Cox Automotive is rolling out a package of marketing and dealer-management tools that it says will enable “the industry’s only true omnichannel experience.”
Branded “Retail360,” the new product suite combines utilities from several of Cox Automotive’s brands: its twin marketplaces — Autotrader.com and Kelley Blue Book (KBB.com) — as well as dealer technology units Dealer.com, VAuto, VinSolutions, DealerTrack and XTime.
In a product announcement, Cox Automotive said the package would use its proprietary data to modernize marketing, sales, back-office support and servicing for dealers and carmakers alike and bring deal consistency to all stages of the customer journey, including, shopping, buying and owning.
The aim is to unify the online and in-person steps of car buying into a seamless process that doesn’t require the repeated collection and inputting of buyer data, the company said.
“Starting with Autotrader back in 1997, Cox Automotive was built to lead digital innovation in auto retail,” Lori Wittman, president of retail solutions at Cox Automotive, wrote in the announcement.
“We believe in the power of bringing buyer and seller together. Retail360 expands that belief to an omnichannel approach which brings consistency and allows the dealer to personalize all the possible ways today’s buyer may approach their purchase or service visit.”
Retail360 will roll out “as a series of innovations over the next several quarters,” the company said.
The first innovation, Deal Central, centralizes the deal process from start to finish, giving salespeople, finance and insurance staff and other dealership personnel one place to view, develop and finalize active deals based on shopper insights gleaned from Autotrader, Kelley Blue Book and Dealer.com websites, it added.
