Ebay goes live across the United States with it’s Local Market services.
Being located in one of the regions eBay was allowing dealers to test their Local Market service in beta, I jumped on board since we do a fair amount of eBay business with the national listings. eBay is a tricky market for Manufacturer dealers. You find yourself competing with a lot of independants that are able to run their business with little to no overhead. If they sell a car and make $500-1000, they are in business.
So far, the gross that I have made on the cars that I have sold on eBay were were nothing to get excited about. I always described eBay motors as a market between wholesale and retail, and closer to the wholesale side.
Here is a copy of the press release:
SAN JOSE, Calif.–eBay Motors today announced the launch of eBay Motors Local Market – a new subscription-based service that enables automotive dealers to easily upload and list their entire used-car lot for one low price.
The new service, which rolled out at the 90th National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) Convention and Exposition in Las Vegas, allows automotive dealers to showcase their entire used-vehicle inventory including late model used-vehicles to customers within a 100-mile radius of the dealership.
“eBay Motors Local Market is designed to help dealers engage the growing number of consumers migrating online to find their next vehicle,” said Rob Chesney, senior director of eBay Motors. “Today’s consumers are demanding a one-stop automotive shopping experience that provides access to deep local inventory, the ability to negotiate price and the option of an in-person test drive.”
eBay Motors Local Market provides unmatched access to an enormous audience of buyers and offers dealers the opportunity to use eBay Motors to generate leads locally.
“The eBay Motors Local Market service has allowed me to list my entire inventory on eBay Motors for buyers to view,” said Internet Business Development Director Rick Namm, Infiniti of Coconut Creek, Fla. “This ultimately drives potential customers to our eBay Store and thus drives additional sales.”
The $1,000 monthly eBay Motors Local Market subscription covers listing fees for an unlimited amount of vehicles, with no individual insertion fee per vehicle. As with traditional eBay Motors listings, a $50 sale fee applies for vehicles that sell online wherein the buyer benefits from eBay’s extensive online buyer protection programs and dealers benefit by building transaction feedback that strengthens their eBay reputation. There is no contract or commitment required to use eBay Motors Local Market. Dealers adopting the eBay Motors Local Market product select from a number of certified eBay Motors solution providers such as Auction123, Dealer Specialties or eBizAutos to list their used vehicle inventory in bulk online.
All eBay Motors Local Market listings utilize eBay’s Best Offer format. Buyers submit their Best Offer, which the dealer can accept, reject or counter-offer to build buyer commitment and even negotiate the final price online. Buyers may also find a vehicle locally on eBay Motors and choose to go into the dealership to negotiate and close the transaction in person.
I heard Priority Toyota was using it down in Virginia, but it interesting none of their competitors are.
