RAC Cars is dropping its free to list advertising model for dealers for its online classified website.
It is joining the the Motors.co.uk network in May to join where it follows both Sunday Times Driving and Sun Motors.
Dealers will be able to access both brands’ consumers via a single Motors.co.uk stock feed and pay a monthly tenancy fee.
RAC launched its free advertising model with claims that it would become market leader by the close of 2015 with 500,000 cars listed, overtaking Auto Trader. There are currently 327,500 cars listed on the website.
RAC Motoring Services managing director Robert Diamond said that joining Motors would give RAC Cars a broader customer base.
“We wanted to engage with the whole of the UK car buyers and not just RAC customers,” he told Motor Trader.
Dealers who are already live on RAC Cars can retain a free full listing on the website until end of August and a free restricted listing until the end of December, but will need to become a Motors.co.uk customer in order to be live on RAC Cars from 1st January 2017.
Diamond said the free RAC model had failed to raise enough money
“It [the free model] worked in that lots of dealers signed up and out stock volumes increased significantly. What was trickier was it did not raise enough revenues to support pay per click advertising,” he said.
Now, together, the two businesses’ combined advertised stock increases to over 400,000 cars from more than 8,000 dealers, with audiences of 4.2m across the Motors.co.uk Network.
A new RAC Cars website will be launched in May, with enhanced functionality and an improved user journey.
RAC Cars promoted itself as “the motorist’s champion” which had “waived the fees for both private sellers and dealers in response to demands for an alternative to existing used car websites that charge high advertising rates.”
Phill Jones, managing director of Motors.co.uk, said: “In RAC Cars, we have a partner that shares our passion for becoming a trusted matchmaker for automotive buyers and sellers.
“This is great news for both car dealers and prospective buyers. It will provide dealers with access to a larger audience of in-market car buyers through a single relationship, while consumers will benefit from a greater choice of vehicles and the reassurance of RAC’s compelling consumer products. It also underlines Cox Automotive’s ongoing investment in Motors.co.uk to be the trusted advertising partner to the automotive industry.”
