According to George Mienie, AutoTrader CEO, SA Auto Week could not have come at a more appropriate time. “The South African motor industry – and indeed the global automotive business – stands upon the precipice of great change. Central to that change, is the move to electric vehicles (EVs), which are essential to the future of transportation and indeed the survival of the automotive industry.”
“With the future of the auto industry in Africa under the microscope, numerous questions have been raised on the readiness of the SA and African market – specifically when it comes to battery electric vehicles, hybrid cars, and the future of online automotive shopping in South Africa. Never has there been a greater need for dialogue within our industry. As a headline partner, we are proud to facilitate this dialogue,” he notes.
Mienie explains that there are a number of compelling reasons for the headline partnership. “As the custodian of the car shopping consumer, AutoTrader is a key partner within the local automotive industry and to the various stakeholders who sell and buy cars. Furthermore, AutoTrader is the automotive industry’s most trusted data partner – an asset which we leverage to enable, empower and educate the local industry. It’s therefore logical to align the AutoTrader brand to SA Auto Week,” he explains.
The theme for the thought leadership conference, “Re-imagining the Future Together”, also resonates with the company. “AutoTrader is a pioneer and a driver of change. As a brand, we’re constantly reimagining the future together with key industry players,” notes Mienie.
In addition to being a headline partner, AutoTrader is also the media centre partner, digital marketing partner and category award partner (for the awards programme). It has also invested and committed to upskilling 12 young content developers which forms an essential part of AutoTrader’s ongoing enterprise development.
Mienie, an automotive industry expert, will be part of discussions during SA Auto Week and will participate in panels with local and global key stakeholders.
Furthermore, AutoTrader will host a stand at SA Auto Week, which will support car dealers with market-leading and data-based insight to enable them to operate successfully in a digital world. The stand will showcase products to help dealers improve customer experiences (with the goal of driving sales).
The stand will showcase Fuzion – AutoTrader’s live market data pricing and car valuation tool that is used by hundreds of dealers everyday to make buying and selling decisions. Staff manning the stand will collaborate with dealers to help address business problems to solve consumer pain points. These include the dealers’ digital transformation, how to attract an online audience and how to price vehicles. As part of this journey, the AutoTrader team will also share unique insights on current in-market car shopping behaviour.
During SA Auto Week, AutoTrader will also provide details of promotional offers for majority black-owned dealerships, targeted at small dealerships and start ups. These include enticing pricing discount options to list on AutoTrader’s marketplace as well as the ability to buy stock through AutoTrader’s recently launched, Instant Offer, personalised workshops, consultations and training on how to market a dealership, get more leads and build a brand as well as exclusive invitations to AutoTrader’s Dealer Masterclasses.
Delegates and visitors to SA Auto Week will also be able to learn about AutoTrader’s sought-after learnership programmes as well as AutoTrader’s free K53 guides (over 375,000 of these guides have already been provided free of charge to aspirant car drivers and motorcycle riders).
Ultimately, the goal of South Africa’s largest and most digitally advanced motoring marketplace in South Africa at SA Auto Week will be to demonstrate the supportive role AutoTrader provides to the South African automotive industry. “AutoTrader is much more than just a marketplace to buy and sell cars. Instead, we are able to help the industry to leverage off data from the millions of users that visit our platform. As a pioneer and driver of change, we look forward to reimagining the future together with key industry players,” concludes Mienie.
To purchase tickets for the conference, click here.
