COVID-19 RESOURCE CENTRE

An evolving hub to help our dealer partners navigate these unprecedented times.

At TRADER, we have been carefully managing and adapting to the latest developments surrounding COVID-19 in Canada. We are committed to helping our dealer partners do the same. Below is a list of our updates, commentary and resources you may find useful, related to COVID-19. Be sure to bookmark this page and follow us on LinkedIn for updates.

We strongly believe that by working together, we can all get through this and emerge stronger on the other side.

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OUR SERVICE TO YOU DURING COVID-19

Based on guidance from the World Health Organization, we have augmented our already robust Business Continuity Plan with specific steps to account for COVID-19. While the situation continues to develop, we have asked our employees to work from home as a precaution. As we are a digital business, please rest assured we will maintain the high-quality customer service and technology support we pride ourselves on. The Centre of Excellence and your account team will be available as usual via email and phone.

INTRODUCING THE REMOTE SELLING SUITE

An evolving suite of FREE tools to build a better connection to online shoppers.

As the COVID-19 situation continues to affect our industry, there is much talk about how dealers can continue to service customers and sell cars, while respecting social distancing or even completely remotely in the case of a provincial shutdown. Here at AutoTrader.ca, we’d like to highlight how you can use our tools to help you do just that. Click here to learn more about the Remote Selling Suite or to sign up today!

TRADER TALKS

Informative video chats with various industry experts, with topics that are most relevant to you and your dealership operations. Click here to provide us with recommendations for our upcoming TRADER Talks episodes.

TRADER Talks

USED CAR RECONDITIONING

In our latest TRADER Talks, our panelists chat about traditional used car reconditioning and technology that can be deployed to optimize this process. Our host, Matt Lawson, VP of Dealer Software and OEM, is joined by Michael Boyd founder iRecon, and Todd Temple, National Sales Director for vAuto at TRADER. Find out how to properly leverage technology to build a plan that creates a seamless reconditioning process within your dealership operation. The group discusses how consumer expectations are evolving, both in Canada and the US, and how a tool like iRecon can give you an edge to meet their demands, while gaining more control over your reconditioning.

TRADER Talks

VIRTUAL APPRAISALS

In this chapter of TRADER Talks, our VP of Dealer Software, Matt Lawson, is joined by special guest Fabian Macken, VP of Performance Management at vAuto and Todd Temple, National Sales Director for vAuto at TRADER. The group discusses vehicle appraisals, specifically tips and advice for the transition to virtual appraisals, as more of the everyday dealership operations have moved online. Listen in to learn more about the strategies and tools that dealers are leveraging to help them conduct virtual appraisals.

TRADER Talks

DIGITAL RETAILING ON AutoTrader.ca

Mark O’Brien, VP of Sales for Ontario and Maritimes, hosts Matt Lawson, VP of Dealer Software and Sarah Petryna, Senior Product Manager, to share insight into emerging online car shopping trends and to cover the fundamentals of our all-new online car buying platform – Digital Retailing on AutoTrader.ca. They dive right into the functionality of the platform and how it enables Canadian consumers to create a personalized shopping experience, unlike ever before in the automotive industry. Listen in to hear about why this solution is an essential tool for Canadian car dealers and how your dealership can get ahead of the game when Digital Retailing on AutoTrader.ca launches nationwide!

TRADER Talks

DEALERSHIP INVENTORY MANAGEMENT

In our latest TRADER Talks, Charles Chamberland, Manager of Training & Dealer Services, hosts Todd Temple, a 30-year veteran in the automotive industry and National Sales Director for vAuto, to talk best practices and the latest industry news surrounding dealership inventory management. Listen in to hear what the vAuto trend report is predicting for the weeks ahead in terms of vehicle pricing and useful tips for what you should be focusing on right now, to make strategic pricing and merchandising decisions.

TRADER Talks

DEALERSHIP WEBSITES

Dealer websites are the topic of our latest TRADER Talks! In this edition, Ian MacDonald sat down with Mike Kilinski and Matt Lawson to talk about all the things dealers should know when it comes to their own website. They cover the key metrics you should look at, what questions should you be asking your website vendor, how to optimize your website for sales, and much more, in this fascinating look at a crucial part of your dealership’s digital operation.

TRADER Talks

THE REMOTE SELLING SUITE

With 50% of Canadian auto intenders telling us their urgency to buy has stayed the same or even increased, how can you engage them appropriately to make meaningful connections during COVID-19? Ian MacDonald sat down with Chief Product Officer at TRADER Corporation, Jill Hadfield to learn more about the Remote Selling Suite – a new toolkit helping dealers to sell vehicles remotely and safely! Click here to learn more or to get started today.

TRADER Talks

COVID-19 VIDEO CHAT

Ian MacDonald sat down with some of TRADER’s finest to talk all things COVID-19 for dealerships. Sales training tips, marketing, industry outlook and tactical changes to make right now.

Click here to submit your questions for an upcoming TRADER Talks episode.

RESPONSE TO COVID-19

A roundup of our latest dealer-focused news and resources surrounding COVID-19.

June 12, 2020
AutoTrader.ca Marketplace Traffic & Engagement (week of June 1 2020)
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June 4, 2020
COVID-19 Draws Deal Hunters to the Car Market
Read More >

May 29, 2020
Car Ownership: It’s Here to Stay
Read More >

May 28, 2020
TRADER Corporation Launches Industry-First Digital Retailing Solution on AutoTrader.ca Marketplace
Read More >

May 27, 2020
AutoTrader.ca Marketplace Traffic & Engagement (week of May 18 2020)
Read More >

May 14, 2020
AutoTrader.ca Marketplace Traffic & Engagement (week of May 4 2020)
Read More >

May 13, 2020
Digital Retailing Solution Launches on the AutoTrader.ca Marketplace
Read More >

May 7, 2020
AutoTrader.ca Study Finds Half of Auto Intenders Would Purchase If Remote Selling Options Are Offered
Read More >

April 29, 2020
AutoTrader.ca Marketplace Traffic & Engagement (week of April 20 2020)
Read More >

April 28, 2020
Checklist: Does Your Dealership Website Meet Consumer Needs?
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April 23, 2020
Inventory Management Key to Recovery for Canadian Dealers
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April 22, 2020
COVID-19 Triggers Major Reshuffle of Most-Searched Models on AutoTrader.ca
Read More >

April 15, 2020
AutoTrader.ca Traffic & Engagement (week of April 6 2020)
Read More >

April 13, 2020
When Life Gives You Lemons: Sell Cars?
Read More >

April 9, 2020
TRADER Study Shows Major Shifts in Vehicle Purchase Intent Due To COVID-19
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April 8, 2020
AutoTrader.ca Traffic & Engagement (week of March 30 2020)
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April 7, 2020
TRADER Corporation waives 100 per cent of marketplace subscription costs to support Canadian auto dealers
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April 6, 2020
Going Remote? These Are the Tools You Need.
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April 2, 2020
TRADER Corporation Launches New Remote Selling Suite to Help Canadian Dealers Immediately Mobilize Online Operations Amidst COVID-19
Read More >

April 1, 2020
Car Ownership More Attractive in a Post COVID-19 World, AutoTrader.ca Study Finds
Read More >

March 30, 2020
AutoTrader.ca Traffic & Engagement (week of March 23 2020)
Read More >

March 27, 2020
Best Practices For Dealers Digital Marketing During COVID-19
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March 26, 2020
Will COVID-19 Accelerate Digital Retailing Behaviour in the Short and Long Term?
Read More >

March 24, 2020
Instilling Confidence with Car Shoppers During COVID-19
Read More >

March 24, 2020
Automakers Offering Relief to Buyers Affected by COVID-19
Read More >

March 20, 2020
TRADER Corporation Rolls Out a 50 Per Cent Price Reduction on AutoTrader.ca Products to Support Canadian Dealers Nationwide
Read More >

For more coverage of TRADER’s response to COVID-19, visit our Newsroom >

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

Originally posted by Canadian Auto Dealer.

Video Interview:

TRADER SURVEY: CONSUMERS WANT INCENTIVES TO BUY

Our VP of Strategic Marketing, Ian MacDonald, joined Canadian Auto Dealer to share the results of our latest AutoTrader.ca Consumer Research Study. Watch the full video for a breakdown of the factors that have contributed to more and more shoppers entering the market to purchase a vehicle and the 3 key areas you need to focus on in order to guide consumers seamlessly and safely through their car buying journey.

Originally posted by Canadian Auto Dealer.

Video Interview:

WHAT TRADER’S PRICE INDEX DATA MEANS FOR DEALERS

Nuno Loureiro, Director of Business Intelligence and Ian MacDonald, Vice President of Strategic Marketing at TRADER, connected with Carina Ockedahl at Canadian Auto Dealer to chat about AutoTrader.ca’s Price Index for March – specifically, what the data means for dealers, and what dealers may need to consider moving forward.

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