REDWOOD CITY, Calif. — The OPENLANE Certified Auction Partner program made its debut on Wednesday, and is designed to provide physical auction locations the opportunity to use OPENLANE.com to remarket units that didn't sell in the auction lanes.

Meanwhile, dealers can also make units available for sale on their lot at the same time, just one of many benefits. 

Officials noted that this can give auctions "double exposure," thus allowing them to sell vehicles quicker through OPENLANE.com's national network of more than 13,000 online buyers.

OPENLANE's Certified Auction Partners can expand their existing sales avenues and gain an additional revenue stream.

Also, OPENLANE dealers and consignors can collaborate with participating partners so they can remarket these units at the physical locations, as well as online.

Essentially, because both OPENLANE Certified Partners and consignors have a reciprocal channel to mutually market unsold vehicles, they can also enjoy additional revenues via value-added services like marshalling, reconditioning, third-party inspection services and other fees, according to officials.   

The program pairs consignors with physical auctions to give them another way to move units that aren't selling online. The company provides consignors with nationwide representation and sends their inventory to enrolled Certified Auction Partners.

This allows a secure way to offload unsold inventory, while at the same time pushing additional revenue as well as increased exposure and continued sales success

"Our programs for our Certified Auction Partners and consignors provide a new way for vehicles to be marketed simultaneously in both online and physical auctions," shared Greg Lubrani, OPENLANE's business line director, independent auctions.

"By partnering with independent auctions we're helping to level the playing field and provide greater exposure for vehicles sold by physical auctions, as well as provide additional inventory sources for our network of buyers," Lubrani added.

Under this Certified Auction Partners program, consignors listing vehicles on OPENLANE.com can utilize all of the company's services. This includes everything from title processing and collections to arbitration and transportation.

Additionally, OPENLANE's nationwide sales team provides a big advantage, as well. This team works directly with program participants so their vehicles can be exposed to a broader audience and sell quicker.

"We're very excited to be partnering with OPENLANE to market vehicles in a way that offers maximum exposure for our vehicles, both online and offline," shared Khalid Salem of Ramsey Infiniti in Ramsey, N.J.

"Because I no longer have to wait for the next auction day to sell my vehicles, I'm able to stay more competitive in the market and cut out the cost and hassle of transporting my vehicles from auction to auction," Salem continued.

Larry Hero, of Tri-State Auto Auction, Crestwood, Ill., added: "Partnering with OPENLANE has not only given our auction an opportunity to generate incremental revenue, but we have increased dealer attendance by making more dealers aware of who we are and what types of vehicles we sell." 

OPENLANE Talks Sales Momentum

In other news from the company, OPENLANE said that the first two months of 2010 have seen momentum in sales as well as the number of value-added program it has launched for dealers and consignors.

The company called 2009 its "most successful year" after listing more than 1 million units online and selling 400,000 vehicles. OPENLANE said it also broke quarterly and annual sales records in both the U.S. and Canada.

Officials noted that value-added service programs like the iDEAL Open Auction Seller program experienced strong success last year. In fact, OPENLANE said iDEAL exceeded its budgeted volume for the year and has gotten off to a fast start to grow in 2010.

The company said there have been steady selling percentage rates across all price segments in their Open Auctions, as well.

"After a hugely successful year in 2009, we're very excited to see that momentum continue into 2010 as the leading online wholesale automotive marketplace," stated Daniel Farrar, chief executive officer of OPENLANE. "We continue to lead the industry in new, innovative programs designed to enhance the buying and selling process and overall experience for online customers.

"We have many exciting partnerships in development for this year, which will continue to provide dealers and consignors the most comprehensive, value-added services in the auction industry today," he added.

Moving on, the company unveiled a few new programs this week to complement its existing services.

In addition to the aforementioned OPENLANE Certified Auction Partner program, these are:

—Exclusive Transportation for Volkswagen Credit. As part of this deal, OPENLANE serves as the sole transportation solution for Volkswagen Credit. It will offer full service transportation management services for all Volkswagen and Audi Financial Services units being sent to physical auctions across the country.

—Ford Rental Fleet Vehicle Availability. Under this deal, Ford is allowing Ford rental fleet vehicles to be purchased on Accelerate. As some may know, Accelerate is OPENLANE's private label auction service where Ford franchise dealers can buy vehicles from Ford Motor Credit.