ATLANTA -

After rolling out its new Overdrive homepage advertising solution earlier this year, AutoTrader.com revealed some enhancements to the interactive tool it thinks will “increase exposure” of a dealer’s inventory online.

The site has launched campaign-specific advertising solutions called “’Overdrive Dealer Solutions’ that complement OEM Overdrive advertising buys,” officials explained.

The OEM Overdrive solution — an interactive advertising experience that enables a limited number of OEM advertisers to launch a one-week custom experience on the AutoTrader.com homepage — will now enable its dealer customers to extend the impact of this OEM tool to their own store.

"With a few OEM Overdrive campaigns under our belts, we have seen the phenomenal impact that they have had on shopper activity, and we’re thrilled to bring this innovative new solution to dealers," said Alan Smith, AutoTrader.com’s senior vice president of dealer sales.

"At AutoTrader.com, we are continuing to develop new ways to increase the value of our advertising offerings, and shopper activity for our customers. This latest solution enables dealers to better benefit from their OEM’s ad spend on AutoTrader.com, as well as test-drive our best new car advertising tools, to drive more traffic to their inventory,” he continued.

And how does the new enhancement work for dealers?

First, after an OEM buys the week-long Overdrive advertising solution, dealers who are a part of that OEM’s franchise have the opportunity to purchase a short-term Overdrive Dealer Solution.

“For 35 days starting with the launch of the OEM campaign, dealers gain access to the best new-car inventory merchandising solution available and reap the additional benefits of increased brand exposure from the OEM campaign, ultimately driving more shoppers to their inventory online,” company officials explained.

The solution, which is tailored for franchised dealers, provides exposure for new-car inventory online for a short term surrounding an OEM Overdrive advertising buy, the company contends.

“This timeframe enables dealers to capture both the initial and residual boost in shopper activity from the OEM’s Overdrive campaign,” officials added.

And the company shared they are already receiving positive feedback from dealers utilizing the program.

In the Overdrive campaign featuring the Volkswagen Passat, which ran in April, Volkswagen dealers who leveraged the Overdrive Dealer Solutions package saw “significant” results.

Breaking it down in numbers, the daily average of shopper views of dealers’ inventory on the Search Results Page increased 225 percent.

Moreover, conversion from the Search Results Page to the Vehicle Details Page also increased. Daily average views of Vehicle Detail Pages for participating dealers increased 140 percent, the company added.

Ad Opportunities

Delving deeper into the advertising opportunities the tool offers, specifically, the tool includes AutoTrader.com’s Front-Line Listings, as well as a Search in Progress (SIP) ad, and select packages also include a dynamic skyscraper ad.

“Front-Line Listings is a new-car advertising product that provides dealers with more real estate on the search results page and effective new-car merchandising features that enable them to highlight information that influences new car shoppers the most — like payment details and manufacturer specials,” the company contends.

Furthermore, SIP ads appear in between the search form and when the results are displayed.

Lastly, the skyscraper ad automatically pulls in relevant photos and information from the dealer’s inventory online, the company explained.

For more information on the Overdrive solution, as well as how it worked for Chevrolet, see the Auto Remarketing story here.