Online Dealers Claim Fundamental Rights

Bill of Rights Provides Foundation for Future of Internet Sales

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Feb 02, 2012, 10:00 ET

BURLINGAME, Calif., Feb. 2, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- By presenting the first of its kind Online Dealers' Bill of Rights, CarWoo! endorses dealers' rights online. This Bill of Rights targets the issues that have plagued dealers over the past decade and have become increasingly problematic as online buyers dominate the market for new cars.

"There are two parties involved in every car buying transaction," explains Tommy McClung, CarWoo!'s CEO. "At CarWoo!, we care about a process that is fair to both the buyer and the seller. We don't believe that a car buying experience that is good for the buyer needs to occur at the expense of the dealer. We know that dealerships are major contributors to their local economy and it is our belief that they are going to continue to be. Dealers deserve the right to facilitate great buying experiences while remaining viable enterprises. The online experience for the dealer should be one that enables them to find success by demonstrating their value to the buyer and not by simply relying on their bottom line price."

In accordance with the "Online Dealers' Bill of Rights," dealers selling online have the fundamental right to:

Sell total value over bottom line price
- See your marketplace with complete clarity
Elevate and distinguish your sales operations
- Harness your positive efforts to grow your business
Leverage the power of information
- Use the Internet to the benefit of your business
Limit or eliminate access to your transactional data
- Control the use of your DMS data

"I support the right of dealers to be fully aware of access to and in complete control of their sales data. I completely endorse this bill of rights, not only online but offline as well," says Adam Thrasher, Internet Director of Carnival Kia stores.

"The Dealer revolution has begun," declares Jim Ziegler, founder of Ziegler Super Systems. "We reserve the right to control the use of our customer information and to control the buying experience in order to maximize customer satisfaction. I was excited to see CarWoo! take the first step in acknowledging dealers' rights in these areas. It's important that vendors realize car buyers are our customers and that we do have these rights without allowing third party access to our transactional data."

The Bill of Rights is not focused on any particular type of dealer, dealership or dealer group, nor is it biased toward or against any sales styles or approaches. Single price stores benefit from these rights the same as stores that do embrace negotiation.

"I endorse this bill because I know that any dealer who provides a competitive price and exceptional service for its clients will win the battle against the dealer who only has the lowest price to offer. Enabling dealers in the online sales process is long overdue," according to Mark Rikess, founder of The Rikess Group.

"I support the Online Dealers' Bill of Rights," says Andrew DiFeo, General Manager of Hyundai of St. Augustine. "Recognition by vendors of these fundamental rights of dealers is the foundation for a win-win-win scenario by the manufacturer, dealer, and consumer."

Full text of the Bill of Rights is available online at The CarWoo Chronicle. Copies are available at the NADA Convention CarWoo! Booth #3827. Dealers and vendors may also endorse the Bill of Rights at the CarWoo! Booth.

About CarWoo!

CarWoo! provides the online MarketPlace where buyers get great deals with no games and dealers are able sell cars online using their own unique approaches with a full understanding of the buyers through the CarWoo! transparent MarketPlace. Buyers remain anonymous, get great market prices, save a ton of time and dealers are ensured buyers who purchase within 3.5 days 80% of the time. As seen on The Today Show, CNN Money and other leading national media outlets, CarWoo! is the only true online MarketPlace for car buyers and sellers. CarWoo! was founded in 2008 by serial entrepreneurs, Tommy McClung, Erik Landerholm and Michael Young. With early funding by Y Combinator, CarWoo! is based in Burlingame, CA and is now funded by Blumberg Capital, Comcast Ventures and InterWest Partners, and others. Find us on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/carwoo and on Twitter at twitter.com/carwoo.