When you can’t sell a vehicle to the lessee at the end of the lease or you know there’s no local market for a used vehicle received in trade, you want to sell those vehicles as quickly as possible and get the maximum return for your efforts. You need an expert vehicle remarketing team and strategy that works to your benefit.
When you’re dealing with dozens to hundreds of vehicles at any given time, you can optimize your vehicle remarketing strategy by keeping a few tips in mind:
- Know which sales channels give you the best returns.
- Employ technologies to streamline the process whenever possible.
- Capitalize on data to maximize returns and optimize the remarketing process.
- Seek the guidance of vehicle remarketing experts.
When strategically implemented, each of these tips can lead to greater efficiency and profitability.
#1 Choose Channels Carefully.
The internet has expanded the number and reach of sales channels for used vehicles. At the right price, you can sell almost any vehicle locally; but with the internet, you can reach a wider segment of interested buyers and facilitate competitive bidding to get the best sale price. For even wider coverage, the best means to maximize vehicle sale price is through a national vehicle auction. Overall, national auctions have a clear advantage and can be the most efficient means to relinquish used vehicles. They offer this advantage by:
- Having dozens of auction sites strategically located across the country.
- Using data to identify locations where a particular vehicle is likely to bring top dollar.
- Handling the logistics of vehicle inspections, valuations, and transportation to auction sites.
Data should drive your channel decisions. You may have a good sense of what will sell in the local market and which vehicles get a better price using internet services. However, national vehicle auctions are optimally positioned to get the best price. The volume of vehicles they process and the remarketing data they acquire gives them detailed insight into trends, as well as demand, based on make, model, and geography.
#2 Employ Technologies to Streamline and Inform Every Step of the Way.
You should be able to closely track a vehicle’s progress from the time you offer it for sale until the day it’s sold. Management by spreadsheet is inherently inefficient. Whether you are managing the remarketing process yourself or working with a remarketing service provider, web-based management tools should provide the current status of your vehicles being remarketed. You should easily be able to determine the overall status of your inventory regarding condition reports, transit, location, auction aging, and other pertinent information, as well as drill down into the details of a single vehicle when required.
#3 Capitalize on Data to Improve Your Vehicle Remarketing Strategy.
Throughout the vehicle remarketing process, volumes of data are generated that can provide useful insight into your vehicle remarketing strategy. Well-designed vehicle remarketing software should provide integrated analytics to make it easy to monitor trends, performance, and costs. The types of analyses you can perform are nearly infinite, but they should focus on factors that help you improve efficiency and maximize the vehicle sale price.
Trends:
- Compare vehicle models with days-to-sale to determine which vehicles are in demand and therefore command higher prices.
- Correlate vehicles with geographic demand to determine where the highest sale values can be obtained.
- Identify makes and models where demand is building or declining to guide your pricing strategy.
Performance:
- Which auctions consistently deliver the higher vehicle prices?
- For which vehicles and years does reconditioning boost vehicle value?
- How do vehicle sales prices compare against industry valuation guides like Kelley Blue Book, Black Book, or NADA?
Costs:
- Which vehicles do better in online auctions vs. physical auctions?
- At what point do vehicle transportation costs significantly diminish profits?
- Which remarketing channels deliver the best/worst cost-benefit ratios?
| Let Data Guide Your Pricing Recent data indicate it takes an average of 40 days to sell a used vehicle. However, the 20 vehicles (most are SUVs and luxury) in greatest demand sell in about 29 days. The ten-day difference equates to lower storage costs and higher profits. With that information, you can more accurately determine sale prices and not leave money on the table. |
#4 Seek the Guidance of Remarketing Experts.
Initially, you may be tempted to manage the vehicle remarketing strategy in-house, but as vehicle volumes grow or you find that you’re actually losing money in the process, it’s time to hand your vehicle remarketing activities over to the experts. A vehicle remarketing servicer brings greater efficiency to the process by:
- Providing experience, systems, and nationwide networks to efficiently manage vehicle volumes.
- Coordinating with established, reliable resources that handle vehicle inspections, reconditioning, and transportation.
- Incorporating economies of scale that reduce costs along every step of the remarketing process.
When you work with an experienced vehicle remarketing servicer, you can reduce remarketing costs and realize a better ROI in comparison to managing vehicle remarketing in-house.
Is It Time to Reevaluate Your Vehicle Remarketing Strategy?
Is there room for improvement in your vehicle remarketing strategy? Are you taking advantage of all the channels available to relinquish used vehicles? Can you easily and accurately monitor the progress of vehicles from the point of return to the point of sale? Are you using all of the data available to gain a better understanding of remarketing trends, performance, and costs? Are you at a point where vehicle remarketing would best be outsourced to a servicer that specializes in remarketing?
If you’re no longer achieving the efficiency and profitability you expect and prefer to manage vehicle remarketing on your own, it may be time to upgrade to a modern vehicle remarketing software solution. If you’ve reached a point where your vehicle remarketing strategy is pointing toward outsourcing, look for a provider that covers the complete loan and lease servicing cycle, from borrower onboarding to final disposal of used vehicles. The options available today are designed to optimize your vehicle remarketing strategy, delivering greater efficiency and helping you maximize vehicle sale prices.
Getting Started
defi SOLUTIONS provides configurable lease or loan origination systems, loan servicing and remarketing, analytics and reporting, and a wide range of outsourced managed servicing offerings, including remarketing. If your current vehicle remarketing strategy is not delivering the results you expect, take the first step in realizing the benefits of modern technology. Contact our team today or register for a demo.
