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Jason Symes has more than 20 years of experience in the automotive industry. Before taking the reins at Dealer Auction, he was Head of Dealer – Enterprise Sales at Cox Automotive.
For those who don’t know… what is Dealer Auction, and why is it so popular?
We’re a joint venture between Cox Automotive and Auto Trader. The former has an expert view of the vehicle ecosystem and undeniable clout regarding wholesale remarketing. Everyone knows that Auto Trader’s data and insight are second to none.
Simply put, we are a one-stop shop for trade stock. We aggregate vehicles from various sources. We’ve been in our present form for four years; regular users will know that you can see up to 60,000 vehicles at any one time on the DA platform.
It’s so popular because sourcing stock is such a pain point for dealers – we make it simple, fast and, most importantly, profitable.
Buying Stock…
Our bread and butter is the “self-serve” area. We offer vehicles via traditional auctions, buy-it-now, and, most recently, a new ‘make me an offer’ format. That involves a large number of franchise, independents, and fleet sources. We’re currently piloting Consumer Direct where we see 100 fresh vehicles per week available to buy directly from the public through an Auto Trader initiative. We also have AT private listings and physical auctions via Manheim, so there are tens of thousands of vehicles available to view at any one time.
Because we have real-time Auto Trader insight integrated across the platform, you can view data across all areas. This means buyers are more informed and assured about what’s on offer. It’s great too because the ratings apply within a 50-mile radius of the buyer’s postcode.
Is it complicated?
The undoubted choice and number of sources may faze new users at first. But we’ve worked hard to make finding the vehicles you need easy. Plus, we have a great team to help you get started when you first join.
By setting up a Stock Policy, you can filter thousands of available vehicles to what you’re looking for with one click. And, if you hit the Recommended button, our intelligent platform looks at your Auto Trader forecourt and your recent bidding activity to suggest vehicles that could be the perfect match.
Our aim is to seamlessly connect the right buyers to the right stock!
Other Things to be Aware Of…
The biggest thing we’ve seen is a huge rise in fleet stock. We all know it’s the most significant growth area for registrations. Fleets are, therefore, looking for a different route to market, and Dealer Auction users benefit. It means a steady flow of nice, retail-ready, well-maintained stock (from companies including Hertz, Novuna, and Santander Consumer Finance). That fleet stock has proved to be a huge draw.
What’s Next?
Evolution, innovation, and bravery are the lynchpins of Dealer Auction. We never stand still, and we’re not afraid to challenge the status quo – even when it comes to our platform.
Our main aim is to continue aggregating more stock. But we’re also scaling up our Consumer Direct offering, giving private sellers the option to put vehicles into an auction setting and brining more of that consumer stock back into the marketplace.
We’ll also launch our very exciting “Make me an offer” option soon. It’s for dealers who might not be getting the right offers and gives them the choice to dual list in retail and trade environments. Essentially, it means having the chance to get more offers from trade buyers.
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