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December 21, 2018

• 2 Minute Read

TRADER 2018 Year in Review

We started off the year at TRADER with the mentality that we were going to go above and beyond. We have been listening to feedback from dealers, staying ahead of changes in the automotive industry, enhancements in technology and analyzing the expectations of car shoppers to ensure we could deliver on our goal. This all set pace for a year of exciting product launches, the addition of new talent and strategic decision making to set our 2019 initiatives.

Throughout the year, there was a strong focus on growing our technology infrastructure. We welcomed over 200 new employees across Canada, focused on product development and innovation. Part of this growth was in support of the launch of TRFFK powered by AutoTrader.ca, a first-to-market, all-in-one digital advertising solution designed exclusively for the automotive sector in Canada – all powered by exclusive consumer shopping data and unmatched behaviour insights from Canada’s #1 automotive marketplace, AutoTrader.ca. Following a successful launch in Quebec at the end of 2017, we brought TRFFK to dealers all across Canada this year!
In late spring the business made a strategic investment in Montreal-based digital advertising company, DealerBreacher. Our investment in DealerBreacher supports our future plans focused on speed of innovation – all clearly linked to Canadian dealer and consumer needs.

Of course we can’t forget about our yearly Carology events, which reached new heights with diverse speakers, unique venues and an engaged audience of hundreds of automotive industry professionals. TRADER Carology was hosted across major cities in Canada including Toronto, Montreal and for the first time ever, Ottawa and Vancouver. With the expansion into new markets Carology had a record breaking audience in attendance this year.

Along with bringing new products to market there was still plenty of behind the scenes work to prepare for what’s coming in 2019.

We listened to feedback from customers nationwide about their challenges with our third-party inventory and website platforms, and we have been working hard to deliver Canadian-made, innovative technology solutions to support the growth and success of our dealer partners. We are excited to share that our all-new, all-improved TAdvantage – our dealer website solution – will launch across Canada in February 2019!

The new TAdvantage – our dealership website solution – was built by Canadians, for Canadians. It features superior technology, improved performance reporting and analytics, and advanced integration with digital campaigns. By bringing these technologies in-house and building the new platform from the ground up, we can deliver more rapid innovation and the most advanced, Canada-first website solution in market.

In August we announced the acquisition of Convertus – a Canadian provider of premium web solutions and digital marketing services for automotive dealerships. This was in support of the initiative to offer dealers nationwide a comprehensive solution that optimizes the entire consumer journey from Marketplace to Digital Ads to Websites, while providing premium technology, service, and leadership.

Also to come next year is 1-SOURCE, our Canada-first, next generation inventory management platform for Canadian automotive dealers. 1-SOURCE is the single sign-on solution for all TRADER products, built from the ground up with Canadian dealers’ needs in mind, and engineered to optimize workflows – all while empowering our customers with real-time marketplace, website, and campaign analytics. Dealers can get ready for faster and all-new customization capabilities, enhanced usability, data they can trust, and sophisticated functionality – all designed to make their lives easier and more efficient!

We want to thank all our customers for their continued support and ongoing feedback as we continue to work toward getting them equipped with new solutions and services to improve their business operations.

It’s time to say hello to better.