DETROIT\u2013 With dealerships unable to remain open in most areas and consumer behaviors changing drastically, car sales have drastically reduced over the past few months. According to Julie Mynster<\/a>, automotive executive director of POLK Audience Solutions<\/a> at IHS Markit, the future of buying cars is not in the lot, but online.<\/p>\n According to the National Association of Automotive Dealers, 80-90% of US car dealers will be transacting online by the end of the year, which is unprecedented.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve seen necessity drive the change over the past six weeks and moving forward where you had states restricting who could be buying vehicles online, lots of roadblocks in the way of advancing that industry to that e-commerce industry that we\u2019re living with today.\u201d<\/p>\n In a tight market for advertisers<\/a>, Mynster auto advertisers are pausing their spend and reevaluate their messaging. Brands that are using smart data to determine their messaging and continue spending based on these insights have been successful.<\/p>\n \u201cI think if we look at historical automotive trends, when we saw big recessions in the \u201870s, when we saw the recessions again in 2008,\u201d Mynster says. \u201cThe advertisers who have leaned in and spent more and found a compelling and compassionate message have come out as winners.\u201d<\/p>\n