The retail automotive industry is one of the most competitive in the world. Customers have more choice, more buying power and sadly, less time, than ever before – which would explain the explosion of online car sales platforms and how individuals use them.
“Research has always been part of a high-value purchase process, such as a car, and the online world makes it much easier for customers to conduct price and stock comparisons,” says Jeff Osborne, head of Gumtree Automotive.
“That is also why research tells us that consumers will visit an independent sales platform and circumvent a manufacturer or dealer site – they want to compare different brands and alternatives, but also second hand and new vehicles, find out about accessories, and of course hunt for bargains.”
However, the problem with many of the sales platforms are that dealerships end up with very little control over their spending and even their ads. “The vast majority of these sites are monetised, and can be quite pricey, but they offer virtually no autonomy to dealerships,” says Osborne.
“Contracts are usually annual and fixed, which leaves no room for the natural ebbs and flows in the sales year and can lead to overspending or under-utilisation. They are also usually unable to do what most other retailers can do with ease – pull analytics from the site to find out which vehicles perform better in which area, which keywords elicit the best responses, and which inventory levels need to be adjusted and where.”
Osborne says that choosing a tool that more provides greater control and creativity goes a long way towards improving a dealership’s sales – and other fringe benefits. “Ideally, the control should lie with the dealership because it improves the experience for everyone involved,” says Osborne.
“Using an online sales platform should you enable you to add visual overlays, such as your logo, or promotional phrases (e.g. 20% off until Saturday!) to images, but also should grant you the ability to pull real-time analytics from the site – a snapshot of your inventory, leads, and responses.”
This will, Osborne says, grant you the ability to control stock levels for ordering or redistribution better, as well as improve efficiencies across the board.
“Ideally, opt for products that can actually demonstrate a return on investment and allow for adjustments – that way you can control your spend, your marketing efforts and your inventory in such a way that you aren’t only selling online, but also using it to manage offline efforts optimally.”
Gumtree has the largest inventory of vehicles for sale online and has recently launched the Gumtree Automotive Inventory Tool (GAIT). Osborne says that most dealerships have been extremely receptive to the idea, although it is an entirely new way of operating from the platform. “All in all, I think dealerships realise that a better online management system reaps huge rewards and ultimately ups their game,” he says.
“We expect this to have a significant, positive impact on the industry as a whole.”