Kingsbridge Autos 2 Posted February 16, 2016 Hi All Been reading posts on this forum for a number of months now but never posted. I have been trading for approx 3 years now on a PAYG basis with AT. However I have now spent a decent amount on a flash website and want customers to be able to click through to it from the dealer website button. My problem is AT are saying i cannot do anything including displaying a link to my website, my logo or warranty logo unless I enter into a monthly contract with them for a minimum of 13 weeks. As a very small dealer holding no more than 7 cars at any one time I feel the cost quote of nearly £500 per month inc VAT seems a lot and limits my options marketing with other websites. Can anyone advise if there is any way to link my website to my ads on AT without committing to a monthly contract just yet? AT customer service seem unhelpful and unwilling to negotiate or be flexible in any way shape or form which I was quiet disappointed with, Thanks Eli Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Phil H 124 Posted February 16, 2016 call your dealer name knightsbridgeautos.co.uk then at least your web address appears in the advert and customers can copy and paste it into their browser Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Kingsbridge Autos 2 Posted February 16, 2016 Great idea Phil. Recently I have had customers asking me do I supply warranty despite it stating in my ads that I do. However when Warranty wise rang Autotrader with my dealer ID and asked to use their logo on my ads they again refused point black unless I was on contract!. I wouldn't mind but everything seems to be extra... 20 images instead of 9£££, priority listings on mobile devices £££ Am thinking of moving across to gumtree or ebay but find it harder for my kind of stock which is 10-30k mostly. Have used piston heads a number of times for performance cars but never seem to get anything out of it. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Phil H 124 Posted February 17, 2016 (edited) welcome to the wonder full world of auto trader where everything comes at a price. You've got to explore all avenues and don't think that if you ditch auto trader your sales will dry up. Speak to Jim Reid about Facebook he and others are doing very well from it for a fraction of the cost of at. Try using this one carsnip.com it's free and Alistair who runs it is a really nice guy and he understands what us dealers want and need. If we all back it this could be the one to really dent autotraders dominance and greed. Edited February 17, 2016 by Phil H 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
James Baggott 227 Posted February 17, 2016 We've got Facebook speaking at CDX16 this year about how they can help dealers. They'll be giving a key note speech at the May 24 event. Tickets are free and available here https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/cdx16-car-dealer-conference-automotive-industry-expo-tickets-19946892693?ref=ebtnebregn Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Kingsbridge Autos 2 Posted February 17, 2016 Thanks Chaps, have seen a lot of good reports about using FB have set up a page and getting my web guy to link my site to fb, instagram and twitter see if soem sort of auto updating to those social media sites will drive sales Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Wood235 36 Posted February 19, 2016 Just remember, there's still lots of life without Autotrader! We used them for 12+yrs and now the last couple without them has been just as good. It's just placing the money and ads in the right place. For us it was a chance to push local newspapers more. We are now saving a fortune and doing similar sale numbers! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sparky 274 Posted February 20, 2016 11 hours ago, Wood235 said: Just remember, there's still lots of life without Autotrader! We used them for 12+yrs and now the last couple without them has been just as good. It's just placing the money and ads in the right place. For us it was a chance to push local newspapers more. We are now saving a fortune and doing similar sale numbers! Once I get my stock back in order after a few busy months I'm thinking of doing a bit of local paper advertising for the first time in god knows how many years. Been keeping an eye on a few dealers similar to me (local and national) who are not on AT but who do put well put together local advertising and they are doing the business. This discussion is worthy of a new thread me thinks 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
James Baggott 227 Posted February 20, 2016 Having worked in local papers for a long time and seen their classified advertising and motors sections dry up I find this very interesting. Local newspaper readers are predominantly older, retired people who have always bought the paper. Do you know any 18/30s who buy a local paper that they haven't been mentioned in? Doesn't happen these days. With that in mind I would be interested to see what response dealers got from these adverts in local papers and whether they were different to who we believe read these publications. Any dealers out there using local papers already that could comment? 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
umesh 336 Posted February 20, 2016 James, I use local press all the time and do get very , very good response ! , its not a magic wand every time you tick as ad in it sells , however to me its great return on Investment - its about being consistent and also depends on what message you're sending out. And I know we all think its always the 'older' generation sold two cars couple of weeks ago to a guy who's about 45 , and a couple mid 50's from press ad ! , so not 'older' in my eyes. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BennyT 0 Posted February 20, 2016 Is it really just older people that use the local papers though? I agree that most likely it is when you think 'physical newspaper' on the coffee table. But, surely most papers have an online version that lots of the younger generations are using. Ben Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sparky 274 Posted February 20, 2016 20 minutes ago, umesh said: James, I use local press all the time and do get very , very good response ! , its not a magic wand every time you tick as ad in it sells , however to me its great return on Investment - its about being consistent and also depends on what message you're sending out. And I know we all think its always the 'older' generation sold two cars couple of weeks ago to a guy who's about 45 , and a couple mid 50's from press ad ! , so not 'older' in my eyes. And here was me thinking your middle name was 'digital' Umesh By my estimation, if you looked at the area which my local paper distributed to I would estimate that under 30% use AT, and that's being generous. It's fair to say that it's an area often seen as a short straw by AT reps. Many dealers (both new and used) over here still place a heavy emphasis on local advertising so maybe I've been missing a trick in dismissing it all these years. I don't know about anybody else, but my local estate agents have not given up on the local paper, far from it. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
umesh 336 Posted February 20, 2016 Sparky ! learning everyday .. Estate agents .. the buyers journey may well start with the local paper - then digital , like some of my customers - spotted a car in the paper - then checked my website - then bought..he says ..:) , ! Is it not strange how all of us get the 'Car Dealer Magazine' on line ..but majority love to actually get the one in the post so that we can read/digest things better .. or is that just my age thing sitting at home flicking pages ? Think in reality we have to be EVERYWHERE .. Online, paper , poster boards, buses, radio , ...but all down to ROI -AND deep pockets 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Kingsbridge Autos 2 Posted February 20, 2016 I personally feel printed press has a limited lifespan and will dwindle away eventually. Just look and the Independant newspaper that has ceased print after some 30 odd years going down from half a million sold copies a day at its peak to less than thirty thousand recently. Most news items I will look at the likes of the BBC website or if am bored and just general rubbish will suffice the daily mail online always delivers. Having said all that, the papers do target a specific audience as there are those that still refuse or don't want the internet or mobile phone and still rely on a directory such as the Yellow pages and papers for their information. These people will mostly be older and will not require or want any sort of finance. To me that seems like a very limited market and can only be tapped into through your local press. Most of these if they want a car I imagine will drive round to their nearest dealership to look at one. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Wood235 36 Posted February 24, 2016 Newspapers is our main source of interest, we still sell a lot to youngsters who have just passed their test. years ago we were amongst about another dozen dealers advertising in the papers, now we are one of 2 & sometimes 3. I think this has helped us to be a minority. I agree it could dwindle or change in the future but let's just enjoy it whilst it's still here and we can advertise our 40 cars for such a reasonable cost! 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
