Last week, Automotive News published an article called “Auctions Focus on High-Quality Vehicle Images”, which emphasizes the importance of providing customers with a better online shopping experience. The article discusses Manheim’s new Enhanced Vehicle Imaging (EVI) system, which includes pan & zoom technology, a condition heatmap, and up to 15 high-res images. Using this more robust merchandising technology, Manheim saw a 26% increase in bids and received $132 more per vehicle.

Why did they realize such a huge impact? That’s simple: their process creates a more immersive and transparent shopping experience.

The internet is at the core of commerce, so much so that expensive, complex sales are now executed fully online. This is why it is so important for dealers to not only win the click, but also to deliver an engaging, personalized, and content-rich experience so they can win the sale online too. Smart merchandising is the way to achieve this and Manheim is a great example of this trend with their move in the direction of immersion and transparency online. 

360º technology, recently touted by Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg as an innovative force that gives control to the customer, is the next step in this evolution of online merchandising. 360º technology engages the customer in every way possible, allowing shoppers to explore a product according to their individual interests. Apple also demonstrated the potential of 360º merchandising with the launch of their new Apple Watch which includes fully interactive 360º displays of the product on their website.