Eriqson

It's actually the other way round. The buying/selling of cars at a reduced cost is an ancillary benefit, not the main driver... Buying/selling of cars is just one of the added benefits giving further justification to a subscription-based platform. I agree, AT is very embedded in the car market. I don't think they are likely to be dislodged anytime soon, but there is room for an alternative service if it is positioned correctly. Again, a major challenge no doubt...

Yep! Completely agree... Schoolboy error! I won't be doing that again.

It's is essentially, but maybe the service is more suited for private buyers and sellers for now as it means they avoid paying significantly high upload and final transaction fees on the current sites. Perhaps once I get the site to the point of high traffic it would have more appeal for dealerships... chicken and egg scenario!

Thanks for the insight David! I have factored in that people mostly will stick to what they know. I'm also under no illusions that I have my work cut out in developing an effective awareness strategy that would drive traffic to the respective services I'll be hosting. The fact it's not going to happen overnight is an understatement, but I do see it as achievable... Just to clarify, in so far as used car purchases, all I'll be doing is putting buyers and sellers in touch, where car details/descriptions can be advertised/viewed, run DVLA/HPI checks etc. Beyond that, everything else happens offline. This might clarify what I mean by not being in direct competition as I know other sites also handle financial transactions up to a point, etc. You're spot on, I know little about autotrader and other sites, and I'm not going to pretend I know more than I actually do. However, I am taking a different approach by offering a simplified/skeletal service. I'm interested in the traffic; while they're interested in the actual deals. If the users are already on my site, car purchases is an occasional requirement - which is why it's a value-add, just like other services I will be providing (and already paid for).

users To my cave! Love it :)))) Must use that sometime... I agree, it's not easy to shift traffic from autotrader, or any other site for that matter; then again I'm not in direct competition with them. Social media users have been expressing concern over the monetization/exploitation of user privacy and content. What is well known is that users have been leaving the likes of FB in droves; (might not seem that evident as other users have been taking their place). With the right cocktail (from the dark cave!) of value-add services and guaranteed protection of user rights/privacy, social media users just might be willing to get onboard a subscription-based platform. Some say it's a huge gamble. Everything is, but i do have the survey to back it up. I just need to put together the right plan and one hell of an execution strategy... So providing a service for converging used car buyers and sellers is just consequential, not the ultimate goal. it's just one of many services to justify subscribing to a social media platform... I'm just a concerned citizen

Ha ha!!! I saw the brumz thread; I have been doing my homework.... It's not pie in the sky, and I'm not asking for investment money. The fancy terms: Convergence of buyers and sellers - perhaps I should have said potential buyers and sellers as the platform is not solely targeted at people in the car market, but the overall theme is that the respective services are focused on the movement people and goods (...no big boat in Spain) Targeted demographics - This one is accurate; each service has it's own value proposition targeted and a clear demographic. They are subscription-based; again a fraction of what they already pay, but crucially there are also a number other novel services as well as an underlying privacy incentive why users will be willing to subscribe - I've already done the survey and know how to make this work. Pool of subscribers - speaks for itself This is not a case of trying to squeeze out as much revenue from dealers as possible - it is of course mutually beneficial! ...and I can't swim so still not looking for a big boat! I've looked into gumtree/ebay/autotrader/etc., and I see improvements and simplifications that could be made all round and yet remain productive; the same goes for some of the other services I'm incorporating. The monthly subscription for dealerships will be somewhere between £18-£25/month; yet to finalize the model... (...no two up two down cheap semi either!) I understand the scepticism, which is why I chose the awesome title "Yet another platform..."! But don't be too concerned, you'll be able to make sound judgments once the service goes live. The platform is still under design which is I why I'm looking to engage now in order to bake the service into the platform rather than it being an add-on. By the way, there are also no additional fees/charges to prospective car buyers beyond the platform subscription (which includes a host of bundled services) - and added feature/financial benefits will be incorporated as further incentives for car buyers. No one is being nickel and dimed on this platform... I'm happy to take any questions/queries on this. Alternatively, perhaps better if i come back once the service is up and running so you could judge for yourselves then

Hello everyone! Newbie here... To the dealers in the house! How does a subscription-based platform sound with no additional fees to buyers or sellers/dealers? The value proposition is that there will be no additional charges/fees regardless of business volumes, and the subscription would be a fraction of what you currently pay on autotrader, gumtree or ebay. I'm developing a platform with aggregated services, one of them being a convergence of buyers and sellers of used automobiles; the other host of services are set to pull in a number of targeted demographics based on public mobility - so there will be a large pool of subscribers to advertise your goods to. All work relating to integrating and publishing your content will be taking on by us, and there will also be a reasonable trial period. Would this be of interest? Kind regards, Eriqson!