Consumers still value price and service, over a digital experience, said Karen Ideno, vice president of product and marketing at Toyota Financial Services.
“We don’t see customers saying, ‘I wish there were more direct lenders online.’ They are asking ‘Can I afford this? Am I going to get the quality of service I expect?’” Ideno told AFN.
Similar to every American captive, TFS does not offer an online direct lending platform, she said, in large part because third-party online platforms are coming into the process “at the expense of the dealers.”
Toyota aims to work alongside the dealers instead, Ideno added. Consumers can still obtain TFS financing through a number of online indirect marketplaces, and the company’s internal research suggests consumers will want both an online and in-store experience.
“Many smaller startups are working to disrupt the auto financing space through technology, identifying one piece of the value chain ripe for transformation — such as providing transparent pricing without having to step in a dealership,” she said, while larger OEMs are identifying ways to weave in digital solutions to their current business models.
Toyota’s integrated dealer network and financing arm is aiming to do both, Ideno said.
