He emphasised the importance of “keeping over-age vehicles under control”, with auction or trade disposal after 90 days. Part-exchanges with “low desirability” tended to be traded on from the outset.

 

The days of relying on gut instinct for choosing stock are gone

Daren Wiseman, valuation services manager at Manheim Auctions, said irrespective of data-driven systems or a more manual approach, the days of relying on “gut instinct” alone were long gone.

“Most dealers review their stock – and that of their local competitors – on a daily basis to ensure they are priced competitively and focused on the most desirable spec.

“The flexibility to make a tweak to pricing and marketing can be all the difference between a profit and loss.”

Deltapoint monitored price changes on 2.5m vehicles in the £8,000-£9,000 range and found that 10% were reduced by £500 and 5% by £1,000.

“That’s like knocking £25,000 off a £250,000 house because it’s not selling,” said Marriott.

“But small, incremental movements can make a difference in consumer perception of good value. Even a reduction of, say, £67, could prompt a move in best value from 10th to fourth.”

Location, along with spec, also had a part to play, with Marriott citing a recent example from i-Control’s star rating: A 13-plate 1 Series BMW with basic spec rated 1.5 stars in Edinburgh, but 4.3 in Glasgow.

Guy Thomas, BCA’s head of product development, also referred to location when pointing to Dealer Pro’s ability to identify cars in one dealership that may be of interest to another within the same group: “There is the option to ‘buy’ these rather than sending them to auction – what is wrong for one geographical location may be perfect stock for another.”

Thomas said the dealer could even retain the vehicle on the forecourt, while consigning it to an ‘offsite’ sale at BCA.

Philip Nothard, CAP’s retail and consumer editor, said in pre-internet days dealers felt fairly safe working to a 45-60 day review of stock, but now there was “more of a grey area”, especially with difficult-to-sell cars.

“Instead of sending them to auction, perhaps they should consider whether it’s in the right location in their network, or on the right website. Even a move on the forecourt with a ‘special offer’ sticker can make a difference.”

 

The opportunity for ‘out of territory’ sales

Murrells said Lifestyle’s presence on a series of websites, from Auto Trader to eBay, generated more “out of territory” sales. “Being near Gatwick, it’s not unusual for us to pick up prospective customers from as far afield as Scotland, Northern Ireland and Cornwall.”