Driving down the road. Watching television commercials. Reading the newspaper. Checking the mail. Surfing the Web. Consumers are inundated by advertisements and marketing campaigns from every imaginable angle by a seemingly innumerable and constantly growing number of companies.
While it may seem simpler to take a “carpet bombing” or blanket approach for your advertisement efforts, you can save yourself a lot of money and your customers a lot of grief if you target your advertisements for when they are not only more likely to read them, but also when they need them. So let’s focus on the medium most invested in by franchised dealerships in 2014: the Internet.
According to the NADA Data 2014 report issued by the National Automobile Dealers Association, the total dealership advertising expenditure for the more than 16,000 franchised dealers in the United States bordered on roughly $8 billion last year.
Franchised dealers invested, on average, 26.3 percent of their total advertising funds into the online market, more than any other area of advertisement. Other areas of advertising expenditure, according to NADA, include television (23.1 percent), radio (15.8 percent), newspaper (14.9 percent), direct mail (10.7 percent) and other mediums (9.2 percent).
And this doesn’t take into account the numerous independent dealers.
So not only is the playground huge, but there are also a ton of players involved. Much like has been the case for advertising in the past, the location of an advertisement is just as important as the quality of its message.
In the past, when you thought about advertising, you had to plan where it was physically printed. Billboards. Newspapers. Magazines. Then came TV spots and, now, the freshest medium is online.
What Are Customers Using to Shop?
According to Autotrader’s Car Buyer of the Future Study presented in New York in March, as technology changes, customers are changing, and what they’re using to research and shop for vehicles continues to move away from more traditional mediums, like print and radio, toward the web.
One of the findings of the study fleshes out a key statistic: 42 percent of new and used shoppers are now using multiple devices, a combination of items such as their desktops, laptops, tablets and cell phones. This is a trend that has increased from 23 percent of shoppers in 2013 and 32 percent of shoppers in 2014. Autotrader predicts this multi-device usage will be as high as 80 percent by 2020.
Among multi-device users, those that use their mobile devices use them 64 percent of the time, further enforcing that the ways dealers connect with customers need to be compatible with multiple devices, especially mobile phones.
“While there is good work going on right now to adapt decades-old sales processes, consumers are telling us that we as an industry are not moving fast enough,” said Jared Rowe, Autotrader’s president. “By recognizing — and embracing — the need for change, we have a tremendous opportunity to surprise and delight our consumers.”
Check back with Auto Remarketing tomorrow for Part 2 of the series, where we will delve further into what sources consumers find the most influential.
Dealer website and digital marketing provider DealerOn officially joined the Mitsubishi Diamond Digital Solutions (DDS) website program, becoming the fourth website provider in the program connected with Mitsubishi Motors North America.
Through DealerOn’s participation in the DDS program, officials indicated the company automatically can deliver Mitsubishi dealers integrated OEM incentives and automated corporate image and digital asset updates on their websites.
As a result, DealerOn’s Mitsubishi dealers can have quicker content updates, easier site maintenance and a coherent integration with Mitsubishicars.com regardless of the consumer’s device — desktop, laptop, tablet or phone.
Additionally, Mitsubishi dealers who enroll with DealerOn are eligible to have their website reimbursed at 75 percent of the cost.
Furthermore, another of DealerOn’s advantages is that the company can provide a fully responsive website platform, Google’s preferred technology for search engine optimization and user experience.
“We are extremely excited to begin our partnership with Mitsubishi Motors North America," said Ali Amirrezvani, DealerOn’s chief executive officer and president.
“We have been working with Mitsubishi Motors dealers for years, helping them dramatically increase their website leads and improve their results,” Amirrezvani continued. “Now we will be able to provide them a more integrated and nimble website platform, at a more attractive price, to further improve their marketing ROI.”
DealerOn, Inc. is a premier website and digital marketing company serving the retail automotive industry. In the last 12 months DealerOn’s websites have won virtually every meaningful industry award including: Driving Sales Top-Rated Website, Digital Dealer’s Overall Website Excellence Award, AWA’s Pinnacle Award, and Dealer Marketing Magazine’s Technology Award for Website Providers.
DealerOn looks to be known to the industry for its Lead Guarantee, based on its Digital Marketing Dashboard. Since creating this process in 2009, DealerOn has documented an average increase of more than 200 percent in website lead volume for dealer clients.
To learn more about DealerOn’s Lead Guarantee, visit this website.
A new global survey from Accenture of 10,000 consumers found that 80 percent of drivers in the market for a new vehicle are using some form of digital technology to research before purchasing, while almost two-thirds (62 percent) are beginning the car-buying process online before entering a store.
Another sign the car purchase process is headed for the Web? The survey also showed that 75 percent of drivers polled would consider working through the entire car-buying process online.
“The impact of the digital customer is becoming pervasive, disrupting the traditional car-buying experience and the competitive landscape,” said Christina Raab, global managing director for digital consumer services in Accenture’s Automotive practice. “This is clearly supported by the fact that many would consider conducting the entire car-buying process online.
“In order to grow business in this environment, OEMs and dealers will need to pursue an aggressive digital strategy online, in the showroom and in aftersales, while creating a seamless, integrated experience to accommodate all customer needs.”
Taking a look at the U.S. survey results, in particular, which accounted for 10 percent of the drivers surveyed, Auto Remarketing will be dissecting the results over the next week to pick out some of the most compelling material — such as what are the most influential factors on shoppers’ decisions when buying a car.
More and more, these factors are increasingly found on the Web. For example, 30 percent of respondents cited social media as the most influential factor, such as Facebook and Twitter/customer feedback. For dealer websites, that number jumps to 32 percent. Manufacturer websites also proved important, with 34 percent of U.S. respondents citing this medium as the most influential factor in their buying decision.
It is apparent that more and more consumers are turning to the Web for their car-buying needs, but the next question is: how do we make the process easier for them online?
When asked what would make the process of researching for a new car via online channels easier, 60 percent of U.S. respondents said having information tailored to their needs would be most helpful. And with the ability to target specific demographics through advertising and email marketing, this is becoming easier and easier to deliver.
The most important factor, however, was comparison shopping sites — 69 percent of respondents said these tools would make car shopping online easier. Many third-party sites can serve this purpose, so perhaps making sure to have inventory on multiple third-party listing sites would prove helpful to dealers.
Another 59 percent of respondents said virtual demos of new-car models prove helpful, while 36 percent calls for augmented reality to instantly access information about the car.
The last two factors mentioned focus on interaction on manufacturer and dealer websites. According to the survey, 32 percent of respondents said they wanted a virtual assistant available to give expert advice, while another 27 percent prefer online chat with dealers.
Research for the study was conducted by Coleman Parkes on behalf of Accenture, and owners were surveyed in eight countries: Brazil, China, France, Germany, India, Italy, Japan and the United States.
Stay tuned to Auto Remarketing Today for more statistics and insight from the new Accenture study.
VinSolutions launched a new equity mining tool for dealers on Tuesday, which aims to capitalize on the growing importance of customer data.
Target, the new tool in the VinConnect customer relationship management (CRM) solution, works to allow dealers to mine their customer databases in an effort to find more sales opportunities and convert them, using targeted, data-driven marketing and sales communications.
"Dealers are missing the opportunity to use the dynamic data that currently lives in their CRM and website systems to more effectively market and sell to shoppers and customers," said James Maynard, vice president of product development for VinSolutions. "This tool provides an easy way for dealers to search and segment their customer data, along with integrated task management and marketing tools, giving them complete control over customer engagement."
Target enables dealers to search through their customer and prospect databases based on factors such as equity, APR, lease terms, payment and remaining terms, and more.
This allows dealers to send more targeted, customized marketing communications to customers who are actually in the market to purchase.
Sean Stapleton, vice president of sales and marketing for VinSolutions, said, "VinConnect CRM fully integrates with a dealer's VinConnect website and marketing modules, which means our system captures and knows more about each customer.
"Using this deep customer insight, dealers can become successful in both finding ready opportunities and creating impactful, targeted marketing campaigns. Now, dealers are able to communicate with the right customer at the right time with the right message via the right channel — the critical key to building lasting customer relationships."
A few handfuls of auction awards and other industry honors were recognized Wednesday with annual top honors from consignors, as the first round of auction award announcements began circulating.
Plus, at the CAR Conference in Las Vegas, the International Automotive Remarketers Alliance awarded its IARA Circle of Excellence award to Tom Adams, president of the Auction Insurance Agency.
More auction award announcements are to come Thursday, but below is a recap of the awards so far:
Ally Financial
Ally Financial’s SmartLane Auction of the Year award winner was ABC St. Louis, which has now won this award three years in row.
“ABC St. Louis continues to be a top performing auction with a commitment to service excellence and we are proud of the success they’ve achieved," said Robert Stahl, executive vice president of remarketing for Ally. “We're pleased to do business with their outstanding team and look forward to future success.”
Winning the SmartAuction Mid-Stream Auto Auction of the Year award for the third straight year was Flint Auto Auction in Flint, Mich.
“Flint Auto Auction is well deserving of this award. They have consistently done an outstanding job leveraging the SmartAuction platform and providing the service excellence that our buyers and consignors have come to expect,” said Steve Kapusta, vice president of dealership online services at Ally. “We value their commitment and dedication and look forward to another great year in 2015.”
SmartAuction’s Year-Over-Year Sales Growth award went to North Shore Auto Auction in New York. Carolina Auto Auction in South Carolina was the Top New Auction winner.
ARI Honors Auctions
ARI announced Wednesday the winners of 2014 ARI Auction of the Year Award, recognizing auctions in each of its seven regions. The winners for 2014 include:
Region 1 – State Line Auto Auction (Waverly, N.Y.)
Region 2 – Corry Auto Dealers Exchange (Corry, Pa.)
Region 3 – ABC Birmingham (Birmingham, Ala.)
Region 4 – Morton Auto Auction (Morton, Ill.)
Region 5 – Louisiana’s 1st Choice A/A (Hammond, La.)
Region 6 – Brasher’s Northwest A/A (Eugene, Ore.)
Region 7 – Missouri Auto Auction (Columbia, Mo.)
“In addition to being among the top performing auctions in their respective region, each of the winners demonstrates a commitment to the industry-leading customer service that our clients have come to expect from ARI and our strategic partners,” said Brian Garner, ARI manager of vehicle remarketing. “All of the honorees strive to provide a superior level of service to both buyers and sellers alike, helping to create the ideal environment for maximizing used vehicle returns on behalf of our clients.”
ARI will honor the winners during a banquet at its headquarters later this year.
FCA US
Taking home the 2014 Auction of the Year honors from Fiat Chrysler Automobiles US was Manheim Orlando.
“In addition to being our top volume auction, Manheim Orlando demonstrated excellence in the areas of customer satisfaction and operational efficiency. We are pleased to present this award to the entire team and look forward to another outstanding year in 2015,” FCA US noted.
Consumer Portfolio Services
Consumer Portfolio Services announced its auction winners Wednesday afternoon. They are as follows:
Heavy Hammer Award (Best Retention): Manheim California
Top Gun Award (Auction of the Year): North Bay Auto Auction
CPS Small Market Top Gun Award (Auction of the Year for a CPS small volume sale): ADESA Seattle
Operational Excellence Award: ABC Toledo
Highest Online Sales Percentage: Manheim Harrisonburg
Santander Consumer USA
Santander Consumer USA revealed its annual awards during a ceremony Tuesday night. A recap is below:
SCUSA Auction Manager of the Year: RJ Contich and Jason Keese
Distinguished Auction Partner: Manheim Arena
Best Auction Operations: Manheim Louisville
Best E-Commerce Auction: ADESA Cincinnati-Dayton
2014 Santander Auction of the Year: ADESA Phoenix
Regional Auction Awards
Northeast: ADESA Concord
Southeast: ABC Birmingham
West: ADESA Phoenix
Midwest: Manheim Louisville
Central: Manheim San Antonio
You’ve never seen a closer like my mom, Mary.
I’m telling you — if you haven’t been to her house for dinner, and her fabulous red sauce, well … there’s a seat waiting for you next Sunday night.
Hosting dinner is her bread and butter (quite literally) — she doesn’t take no for an answer, and once you’re there, you’re there every Sunday after that. Come by and see it for yourself; every time the doorbell rings, she’s there to greet her guest with a big hearty, “Welcome back!”
You see, she doesn’t do one-time dinner invites. She plays the long game. And she’s good at it … she learns what her guests like, she prepares for them specifically, and she makes sure their favorites are ready to serve when they arrive.
She knows not to call her regulars with reminders, because at this point, they tell her when they’re coming over. And when she sends them home at the end of the evening, with a doggie bag in hand, they know exactly when they’ll be back at her table and what will be served.
So, now you know how I learned to sell so well — and why I have to go to the gym every Monday, but that’s another matter. I grew up in a household where connections matter. Where the No. 1 rule was that everyone must feel welcome in our home. And where connections were never made in passing … they were made to last.
So I ask you, when you greet customers in your showroom, are you saying welcome, or welcome back?
The theory of "Catch and Keep" is really that simple. It’s also powerful in its results, proven by data and just logical. Todays’ markets are complex … shoppers are even more so.
Welcoming new customers every day creates more work, more effort and less payoff. I look at Catch and Keep as a core customer strategy that’s built on four solid pillars, and I’m going to take you through all of them in the next few articles. Today, though, we start with Pillar 1: You must know your customer.
Look, when I ask dealers if they’d rather have customers for life than customers for a day, they always say yes. No one argues with that logic. But many of them don’t know how to go about it.
Let’s think of it this way: How does my mom know her dinner guests? It’s simple. She listens. She watches. And most of all, she never, ever assumes everyone at the table has the same taste. Let me tell you about a dealer who made that assumption, and suffered the consequences.
About five years ago, I was sitting on the couch with my wife, watching TV. It was less than a week until Christmas. And suddenly there it was: a beautiful new luxury car ad with a beautiful young actress behind the wheel.
Perhaps you know which one I’m talking about — if you don’t, let’s just say it hit my wife like a lightning bolt. Classic case of successful targeted advertising. My wife half-jumped off the couch telling me she had to have that car, and she had to have it now, with all the typical holiday fanfare.
So what did I do? I pulled every string I could pull and got her the car, just in time for Christmas. Big win? Not so much.
Here’s what happened: When I signed the papers, the dealer simply put my info into the customer record, even though I stressed that the car was a gift. Who got all the service calls after that? Me.
Who got the coupons, the customer surveys, all the post-sale communication? Me again. Who never heard from her dealership again, never felt important or understood or welcomed back? My wife, the rightful owner of the car. The one who drove it and loved it and should’ve been a significant source of repeat business.
Well, as I’m sure you can imagine, that new car smell faded pretty darn fast. She got rid of the car. She bought a competitor’s model, and now she tells everyone she knows about that story (and apparently, so do I!)
What’s the point here? The point is that keeping your customers isn’t just a way to gain business. If you don’t try to keep your customers … if you don’t learn their needs, desires and preferences … if you don’t change your tactics, communication methods and follow-up strategy accordingly … you will lose business.
So how do you avoid mis-targeting your customers? You get to know them. You make sure your whole dealership knows them. And you build a relationship based on what you know. Their gender, ethnicity and income bracket. Their equity standing … who wants to be targeted with an ad for a new car when they’re three payments into a four-year plan? Their service record. And their preferred methods of communication. (That’s what Pillar 2 is all about!)
To do it right, you need the right technology foundation. You need the right mindset — focus on the lifecycle, not on the moment. And you need the right kind of change, from top to bottom. From the way to interact with customers in person to the way you interact with them online. You, your sales force, your service team and everyone in between.
This is a simple concept, no question. But it’s difficult for dealers to act on it without understanding and embracing a true Catch and Keep customer strategy. This is just the appetizer. Next time, I’ll walk you through Pillar 2: How to get the right message to the right customer at the right time through the right channel. And in the meantime, I hope to see you at the dinner table.
Sean Stapleton is VP of sales and marketing for VinSolutions.
Commerce search advertising company HookLogic announced this month the release of Mobile2Show, a mobile targeting solution aimed at “showroomers,” or people who will visit multiple dealerships in the same day while car shopping.
The program uses targeted advertisements to provide incentivized offers to mobile shoppers while they are physically located at a specified geographic location, generally a competitor’s dealership, as an attempt to sway them to make their next stop their last stop at HookLogic client’s dealership.
“Mobile usage has become an important part of the car buying process,” said David Metter, HookLogic’s president of automotive. “Over 60 percent of customers visiting an auto dealer’s lot will use their smartphones to simultaneously shop the competition. And two thirds of those will leave that dealership and visit another store within a day. This is called showrooming. Now, more than ever, dealers need a mobile strategy.”
Once a call to action is clicked via a mobile device on a dealer’s mobile site or a regional site, an incentive is delivered by email or text message to the customer which will connect them to the advertising dealership and provide driving directions or other contact information.
The company says it has over 19,000 franchised dealerships precisely mapped out, making the product’s use as easy as selecting which dealers are your competitors to begin the conquests.
“Our dealers and OEM partners can protect their own backyard, conquest around competitor’s dealerships, and even retarget opportunities,” Metter added.
For more information on HookLogic’s offerings, visit its website.
Dealers now have an improved way of connecting with potential buyers in their market, as NADAguides has enhanced its Car Deals, Incentives and Rebates online research tool.
The solution now can provide consumers with a clear understanding of local car deals and identifying the deepest discounts available that very day in their neighborhood and surrounding areas. The tool uses the consumer’s ZIP code to locate regional and national vehicle incentives available within driving distance, determines the best deals available and provides a listing of dealerships.
If potential buyers can’t find what they want in the immediate area, dealers from farther way could reap the benefits.
NADAguides now can provide the ability to search regionally for the best incentives among 12 specific vehicle categories/types including coupe, sedan, truck, SUV, van, wagon, sport, hybrid, luxury, convertible, crossover or electric.
NADAguides director of product development Troy Snyder explained that providing consumers with all promotions across a vehicle category can allow them to compare different manufacturer incentives on similar vehicles, which may become a deciding factor in the vehicle they choose.
Furthermore, for the consumer with more specific search criteria, Snyder mentioned regional and national promotions can be researched by year, make and model.
Snyder added that the most up-to-date information on the market is available because NADAguides updates these details on a nightly basis.
“Consumers have been utilizing our Car Deals, Incentives and Rebates research tool to help them find the best national deals for quite some time now,” Snyder said. “The regional enhancement our team has made to this tool allows users to find the deepest local incentives, which often differ from those on the national level.
“Additionally, the ability to search by vehicle category is extremely helpful for those that are still trying to narrow their consideration set,” he continued. “A cash rebate, low percentage financing or other incentive may be the deciding factor for a consumer choosing between multiple car brands and models.”
The Car Deals, Incentives and Rebates research tool can be found in the NADAguides Research Center.
American Honda Motor Co. broke out its checkbook on Thursday and agreed to pay out a total of $70 million in penalties from federal regulators.
The automaker and the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration announced that the OEM entered into an agreement to resolve the government's inquiry into Honda's early warning reporting as required by the Transportation Recall Enhancement, Accountability and Documentation (TREAD) Act.
As part of the consent order, Honda said it will pay a $70 million civil penalty and continue to implement a series of corrective measures among other requirements.
"We have resolved this matter and will move forward to build on the important actions Honda has already taken to address our past shortcomings in early warning reporting," said Rick Schostek, executive vice president of Honda North America. "We continue to fully cooperate with NHTSA to achieve greater transparency and to further enhance our reporting practices."
In order to ensure full compliance with its early warning reporting obligations, Honda insisted it has already started taking steps to correct the errors responsible for the violations.
The automaker is in the process of initiating new training regimens, changing internal reporting policy, making staffing and organizational changes, and enhancing oversight of its early warning reporting process.
The settlement agreement follows Honda’s November response to a special order issued by NHTSA early that month. That order was prompted by Honda’s disclosure to NHTSA of preliminary findings from a third-party audit Honda commissioned in September in response to inadequately addressed discrepancies in the company's early warning reporting.
In responding to the special order, as previously disclosed, Honda identified under-reporting of written claims or notices of injuries or deaths over the past decade due to errors related to data entry, computer coding, regulatory interpretation, and other errors in warranty and property damage claims reporting.
"Honda and all of the automakers have a safety responsibility they must live up to — no excuses,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx.
“Last year alone, we issued more fines than in NHTSA's entire history. These fines reflect the tough stance we will take against those who violate the law and fail to do their part in the mission to keep Americans safe on the road,” Foxx continued.
NHTSA’s investigation into Honda’s safety reporting found that the automaker failed to submit early warning reports (EWR reports) identifying potential or actual safety issues.
Officials indicated the first civil penalty is a result of Honda’s failure to report 1,729 death and injury claims to NHTSA between 2003 and 2014. They added the second civil penalty is due to the manufacturer's failure to report certain warranty claims and claims under customer satisfaction campaigns throughout the same time period.
NHTSA noted additional details are available in the audit report prepared for Honda by Bowman and Brooke and in Honda's Response to NHTSA’s Special Order addressing the violations.
Federal law requires manufacturers to submit comprehensive EWR reports of potential safety concerns to the NHTSA. These quarterly reports include:
— Production information
— Incidents involving a death or injury
— Aggregate data on property damage claims
— Consumer complaints
— Warranty claims
— Field reports and copies of field reports involving specified vehicle components, a fire, or a rollover.
NHTSA administrator Mark Rosekind explained the data are then used to investigate whether safety defects or defect trends exist and warrant further action, including possible recalls.
“Today’s announcement sends a very clear message to the entire industry that manufacturers have responsibility for the complete and timely reporting of this critical safety information,” Rosekind said.
“The actions we are requiring will push Honda to significantly raise the bar on the effectiveness of its EWR reporting program. Our ongoing oversight will ensure compliance and determine if there is cause for additional actions,” he went on to say.
In addition to civil penalties, Honda has been ordered to comply with NHTSA oversight requirements under a consent order. It requires that Honda develop written procedures for compliance with EWR requirements, train appropriate personnel on at least an annual basis, and complete two third-party audits of the automaker's compliance with its reporting obligations.
The consent order also requires Honda to provide NHTSA's Early Warning Division with information regarding the 1,729 unreported death and injury incidents and the warranty claims, so that the agency can analyze these incidents for potential safety concerns and take appropriate action to protect America's driving public.
While 2014 was a record year for civil penalties, NHTSA acknowledged the fines are limited by a Congressionally-established $35-million cap, the amount Honda will pay for each of the two series of violations.
The White House’s four-year reauthorization bill — the GROW AMERICA Act — proposes to increase the limit to $300 million. President Obama’s proposal also seeks additional authority to aid NHTSA in its efforts to force recalls.
In 2014 alone, NHTSA issued more than $126 million in civil penalties, exceeding the total amount collected by the agency during its 43-year history. Those penalties included:
— Honda: $70 million for failing to both submit early warning reports and warranty claims.
— Gwinnett Place Nissan: $110,000 for failing to perform recall remedy in new motor vehicles prior to sale and delivery.
— Ferrari S.p.A. and Ferrari North America: $3.5 million for failing to submit early warning reports.
— Chapman Chevrolet: $50,000 for failing to perform recall remedy in new vehicles prior to sale and delivery.
— Hyundai Motor America: $17.35 million for the failure to issue a recall in a timely manner.
— General Motors: $35 million for the failure to issue a recall in a timely manner.
— General Motors: $441,000 for failing to fully respond to special order by due date.
— Prevost, a division of Volvo Group Canada; Volvo Industrial de Mexico S.A. de C.V.; and Prevost Car (U.S.): $250,000, the second of six annual installments of a total of $1.5 million in civil penalties for untimely recalls and untimely submission of early warning reports, and technical service bulletins (TSBs).
— Southern Honda Powersports and Big Red Powersports: $25,000, the second of five annual installments of a total of $125,000 in civil penalties, for the sale of unrepaired, recalled vehicles.
VehicleXchange entered into an agreement with Experian Automotive on Tuesday. The companies said the arrangement allows VehicleXchange to incorporate Experian data into its new suite of auto loan equity tools, as well as develop a new generation of services that will range from service drive and data mining to dynamic appraisal and digital auto retailing.
“VehicleXchange is not just an equity tool, but rather a powerful, intelligent marketing platform,” VehicleXchange founder Bruce Thompson said. “It was imperative that we put an agreement in place with Experian because its industry-leading data and analytics are the foundation we will leverage to deliver groundbreaking new tools to the market.”
Thompson explained the new tool can help dealers better evaluate a vehicle’s value or equity. Currently, he said dealers only have the ability to estimate a vehicle’s equity if the consumer purchased that vehicle at the dealership.
“Statistics show that in 53 percent to 55 percent of all cases that did not happen, making it difficult for them to determine the equity position of every vehicle that enters their service centers,” he said.
As part of the collaboration, the newly developed tools can assist users access a customer’s name and address, which will yield their current auto loan information, including the current payoff balance, as well as their credit score.
Given the customer’s current loan balance, VehicleXchange can estimate the vehicle’s equity regardless of where it was originally purchased, enabling them to offer the consumer a line of credit for a trade-in or new vehicle purchase.
More importantly, Thompson pointed out the process only generates a soft inquiry on a customer’s credit report, therefore not impacting their credit score.
“The new tool will potentially double the opportunities in every service drive because it delivers equity estimates on nearly 100 percent of the traffic. It also provides valuable data that benefits both dealer and customer,” Thompson said.
“If the dealer can improve the customer’s existing loan terms, and the customer can capitalize on their equity position to trade up to a new or better vehicle, it’s a win for both parties,” he went on to say.
VehicleXchange officially commenced its operations with 30 General Motors pilot stores on Oct. 2 and has aggressive plans to roll out the application immediately to all eligible dealers. And the relationship with Experian Automotive is expected to enhance the solution.
“We’re excited to be working with the VehicleXchange team,” said Kevin Henahan, senior vice president for Experian Automotive. “Understanding a vehicle’s current value is an important piece of information for automotive dealers and consumers.
“By helping to make these insights available, dealers will be able to uncover new pockets of opportunity and improve profitability, while consumers will be better prepared to make car-related decisions, such as refinancing or purchasing a new vehicle altogether,” Henahan added.
For more information on VehicleXchange, visit www.vxdealer.com or call (888) 978-1409.
