On average, auto dealers are making 22 trades per month. Unfortunately, approximately 17.7 percent of those trades happen at a loss. This is according to an independent research study based on self-reported data conducted by vAuto. Obtaining a clear, objective assessment on inbound trades has traditionally been difficult and time-consuming. In today’s lower-margin environment, however, it’s critical that every piece of inventory is accurately evaluated on its potential marketability and profitability. vAuto, which is part of Cox Automotive, says it has launched a better tool to help reduce losses on trades.
“We know new car managers today have a lot on their plates. So, when a dealer receives an inbound request for a trade, they need to be sure they’re getting the right car back, and quickly,” said Brian Finkelmeyer, vAuto’s Senior Director of Conquest, in a statement.
The company’s newly updated Conquest platform, a vehicle inventory management solution, has enhanced dealer trade functionality available at no extra cost to platform users. The feature is an algorithm comprised of propriety data from vAuto, along with additional data from Cox Automotive, while also leveraging support from vAuto’s Performance Management team. Conquest’s trading tool saves dealers the time of hunting through websites and OEM platforms—even if the dealer making the request is not a Conquest user.
Using third-party data, Conquest’s Dealer Trade creates a more efficient trade process that identifies which competitors’ vehicles would perform best in their respective markets, resulting in faster-turning inventory.
“We talk to dealers and evaluate market trends constantly to determine the product enhancements needed to keep our inventory management solutions performing at the highest level,” said Randy Kobat, Senior VP of Inventory Software Solutions at Cox Automotive. “New vehicle trading is an important part of the business and ordering restrictions can make it challenging to get the exact inventory needed for a market. And that’s what Conquest helps solve for, enabling dealers to make trading decisions on insights, not gut, to reduce losses and improve their inventory.”
