It is no secret that generally dealers are finding that used car and van margins are under pressure, despite the market remaining relatively buoyant. How are they fighting this trend? Well, we are seeing more and more use online sales to turn around stock more rapidly.
Simply, by attempting to maximise this key area of innovation, dealers can create a 24 hour, nationwide sales channel, reaching customers who would otherwise be unavailable.
Recent research we have undertaken at iVendi, covering 12,500 transactions, showed that 35% of car sales could potentially happen entirely online in that they were sold without the need for any dealer contact - requiring no part exchange, being sold at the vehicle’s windscreen price and using the dealer’s online finance.
In fact, around 1 in 20 (5.6%) purchases in our sample were fundamentally completed entirely online already, in the sense that there was no e-mail, phone or physical contact with the dealer until the final step, when the car was collected or delivered. The customer followed a structured, online buying process.
Some people in our industry will tell you that there are no genuine online car sales happening in the UK. This is simply not true, as you can see from our statistics, which also suggest that many more car sales could happen online, if dealers provided the option.
What smarter operators are now starting to realise is that, at a time when margins are under pressure, an open-all-hours online showroom that allows the customer to take the sale through to completion is a valuable new channel that can help you to retain profitability.
The iVendi Platform provides a complete online motor finance solution for dealers, motor finance providers, car portals and manufacturers.
To find out more e-mail tellmemore@ivendi.com or call 0330 229 0028.