Free iVendi product helps dealers achieve £63m of digital deals in 10 weeks

A new iVendi product provided to coronavirus crisis-hit vehicle retailers for free has been used to manage and negotiate more than £63m of vehicle finance deals in the last 10 weeks.

The digital finance specialist's TRANSACT platform was made available to the online motor retail market leader’s direct retailer customer base from April 20.

It is designed to develop online consumer interest in a specific vehicle through to a final transaction while managing the sales process, either online or in the showroom.

Development work on the product began in Autumn 2019 and was originally due to be brought to market later this year.

However, the launch was brought forward by iVendi in the first month of lockdown because it was believed to be highly appropriate for dealers during current circumstances, iVendi said.

James Tew, chief executive officer at iVendi, said: “TRANSACT seemed to us like the right solution for the moment and these results show that belief to have been correct.

“By launching our very latest technology during this time we’ve allowed dealers to maximise and progress sales as far as possible during lockdown and the current, still-compromised conditions that have followed. In total, it has been used to manage and negotiate an impressive £63m of digital deals.”

Tew said the way it enabled digital deals to be constructed by the retailer and pushed online into a customer account area made TRANSACT suitable for the Coronavirus crisis.

iVendi also said that the reopening of car showrooms was likely to prompt a 'step change' in online motor retail.

He said: “We’re claiming this kind of digital deal as an industry first. The product enables flexible negotiation over price and other key factors, the sale of value-added products and the ability to present multiple finance offers with instant decisioning.

“Our research shows that 69% of used car sales don’t happen at the advertised price. There is price negotiation, warranties are upgraded, paint protection is added and so on.

"TRANSACT takes account of this and provides the means for the conversations to occur digitally as well as in the showroom.”

Tew said iVendi will continue to waive any charges to its dealer customers until it feels the car retail sector is ‘out of the woods’.

iVendi has launched three new products this year, ENGAGE, CONVERT and TRANSACT.