Storefront is a dedicated space on gotrader.ca that provides Canadians a unique way to shop for new vehicles, spanning all stages of the car buying journey, from awareness right through to action. Available to automotive manufacturers with an established presence in the Canadian market, Storefront is targeted to OEMs poised to tap into the nation’s largest collective of new car shoppers. The offering provides a seamless new vehicle shopping experience, integrating the critical information and the tools that span every aspect of the buying journey, including the manufacturer’s brand story and heritage, new vehicle lineup, custom model pages, branded content as well as videos, and inventory matching technology, with the objective of providing even more exposure and sales opportunities for the OEM’s dealership network. Immersive augmented reality (AR) is also delivered to the Storefront experience through AutoTrader’s latest innovative technology, Pivot, which provides consumers with a 360-degree vehicle viewing experience, empowering car shoppers to explore vehicles from every angle with unparalleled clarity and interactive hot spots for static or video content.

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Dealers have experienced 36 per cent growth in leads from the marketplace and 80 per cent growth in website sales conversions

TORONTO, ON – November 26, 2020 – TRADER Corporation, Canada’s leading digital automotive solutions provider, is analyzing and reporting on valuable performance data collected from over 255 dealers currently benefiting from Digital Retailing on gotrader.ca, and sharing those findings with the Canadian dealer community.

gotrader.ca is one of the first marketplaces globally, and the first in Canada, to offer digital retailing functionality, which is powered by the Motoinsight MotoCommerce platform. The integration allows consumers to seamlessly build and complete transactions directly from gotrader.ca marketplace listings and dealer websites. Six months of performance data shows dealers using the MotoCommerce functionality on their dealership websites experienced an 80 per cent growth in lead-to-sale conversion.

Dealers utilizing the MotoCommerce software on their dealership website also have the ability to deploy the same functionality to their gotrader.ca marketplace listings, allowing them to provide nearly 10 million monthly marketplace shoppers with the ability to configure and complete transactions from a vehicle details page (VDP). Dealers with the ‘Buy Online’ feature activated on their VDPs have seen 12 per cent more views and 36 per cent more total leads than advertisers without the feature.

The incredible consumer response underscores growing demand among Canadians in conducting more of the car buying process digitally. A survey of gotrader.ca marketplace users, from April 2020, revealed 41 per cent are interested in purchasing a vehicle online, while 61 per cent would be interested in purchasing vehicle accessories online. Appetite for digital retail has also grown amid the pandemic more recently with 2 in 3 respondents expressing a desire to purchase a vehicle online since the start of COVID-19.

“Dealers using digital retailing have witnessed a significant increase in qualified traffic, enabling greater operational efficiencies through omni channel execution, and improvements to overall profitability and customer satisfaction,” says Matt Lawson, Vice-President, Dealer Software & OEM, TRADER Corporation. “We want to empower every dealer in Canada to reach the most qualified in-market shoppers and provide consumers with access to buy cars easily with a click of a button.”

TRADER Corporation was the first to launch a digital retailing solution on an automotive marketplace to dealers in May 2020. The gotrader.ca digital retail integration features include:

• A “‘Build My Deal’ button allowing customers to enter the MotoCommerce platform directly from the dealer’s vehicle details page to configure pricing, review accessories and protection plans, complete trade-in appraisals, apply for financing, and lastly deposit and finalize agreements.
• A ‘Buy Online’ badge on search results page listings, to drive awareness with buyers that the dealership offers an online vehicle purchasing option.
• A ‘Buy Online’ identifying badge and a ‘Buy This Vehicle’ widget on vehicle details pages adds an additional layer of awareness for each retailer’s digital offering.

To learn more about activating Digital Retailing on gotrader.ca visit go.trader.ca/DigitalRetail

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About TRADER Corporation:
TRADER Corporation is the leading digital marketing partner for Canadian automotive retailers and manufacturers. With over 25 million visits a month and more than 6 million mobile app downloads, TRADER’s largest automotive marketplaces – gotrader.ca and AutoHebdo.net – are the #1 source for all things automotive in Canada. The company offers retailers and manufacturers access to a robust audience of new and used car shoppers, best-in-class digital advertising, website and software solutions, and rich data insights. TRADER Corporation is the first to offer a completely integrated digital retail experience for consumers and dealers on a major Canadian automotive marketplace. For more information, visit go.trader.ca. Follow TRADER on LinkedIn, Facebook and YouTube.

 

About Motoinsight

Motoinsight partners with automakers and dealerships to redefine automotive retail. Motoinsight’s flagship digital retailing platform MotoCommerce enables revolutionary omni-channel and e-commerce enabled car-buying experiences. As well, Motoinsight specializes in delivering tierless consumer experiences that connect Tier I, Tier II, and Tier III channels into a single, seamless journey. Motoinsight also operates a portfolio of owned and partnered automotive research and shopping websites, which includes experiences for brands like Consumer Reports, Globe Drive, Black Book, Unhaggle and others. Motoinsight solutions are used by nearly every automaker brand, over 1,400 dealership franchises and the largest lenders and insurance companies. The company serves customers in the United States, Canada and Australia. For more information, visit www.motoinsight.com.

 

For media requests please contact:

Gage Knox

gage.knox@wearecoop.ca

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What’s Included?

Each dealer enabled on the gotrader.ca digital retail integration receives a ‘Buy Online’ badge displayed on their search results page (SRP) listings, to drive awareness with buyers that this store offers an online vehicle purchasing program. Additionally, the vehicle details page (VDP) displays a ‘Buy Online’ identifying badge, in addition to a ‘Buy This Vehicle’ widget. Consumers can enter the MotoCommerce platform directly from the dealer’s VDP via a ‘Build my deal’ button.

Within the platform consumers can go through the purchase workflow and decide to complete any steps they would like to do online. The steps available for consumers today include:

1. 1. 1. 1. Configure Pricing
         2. Review Accessories & Protection Plans
         3. Trade-In Appraisal
         4. Apply for Financing
         5. Deposit & Finalize the Agreement

Consumers can pick up where they left off, from anywhere and at any time, whether that be online, via the gotrader.ca marketplace, the dealership’s website, or in the showroom. The dealership’s sales representatives and product specialists can “meet” the consumer wherever they are in the process, using the MotoCommerce platform, providing a transparent, seamless, and personalized experience. These consumers are engaged in an omni-channel experience, with the added benefits of time saving and confidence resulting from completing the buying process at home.

Digital Retailing on gotrader.ca will be available soon for marketplace customers nationwide. For more information, or to get on the waitlist, click here.

Source: (1) DIG Insights Path to Purchase, March 2020. n=2552.

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In the wake of COVID-19, Canadians have been urged to stay home based on recommendations by the World Health Organization and the Public Health Agency of Canada. In response, many Canadian dealers have had to close their in-store sales department and limit their operations to service functions. Consequently, online shopping has transitioned from an ease of convenience to a necessity, which begs the question, how will the pandemic impact the way Canadians buy cars?

While auto manufacturers have reported dips in sales, there are strong signals that buyers are still very much in market and conducting research. A third-party study by Dig Insights commissioned by gotrader.ca, examined the impact of COVID-19 to consumer purchase behaviour. The study revealed a slight uptick in marketplace usage among purchase intenders, with 44 per cent of intenders using the marketplace. In contrast, there was a 12 per cent decrease among vehicle intenders visiting manufacturer sites to shop for a car. In fact, just three weeks after COVID-19 was declared a pandemic by WHO, gotrader.ca was tracking 3.8 million visits and 12 million Vehicle Detail Page views weekly generated by almost 2 million users. This represents a sizable number of online shoppers, just in a single week nationwide.

To even further understand how COVID-19 has affected consumer attitudes towards different methods of transportation, TRADER Corporation completed a separate survey of 1,000 respondents across the country. Early findings revealed that COVID-19 may have a significant impact in the way Canadians will choose to travel moving forward. Sixty-two per cent of consumers are more likely to say owning their own vehicle is more attractive than using public transportation. Moreover, consumers that were relying on rideshare programs say they are four times more likely to say owning their own vehicle is enticing. Last but certainly not least, 14 per cent of people who did not currently own a vehicle, planned on purchasing one as a direct result of COVID-19.

These results suggested car ownership could actually be more desirable post COVID-19. Transportation habits are changing and as a result, and dealers need to be available where consumers are beginning their search for a vehicle online. Car buyers are spending more time in the research phase of the transaction and there is an increased desire to complete more of the transaction online. As well, there will be many first-time vehicle purchasers who will need some extra guidance and education.

There will be two types of consumers shopping; (i) those who are looking to buy a vehicle as soon as conditions return to normal, and, (ii) those who want to get a transaction completed as soon as possible – the latter will certainly look to rely on digital retailing, while the former may be more open to it than before. In order to respond to this changing need from consumers, Canadian auto dealers have already implemented or are looking towards digital retailing platforms to integrate into their business and help Canadians complete more of the purchase journey online.

The evolution starts with simple measures, such as at home test drive drop-offs, real time live chats for a personalized experience, or emailing paperwork, to fully integrated e-commerce solutions enabling the consumer to buy a car and have it delivered, all without leaving home.

To support dealers through this transition, we recently launched the Remote Selling Suite designed to arm dealers with the tools to carry out everyday sales operations online via the gotrader.ca marketplace. This includes real time chat tools, VDP indicators that show how dealers can conduct business remotely and Reserve It!, an inventory tool that allows dealers to offer customers the ability to reserve a vehicle by placing a credit card deposit, until they can arrange for a safe review of the vehicle or full transaction.

Motoinsight is another example of a solutions provider helping Canadian dealers looking to activate digital retailing tools to engage consumers beyond the showroom floor. Its MotoCommerce platform allows car buyers to complete transactions, select F&I accessories, even submit a secure credit application, all from their desktop or mobile device. Moreover, the company offers full-service training and best practices to help dealerships make this operational transition as seamless as possible.

From a digital marketing standpoint, it will be important for dealers to maintain some level of exposure for their inventory during this expanded online research phase. Strong remarketing campaigns will be particularly helpful during this time. Browsing times on social media, especially on Facebook and Instagram, have increased. It is, therefore, important to have a strong retargeting strategy in place to keep dealer inventory top of mind.

With so many dealers looking to create a larger digital presence, it is important to understand how dealers can stand out. A key differentiator for consumers will be a seamless online to offline transition. It is critical for dealers to augment the process in-store to complement digital retail integration. To realize the full potential of digital retail, dealers must not only deepen their online capabilities, but more importantly ensure it works in lockstep with physical operations.

If dealerships are prepared to execute and deliver an excellent online and offline experience, there is a higher likelihood a consumer will expect and look for the same process the next time they’re in the market. Consumers adapt to change, and time and time again, dealers have learned to pivot to address these new consumer trends and market realities. Despite how challenging the outlook may initially seem, the ability to remain flexible and respond to changing environments could underscore an industry shift to providing consumers with the highest level of service ever recorded. As an industry, we have to stay optimistic and focused on the future.

– Ian MacDonald, vice-president of strategic marketing, TRADER Corporation

The post Early Consumer Data Points To Enhanced Need For Automotive Digital Retail Solutions Amidst COVID-19 appeared first on gotrader.ca.

With that in mind, we wanted to provide an outline of how dealers can create an efficient strategy for their online lot, to maintain contact and build trust with prospects and customers, all while respecting the new normal of physical distancing.

1. Clear Transparent Pricing

The top reason consumers use online sources is to compare prices.¹ Regardless of the circumstances, dealers must ensure their pricing is accurate and reflects what is advertised in-store. If a consumer calls or visits the lot, and discovers the price differs from what is advertised online, trust erodes, and, ultimately results in the consumer steering away from purchasing from that specific store. This is true for any sales process, but especially in digital retailing since dealers need the consumer to trust absolutely that buying online as opposed to in-person will not impact their deal in any way negatively.

2. Seamless Connection from Online to Showroom

A key finding from our consumer research studies is the immediate need for a bridge between dealers and consumers, while providing a seamless online experience.¹ This tells us that consumers prefer to begin their journey online and pickup right from where they left off, at the dealership. Dealers should establish line of sight into the specific stage of the buying journey each of their prospective clients has reached, and, furthermore, the intent of their visit or call to the dealership. For example, dealers should at the very least know the exact vehicle within a consumer’s consideration set, their budget, and, if they are scheduled for a test drive. This is particularly crucial for dealerships that have temporarily ceased operations, as tracking and storing this information will be paramount to ramping up follow-ups with these customers once business as usual resumes.

3. Interactive Discussions

A car purchase is a big one, and, while effective online merchandising results in detailed descriptions and an abundance of quality photos, consumers will likely have more questions. They may need guidance on finance or lease options, have questions about the vehicle’s service or accident history, or, request a more detailed, real-time look at the interior and exterior. Dealers should take this opportunity to leverage immersive communications, such as live video chat, to accommodate face-to-face discussion, delivered digitally, with high intent car shoppers. This is a great way to speed up the process as consumers get real-time responses, and needless to say, an entirely new source of leads.

4. Clear Process & Call to Action Buttons

It’s paramount for dealers to make it as seamless and straightforward as possible for consumers to move through a digital retail process. This might include simply UX elements such as a breadcrumb or a progress tracker to show the user where they are and which stage comes next. Dealers should walkthrough their digital retailing setup, from the perspective of the consumer, to get a pulse on usability. If a consumer can follow through a clear step-by-step process, with a logical path to the next step, then they are more likely to complete the action, and favour doing business with that specific dealership.

5. Communication is Key

Dealer’s shouldn’t overlook communication. In a time like this, it’s not something that should be put on the backburner. Dealership representatives should respond to consumers right away and keep track of these conversations, particularly if dealers are using a digital retailing solution. It’s evident that those customers are the most likely to convert at this time, or in the near future, and they are serious about buying a car.

6. Make a Brand Promise

Part of finding success in digital retailing is making it evident that you offer the solution. It’s imperative for dealers to make a promise to consumers about what their dealership can offer, that will resonate with them. A BMW dealer in Colorado has coined the following brand promise to their customers: “One price. One person. One hour.” A message that can resonate with the vast majority of their clients, as shoppers have now come to expect time efficiency and convenience throughout the vehicle purchase process. This is an incredibly powerful brand positioning as it speaks to one of car buyers’ #1 pain points, the time taken to negotiate, visit a dealership, and so forth.

There’s no denying that today’s savvy consumers already know the characteristics of a convenient online shopping experience. Disruption driven by leading e-commerce brands – Amazon, Walmart, Alibaba, to name a few – have reshaped shopping expectations and behaviours from the onset of the process. From buying clothes, to electronics, and now, even groceries, consumers seek ease of use, efficiency, and speed with just about every transaction. Now, it’s up to dealers to respond by providing a superior experience, higher level of service, and allowing consumers to go deeper in the purchase process online, from the comfort of their home.

Interested in finding out how our complimentary tools can help you service customers and sell cars, during these unprecedented times?

Click here to get a detailed view into the gotrader.ca Remote Selling Suite, available to dealers today!

Source (1) TRADER Keystone Research Study August 2018

The post When Life Gives You Lemons: Sell Cars? appeared first on gotrader.ca.

As such, we’ve outlined tools to help you connect with car shoppers and researchers, at each stage of the consumer journey, while providing a high level of online service and maximizing efficiencies for managing your business during this unchartered time. Whether consumers are interested in doing research or finalizing a deal for the vehicle they are truly interested in, these tools and practices are sure to come in handy!

Real Time Chat
Dealers know about the importance of timeliness and efficiency when communicating with consumers. Leverage the tools at your disposal to engage with consumers in an online chat, while they research or shop for their next car. Live chat creates a personalized experience, and a one-to-one connection between dealership sales representatives and prospective buyers. Consumers will appreciate that an actual person is on the other end, willing to help them – in real time. gotrader.ca’s Real Time Chat lets you interact with consumers at the exact moment they want to chat with you. If consumers have more in depth questions about the vehicle they are interested in, you can even record a video at the click of a button and send it directly to them.

Reserve It!
Beyond visits, VDP views and leads, there are additional means to measure and qualify the true intent of a consumer engaging with your inventory listings. At the click of a button, the Reserve It! tool allows consumers to place a deposit on a vehicle, directly from a VDP on gotrader.ca. Backed by an intuitive and straightforward configuration process, dealers can enable this feature to drive confidence with consumers, as they will be assured the vehicle they want is secured for when they are ready and able to see it in person. Reserve It! also helps your sale personnel know how to adequately follow up with consumers who use this feature as they’ll know the qualified prospect is serious about buying.

OTL Events
Demonstrate your commitment to serving consumer needs during COVID-19, by highlighting your service and parts offering, the availability of at-home test drives, and more. This gotrader.ca feature lets you showcase your unique offerings on a dedicated area of your VDP, in addition to the image carousel, in the form of an image. Integrating this level of detail on your VDPs, within your dealership website, in marketing campaigns, and on social channels are all great ways to get the word out.

Home Drop-off
Get vehicles out to the most serious car shoppers, who need them now, by offering the ultimate white glove service – a home drop off service! Dealers should entertain the feasibility of making the necessary adjustments within their business operations to ensure they are able to safely drop off the keys and the vehicle, either for a 24-hour test drive or following a sale. Although we’ve collectively been asked to make serious adjustments to our day-to-day lives, there are still plenty of shoppers who need a car right now and will certainly appreciate your dealership going the extra mile to get the vehicle to them safely.

You can find some of these tools now available in our Remote Selling Suite, which includes intuitive features that allow you to bring the dealership experience to your prospects and customers at home. We will be updating this toolkit with more features over the coming weeks to provide more guidance for dealers actively looking to engage and sell remotely. It’s good to keep in mind that while these tools are helpful right now, you will find yourself continuing to utilize them following the official end of the pandemic, as more and more consumers expect dealerships to provide more flexible and intuitive digital services in the future.

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Now, dealers may be wondering how long will consumers be interested in digital retailing? Is it worth the investment? Will consumers adapt to this new level of customer service?

Based on what we know about how consumers shop, and what we’ve observed in other areas around the world, most notably China, the answer really lies in how well a dealership executes their digital retailing strategy, right now.

For as long as people will be at home, they will be online and doing research, if they are looking to purchase a vehicle, trade-in, or renew a lease. There will be two types of consumers shopping; (i) those who are looking to buy a vehicle as soon as we get back to normality, and, (ii) those who want to get a transaction completed as soon as possible – the latter will certainly need to rely on digital retailing, while the former may be more open to it than before.

One car retailer in China claims that after implementing digital retailing to support social distancing, while consumers were isolated in their homes, their online sales have since gone from a few hundred, to thousands. Looking at the trends of Canadian shoppers, we already know they are looking for an alternative purchase process when buying a vehicle, often citing visiting dealerships physically as one of their key pain points, due in part to the hectic demands of modern life. Digital retailing may well be here to stay.

According to a Vehicle Path to Purchase survey conducted by DIG Insights in 2019, consumers only visited 2-3 dealerships before purchasing a car, and, over half of consumers already knew which vehicle they wanted before they visited the dealership. In fact, in that same study, consumers outlined the top activities they would be interested in doing online:

• Calculating the total cost of vehicle ownership,
• Securing financing,
• Arranging for a vehicle to be brought to their home for a test drive; and,
• Calculating the best time to buy or sell a used vehicle based on online deprecation tools

This tells us that consumers aren’t looking to spend a lot of time in the dealership. They want near everything done ahead of time. Their preference is to arrive to the dealership well informed, and, move directly to transacting. Dealers have, over time, begun to add tools that help consumers cut down on time spent at the dealership, namely chats, trade-in solutions, finance calculators, or reserving vehicles online. All are a step in the direction, to keep up with shifts in consumer behaviour.

Now, let’s put ourselves in the shoes of a consumer. With digital retailing, your everyday shopper can conduct all of their research online, reach out to a local dealership with the click of a button, have a dealer representative drop off their desired vehicle for a test drive, sign the necessary paperwork, get their financing in order, and have their purchased vehicle dropped off, right from the convenience and comfort of their own home. Of immediate benefit to consumers, the process eliminates the need to commute to a dealership, wait for a representative to talk to, engage in the back and forth of negotiation – ultimately resulting in a smooth, seamless and pressure-free purchase process.

The better dealerships are prepared to execute and deliver an excellent digital retailing experience, the higher the likelihood a consumer will expect the same process the next time they’re in the market for a car. Consumers adapt to change, and, time and time again, dealers have learned to adapt to emerging consumer trends and new market realities. Despite how confusing and challenging the short-term outlook may be, the changes we see today could be start of something remarkable – a shift to offering consumers a service and experience they never knew was possible, or, may have been hesitant to try out in the past.

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TORONTO, January 8, 2020 — Motoinsight, a leading provider of digital retailing solutions for the automotive industry, today announced that it has received a strategic investment from TRADER Corporation, a portfolio company of private equity investment firm Thoma Bravo, LLC.

“Automotive retailing is undergoing rapid evolution driven by changing customer demands and we’re excited to enable automakers and dealers with innovative solutions to meet that change,” said Andrew Tai, CEO and co-founder of Motoinsight. “This investment will accelerate our growth plans, further our product development, and enable us to serve our customers even better.”

Motoinsight’s flagship MotoCommerce digital retailing platform is the only solution available today that can deliver a seamless car shopping journey for consumers that transcend in-store and online experiences, across both dealership and manufacturer websites. This seamless car shopping journey will soon be further enhanced with connectivity to TRADER’s leading consumer marketplaces.

“Similar to TRADER, Motoinsight is at the forefront of the digital transformation happening in the auto industry, underpinned by its track record of innovation and strong relationships with automakers and dealerships,” said Sebastian Baldwin, President and CEO of TRADER.

About Motoinsight
Motoinsight partners with automakers and dealerships to redefine automotive retail. Motoinsight’s flagship digital retailing platform MotoCommerce enables revolutionary omni-channel and e-commerce enabled car-buying experiences. Motoinsight also operates a portfolio of owned and partnered automotive research and shopping websites, which includes experiences for brands like Consumer Reports, Globe Drive, Black Book, Unhaggle and others. Motoinsight solutions are used by nearly every automaker brand, over 1,000 dealership franchises and the largest lenders and insurance companies. The company serves customers in the United States, Canada and Australia. For more information, visit www.motoinsight.com.

About TRADER Corporation
TRADER Corporation is the leading digital marketing partner for Canadian automotive retailers and manufacturers. With over 17 million visits a month and more than 5 million mobile app downloads, TRADER’s automotive marketplace – gotrader.ca – is Canada’s most trusted place to buy and sell cars. The company offers retailers and manufacturers access to a robust audience of new and used car shoppers, best-in-class digital advertising, website and software solutions, and rich data insights. For more information, visit go.trader.ca.

About Thoma Bravo, LLC
Thoma Bravo is a leading private equity firm focused on the software and technology-enabled services sectors. With a series of funds representing more than $35 billion in capital commitments, Thoma Bravo partners with a Company’s management team to implement operating best practices, invest in growth initiatives and make accretive acquisitions intended to accelerate revenue and earnings, with the goal of increasing the value of the business. Representative past and present portfolio companies include industry leaders such as ABC Financial, Blue Coast Systems, Deltek, Digital Insight, Frontline Education, Global Healthcare Exchange, Hyland Software, Imprivata, iPipeline, PowerPlan, Qlik, Riverbed, SailPoint, SolarWinds, Sparta Systems, TravelClick and Veracode. The firm has offices in San Francisco and Chicago. For more information, visit www.thomabravo.com.

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