Five essential steps to finishing the year strong
This week saw another set of restrictions announced by the Government in our battle, as a nation, to overcome the Coronavirus pandemic. It’s frustrating, painful almost and especially challenging when it comes to running a business. I’ve noticed this creeping into conversations I have with our customers, a sense of uncertainty or nervousness. I’m quick to point out that retailers are still riding a wave of strong sales performance on Auto Trader and that I’m having many more positive conversations with customers about their expectations for Q4, than negative.
Live webinar poll 1st October 2020 - Finishing the year strong with Daksh Gupta & Nathan Coe
From our point of view, we’ve seen very little impact on consumer demand since the latest set of restrictions were announced. Audience remains up YoY 21%, ad views up 15.5% and crucially leads also remain strong +27% YoY*. Car buyers are still looking to buy cars. We shouldn’t mistake a traditionally quieter October, following the busy plate change month as a drop-off in consumer demand. It’s following the normal ebb and flow of market performance for this time of year.
There’s plenty to be optimistic about
I’m optimistic about the outlook for the remainder of 2020. Support for businesses and the furlough scheme continue to underpin the economy, which has led to an increase in cash reserves for many households. Add to that restrictions on travel and leisure and people have more disposable income for big ticket purchases such as a car or van. We’ve also got a raft of new buyers entering the market looking to avoid the hustle and bustle of public transport in the midst of a pandemic. This all presents opportunities for our retailers, opportunities that are uncommon for this period in the calendar. It’s a time to take aim at your year-end targets and ensure you’re geared up to capitalise on this demand.
Auto Trader on-site survey
Why it’s important to revisit your goals now
I must say it gives me an enormous sense of pride when I look at the journey we’ve been on with our retailer partners throughout the pandemic. It’s been refreshing to see the pace of the recovery and how quickly many of you were able to get back to profit. But it’s far from over yet and it would be a mistake to take your foot off the gas now. It will get more competitive and it’s those that make the adjustments now that will come out on top in Q4.
Like most, we’re not sure what the future holds. As the furlough scheme is withdrawn it’s likely we’ll see the real impact on redundancies and the economy. It’s also impossible to predict developments in terms of the virus. It’s why now is a crucial time to reset and go again for our customers, ‘make hay while the sun shines’ to coin a phrase.
To help you implement a winning strategy as you approach your year-end goals, I’ve put together 5 essential steps to help you finish the year strong.
Five essential steps to finishing strong…
1. Re-evaluate | Revisit your year-end targets and identify your gap to goal
2. Source | Take a demand led approach to identifying the right stock
3. Price | Set a strategy to optimise profit and days to sell
4. Advertise | Advertise all of your stock and manage your performance rating
5. Transact | Make your transactions contactless to maximise your opportunities to sell
We’ve created a resource to support you through each stage with a checklist for each of the steps >
* Auto Trader Internal Data Oct 2019 Vs Oct 2020