B7. TEST
The user wants to try the product
Description
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Purchasing a car is a fine example of an expensive commitment that can result in great disappointment should the car not live up to the customer’s expectations. Therefore, customers are keen on trying out and experiencing as much as possible before they commit to the purchase. Most people would not consider buying a car if they are not able to take the car for a test drive as it all comes down to trying to avoid buying the pig in a poke - buying something you do not know enough about and risk becoming displeased.
Accommodating for this guideline will help customers in creating their own opinion about the product and find out if they like using it before they decide to purchase.
Guidelines
Allow visitors to test drive in real life
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The user study conducted in the thesis showed that many customers consider test driving the car a big part of the anticipatory excitement of a potential purchase. Trying out a product in real life is the greatest reassurance a visitor can get as they are not receiving someone else’s interpretation but can create their own - sitting in the car and driving it in real life is highly requested.
Offer mixed reality test drives
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One of the positive note, mixed reality drives can take place without an actual car being present as well as not being dependent on location. However, a virtual reality environment can also become an obstacle between the customer and the actual driving experience as it is, as the word reveals, only virtual and not necessarily representative of reality.
Let visitors see others’ test drives
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Viewing videos or reviews of other people’s test drives are also common ways to depict what driving a car will be like. One disadvantage is however that the experience is often very subjective to the person who created the video and may not present what the drive objectively is like.