the research process. This behavior further
necessitates the need for visibility within search engines and search engine results pages.
Source: Custom Compete Data

12. 14
OFFLINE RESEARCH HABITS
local tire store 19%
Offline Purchase Drivers
warehouse store 10%
more convenient to
retail store
39%
10% purchase in person
38% I needed it immediately
I wanted to talk to a
national tire/ 30%
49% salesperson
service center
27% better prices
25% faster to shop in person
dealership 7%
other 5%
Offline Purchase
Examining offline research habits can illuminate areas of opportunity. For instance, 30% of
people indicated they made an offline purchase because they wanted to talk to a
salesperson. Incorporating a “Live Chat with Sales Representatives” feature on your website
can give your online customers a better experience.
Source: Custom Compete Data

13. 15
RESEARCH TIME
7% 4% 5%
3% 3%
6% 8%
12%
16%
19%
21%
31%
38%
43%
30%
27%
17%
10%
enhance performance/ appearance routine maintenance repair
Less than 1 day 1 day to less than 1 week 1 week to less than 2 weeks
2 weeks to less than 3 weeks 3 weeks to less than 4 weeks 4 weeks or more
Purchase reason influences research time; repair shoppers are three times as likely to decide in
less than a day. These purchase behaviors indicate the need to provide website visitors with
exactly the information they are seeking on their first visit to your site during this critical research
period.
Source: Custom Compete Data

14. 16
VIDEO AS RESEARCH SOURCE
Obtain general information 56%
Watch instructional videos 47%
Understand specific features 42%
Decide which company to purchase from
Watch customer testimonials
Compare features
Other
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60%
Most service shoppers who watched videos were interested in general information and
instruction. Creating a YouTube channel with instructional videos and general information
surrounding auto repair and maintenance will fulfill these consumer needs. Including links to
your website within the videos and video descriptions will encourage visitor transfer.
Source: Custom Compete Data

15. 17
SMARTPHONE USAGE
More than
110 MILLION
Americans own a
smartphone
As smartphone ownership increases so does the necessity of having a mobile website for
consumers using these devices for product and service research.
Source: comScore, June 2012

16. 18
MOBILE AS RESEARCH SOURCE
Read reviews 39%
Look for promotions, coupons, or discounts 38%
Compare prices 35%
Contact business other than by calling
Compare features
Read general service information
Locate a service provider
Call a retailer, manufacturer, or business
Schedule a service appointment
Search a service availability
Watch an online video about a service
0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% 40% 45%
Most service shoppers using a mobile device for research want to read reviews, find deals,
and compare prices. Ensuring these elements are prominent on your mobile site will provide
an optimal user experience for mobile website visitors.
Source: Custom Compete Data

17. 19
MOBILE COUPON REDEMPTION
30% of mobile users are willing to travel 5+ miles to redeem an automotive coupon.
Understanding the unique motivations driving the mobile consumer can lead to greater clarity
in local and location-based opportunities.
Source: Internal Google Data

18. 20
LIKE WHAT YOU SEE? WANT TO SEE MORE?
This is just the beginning of what we can tap into. Imagine what we could do with the data you
have internally…
At Levelwing, we specialize in interpreting your data and providing you with applications (and not
just graphs) that can impact your MARKETING, MERCHANDISING, INVENTORY or even TALENT
RECRUITMENT. We help companies utilize data to OPERATE WITH GREATER CLARITY +
PROFITABILITY.
Bottom line, we move your business forward by helping you make sense of your data so that
you can ACHIEVE WHAT COULD BE.
For additional information, please contact:
STEVE PARKER, JR.
Co-Founder and Managing Partner
steve@levelwing.com
1 + 843.631.4587

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THANK YOU
Want to learn more about Levelwing? Just keep reading.

20. 22
WHO IS LEVELWING?

21. 23
OUR BELIEFS
The Right Data Changes Everything
Marketing Budgets Should Be Smaller, Not Larger
Accountability is Essential
Success Should Pay For Itself
Leverage Existing Demand First

22. 24
THE RIGHT DATA CHANGES EVERYTHING
We use data to illuminate all facets of your business. You’ll
sell more and enjoy greater cost-efficiency.
More importantly, you’ll operate your business more
PROFITABLY.

23. 25
MARKETING BUDGETS SHOULD BE
SMALLER, NOT LARGER
Bigger is not necessarily better.
We believe by holding media and ideas accountable through
advanced analytics, you can do MORE with LESS.

24. 26
ACCOUNTABILITY IS ESSENTIAL
We measure and create insights based on what’s important,
not just metrics that are easy to calculate.
We create real ACCOUNTABILITY.

25. 27
SUCCESS SHOULD PAY FOR ITSELF 27
An understanding of Return on Investment leads to
marketing efforts that are more than just an expense line
item.
We build SELF-FUNDING initiatives.

26. 28
LEVERAGE EXISTING DEMAND FIRST
AWARENESS
INTEREST
A demand-driven strategy creates media efficiency and
greater profitability by focusing on existing IN-MARKET
PURCHASERS.
CONSIDERATION
PURCHASE

27. 29
INTELLIGENCE IS AT OUR CORE 29
Our BUSINESS INTELLIGENCE SOLUTIONS help organizations
understand consumer brand perception, gain competitive
information and uncover real opportunities to improve
organizational and operational efficiencies.
WE BELIEVE in informed, evidence-based decision-making,
only made possible by complex and comprehensive data
collection + analysis.
Competitive Insights | Data Enrichment | Operational Efficiency | Price Sensitivity
Analysis | ROI Analysis | Analytics Solutions | Data Knowledge Management

28. 30
WE ARE LEVELWING
GLOBAL REACH We currently serve clients throughout North
America, Europe, China and Japan
UNIQUE APPROACH Levelwing is the leader in business
intelligence and marketing solutions with data mining + analytics at
the core
FULLY INTEGRATED We employ a matrix organization of marketers,
analytics design experts, statisticians, researchers and creatives
MEASURED SUCCESS Levelwing has experienced 10 consecutive
years of growth with industry leading client satisfaction results

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SOME OF OUR PARTNERS
Some of the most innovative and strategic minds in the industry - Novartis
Some of the most sophisticated things I’ve seen being done with analytics and ROI measurement - Adobe