Nick Zulovich sits down with Rudi Thun, chief operating officer of Roadster, to discuss some of the biggest friction points when buying a car and how Roadster is making strives to smooth them out by working with consumers and dealerships. The two also discuss the stages of Roadster’s implementation, its impact on employees, and upcoming developments.
What are some of the biggest friction points in buying a car today?
The car-buying process is too slow, expensive, and remote. Customers spend 2-5 hours in a dealership, and often pay extra for the 5-7 people involved in the deal. Roadster wants to streamline the process, making a win-win for both customers and dealerships.
What are some of the stages that Roadster has evolved through dealing with dealerships?
From the start, Roadster was a direct-to-consumer service focused on the consumer experience. Over time they decided that it would be easier and more efficient to provide this software to dealerships at a monthly fee. Customers want a digital market where they can research, but also need brick and mortar stores with knowledgeable employees to help along the process.
How important is it for dealerships to have these knowledgeable personal at dealerships?
This software will help make car buying easier for customers and dealers, but you will always need to have these personnel there to help move the process along, perhaps with less dealership flair.
What developments are in store for Roadster?
Roadster is trying to make implementation of its software easier and quicker for dealerships. They also want to make the financial aspect easier and more automated. They want to ensure that a shopper could make a decision at any time or place.
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