One of the many experts who appeared on stage during Used Car Week 2019 quipped about how the ride-sharing vehicle taken from the airport to the Red Rock Resort in Las Vegas could have used some “TLC,” likely stemming from its extensive use while in service.
The anecdote provided a vivid example of what Preferred Warranties Inc. (PWI) is trying to accomplish with its latest offering.
The business unit of KAR Global recently announced it has added ride-share coverage to its vehicle service contract offerings. These new ride-share options can support consumers participating in the burgeoning mobility market.
The additional offering and other enhancements to plan coverage and terms align with the introduction of a new underwriter for PWI — Assurant. Rated an “A” by AM Best Ratings, officials explained the Assurant partnership brings expertise and experience as one of the most respected and successful underwriters in the business.
“Expanding into the mobility space is a strategic priority for KAR Global, and PWI’s new ride-share coverage helps solidify our investment in this growing market space,”, of PWI president Edmund Field said in a news release.
“Now backed by Assurant, our enhanced protection plans give dealers more reasons to choose PWI for vehicle service contracts that provide confidence and peace of mind to consumers and a critical revenue stream to dealers,” Field continued.
The ride-share coverage is available on all products except preferred truck or powersports. PWI said it has added various term and coverage enhancements to its Plus Plan, Premier Plan, Preferred Truck Plan and Base Plan vehicle service contracts.
“The ride-sharing economy relies heavily on well-maintained vehicles and drivers who have the resources they need to keep their cars on the roads,” said Rich Howse, senior vice president of mobility solutions for KAR Global.
“We are making investments across the enterprise at KAR Global to support the changing nature of car ownership and use — creating the tools and solutions for the evolving mobility landscape,” Howse continued.
The company added that the PWI sales team is providing dealers with new contracts and marketing materials, as well as training on the expanded plan offerings to assist in helping consumers choose the right plan for their needs.
“We are committed to listening to customer feedback and implementing improvements to services and products for both dealers and consumers,” Field said. “We give careful consideration to direct feedback, and many of these suggestions are reflected in PWI’s new enhancements.”
Established in 1992, PWI offers extended service contracts to more than 3,000 independent dealers. With a full menu of service contracts and extensive coverage levels, PWI products look drive high levels of confidence, value and revenue for partner dealers. To supplement product offerings, PWI provides service and training to assist dealers with selling these products, which in turn can creates value and enhanced satisfaction for their customers.
For more information, visit www.warrantys.com.
Perhaps for about the same amount as the fee you might have incurred using the ride-sharing service during your most recent business trip, you, too, can secure a public share offered by Lyft.
In hopes of generating more than $2 billion, Lyft on Thursday announced the pricing of its initial public offering of its Class A common stock at a price of $72 per share. Lyft said it is offering 32,500,000 shares of its Class A common stock, plus up to an additional 4,875,000 shares that the underwriters have the option to purchase.
Lyft indicated the shares were expected to begin trading on the Nasdaq Global Select Market on Friday under the ticker symbol “LYFT,” and the offering is expected to close on Tuesday, subject to customary closing conditions.
“The principal purposes of this offering are to increase our capitalization and financial flexibility, create a public market for our Class A common stock and enable access to the public equity markets for us and our stockholders,” Lyft said in its IPO filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
“We intend to use the net proceeds from this offering for general corporate purposes, including working capital, operating expenses and capital expenditures,” the company continued. “We also intend to use a portion of the net proceeds to satisfy our anticipated tax withholding and remittance obligations related to the settlement of certain of our outstanding restricted stock units, or RSUs.
“Additionally, we may use a portion of the net proceeds to acquire or invest in businesses, products, services or technologies,” Lyft went on to say.
Lyft reported in the SEC filing that its revenue was $343.3 million, $1.1 billion and $2.2 billion in 2016, 2017 and 2018, respectively, representing year-over-year growth of 209 percent from 2016 to 2017 and 103 percent from 2017 to 2018.
Lyft indicated that it generated bookings of $1.9 billion, $4.6 billion and $8.1 billion in 2016, 2017 and 2018, respectively, marking year-over-year growth of 141 percent from 2016 to 2017 and 76 percent from 2017 to 2018.
However, Lyft disclosed that its net loss was $682.8 million, $688.3 million and $911.3 million in 2016, 2017 and 2018, respectively.
To complete the IPO, Lyft noted J.P. Morgan Securities, Credit Suisse Securities (USA), Jefferies, UBS Securities, Stifel, Nicolaus & Co., RBC Capital Markets and KeyBanc Capital Markets are acting as book-running managers.
Baby Boomers in their teens and 20s defined American car culture.
What about Gen Z? Various reports have listed different ages for that group, but those in Gen Z, typically born around the mid-1990s to the mid-2000s, will ultimately become synonymous with mobility culture.
A report from Allison+Partners suggests that evolving definitions of transportation, in addition to new mobility services, have resulted in a new culture: the mobility culture.
One finding of the report is that for those in Gen Z, owning a vehicle is less important than it was for previous generations. For Gen Z, cars are more like appliances than they were for any other generation. Fifty-six percent of Gen Z respondents say a car is simply a means of transportation to them.
One reason for that: Technology and transportation have become synonymous. The autonomous technologies trend comes largely from Gen Z’s high trust level with technology. Sixty percent believe they will use autonomous vehicles by 2029.
How should marketers who target this generation adapt to the rise of the mobility culture? Allison+Partners, which compiled the report in January using data from an online survey of 1,035 people in the United States above age 16, says a revamped approach is necessary to gain consumer loyalty and advocacy.
Marketers must reinforce how technology enhances the experience. With consumers conditioned to expect technology innovation at a faster rate than the traditional new vehicle introduction timeline, marketers should stress how technology features enhance the ride experience, contribute to vehicle safety and help bring a future in which transportation options come together.
Those marketers will also have to understand the shift from “me” to “we” and communicate the benefits of a mobility option to communities of people such as in a specific city, rather than just to individual drivers. Marketers will also have to understand which automotive technological advancements excite this group and address concerns about the future of mobility.
Also, marketers must consider new methods to introduce mobility options. Rather than traditional auto shows, marketers must now plan for more “values-based, communal and experiential” introductions to help those consumers experience brand value in a real and authentic way.
Another key finding of the report is that although cars remain key to today’s transportation, a change is taking place in how they are used. About 70 percent of licensed Americans drive their vehicles daily, but 38 percent of those without a driver’s license say they have no need for one.
Among those in Gen Z, however, nearly 70 percent do not have their driver’s license. Of that 70 percent, 30 percent do not intend or want to get one.
“As consumer relationships with cars evolve, automotive and transportation industry marketers must change how they engage with younger audiences, especially Gen Z,” Lisa Rosenberg, co-chair of Allison+Partners’ consumer marketing practice, said in a news release.
“Being headquartered in San Francisco with deep roots in technology, Allison+Partners has been at the forefront of cultural movements since our inception," Rosenberg continued. "We believe that brands that embrace this cultural shift and provide opportunities for consumers to be active participants are the ones that will win with a generation whose favorite currency is social.”
Allison+Partners senior vice president and automotive specialty group lead Marcus Gamo added that with the advent of new technology and mobility solutions, the car itself will change dramatically, but its role in our lives and in culture will also evolve.
“Our automotive practice was born out of an authentic passion for disruptive brands that are redefining mobility, with a deep understanding that the most important attributes of transportation for consumers are trust and loyalty,” Gamo said.
Dealers who want to get involved with individuals looking to participate in the ride-sharing economy have another opportunity by leveraging their idle inventory.
On Wednesday, DriveItAway announced it is partnering with MyDealerOnline to give ride-share drivers what the companies called “unprecedented choice” in selecting a temporary vehicle to drive, giving them access to hundreds of vehicles in current inventory as well as wholesale auction vehicles in many locations available through participating dealers.
With the goal of being the most dealer and driver friendly national car-sharing service for current and prospective Lyft and Uber drivers, DriveItAway said in a news release that it now has more than 1,000 vehicles available and offered on its driver app in each of two pilot regions — Philadelphia and Miami. Combined with its free credit repair and remediation program, DriveItAway insisted it is the only platform of its kind to offer a clear “path to ownership” to all of its ride-share drivers.
DriveItAway is piloting this new service with MyDealerOnline in the Philadelphia area with Empire Motors Auto Sales, and in the Miami area with AutoTrust USA.
Potential ride-share drivers looking for a vehicle that they might want to drive or rent-to-own simply has to download the app where both immediately available vehicles and those units that would be available “upon request” are displayed.
For many dealers, all or part of the car-sharing rental payments can be used toward the down payment for the purchase of the ride-share drivers chosen “dream car.”
“In the past, the ‘on demand’ employment that Lyft and Uber provide was only available to those who have an appropriate vehicle with which to drive,” DriveItAway chief executive officer John Possumato said. “Our mission at DriveItAway is to provide temporary vehicles to those who want to drive but don’t have a vehicle, by tapping into a car dealer’s inventory, but uniquely, offering a ‘path to ownership,’ as there is no getting around the fact that, longer term, it is much more economical for a ride-share driver to own their own vehicle.
“A few weeks ago, we made the industry first move of offering free credit repair for all drivers on our platform, and now we have gone one step further and have broadened vehicle selection beyond any competitive offerings as now dealers can add both sitting inventory to a driver’s selection on the app,” he continued.
“The vast inventory currently available at wholesale ‘dealer only’ auctions in the area, through cooperating dealers, so that DriveItAway alone offers our drivers true transparency to hundreds, even thousands of vehicles to choose from, available for a rent to own type purchase.” Possumato went on to say
MyDealerOnline creator Yury Kaganov also described what the partnership with DriveItAway means for his firm.
“I originally created MyDealerOnline to create an easy, transparent way car dealers could display to the public vehicles that were listed at wholesale remarketing channels, as means by which they could offer this ‘virtual’ inventory for sale and attract more buyers,” Kaganov said. “Now I think integrating it into the DriveItAway dealer focused car sharing app, for dealers who want to attract even more customers and to offer these vehicles to ride-share drivers on a rent to own basis is a perfect new age additional feature, giving ride-share driver’s maximum choice in selecting their temporary, then purchased vehicle.
“Combining the ‘virtual’ dealer supplied vehicles with ride-share, on-demand employment and credit repair through DriveItAway give unprecedented choice and opportunity to this new market,” Kaganov went on to say.
For more information, visit www.driveitaway.com/rto/.
