iVendi has confirmed that the next version of its automotive product will provide an off-the-shelf online motor retailing platform for dealers. The new version, which will go live at the beginning of 2018, will offer a plug in online retail solution to dealer’s existing web sites.
James Tew, CEO, said, “This is very much the holy grail of online motor retailing. Buying a car online is not like buying a pair of jeans. It is a process that requires everything from handling a part exchange to motor finance. Over the eight years that iVendi has been in existence, we have been working on each of the key elements of the process and, by early next year, will be in a position to deliver a complete solution to dealers and others.
“We are now at the stage where we can incorporate a simple but important feature into the platform – a ‘buy’ button. Getting to this point has been a long journey but we confident that this product is absolutely right for this moment. “In the same way as a High Street retailer might move into online sales by using e-commerce technology like Shopify on their web site, dealers will now be able to use iVendi. It really is a genuine step change.”
iVendi has been trailing the new platform with 500 dealers since Spring of 2017, handling sales in excess of £2 million per month. The trial has shown prevalence of dual model which combine online and physical site interactions. James explained, “Our view is that there are a handful of completely online sales and a handful of completely offline sales but in the real world, most customers will, for example, perhaps look at stock online, try out online finance options, call the dealer to ask some questions, play with the finance some more, go for a test drive, and so on.
“The developed platform offers complete flexibility in this respect, with each potential sale saved in an individual account so that it can be revisited and modified by customer and dealer as their preferences and needs dictate on and offline.”
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