Find out how to increase used car stock turn amid the surge in used car demand, and why speed to market matters now more than ever.
With the semiconductor chip shortage slowing new car production, used car demand continues to rise. This is great news for margins, as used car values are at an all time high. But, are you prepared for what might happen when the used car demand bubble finally bursts?
As many dealers begin scrambling to sell their used car stock before prices potentially fall, speed to market is more important than ever.
In this blog, we’ll discuss ways to increase your used car stock turn, and how to get your cars to market as quickly as possible.
The used car demand bubble
For used car dealers, the current surge in demand is welcome news. We’re seeing used car values soaring and dealers are enjoying higher margins on their non-new stock.
At this critical point, speed to market matters more than ever. Most of the dealers we’ve talked to have told us that their ideal time frame is stock to market in under five days. Yet, many of the same dealers say that they’re not currently achieving this ambition.
There are a few reasons for this. For large dealer groups, it mostly comes down to time and scale; it’s time consuming and labour intensive to track down every used car across an entire network. So, many cars disappear into the system, or take days to track down.
Then, it takes more time for prepping, updating the description and images for each car and, finally, pushing that car out to the dealer’s website and third party advertising sites.
A lack of pace loses the race
In the time it takes to track down, prepare and advertise a car, a consumer may have gone elsewhere. And, in a world where every sale counts, this means a lost opportunity and lost profit.
The even bigger question at this stage is what happens when the current used car demand bubble bursts?
At some point, semiconductor chip production will restart (within the next six months, if media reports are accurate). Then new car demand may start to rise again.
What does this mean for your used car stock? Perhaps you’ve bought surplus used car stock at a higher price to capitalise on the increase in demand? You’ll need to shift these cars pretty swiftly to avoid getting stuck with overpriced stock if used car demand starts to drop.
How to get cars to market quicker
The obvious solution is to get your cars to market quicker – and the key to this is data.
Technology has given rise to some impressive solutions that allow you to manage large volumes of car data.
However, many of the current offerings on the market are lacking;
- You still need to search manually for cars across your network, which takes a lot of time
- They do not offer a single platform for new, nearly new and used cars
- Some still rely on manual data feeds, once again this is time consuming
- Many are tied to a proprietary front-end website, so you have no control
- There’s still too much work for you, especially in quality control of images and descriptions
Autofinity’s data platform is different
Our vehicle inventory hub will be different. We’re developing the solution right now, working alongside some of the largest dealer groups in the UK, to make sure it’s totally fit for purpose.
The goal is to launch our market-leading data hub by the end of the year, so we’re asking dealers to give input into what problems it needs to solve and how to make sure it caters to their needs.
Here are a few of the highlights we’ve developed so far;
- A single platform that covers new, nearly new and used cars at every stage of their lifecycle
- Comprehensive data hub incorporating the most up to date and accurate descriptions
- Automated alerts on overage or inactive stock from across your network, franchises and locations
- Quality control for images and video – you set the rules, we do the work
- Instant data feeds from any source using simple API integration
- A fully flexible platform that can be integrated to any front-end website
- Advertise your cars on your website and third party sites in a single click
- Get insight and ad performance within your dashboard so you can take action on underperforming or overage stock
These are just a few of the elements we’re developing. Have we missed anything? Get in touch to tell us what you’d like to see in a single, comprehensive and automated vehicle inventory hub.
How will this help with used car stock turn?
Back to the subject of used car stock turn, and how Autofinity’s inventory hub will help you sell cars quicker.
One of the most powerful aspects of our platform is the automated alerts. They’ll notify you if a car has been inactive for a period of time (you set the time frame) and if any car is overpriced against the market average.
You’ll also get insight into your ad performance, so you can take action if an advertised car isn’t selling.
This control will be a game-changer for stock turn, and you’ll have the power to make proactive changes to how and where you advertise your stock.
Whatever happens in the used car market over the next few months, speed will always matter when it comes to stock turn.
We’d love to hear from you about the challenges you’re facing, and get insight into how we can create a solution that will create opportunities to sell faster and increase profitability.