KENLY, N.C. -

At the Manheim North Carolina sale last week, dealers were stopping to see what the company’s new “On the Go” sessions were all about.

And as the curious onlookers stopped at the booth to check out demonstrations of the Manheim mobile app, many expressed how "crucial" it is to have in-depth vehicle information at your fingertips on auction day.

And Manheim’s Chris Hill, who offers product demonstrations of the company’s digital tools through The Wholesale Institute, said the current wholesale environment is a perfect one for the company’s launch of its “On The Go” sessions — an extension of TWI  designed to save dealers time by bringing training sessions on the company’s digital tools to the sale days at various Manheim auctions.

As dealers flooded the Manheim booth set up for demonstrations of its free mobile app, Hill got a first-hand account of the overall attitude of dealers and what tools they are searching for to help them navigate this tough wholesale environment.

“I think that it’s never been more important for dealers and buyers to know the marketplace and have access to information that provides that just in time. So, if I had something that can tell me instantly what’s going on and if I can know the vehicle and my margins right then and there; I think that is huge," said Hill.

“I think realizing and understanding that it (the Manheim app) is here to help is a big improvement and make their lives a little easier and make it easier for them to do business with us,” he continued.

Moreover, TWI “On the Go” aims to connect with dealers when they’re already at a Manheim auction buying or selling cars.

“It’s going really well, people are very excited about it. Its helping a lot of dealers,” said Amber Hester, field sales for Manheim, of the company app at a Manheim NC sale day last week.

“The face that it is free always brings people to the table, but dealers are basically throwing their phones at us to download for them … in this environment, a tool such as this can really help,” she told Auto Remarketing.

Giving a little bit of background on the Manheim mobile app, current features allow customers to search for vehicles and place bids or buy OVE vehicles as well as proxy bid on Simulcast vehicles. Also, customers have the ability to manage their Workbook as well as their OVE Buying and Selling Activity, officials noted.

A Snap Shot of "On The Go" 

And Manheim officials also gave some insight into the origins of the new OTG sessions, as well as how they are designed to help buyers and dealers.

Mandy Savage, Manheim TWI expert, had this to say: "We wanted to give dealers another option, something other than the TWI workshop, or a WebEx training session to help dealers gather information about Manheim’s digital tools. 

“We have access to so many customers on any given sale day, we thought that it would be great to get in front of them as a resource when they can actually use some of our tools in real time … and TWI On-the-Go was born,” she told Auto Remarketing.

And the company noted that the sessions are focused on its mobile technology, helping dealers to better understand the tools available to them.

“Well, the OTG sessions primarily focus on our mobile technology.  Dealers can get just-in-time training, or help downloading an app, or information regarding the VIN scan on the spot,” Savage explained.

“Because the atmosphere on sale day is so fast paced, dealers benefit from real time, personal access to information,” she added.

So, what can dealers expect from the OTG sessions?

“We always bring a few tablets (iPad / Galaxy) and some smart phones with us.  Often times, dealers are intrigued by the technology so they stop by.  We can demo anything Manheim digital on any of those devices, or even more effective, we can show dealers how to use the technology on their own devices,” Savage explained.

Savage also went on to explain why these sessions can be “crucial” for dealers in this tough wholesale environment.

“If you ask most dealers they would say that time is money.  That is still the case and if dealers can access information at their fingertips, on the go, then they will be ready whenever an opportunity presents itself to buy or sell a car.  If you ask me, I believe that the most improvements will appear on the bottom line,” she concluded.

All the schedules for TWI offerings can be found here.