Service Reduces Value Of Used Car Managers(If It Works)

IRVINE, Calif., Jan. 27 -- Auto dealers now can predict which used cars will sell well in their local market, thanks to a new market research service offered by Kelley Blue Book and Friedman-Swift Associates.

The Used Car Local Demand Report will identify which makes and types of vehicles local area shoppers are most interested in, what factors are most important to promote to local consumers, and what advertising resources local used car buyers plan to use when shopping.

``Dealers who know what buyers are looking for are dealers who sell more used cars,'' says Judy George, Chief Operating Officer at Friedman-Swift Associates. ``The Used Car Local Demand Report will help dealers determine which vehicles to buy at auction, which ones to keep in trade, and which ones to wholesale.''

In addition to profiling the used car makes, styles and colors preferred in a dealer's marketing area, the Used Car Local Demand Report will help dealers pinpoint which cars are worth spending advertising dollars on and what types of advertising, both online and print, will reach most local used car shoppers.

Access to in-market buyers through kbb.com enables dealers to anticipate local demand rather than rely on broad-based historical reports. According to Paul Johnson, President of Kelley Blue Book, ``The significance and value of the Used Car Local Demand Report is that it is local and timely. This is only possible given the enormous number of geographically dispersed in-market buyers that visit kbb.com everyday.''

Each dealer who purchases the Used Car Local Demand Report will have a research survey conducted with used car shoppers in his local area who visit www.kbb.com . Kelley Blue Book's web site, according to research by J.D. Power and Associates, reaches more people who buy used cars than any other web site, by nearly a 2 to 1 margin. The automotive research firm Friedman-Swift Associates will design the survey and report key findings to the dealer.

Based in Irvine, California, Kelley Blue Book is relied on by both consumers and the automotive industry, as the trusted resource for car-buying research and information. The company is currently celebrating its 75th anniversary. Its website, kbb.com is the number one automotive site in the nation, according to Nielson NetRatings and Jupiter MediaMetrix. Over 4 million unique visitors generate nearly 30 million pricing reports per month. For the 4th year in a row, kbb.com is also the most visited site by consumers who go on to buy both new and used vehicles, according to research by J.D. Power and Associates.

Friedman-Swift Associates ( www.friedmanswift.com ), based in Cincinnati, Ohio, is a leading provider of automotive market research to automobile dealers. Dedicated to helping dealers better serve consumers since 1979, the company has conducted over 4,000 automotive research studies, including work for dealerships in 75 of the largest 100 dealer groups in the U.S. and most dealerships that lead in national sales performance for each auto manufacturer.

Editors Note: I always thought that a good Used Car Sale Manager had his/her finger on the pulse of their market...pretty soon ther will be a computer program to let you know which stockts to buy!

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