Dealix's UsedCars.com Launches Tool to Help Auto Buyers Shorten Their Search for the Right Used Car

REDWOOD CITY, Calif., April 7 /PRNewswire/ -- Dealix, a division of Cobalt, has launched the "My Account" feature on UsedCars.com, designed to make the process of finding a used car faster and easier for auto shoppers. With this new feature, buyers can take advantage of UsedCars.com's advanced search filters and vehicle merchandising to pinpoint the type of car they want and then ask the site to "do the work for them," alerting them every time a car matching their criteria is added to the site's inventory.

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The average used car buyer searches for a car for more than 25 weeks before finding the right vehicle, and visits 11.2 sites during the process according to research by JD Power &  Associates (2009 Used Vehicle Market Report).  The UsedCars.com site was designed to make this purchase process more streamlined by offering buyers tools that allow them to easily target and customize their vehicle searches as well as to quickly identify cars in their market with special attributes, including those with "below Kelley Blue Book® pricing."  

The "My Account" feature was designed to help streamline the process even further by allowing users to request notification when a new vehicle matching their search criteria becomes available on the site as well as keep track of dealers they have contacted.

"We've invested considerable resources over the past year to build tools and functionality that help to shorten the time it to takes for online auto buyers to find the right used car," said Dimitar Alexandrov, Director, Used Car Products. "The 'My Account' feature is one of many that we've developed which leverage our advanced search capabilities to present users with the most relevant and targeted information to aid them in their used car search,"  

This latest release caps a year of growth and innovation for UsedCars.com. Visitor traffic has increased by nearly 40% and vehicle inventory has expanded by 45% since the 2009 re-launch of the site and the introduction of key features to improve the used car shopping experience for buyers and enhance the merchandising options for dealers. Some of the most notable features include:

• Best Value Gallery & Tag: UsedCars.com is the only auto shopping site that allows users to view the "Best Values" in each market with just one click, based on the difference between the dealer's posted price for the vehicle and the Kelley Blue Book® Suggested Retail Value.
• Intuitive vehicle badges: These badges let users easily discover cars with special attributes, such as "recently reduced", "new listing", "green vehicle", "Certified Pre-Owned", making it easier for them to identify, evaluate and compare cars.
• Advanced Search: UsedCars.com features a robust set of search capabilities, providing users with more search customization options than the other leading auto buying sites. Users can select from up to 14 different filters on the search results page to find the "short list" of vehicles that match their preferences.
• Green Choice Center: A one-stop resource for consumers interested in purchasing green vehicles, featuring information on hybrids as well as cars that have high fuel economy and low emissions. The Green Center features a unique tool that allows consumers to research cars based on air pollution and greenhouse scores, as well as by fuel mileage.
• Certified Pre-Owned Center: A special area within UsedCars.com for buyers that want to focus their search on pre-owned vehicles. While there, they can research and compare manufacturer's pre-owned programs – UsedCars.com currently partners with six such programs – and view CPO cars available in their market.
• Dealer Spotlight: Dynamic banner ads that display dealers' "live" inventory to in-market buyers and allow these buyers to click on ads to view a dealer's expanded inventory.  

About Dealix

Dealix, a division of Cobalt, is the world's leading provider of quality leads for new and used cars for dealerships, dealer groups, and automotive manufacturers. Dealix is the only Internet marketing company that backs its new and used car leads with the Dealix Quality Pledge™: a distinct set of criteria that defines a quality lead and an invitation to use Hassle Free Lead Return™ if a lead lacks any one of those criteria. The company can offer this Pledge because it has the broadest reach and the highest quality lead supply network in the industry, including Yahoo! Autos, Kelley Blue Book, Edmunds.com, AOL Autos, MSN Autos, and others. Dealix powers the dealer selector and price quote platforms on Yahoo! Autos, AOL Autos and  MSN Autos; represents Edmunds' Premier Dealer Program; and places dealers' used inventory in the Kelley Blue Book The Trusted Marketplace(SM). Dealix connects dealers with the millions of car shoppers who prefer independent Internet sites when shopping for new cars and used cars online. Dealix's all new Leads Platform quickly matches thousands of serious new and used vehicle buyers to the most appropriate dealers daily, delivering a quality car buying experience for consumers and providing dealers with one of the most efficient methods available today for marketing and selling cars.

SOURCE Dealix