The UK market for used or nearly-new cars is a fiercely competitive one but Carmony has now decided to re brand their website to target those in the higher income brackets.
The market leader among the used car search website is the Trader Group and the very popular car website Auto Trader. With some 11.5 million individual users this website gets the majority of the page views in the UK and the target audience is just about everyone. Although prestige brand cars can be found on the website they get a bit lost in the crowd, and some sellers might therefore prefer to turn to a specialized dealer. It can a bit of a hassle navigating through the collection of cars on Auto Traders site as they contain every range and brand.
Another major used car search website is Gumtree which was initially created to help Aussies, New Zealanders and South Africans who were new to London. It has since expanded to include listings of almost anything second hand, from household appliances to footwear. The target audience is no longer solely the three original nationalities but it’s typically a website that one turns to look for a bargain. The used cars section has some 100,000 listings but with the website’s “bargain”-image, it’s hardly a place one would look for prestige cars.
Founded in 2008, Carmony has a simple, yet efficient search website at http://www.carmony.co.uk. As a user you can choose to search for a car directly, or search for a dealer that might have what you are looking for. There is a clever lifestyle search feature that allows you to search based on such things as car boot space, number of seats etc. The website also features a blog with industry news and car reviews.
The new branding means Carmony will shift its focus to used or nearly-new cars of prestige brands with a price tag over £25k. It’s a clever move as the competitors are going for a wide range or a focus on inexpensive cars. Carmony, on the other hand, will attract a much smaller market, consumers of a higher income bracket, but will stand a good chance taking a big chunk out of that market.
