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AUTOTRADER.COM
AND EXPERIAN AUTOMOTIVE INCREASE CONSUMER ACCESS TO VEHICLE
HISTORY INFORMATION
Embedded AutoCheck Reports Offer Merchandising Tool to
Sellers and Confidence to Buyers
AutoTrader.com,
the world’s largest automotive marketplace, and Experian, a
global business solutions company, today announced the launch of
a new merchandising tool for used-car dealers. Sellers will now
have the option to embed links to the industry’s most robust
vehicle history reports directly inside their classified
advertising or auction-style listings. This “FreeLink”
feature, made available through Experian’s AutoCheck
solution, gives AutoTrader.com dealers an affordable way to
differentiate their listings by providing important vehicle
history information free-of-charge to consumers.
All AutoTrader.com
dealers now have access to the AutoCheck FreeLink feature. They
simply sign up for Experian’s AutoCheck solution online and
select whether to embed history reports for all vehicle listings
or only those qualifying as “AutoCheck Certified.”
After the sign-up, participating dealers’ current and future
listings on AutoTrader.com are automatically linked to history
reports and made available without charge to potential car buyers.
Enrolled dealers can also access vehicle reports at www.autocheck.com
for in-store merchandising
and trade-in valuations.
“When
listing a vehicle, it is important to provide as much information
about the history of each vehicle as possible,” said Kevin
Laten, partner/owner, The Automotive Group. “It is a
valuable sales tool as it gives customers and dealers the
confidence they are looking for when buying and selling a car.”
An independent
consumer study conducted by Morpace International found that 76
percent of used car purchasers considered a vehicle history
report very or extremely important. Shoppers are more
confident with this trusted 3rd-party information, making
Experian Automotive’s AutoCheck FreeLink a powerful sales
tool.
“Vehicle
history reports have quickly become a staple in the online
automotive market because used car shoppers want reassurance of
vehicle quality,” said Chip Perry, president and chief
executive officer of AutoTrader.com. “Integrating Experian
Automotive’s industrial strength AutoCheck reports via
FreeLink into the classified or auction-style listing gives
consumers increased confidence in our dealers’ inventory and
empowers them to make a purchase decision.”
AutoTrader.com’s
database of 2.2 million vehicles attracts more than 7 million
unique visitors per month. A recent J.D. Power and
Associates Used Autoshopper.com Study finds that AutoTrader.com
controls the single largest share (28 percent) of used vehicles
found online and subsequently purchased.
“Our goal
is to drive car sales by making vehicle history information
accessible to every used car shopper,” said Scott Waldron,
president of Experian Automotive. “By integrating AutoCheck
FreeLink with AutoTrader.com’s extensive dealer network and
consumer base, we are taking a major step toward this goal.
AutoCheck is powered by Experian’s National Vehicle Database
which houses information on more than 450 million vehicles.”
About
AutoTrader.com
AutoTrader.com, created in 1997 and headquartered in
Atlanta, Ga., is the Internet’s leading auto classifieds
marketplace and consumer information website. AutoTrader.com
aggregates in a single location more than 2.2 million vehicle
listings from 40,000 dealers and 250,000 private owners, which
provide the largest selection of vehicles attracting more than 7
million unique visitors every month. Through innovative
merchandising products such as multiple photos and auction-style
listings and comprehensive search functionality, AutoTrader.com
unites buyer and seller online – dramatically improving the
way people research, locate and advertise vehicles.
AutoTrader.com
is a majority-owned subsidiary of Manheim Auctions, Inc., the
world's largest operator of wholesale auto auctions since 1945.
Manheim Auctions, a wholly owned subsidiary of media conglomerate
Cox Enterprises, Inc., is AutoTrader.com's principal stockholder
and a key investor along with Landmark Communications, ADP, Inc.,
and the venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers.
For more information, visit http://www.autotrader.com
or call 1-800-353-9350.
About
Experian Automotive
Experian Automotive delivers information solutions to
manufacturers, dealers, finance and insurance companies, and
consumers. Experian helps automotive clients increase
customer loyalty, target and win new business, and make better
lending and vehicle purchase decisions. Its National
Vehicle Database, housing more than 450 million vehicles, along
with Experian’s credit, consumer and business information
assets, meets the industry’s growing demand for an
integrated information source. Experian’s advanced
decision support services help clients turn this information into
improved business results.
For more
information on Experian Automotive and its suite of solutions,
visit our web site at www.experianautomotive.com.
About
Experian
Experian provides strategic support to organizations around the
world. It helps its clients target, acquire, manage and develop
profitable customer relationships. It does this by
combining its advanced decision support and outsourcing services
with information on consumers, businesses, motor vehicles and
property. Experian works with more than 40,000 clients across
diverse industries, including financial services,
telecommunications, health care, insurance, retail and catalog,
automotive, manufacturing, leisure, utilities, property, e-commerce
and government. Millions of consumers rely on Experian’s
consumer credit services to meet their financial management needs.
Experian is a subsidiary of GUS plc and has headquarters in
Nottingham, UK, and Costa Mesa, Calif. It has a 175-year
history and unbroken sales growth over the past 23 years. Its 13,000
people support clients in more than 60 countries. Annual sales
exceed $1.9 billion.
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