BOCA RATON, Fla. -

PSCars.com recently announced it is now licensing three core components of its online vehicle shopping technologies to help dealers offer more compelling features for online shoppers on their own dealership websites.

“When we’ve shared our technologies with dealers, we inevitably hear the same question: ‘Can I get this for my website,’” recalled Dan Kodsi, chief executive officer of PSCars.com.

“Our decision to license these tools provides an answer to meet this market need,” Kodsi added.

PSCars.com’s licensed tools — offered as packages or a la carte add-ons to a dealer’s website — can provide features to help dealers use their websites and social media spaces to sell new and used vehicles.

These tools include:

—New Car Showroom/Vehicle Configurator/Online Negotiator: These PSCars.com tools can give dealers a franchise brand-specific showroom that blends three dimensional and experiential technologies to allow customers the ability to research and configure vehicles by the trim, colors, options and accessories they want.

Dealers can customize the showroom to reflect their store brand and identity and integrate the tool into their current website or as a destination “micro-site” geared to link to online promotions and specials.

In addition, the online negotiator tools can offer a platform for customers and dealers to effectively negotiate and close deals online, including vehicle price, financing, accessories and other elements of a deal.

—Used Car Showroom/Vehicle Configurator/Online Negotiator: The used-vehicle showroom can offer dealers a branded space to feature key units in inventory, as well as special promotions and pricing.

Online shoppers can configure their used vehicle of choice. In cases where a dealer lacks a specific unit, the PSCars.com tool can provide a “we’ll find it for you” function to can assist dealers in sourcing a vehicle for the customer.

The online negotiator feature also can give consumers and dealers a platform to work out and close a deal.

—Mobile/Social Media Applications: These applications can give dealers a turn-key way to offer PSCars.com’s new- and used-vehicle showrooms, research and configuration functionality across smartphones, tablets and other mobile devices.

PSCars.com believes a key component of the market need is dealer realization that their websites are more informational than transactional in nature — particularly when it comes to selling vehicles

According to Mike Pitre, dealer principal at Carleton Ford in Carleton Place, Ontario, PSCars.com has taken his site to a whole new level of interaction, and the dealership has enjoyed a substantial increase in business.

“I’m so pleased that Turbo Marketing Solutions introduced us to PSCars.com,” Pitre stated.

“With our new website and the PSCars.com tools, shoppers are able to research and configure any vehicle they want, negotiate price and terms with us, all without leaving our site, he continued. “It has opened up doors that were not previously available to us.

“We are a smaller dealership, selling around 300 new and used vehicles a year,” Pitre went on to say. “Now all of a sudden, we have the presence of a giant online; the metropolitan auto buyer views us as big as anyone else and business is booming.”

PSCars.com also offers a Facebook application that provides the configurator features and “gives consumers a reason to go to a dealer’s Facebook page,” Kodsi insisted.

The company intends to offer the tools to dealers who participate in its online vehicle shopping portal. The company is offering introductory pricing and multi-brand discounts for dealers who want the online shopping features for their own websites.  

“The licensing of these tools does not change our core mission, which is to transform how online vehicle shoppers can find, configure and purchase vehicles,” Kodsi explained.

“We realized, however, that dealers want to use their websites to play a larger role in selling vehicles,” he continued. “The PSCars.com tools effectively turn a dealer’s website into a virtual auto mall.”