Volkswagen

Digital vehicle marketplace boosts the Customer Experience and becomes a growth driver

Strengthening sales
Centrally integrating Autosuche into volkswagen.de increases the visibility of vehicle listings and strengthens sales.

Higher conversion rates
An intuitive search and optimised guidance lead customers straight to purchase and raise the conversion rate.

More qualified leads
Flexible modules drive lead generation and strengthen the dealer network with offers tailored to each location.

Trust-building user experience
A seamless online process builds trust and strengthens customer loyalty.

Volkswagen, one of the world’s leading automotive brands, initially ran its new and used car platform Autosuche as a standalone website, separate from the customer journey on volkswagen.de. Since 2013, DAYONE has integrated Autosuche directly into the manufacturer’s website, with UX/UI design, product strategy and ongoing PO support. The result: a seamless vehicle search that strengthens sales and becomes a growth driver for Volkswagen.

Client: Volkswagen · one of the world’s leading automotive brands
Industry: Automotive
Services: UX/UI Design · Product Strategy · PO Support & Sparring · Feature Development · Technical Integration · Continuous Optimisation
Result: Autosuche fully integrated into volkswagen.de, with online checkout, financing and leasing since 2025

Starting point

Autosuche began life as a standalone website, separate from volkswagen.de. This break in the customer journey made it harder for users to access available new and used cars directly on the manufacturer’s website.

Seamless customer experience for higher conversions

Entry modules such as Quick Search and a product slider make it easy for users to find suitable vehicles, filtered by model, price or location. They bring specific offers to volkswagen.de and can be flexibly adapted to dealer or model pages.

Digital vehicle marketplace: view of the "product slider" for vehicles. At the top, a navigation bar with five tabs for vehicle categories: "New cars", "Nearly new", "Direct leasing", "Employee vehicles", "Available to buy online". Below, clickable tiles arranged horizontally showing vehicle offers with price and specification details.

View of the quick vehicle search with filters for model, price or location and two buttons labelled "Show [number] results" and "Open detailed search".

Transparency for a clear purchase decision

On the vehicle detail page, users find all relevant information, clearly structured and easy to digest. Technical data, prices, dealer contacts and financing options are available at a glance. Users can also buy selected models directly online, for a seamless and flexible purchase process.

Detail page of a vehicle offer, here a "VW Touran Highline", with a large vehicle image, technical data, price and contact options.

Card view on the smartphone of the same vehicle with photo, price, key data and dealer information.

Long-standing partnership with strong PO support

Since 2013, DAYONE has partnered closely with Volkswagen, evolving Autosuche from a standalone vehicle marketplace into an integrated platform on volkswagen.de. Together, DAYONE and Volkswagen continuously optimise features, expand digital touchpoints and create a seamless vehicle purchase journey. With strong support from product management, DAYONE responds quickly to new requirements, implements measures in production and has made Autosuche the central digital sales channel.

Milestones from 2013 to 2025

Work on the Volkswagen Autosuche began in 2013 and has since been continuously adapted to new requirements and user needs. Since 2021, DAYONE has been integrating Autosuche step by step directly into volkswagen.de, with Quick Search and a product slider flexibly placed within page content. In 2025, DAYONE is expanding the online checkout beyond the pilot phase, adding financing and leasing directly within Autosuche.

Three development stages of the vehicle search side by side on tablet and smartphone: from a table view via an image-led version to the blue search form

2013 – Start of the VW car search

The ongoing development of the Volkswagen car search is a continuous process. Since 2013, the platform has been continuously optimised to adapt to new requirements and the needs of users.

Volkswagen vehicle search website with a car photo in the header and, below it, the search form with filters for model, fuel, price and location

2021 – Direct Integration on
volkswagen.de

Since 2021, car searches have not been conducted independently, but have been integrated step by step directly into volkswagen.co.uk. Quick search and product sliders can be flexibly placed to match the content on the website.

Vehicle detail page with an image gallery, model name, monthly instalment and purchase price, plus buttons for leasing, calling and reserving

2025 – Expansion of the online checkout

After the pilot phase, online sales were more closely integrated into the car search. With financing and leasing, the potential continues to grow.

Outcome

Autosuche is now integrated directly into volkswagen.de rather than running as a standalone website, with Quick Search and a product slider on the manufacturer’s site.

Since the 2025 expansion, selected models can be purchased directly online, including financing and leasing options within Autosuche.

DAYONE has supported Autosuche continuously since 2013 with UX/UI design, product strategy and PO support.

Success factors of collaboration

With the DIaaS® (Design Innovation as a Service) design and consultancy standard, DAYONE combines collaborative ways of working, strategic thinking and user‑centred design into a solution tailored to the requirements of Autosuche.

UX/UI Design

Development of an intuitive, seamless vehicle search for an optimised customer journey and better user-friendliness.

Product Strategy

Strategic consulting and continuous expansion and optimisation of digital sales opportunities, including financing, leasing, and online checkout.

PO Support & Sparring

Operational and strategic support for the product owner teams to efficiently manage and prioritise.

Feature Development

Conceptualisation and implementation of smart entry modules such as quick search and product sliders for targeted offer integration.

Technical Integration

Close collaboration with Volkswagen and the development team for the native integration of the car search feature into volkswagen.co.uk as a feature app.

Continuous optimisation

Continuous development since 2013, focusing on new market demands, user needs, and business goals.

Conversion optimisation for digital sales platforms Sales platform for an automotive manufacturer

Frequently asked questions

How can a standalone platform like Autosuche be integrated into an existing manufacturer website without breaking the customer journey?

Integration is carried out step by step via individual modules such as Quick Search and a product slider, which can be flexibly adapted to existing page content. This keeps volkswagen.de fully functional throughout the transition, instead of being replaced in a single big rebuild.

How do you keep a vehicle search evolving over the years instead of going stale after launch?

Through ongoing PO support and regular feature cycles that feed new requirements from the market and user behaviour straight into the product strategy. For Autosuche, this process has been running continuously since 2013, most recently with the expansion of financing, leasing and online checkout.

How do you design a vehicle search so that users don’t drop off from search through to purchase?

Quick search, product slider and the vehicle detail page are conceived as one continuous journey, not as isolated components. Filters for model, price or location take prospects straight to a detail page with price, financing and dealer contact, so they don’t have to switch between multiple systems.

What does PO Support & Sparring mean in practice in such a long-standing partnership?

DAYONE supports Volkswagen’s Product Owner team operationally and strategically with steering and prioritisation, so new requirements quickly move into production. This has underpinned the collaboration on the car search since 2013.

Last updated on 25 September 2026.