Futurist, Digital Retailing Professional, Automotive Adventurer. (All views are my own)
Sat on a train heading to tonight's Car Dealer Magazine #UCAwards and thinking about how hard it is for retailers to navigate the market right now... and I keep going back to a message we've been pushing in recent weeks at Auto Trader Insight, and one I wholeheartedly agree with. "Focus Forward" Thanks to the extraordinary events and subsequent market volatility of the last few years, not to mention the continued evolution of both car and consumer, we find ourselves in a period where, not only does a good year-on-year comparison continue to evade us, but where even seasonal comparisons also fail to offer up much in the way of balance either. Therefore, whilst historic trends, analysis and opinion are of interest (and important), it shouldn't drive the prospect of future returns from a forecourt, or future investment into one (although legacy stocking loan rules may play a role here for some). For me, understanding what's happening on forecourts right now is vital, and live market data offers retailers the ability to compare performance, diagnose issues, identify opportunities and make decisions based on what today's buyers (and a retailers true competition) are doing, not based on what they've done. It's likely the retailers we'll be celebrating at tonight's awards are those who've adopted this approach already, acting on information, insight and intelligence as it happens, and using this to help make decisions based on risk and opportunity. I never post with the aim of pushing product or agenda but, given that the product (being live data) is generally free for most retailers with a digital forecourt on Auto Trader, and given this week we also have a free webinar for retailers on current market influences, it would be remiss of me not to share the link... Focus Forward. #UsedCars #Awards #AutomotiveRetailing #CarSales #CarRetailing #CarDealer #FocusForward https://lnkd.in/eZXKgft6
