Cox Auto Trader Makes Strategic Moves to Improve Online Automotive Advertising Business

[bpulseadmin]

ATLANTA (January 5, 2009) – Cox Auto Trader, parent company to AutoTrader.com and Cox AutoTrader/AutoMart, is making strategic changes to its business in an effort to better address the needs of both consumers and commercial advertising customers through its online automotive advertising business led by AutoTrader.com.

Cox AutoTrader/AutoMart, the print-based subsidiary of Cox Auto Trader, will cease publishing AutoMart and AutoExtra magazines. AutoTrader and Truck Trader magazines will continue to be printed. These magazines will continue to be distributed as before, along with other Trader titles owned by Dominion Enterprises.

The AutoTrader.com organization, based in Atlanta, will assume responsibility for AutoMart.com, AutoExtra.com and AutoTraderLatino.com (formerly known as AutoMercado.com). AutoTrader Classics and AutoTrader Latino magazines will continue as part of the AutoTrader.com suite of products and services.

“Consolidating the majority of our resources into a single AutoTrader.com organization will facilitate long-term growth and also help us maintain a singular focus on serving our consumers and advertisers,” said Sandy Schwartz, president of Cox Auto Trader.

As part of the consolidation process, some Cox AutoTrader/AutoMart employees will be reassigned as AutoTrader.com employees. Some positions in the Cox

AutoTrader/AutoMart organization will be eliminated. Impacted employees who are eligible will be offered generous severance packages. The print distribution system for the Trader family of paid magazine titles will not be affected.

The ongoing shift in emphasis to an online automotive advertising business strategy is in response to the decline in demand for print-based automotive advertising products. As more automobile dealers and private sellers shift their advertising from print to the Web to take advantage of the efficiency and reach that online platforms offer, Cox Auto Trader is adjusting its business strategy accordingly.

“We are ready for these strategic moves and look forward to supporting the needs of all of our consumers and advertisers,” said Chip Perry, president and CEO of AutoTrader.com.

AutoTrader.com is the industry leader for classified automotive advertising in the United States. Expanding its offerings allows AutoTrader.com to provide product and service combinations that no competitor can match, which solidifies its position as the most effective and efficient way to buy, sell or research a vehicle.

About Cox Auto Trader
Cox Auto Trader is one of the world’s leading providers of online and print automotive consumer information. Operating business units include AutoTrader.com and Cox

AutoTrader/AutoMart. AutoTrader.com is the Internet’s leading auto classifieds marketplace and consumer information web site with more than 3 million vehicle listings

and over 13 million qualified buyers each month. Cox AutoTrader/AutoMart consists of AutoTrader Publishing, a leading producer of classified automotive advertising publications with nearly 350 automobile and light truck titles and a total circulation of 3.5 million per week; and AutoMart, the leading provider of print and online classified automotive advertising for dealer customers with more than a million used car Internet listings from dealers combined with print publications in 75 separate markets. Cox Auto Trader is a subsidiary of Atlanta-based Cox Enterprises, Inc.

About AutoTrader.com
AutoTrader.com, created in 1997 and headquartered in Atlanta, Ga., is the Internet's leading auto classifieds marketplace and consumer information website. AutoTrader.com aggregates in a single location more than 3.5 million new, used and certified pre-owned vehicle listings from 40,000 dealers and 250,000 private owners and the site attracts more than 14 million unique monthly visitors. Through innovative merchandising functionality such as multiple photos, videos, detailed descriptions and comprehensive research and compare tools, AutoTrader.com unites new and used car buyers and sellers online, improving the way people research, locate and advertise vehicles. AutoTrader.com is a majority-owned subsidiary of Cox Enterprises. The venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers is also an investor. For more information, please visit www.autotrader.com.

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[Automotive CRM Guy]

I'm surprised they are still doing the AutoTrader.com magazine

 

[David (blog)]

We have seen a noticeable drop in leads originating from autotrader.com as well as cars.com could be a based on market conditions however ebay seem to be providing as much as ever...

 

[Tom Drake]

I was a manager at Cox Automart until July 08 when the company was in the "middle" (?) of layoffs. Part of me is surprised, part not given what I saw STILL going on.

 

[Stew Pedasso]

Thats too bad, the Automart print worked better than our Newsaper ads did.
The website worked well for the cost attributed too.
I guess Autotrader is going to provide it all now to US dealers, but that's not a surprise.
I hope we all save $$ from their consolidation strategy, but I'm sure we won't in the end

 

[Jake - Higher Turnover]

I'm somewhat surprised at the magazines they're stopping, and I feel sorry for the people that have been laid off from the company (like several of my close friends as recently as this week who were going on 5-10 years). Something else I heard today was interesting though. Not sure about the veracity yet, but if you look at the words chosen by Cox Auto Trader in their release, they say "[Auto Trader]...magazines will continue to be distributed as before". I'm told Auto Trader magazines, although distribution will continue, is moving away from the dealer advertisements altogether. In fact I spoke with a print rep this afternoon who said his last day (and everyone else in his area) will be on the 23rd. I guess they're forcing dealers to go the private party route, one vehicle at a time at full price. Makes sense to me, as profit margins are significantly higher on the dot com side compared to print pubs, but I know a lot of dealers aren't going to be happy. Besides, AT.com has been trying to figure out for years how they can combat the objection that every AT.com sales rep hears: "why do I need you when my print ads show up on the site for free?"

Whether it's a smart business decision or if they're just trying to consolidate and stay afloat when they're worried about other things, who knows. Interesting stuff nonetheless.

 

[Cox Employee]

Want the scoop? The entire Cox Auto Trader company (minus Autotrader.com) was laid off Monday via an email that went out at 11:30am - probably about 3500 employees. The 140 top reps in the company were scammed into taking an AutoTrader.com rep position - they were told they wouldn't receive unemployment or a severance and offered them a whopping $25,000! My two top reps made $250,000 & over $100k! This company continues to amaze me, what has happened to mankind? The top vp's responsible for the demise... they all have jobs now at Autotrader.com. And that's 'part' of the scoop...

 

[Cox Employee]

oh by the way... they are only continuing with Auto Trader magazine because the private party part of the mag is managed by Autotrader.com - there will not be dealer ads in the pub. They are continuing to distribute because they're being sued by Dominion since they have an agreement to distribute their pubs nationwide.

 

[About to be jobless]

I will be losing my job on the 23rd like many others. What I found interesting about this article is how in bold it reads that we will be offered "generous severance packages". Last I checked, one week is not generous and neither is the amount for that one week.

My best to the car dealers out there, it has been a pleasure.

 

[Scott Simmons]

Hopefully dealers will finally start to realize that our website, Carsforsale.com, is truly a great value at just $99 a month.