AUTOTRADER MEETING UPDATE
Following on from the dealer sessions hosted by Autotrader following the backlash to Dealbuilder and some of the recent platform changes please find below the initial feedback from the day.
It was a small group, roughly eight dealers, a real mix, franchise, independents of different sizes, and supermarket operators. What stood out was that everyone had the same core frustrations, just with slightly different angles depending on their model. There was other groups being heard in the south and more groups happening in January.
What will happen after this is that the groups will be split into franchise, super and independent. They will then be split by size so all levels are represented and heard. Autotrader haven’t understood the nuances that lie between all the different levels of dealers.
The groups will commit to 1 year of meetings so we can look to make the changes that affect all walks of dealers.
Main themes that came up:
Price markers
> Price markers were raised a lot, including clear examples of why a car should not be judged purely on a generic pricing band.
> A big one, the app appears to show different information versus desktop. Auto Trader did not seem aware of this. They’ve taken it away to review.
>Dealers are unhappy with monetary value labels being applied inconsistently, and in ways that can mislead customers.
>Dealers unhappy that AT don’t understand what it takes to retail that car. The colour and history make a massive difference to the price.
>Supermarkets are distorting the overall price with their low pricing model. This is effecting the metal margin dealers.
Deal Builder
• The £99 reserve feels far too low as a default. Dealers want the choice to set the reserve level, or opt out completely. It feels like that choice is being reduced.
• The language and calls to action still feel too final and too forceful. Auto Trader said this is being reviewed and softened, but we need to keep pressure on this.
Sign in and lead quality
• Sign in is a massive friction point. Everyone in the room is seeing leads down.
• Auto Trader’s position was that leads have not dropped, but the room strongly disagreed. Calls may be up in some cases, but conversion is not following. There’s a disconnect.
• We need data on how many customers abandon when they hit registration and just wanted to message a dealer.
• Ask, can there be a guest checkout style option, so we still get soft enquiries.
Dealer versus customer balance
• The balance feels off. Dealers do not feel properly heard when product decisions are made.
• Too many changes have landed without enough dealer input, and then dealers are left dealing with the fallout.
Auto Trader Leasing, conflict concern
• Auto Trader said they will be investing more into Auto Trader Leasing.
• That lands as a conflict of interest for dealers, and it needs to be challenged properly.
• Concern is ownership and reuse of customer data, and whether they cross sell those customers further down the line, away from the dealer.
Contact methods, WhatsApp
• How customers contact dealers came up.
• Independents rely on WhatsApp. We need WhatsApp integration.
• The customer journey does not always need to stay on Auto Trader’s platform, forcing it to stay there can harm conversion.
Part exchange valuations
• Strong challenge on why Auto Trader should be “the” valuer.
• Their prep assumptions between “acceptable” and “good” feel miles off reality.
• Auto Trader’s stated aim is to bring more stock to dealers for less than routes like Motorway and Carwow. They seemed open to discussion here, but the valuation logic needs work.
Other topics raised, for completeness
• Overall cost of Auto Trader versus value delivered
• Product changes without enough dealer input
• Communication from Auto Trader, tone and frequency
• How they present data back to dealers
• Future strategy around AI, and where that could clash with dealer interests
• Who they listen to for dealer feedback, and whether it’s truly representative
• How the advisory groups will run, how feedback will be actioned, and how quickly.
THIS IS JUST THE INITIAL FEEDBACK, WE NOW REQUIRE MORE FEEDBACK FROM MEMBERS REGARDING THE ABOVE. VIA EMAIL PLEASE SO WE HAVE IT IN HARD FORMAT.