CHICAGO, Jan. 24,
2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Cars.com Inc. (NYSE: CARS)
(d/b/a "Cars Commerce Inc."), an audience-driven technology company
empowering automotive, today announced that FordDirect has selected
AccuTrade, a Cars Commerce solution, as its preferred vehicle
acquisition and trade and appraisal solution for The Shop, a newly
launched e-commerce platform for 3000+ Ford dealers and Lincoln retailers.
More than half of car buyers plan to trade-in a vehicle prior to
purchase, and AccuTrade speeds transaction time by enabling digital
instant offers for consumers while equipping everyone in the
dealership with turnkey and transparent acquisition solutions that
complete an accurate appraisal in under five minutes – from
anywhere. In 2023, AccuTrade generated more than 275,000 Instant
Offers for consumers and retailers completed more than 1 million
appraisals¹, unlocking new growth for their business by acquiring
inventory directly from their service drives. Half of the retailers
leveraging the AccuTrade solution in the service drive in 2023 at
least doubled their volume of service drive appraisals from January
to December².
"FordDirect's mission as a trusted partner and resource to our
retailers is to work with the best vendors in the market to support
the needs of all Ford Dealers and Lincoln Retailers. Acquiring and
quickly turning high-quality inventory is critical right now for
dealerships, and we are providing a new marketplace of vetted
partners to meet those needs," said Dean
Stoneley, CEO of FordDirect.
"We're thrilled that FordDirect sees the value in AccuTrade, and
we look forward to helping more Ford and Lincoln retailers take their inventory
acquisition strategy to the next level," said Doug Miller, president and chief commercial
officer of Cars Commerce. "AccuTrade allows dealers to turn vehicle
acquisition into a true profit center, ensuring they secure a
healthy margin at the point of acquisition with a guaranteed offer
backed by Cars Commerce."
Ford Dealers and Lincoln Retailers will gain access to four main
pillars of the AccuTrade solution:
- Advanced Vehicle Appraisal Engine: AccuTrade's
state-of-the-art appraisal technology allows dealers to identify,
find and procure the exact vehicles they want for their lot.
Dealers can provide consumers with 100% confidence in any vehicle
they appraise and simply leverage Cars Commerce's no-risk vehicle
divestment options for any vehicles they've procured that they
don't want to retail.
- Direct Access to Consumer Inventory: Instant Cash Offer
capabilities provide the 26 million in-market consumers on Cars.com
– most of whom have to trade in a vehicle before they buy – instant
and transparent cash offers for their exact vehicle identification
numbers (VINs).
- Integration on Any Dealer Website: The AccuTrade
appraisal engine and Instant Cash Offer capabilities integrate into
any dealer website, as well as in-store processes, providing a
consistent in-store or online vehicle valuation experience for
consumers.
- Plug-in Appraisal with OBD Scanner: Dealers can
generate a VIN-specific valuation with AccuTrade's Onboard
Diagnostics tool, which is a physical product that plugs into the
vehicle right from the service drive or any preferred location and
enables dealers to obtain vehicle condition data directly from the
vehicle's electronic control units to quickly create a tailored and
transparent consumer-facing condition report.
Ford Dealers and Lincoln Retailers that are interested in
learning more about AccuTrade, can visit the Cars Commerce booth
(#3421W) at the 2024 NADA Show in Las
Vegas Feb. 2-4 or visit
www.carscommerce.inc.
ABOUT CARS COMMERCE
Cars Commerce is an
audience-driven technology company empowering automotive that
simplifies everything about buying and selling cars. The Cars
Commerce platform includes the flagship automotive marketplace and
dealer reputation site Cars.com, innovative digital marketing
technology and services from Dealer Inspire, industry-leading
trade-in and appraisal technology from AccuTrade, an exclusive
in-market media network, and powerful and predictive AI
technologies that enable more efficient and profitable retail
operations. Cars Commerce is the essential partner to stay one step
ahead in automotive. Learn more at www.carscommerce.inc.
About FordDirect
FordDirect, headquartered in Dearborn,
Mich., connects the worlds of data, analytics, and
technology to provide best-in-class digital marketing and
advertising solutions exclusively for Ford Dealers and Lincoln
Retailers. FordDirect is a joint venture between Ford Motor Company
and its dealers with a mission of helping Ford and Lincoln dealerships sell more cars and trucks.
Learn more at www.forddirect.com.
¹Internal Cars Commerce Data, Total Instant Offers,
January-December
2023
²Internal Cars Commerce Data, Total Service
Drive Appraisals, January-December
2023
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SOURCE Cars Commerce