SAN FRANCISCO -

OPENLANE announced a collaborative partnership with automotive solutions provider Auction123 to create the Virtual Showroom Service. This new service is a lead generation tool that enables participating dealers to display thousands of off-lease, fleet, rental, repossessed and dealer-consigned vehicles listed on OPENLANE.com each day on their own websites.

Powered by Auction 123, OPENLANE’s Virtual Showroom Service seamlessly integrates with the participating dealer’s existing website, enabling the dealership to display a searchable database of vehicles that have been recently listed for sale on OPENLANE’s wholesale, open auction website, according to officials. 

The participating dealer can filter thousands of recently listed off-lease, fleet, rental, repossessed and dealer-consigned vehicles by multiple attributes, including geographic location, year, make, model, price and distance. This enables the participating dealerships to tailor the service to their own market and display on their existing website only those vehicles that best suit their particular customer base, according to the company. 

Because OPENLANE.com is a purely wholesale auction, the wholesale auction price is not displayed through the Virtual Showroom Service and retail customers cannot purchase vehicles through the OPENLANE.com open auction. Instead, the participating dealer uses the Virtual Showroom Service as a lead generation tool. If a retail consumer expresses interest regarding a vehicle to the dealer, the dealer handles all communications and questions directly with the potential customer.  

The participating dealer would then purchase the vehicle through the OPENLANE.com open auction just as the dealer would for any other vehicle purchased through the auction. 

Officials clarified that “The dealer’s purchase of the vehicle cannot be contingent on the retail customer’s interest in or subsequent purchase of the vehicle. In addition, because the OPENLANE.com open auction is a live auction, there is no guarantee that the desired vehicle will be available for purchase at the time the dealer elects to purchase it.”  

“We’re really excited to be partnering with Auction123 to offer this new lead generation service to dealers,” said Andrew Iorgulescu, vice president of business development at OPENLANE. The Virtual Showroom service is just one of a growing number of innovative technology solutions that OPENLANE will introduce this year to help make it easier for dealers to buy and sell used vehicles.”

“Auction123 aims to consistently produce technology that assists dealers in streamlining their businesses and provides their customers easier ways to find the vehicles they want,” said Auction123 chief executive officer Ray Basha. “By creating the Virtual Showroom service with OPENLANE, we’ve created a powerful lead generation tool for dealers.”

As a special incentive for the National Automobile Dealers Association’s convention, dealers who sign up for the Virtual Showroom Service at NADA will receive the first month of service in the program free, with a three month commitment and monthly service fee of $349/month after the first month of service. 

OPENLANE will also be presenting demonstrations of the service at booth 4173N at NADA.

For more information on the Virtual Showroom offering, please contact OPENLANE directly at virtualshowroom@openlane.com or call (866) 969-0321.

OPENLANE Launches Mobile Website

In other company news coming out at NADA, OPENLANE announced a brand new mobile site optimized for Apple’s iPhone/iPod touch and Google’s Android-based smart phones that will give dealers access to its online wholesale auction at any time from the convenience of multiple mobile devices.

In addition to having 24/7 access to high-quality wholesale used inventory on www.openlane.com, OPENLANE has extended its online access touch points so that busy dealers now have the ability to check in on account status, track auctions and search and bid on vehicles directly from their mobile phones.

Dealers who navigate to OPENLANE.com from their Apple iOS (iPhone and iPod Touch) and Google Android devices (versions 2.0 or higher) will automatically be redirected to the mobile Web application.  

“Having this functionality and access to OPENLANE.com gives me a huge competitive advantage and provides me the ability to bid on vehicles that I have been watching,” explained Kraig Quisenberry, of Bay Ford. “Now, I will have full confidence that I can get the vehicles I need from OPENLANE at any time from anywhere, which makes my entire sales process that much more efficient.”

Clark Hammond, OPENLANE’s director of product management, added, “We know that dealers are leading increasingly mobile lifestyles and are constantly on-the-go. With the explosive growth in the mobile landscape, the challenge is developing an offering that provides the greatest amount of reach. By utilizing HTML5 and CSS3, we’re able to provide a lightweight cross-platform mobile Web application with a unified experience that takes advantage of gestures and other features commonly found on modern smartphones.”

The mobile site includes the following features: 

—Quick and easy access to vehicles that are being bid on; vehicles that are watched; vehicles the dealer has expressed interested in, as well as vehicles recently purchased and/or lost through the Watchlist.

—The ability to search through thousands of vehicles via the most commonly used search attributes.

—High resolution photographs of the vehicle exterior and interior.

—Full vehicle condition reports, damage descriptions, equipment, tire condition, promotions and any additional disclosures.

—The ability to purchase vehicles listed in all of the available formats (auction, buy now, submit an offer or interest). In addition, dealers have full access to payment methods, transport by CarsArrive and other services such as Post-Sale Inspections and Buy Back Guarantee.

“We created this mobile optimized site for our valued customers because we realize always-on accessibility to the auction is important for dealers to remain competitive,” said Peter Kelly, president of OPENLANE. “They need any time access to purchasing options to find the best vehicles to fill their lots and now with OPENLANE’s new mobile functionality, they have it.”

OPENLANE will be providing demonstrations of its new mobile-optimized site at the 2011 NADA Convention.  

OPENLANE Increases Functionality of Site

Several new features have recently been added to OPENLANE’s U.S. open auction site. In addition to bolstering buyer confidence with improved comprehensive vehicle conditioning reports, OPENLANE.com is now featuring a 10- and 30-day Buy-Back Guarantee.

For a nominal fee, dealers can purchase Buy-Back insurance on their used-vehicle purchases and be guaranteed that if they are not satisfied, they can return the vehicles within the specified time period at no additional cost, officials explained.

Additional new features to the site include major security enhancements on the open auction, Watchlist page improvements, Market Value Guidance and improved vehicle search functionality. 

“All of the feature enhancements and additions we make to the site have one goal in mind — greater efficiency and ease of use for our valued customers. We want to ensure that our dealers have the best experience on our site and leave completely confident in their purchases,” said Kelly. “We are constantly speaking with our dealer community to find out how we can continue to improve upon our site and with each feature that we add, such as our Buy-Back Guarantee, we are doing just that.”

The site’s other new features are: 

—Introduction of Basic Listings — OPENLANE now distinguishes between listings with complete vehicle, confirmed availability, and wholesale condition information versus listings that require additional information before being available to purchase. As potential buyers express interest on a basic listing vehicle, the seller will have the opportunity to confirm information for the interested parties. Buyers can easily include or filter out Basic Listings using OPENLANE’s newly enhanced search.

—New Homepage Enhancements — An updated home page with improved quick search, designed to bring more relevant content for users. 

—Watchlist Page Enhancements —  Improved layout of the Watchlist page to make page easier to navigate and a redesigned display including full user names of leading bidders.

—Market Value Guidance — Enhancements that provide support and guidance for listing values in both the U.S. and Canadian marketplaces leading to better listings and better pricing for better results.

—PALS Changes — With more than 40 different retail and wholesale data providers, dealers using those providers can list vehicles with just one click. As well, once inventory has been sold, sellers can have that inventory automatically removed from auction.

—Enhanced Vehicle Search — New search features include a default setting for preferred views (i.e., with pictures or without), new search criteria (by seller rating, etc.) and more.

“The new features recently launched on OPENLANE.com such as the new Buy-Back Guarantee, Basic Listings and Enhanced Search provide me with even greater confidence and makes it even easier to find the right inventory for my dealership,” said Ryan McCulloch, of Orange Coast Chrysler Jeep. “Also, the team at OPENLANE has been great to work with, communicating closely with us throughout the entire buying process. We couldn’t be more pleased."

Steve Sprung, of The Russ Darrow Group, noted,  “OPENLANE provides my dealership with a valuable service and has truly contributed to an increase in efficiency and profits at Russ Darrow. I appreciate the continual improvements made on the online auction to provide dealers with additional ways to make the process easier. Every new feature and enhancement helps make buying more efficient and gives me even more time to dedicate to other priorities.”

OPENLANE Offers February Incentives

OPENLANE announced the company will be running a number of special dealer incentive programs and promotions throughout the month of February. These offers will be kicked off to coincide with the company’s attendance at the National Automobile Dealers Association annual convention.

In addition to a variety of dealer incentives being promoted at the convention, OPENLANE will also hold a daily raffle for attendees to win one of three iPads.

Incentives include:

— iPad Giveaway — Dealers can stop by the OPENLANE booth to register to win an iPad.

—Postcard/Demo Giveaway — Dealers attending NADA who bring a promotional postcard they received in the mail to the OPENLANE booth and receive a free demonstration of the online auction will receive a $50 American Express Gift Card. Also, new dealers who register for OPENLANE.com will qualify for one free auction credit at www.openlane.com. Officials noted that free auction credits are in the fixed amount of $260 and must be used by Feb. 28.

 —Auction Credit Program for Dealer-to-Dealer Sellers — Dealers who sell vehicles to other dealers through the Dealer-to-Dealer program during the month of February are eligible for a $260 Buy Fee Credit (limited to three Buy Fee Credits per qualifying dealer, not to exceed $780). Qualifying dealers must use the credit by April 15.

—25 Percent Transportation Discount — Throughout February, dealers using the CarsArrive network to transport dealer consigned vehicles purchased on www.openlane.com will receive a 25 percent discount on all transportation fees.