Boycott the Third Party Sites like it's 2010!

[ChrisR]

@ChrisR, Using Homenet, you can simply set up a data conversion to apply a value in one of the Misc (Miscellaneous) fields (you have up to 20) and then have HN support to create an export filter to specific providers based on the value of that field.

Example data conversion: Used with 10+ custom photos > Place (Whatever value you want) into Misc field 20.

Call support and setup a Export Filter to only send vehicles with your custom value in that Misc field to your specific vendor.

Easy peasy!

That did the trick.

There is a migration from VIN to Homenet for exports, we are still on the VIN side. So, that rep was right in saying I can't do it. If I can get pushed over to Homenet exports, ahead of schedule, then the Data Conversion Dashboard settings will work for us.

Appreciate the assistance.

 

[tnfly]

Agreed, but we also need to better manage what inventory and/or how we are sending inventory feeds. Esp since those sites charge based on inventory level. Have you reviewed your packages with your vender lately? Still paying for a 100 new car package and only have 20 in stock?

Maximize your USED inventory dollars! Don't be the dealer that tells them you have 120 vehicles, when you actually only have 90 front line ready at any given time. You can change your feeds on used:

- Exclude vehicles with no photos from your feeds.
- If you "pre-photo" with 2-3 before front line for your website, exclude those from feed.
- Have a 140 inventory, but only want to pay for 100 "listing package" - have your provider send the 100 oldest in your inventory, or 100 lowest priced, or ??.
- etc, etc.

Tons of ways to do it. Made some of these changes at a large 10+ store dealer group, around $23K/month saved, and inventory turn/travel rate wasn't affected.

As a regional listing service, we filter out vehicles without real photos and less than 500 miles (new cars in the used feed) from our Homenet data (we use the API). It's just a better experience for our shoppers, and gives a much better VDP view rate to report back to our dealers. On average, only 80% of the vehicles in our feed are imported, but it keeps quality high for both sides of the marketplace.

 

[joe.pistell]

Will someone explain to me why used car listing sites are so popular, and, new car listing sites are not popular?

p.s. this is a classic DR thread, comments have awesome insights by some of our industry's best minds.

 

[Matt Holman]

Will someone explain to me why used car listing sites are so popular, and, new car listing sites are not popular?

p.s. this is a classic DR thread, comments have awesome insights by some of our industry's best minds.

Customers assume the franchise lot has the new car.... also many new vehicles sell without the need to merchandise.

That Chevy store needs to advertise they have the low mileage....Pearl white 4Runner...

 

[Alex Snyder]

Customers assume the franchise lot has the new car.... also many new vehicles sell without the need to merchandise.

That may be true in major metro markets where DXs are plentiful amongst an abundance of new car inventories. However, that is not the case in more rural areas. And I would argue the past three years have trained a good number of people to hunt the internet for the new car they want.

Aaaaaand I would argue further, consumers are getting burned by shopping centers like Amazon. These people are being wiser in their online shopping behavior. On top of that, there is an entire generation or two who WILL NOT speak to someone on the phone. They will take your web presence at face value and keep hunting until they find what they want.

My wife drives me insane because she won’t pick up the phone to call anyone except family. I plead with her to call hotels to book vacations, but she will not. She is all about the instant chat tool. Picking up the phone is something my generation does (Gen X). My wife is an Elder Millennial and there are so many like her.

I think the dealer who strives to have the best photos and vehicle descriptions along with payment displays and an instant chat capability is the one who pulls the most customers. New and Used.

The KPI to measure is based on how many cars are sold outside your marketplace. A growing percentage of outside-area sales indicates a healthy online presence that benefits your loyal customer base as well. Yes, this means being on all the third party listing sites you can afford. It doesn’t mean paying the highest premium on those sites though.

 

[joe.pistell]

@Matt Holman
These are chevy roofs within 30 miles of sleepy syracuse NY. There should be 2-3, not 12. These guys are in mortal combat to take share.

 

[Ryan Everson]

Will someone explain to me why used car listing sites are so popular, and, new car listing sites are not popular?

p.s. this is a classic DR thread, comments have awesome insights by some of our industry's best minds.

Here are our new vs. used stats over the past 12 months groupwide.

As you can see, Cars.com drives the highest percentage of new vehicle VDP views and leads out of all the third parties.

It will be interesting to see what happens as our new car inventory begins to grow:

Will the new car pie grow since they are now a larger percentage of our total inventory?
or
Will the new car pie shrink since some new car buyers may be less inclined to go to third parties to search for the exact new car they want now that inventory is more plentiful?



*CarGurus technically has new car listings, but they do not split out any of their metrics on new vs used. We, therefore, classify it all as used car traffic since that is CarGurus' primary focus and brand positioning.

I've also heard that CarFax may be rolling out new car listings in the near future, which, if true, seems a little odd considering their branding. However, it would allow more dealers to co-op their CARFAX listing expenses.

 

[Alex Snyder]

Thanks @Ryan Everson - that's interesting. It leads me to believe the new car numbers would increase if dealers put a little more effort into their merchandising. As someone who is playing around with 6 different models as the next purchase for a few months, I can tell you it is REALLY HARD to figure out what a new car has on it unless it is a Ford or Lincoln dealership that shows the Ford photos and window sticker.

Most of the stuff the website providers use is garbage… a waste of time. GM, for example, is an absolute shit show all around. The Cadillac site makes it impossible to figure out how to build a car. It just creates confusion. Toyota is decent, but Ford is my favorite right now.

@Jeff Kershner does a fantastic job of merchandising his new cars. It would be interesting to hear if his new car traffic percentages are any different than your's, Ryan.

 

[Ryan Everson]

When you compare it to our actual dealership website analytics, you get much different results - virtually a 50:50 split.



(Shoppers = Unique Visitor)

 

[Ryan Everson]

Thanks @Ryan Everson - that's interesting. It leads me to believe the new car numbers would increase if dealers put a little more effort into their merchandising. As someone who is playing around with 6 different models as the next purchase for a few months, I can tell you it is REALLY HARD to figure out what a new car has on it unless it is a Ford or Lincoln dealership that shows the Ford photos and window sticker.

Most of the stuff the website providers use is garbage… a waste of time. GM, for example, is an absolute shit show all around. The Cadillac site makes it impossible to figure out how to build a car. It just creates confusion. Toyota is decent, but Ford is my favorite right now.

@Jeff Kershner does a fantastic job of merchandising his new cars. It would be interesting to hear if his new car traffic percentages are any different than your's, Ryan.

I will say while merchandising certainly has an impact on the third-party performance of new cars, the OEM has an even more significant impact.

Shoppers are willing to expand their search radius for hard-to-find makes and models, we experience it every day with our luxury brands and more niche models. As I'm sure @Jeff Kershner can attest with the influx of out-of-market leads he gets on his Mercedes models.

But to your point regarding merchandising, many dealerships (including ours) have gotten complacent when it comes to new car merchandising. They've had 2-3 years of cars being sold before they arrive, so why pay $20 per car to have them photographed?

This has had a trickle-down effect on external photo vendors needing fewer photographers, and now they are needing to ramp back up in a difficult (and more expensive) labor market.