Industry portal changes car sales
2011-09-23 19:16
Johannesburg - An online auction platform is set to change the way motor dealerships do business.
DealersOnline, an online auction portal driven by property auctioneers Auction Alliance, is expected to revolutionise the motor industry in the same way that auctions have transformed the landscape of the property market.
The portal is reserved exclusively for motor industry players and provides a closed auction platform for auto dealers, corporate fleet owners and car rental companies to trade directly with each other.
"The growth of this portal has been phenomenal. We are fast approaching a 100% increase in sales, and have doubled traffic on our site," said William Miller of DealersOnline.
DealersOnline recognises that the motor industry is a volume-based business, and has achieved market penetration by not charging any subscription or marketing fees.
One of the advantages for the registered dealers, of which there are already over 3 000, is the ability to trade across regional borders, thus ensuring a national outreach.
The platform offers a simple method, which provides a single point of contact for every transaction including the administrative process.
The general public is excluded from this bidding platform and this implies that some dealers may trade at pre-determined prices.
All prospective buyers and sellers are registered to a unique user name and password, and their motor industry credentials are appraised to ensure only qualified buyers and sellers meet.
Twelve clients have been blacklisted as a result of misrepresentation or default, which serves as proof of DealersOnline's active engagement with the system to protect the client's interests.
"DealersOnline is essentially changing the way in which dealers do business as it offers a new and completely closed platform for them to trade in," said Miller.
