A new online service for buying new cars, called CarWoo!, was announced today in Las Vegas at the Digital Dealer show.
This new service transforms the way consumers buy cars online, leveling the playing field between buyers and dealers. CarWoo! is the first online service that allows buyers to receive firm offers on new cars anonymously from multiple competing dealers, ensuring the best possible offer on the car they want.
The first of its kind nationwide, new car buying marketplace, Carwoo! enables consumers to interact with multiple dealers online, get their best offers without needing to haggle with dealerships on-site, or to make endless phone calls to find a dealer with the car they want at the price they’re willing to pay.
Says CEO Tommy McClung, “the time that it takes consumers to shop multiple dealerships, compare their incomplete quotes, negotiate and finally settle on a car is overwhelming. In the end, you’re never quite sure whether you have gotten the best deal, or have just been beaten down.”
How it Works:
Once the buyer has described the car they want, dealers compete for their business. Built in commenting enables buyers and dealers to ask questions, communicate and negotiate, but only as and when the buyer wants. CarWoo! never reveals the buyer’s personal information until they have selected the offer they want from the dealer they want to do business with. Negotiations are stress-free because they are anonymous and happen outside pressure filled showrooms.
Because the system is designed around openness and transparency, dealers know exactly what other offers the buyer is seeing, so there’s no guessing game and the offers become more competitive. By not taking money from dealers, CarWoo! is able to be a true consumer advocate.
Buyers are known to be in-market in the last leg of the car buying process, so dealers are free to make better offers to ‘woo’ consumers to purchase the car from them, rather than wasting money, time and energy on leads that rarely result in a sale. And, not only does CarWoo! not take money from dealers, but they ruthlessly protect their buyer’s privacy.
Car Haggling Be Gone:
“There have been a lot of attempts in the past to bring buyers to the dealership’s proverbial front door with mixed success. CarWoo! has a win-win approach of connecting consumers who are truly ready to purchase to dealers who are truly ready to deal. Their service brings shoppers who have real skin in the game and we can prioritize these opportunities accordingly,” said Jeremy Beaver, Del Grande Dealer Group.
With veteran industry advisors and board directors that include Rob Chesney, former VP/GM of eBay Motors, Dillon McDonald, former COO of Jumpstart Automotive, Tom Taira, CEO and founder of Honk.com and co-founder of Zag and TrueCar, Jeff Fluhr, founder and former CEO of StubHub, Tim Weaver, Vice President of Sales for ResponseLogix, Niall Hay, E-Commerce Director for the Penske Automotive Group, and Michael Yang, former VP/GM of Yahoo! Autos, CarWoo! is well positioned to revolutionize the new car buying process.
“Over 80% of consumers use the Internet to help them with their new car shopping process and there is no shortage of auto-related information online. However, most third party automotive sites have failed to help the consumer during the negotiation process. Carwoo brings this missing component to the puzzle and why we have partnered up with them,” said Derek Mattsson, CEO Vehix.com.
The CarWoo! team will be showing the service at a suite in the Mirage at Digital Dealer, at the leading blogging conference BlogWorldExpo in the Mandalay Bay and at JD Power the following week.
Disclosure Note: I am a consultant for the company.
Renee Blodgett is the founder of We Blog the World. The site combines the magic of an online culture and travel magazine with a global blog network and has contributors from every continent in the world. Having lived in 10 countries and explored nearly 80, she is an avid traveler, and a lover, observer and participant in cultural diversity.
She is also the CEO and founder of Magic Sauce Media, a new media services consultancy focused on viral marketing, social media, branding, events and PR. For over 20 years, she has helped companies from 12 countries get traction in the market. Known for her global and organic approach to product and corporate launches, Renee practices what she pitches and as an active user of social media, she helps clients navigate digital waters from around the world. Renee has been blogging for over 16 years and regularly writes on her personal blog Down the Avenue, Huffington Post, BlogHer, We Blog the World and other sites. She was ranked #12 Social Media Influencer by Forbes Magazine and is listed as a new media influencer and game changer on various sites and books on the new media revolution. In 2013, she was listed as the 6th most influential woman in social media by Forbes Magazine on a Top 20 List.
Her passion for art, storytelling and photography led to the launch of Magic Sauce Photography, which is a visual extension of her writing, the result of which has led to producing six photo books: Galapagos Islands, London, South Africa, Rome, Urbanization and Ecuador.
Renee is also the co-founder of Traveling Geeks, an initiative that brings entrepreneurs, thought leaders, bloggers, creators, curators and influencers to other countries to share and learn from peers, governments, corporations, and the general public in order to educate, share, evaluate, and promote innovative technologies.