EPV

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Posts posted by EPV

  4. Posted

    2 hours ago, Rory RSC said:

    Who is responsible for setting a customers expectations on cars like this ? Answer - You. 

    Promise the world they will be back. Being brutal, honest and saying you never want to see them again doing them a favour selling it to them with profit opportunity etc etc can mitigate that. Not everyone is out to screw you. Again be selective.

    This is effectively it, in a nutshell.

    I took a car in yesterday, scrap money but it's fine runs well and straight, will do someone a turn, it just has issues that are too costly to solve, no cool air when warm, cruise control, couple of odd noises etc but i'll give it a new ticket and if it passes, retail it out, with a description of the faults, qualify the person on the phone to make sure they have read the advert and if I hear words like "warranty" and "can my mechanic look it over" I'll tell them it isn't for them and move them along. You're not doing anyone a diservice by telling them the truth and you're keeping the right side of the law by selling a servicable vehicle. 

     

  5. Posted

    2 minutes ago, NOACROSS said:

    Hi James - it's your ball and we must play by your rules of course and I know most do.  Please reconsider your decision and perhaps impose a suspension?  This fine forum needs balance and, I for one will miss the person in question's input - whether I agreed with him or not. Quite often not, but still...

     

    He's had enough chances mate, I've had a warning myself (as did he, at the same time) yet I've managed to somehow avoid the need to call relative newcomers to the trade or forum unnecessary names and funnily enough, I've not had a warning since. No one says we have to behave like nuns but he's behaved like a twat, several times and now he's gone. 

  11. Posted

    14 minutes ago, ak071 said:

    yes, i think this is similar to terms and conditions in a mobile phone contract for example, small print, hidden away, hover over and may be a chance you see it, cant hover over it on mobile phone or tablet, with £1.99 per month line rental then increasing to £1.99 a day

    Doesn’t matter really mate it’s there. That’s all they need. 

  12. Posted

    4 minutes ago, ak071 said:

    Ok, everybody entitled to their opinion for sure,

    I understand your points, going off the points you mention if you had a vehicle that was 1 owner, full main agent history in excellent condition, with a decent spec, it would most likely fit in the high price bracket, because of what it is , and the buying cost,

    Why would Autotrader palce a red marker next to it, RED, ASSOCIATED WITH LETHAL DANGER, WARNING, PREVIOUSLY USED FOR CAT C, and if you missed that we have a speedometer with you revving off the screen, i think all this would make most people think twice as the psychology behind the illustrations would deter them, 

     

    They are actually not clear at all, the only clear thing is the colour of the price marker, the speedometer, and the word, low, good, fair and HIGH

    Read the link. Properly. 
     

    The guide prices we provide takes into account the average specification of a car and will give you some idea of what the car might be worth. However, many factors can influence value, including:

    Overall condition

    Cars of similar ages can have vastly different levels of wear and damage.

    Number of owners

    Typically, cars with more previous owners are worth less, especially if they lack documentation too.

    Optional extras

    Features like sat navs, leather seats and panoramic sunroofs can bump up the value.

    Colour

    Certain colours can be more desirable, depending on current trends and fashions.

    Service history

    Cars are worth more with a fully-documented service history.

    MOT

    Buyers often pay more for a long MOT.

     

    It literally could not be clearer what AT base their valuations on and what affects the price of cars, up or down  

     

  13. Posted

    7 minutes ago, ak071 said:

    Im totally with you with this, I think there is a legal challenge relating to Autotrader price indicators, but from a consumer prospective,

    A Good price indicator for example being used for a vehicle with no service history and 10+ owners and a huge list of MOT advisories This is clearly misleading customers as these are not taken into account with the indicators. The reality is there must be customers who have been stung by this but we will never know who these people are as they do not have a forum like this to post on, Autotrader will certainly know who they are but will not share this information, The number however small will definitely exist

    I totally disagree with the points that Autotrader are fixed on not removing price indicators, They are a business, they are there to make money, not help dealers or offer customers transparency, plain simple make money, bring more people to the directory, hence more sales, they believe this will bring more customers to them or help them to keep up with other platforms who implement price indicators,

    One thing is for sure, if a few hundred dealers all spoke up and made themselves heard at the Autotrader headquarters, im sure they would get the result they want, unfortunately this wont happen as most dealers are concerned about the now and not where this is heading. its a shame,

    the autotrader terms and conditions allow them to cancel your account if you take legal action against them, the solution here is only if dealers formed an organisation to safeguard themselves against obstacles like this, will it happen, no, as most are struggling and happy head is above water while others are sinking 

    They aren't misleading customers. 

    A car with no service history and 10+ owners and a huge list of advisories isn't what they are basing their valuation on. They are very clear on what they base their "good condition" on and are clear as to what devalues a car.

    https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-valuation/valuation-conditions

    It's not up to AT to determine every car's number of owners, history, MOT advisories and so on. They take a benchmark of condition, apply a price to it and wallop. Clearly if they have already told the customer that higher owners, lack of history, short MOT's etc devalue a car then they have done as much as they need to.

    Again, as I said above, they haven't just done something without taking cognisance of what they are doing legally. 

    7 minutes ago, ak071 said:

    Have you spoken to Autotrader reps? Have you heard any of the masterclasses? Heard any of the branding, marketing directors? if you have you will have gathered they are completely deluded 99% of the time, consulted legal experts, i dont think so

    Massive organisations means nothing, Car Supermarkets are massive, is the quality of the cars, sales teams very good, im sure you will agree no, same as autotrader, employ staff who are experts at talking, only issue is they talk total nonsense.

    The revenue they make is not because of their staff, it is from dealers who are doing their job right, not them 

    Right yeah, I mean, it's account managers and masterclass takers who deal with corporate governance, legal issues, HR and so on, right? I've spoken to plenty of account managers. They all read off the same song sheet. Who writes that song sheet? People paid a lot of money. Do the people who pay these salaries allow their employees to just spout whatever, say whatever, do whatever etc? 

    The revenue they make is from a small but very rich percentage of the dealer pie. Do you think they have 30 data scientists sitting in Manchester costing over a million a year in salaries just for shits and giggles? Or is it because they can sell products like Retail Accelerator at tens of thousands a month to franchises and supermarkets? If they were generally concerned about the impact of price markers on small dealers, why have they done this? The reality is, they don't give a toss about people like me. I don't make them very much money. Why would they.

  14. Posted

    Just now, beckly car sales said:

    well actually I'm not sure AT thought about it or the legality of it at all really.Why would they introduce a policy which is according to nearly everyone on here going to hurt them.

    You're muddling up legalities and whats best for AT. 

    There is no question at all they would have sought expensive legal advice, if you have ever worked in a large organisation, in any industry, you will know this. If you haven't, I have, trust me, AT take legal advice every time their tea ladies have a fag.

    Whether the price markers hurt small indys (which is what mostly everyone on here is) doesn't matter to AT. They make FORTUNES by selling data to big franchises and supermarkets alone, never mind the revenue from the advertising.

    • Like 1

  15. Posted · Edited by EPV

    11 minutes ago, beckly car sales said:

    cap guide is on items that are not being offered for sale at a determined price and will be decided by market prices on the day in the hall. AT price indicators are their judgement on a fixed price set by the seller on an item he owns .It is very different

    well they robbed me for sure

    It's not. The prices for the most part are not fixed. They are governed by market forces, unlike a tin of beans at Tesco.

    AT price indicators are a visual display of whether a car is under or over priced in accordance with their valuation, or guide. That's all. They are not claiming to have an RRP or MRP, it even says when you hover over their actual price marker;

    "We've compared the price to our Auto Trader Valuation and rated it a low price compared to similar cars on the market. Check the vehicle description or ask the seller to understand why it's priced below market."

    They are saying "we have valued this car at £xyz based on similar cars and this particular car advertised is lower than the valuation"

    They are doing nothing wrong legally, by venturing an opinion and opining that other cars are either over or under that price.

    Don't you think that a massive organisation like AT would have consulted legal experts? And you think Trading Standards (who are little more than glorified Citizens Advice workers) know better than a £300 per hour solicitor that Autotrader probably hired?

    Nobody forces AT on you, nobody made you sell all your stock and buy something else, we all learn each day in this industry and make our own decisions. Live and die by the sword. 

     

  16. Posted

    16 minutes ago, beckly car sales said:

    I never said they were overpriced.They make their market value and i don't mind paying it thats not the point . And when i said having no price markers made no difference to ad views that was against cars with good markers. Unfortunately AT are now wise to manuel removal of price markers so that option has now gone

    EH?

    On your first post you said that removing the markers made no difference to the ad views although you didn’t say the markers were previously “good” 

  17. Posted

    1 minute ago, beckly car sales said:

    so I'm supposed to let Autotrader price indicator dictate what i can and can't sell?

    Eh? You said you can't buy them for less than £500-£1000 over cap clean, what has that got to do with AT? If there are supermarkets or large franchises around you that are selling the same stock for cheaper (because they can and do) then maybe it's time to stop overpricing cars (you said they were over priced not me) and sell something that works better for you?

    You've also said that removing the price indicators made little difference to the advert views? So if your photos are good, your reputation and reviews etc are all good, you can't buy the stock you want to sell at the right price, the price markers don't seem to make a difference to your ad views (and enquires) I can't help wondering if you are trying to sell over priced cars to people that can go and get a cheaper one?

     

    And FWIW, I get 30.6 views vs 17.9 according to my portal.

  20. Posted

    4 hours ago, BHM said:

    Tbh do views make a difference anyway? Advertise something perceived as sporty, aspirational or just downright cheap & I guarantee you’ll get bags of views. The majority of viewers are just that, viewers.

    Not buyers, not in any sense of the word. They’re either not in a financial position to buy, not mentally at the end of their purchase ‘journey’ & many are just viewers practicing their hobby of looking at cars. Those that get over-excited sometimes ask the “Last price?” question massaging their egos in the deluded belief they may make the purchase. They’re kidding themselves.

    Yes and no.

    All that matters is buyers, as you quite right say. But you'd be a dimwit to believe that on balance, more views don't equate to more sales. Unless of course it's as you say, sporty or very cheap.

     

    I'd rather have some sort of 7 seater or estate or popular hatch with 30 ad views a day rather than a small car with 5 ad views a day.

  21. Posted

    2 hours ago, beckly car sales said:

    Hi, all the cars are minis and fiat 500 and have forecourt desirability readings for my area of 85 plus.Great photos, but all overpriced because AT say they are ==i just had an ad removed by AT because i had removed their indicator manually

    I once had a Skoda Octavia, out of the box this thing, estate, manual, diesel, perfect. AT desirability rating of 95, a days to turn index of 33 days, and I priced it to 100% of market. Took me 105 days to sell, after steadily dropping the price to retain 100% of market.

    I recently sold a Mercedes E Class, with a desirability rating of 45, days to turn 61, priced at 105% of market and sold in 9 days, could have sold it twice over. 

    The metrics are a good guide but if you're looking to them to justify why your cars aren't selling when they should be, I think you're barking up the wrong tree. 

    You are selling two of the most readily available cars and my understanding that these particular vehicles are sold on price, usually. So if you are saying all your cars are overpriced (relative to others on that platform) then maybe that is where your answer lies. But you know your market better than me. Try lowering the price of one of your cars for 2 days and see if that makes a significant difference?

     

  22. Posted

    1 hour ago, beckly car sales said:

    I'm trying to understand why I'm only getting 8 views a day on literally every car i advertise, no matter what the price position. Its awful compared to other dealers and private ads

    I'm trying to understand why I'm only getting 8 views a day on literally every car i advertise, no matter what the price position. Its awful compared to other dealers and private ads

    Stock profile for your area? Bad photos? Over priced?  Not enough photos? I don’t know if that’s the reason but it may be one of several reasons 

  24. Posted

    55 minutes ago, NacMan said:

    You stated that similar doesnt count however look on your portal it specifically says vs similar cars.....

    Tell you what fella, ring your account manager. It’s what I usually do when I have a question and they usually give me the answer. Which is what happened when I asked the same question you asked and they gave me the answer I gave you. 

  25. Posted

    26 minutes ago, NacMan said:

    BMW 2 SERIES M SPORT 2015 65 70K MILES, WHITE, M SPORT PLUS LEATHER SEATS, CONVERTIBLE ETC

    Mate I’m not here to argue with you or for you to prove me wrong or vice versa, if you prefer to believe that AT are giving you fake views then I’ll leave you to crack on. I’ve told you why it is, up to you isn’t it.