Preferred Vendor Debate Becomes a Hot Automotive Industry Topic In 2023 

SACRAMENTO, CA (January 23, 2023) – Ahead of exhibiting at the National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) Show, January 26-29 in Dallas, TX (booth #4151), Dealer Image Pro, a leader in professional photo, video and 360-degree software for automotive dealerships, today announced results from a survey it commissioned to better understand the level of satisfaction dealers are having with their preferred vendors and how using a preferred vendor has influenced dealership vehicle inventory photo and video decisions. 

Dealer Image Pro presented an online survey to more than 3,000 automotive dealer professionals during December, where nearly half (40%) said they are currently dissatisfied or very dissatisfied with their current preferred vendor managing the vehicle inventory photo and video process. Even more so, Dealer Image Pro found that 33% of dealership preferred vendor decisions are primarily influenced by preexisting relations, while another 31% said they don’t only use preferred vendors and still look at outside vendors to take the dealership’s vehicle photos and videos. 

As preferred vendors often have too many dealership clients to customize campaigns for and can’t fit the various needs of dealerships in different markets (Automotive News), another 40% of automotive dealer professionals said they are not currently working with a preferred vendor to photograph their dealership’s inventory. This ultimately shows that outside vendors are starting to engage more local markets and outweigh the preferred vendor status.

“OEMs and auto groups continue to look for the best ways to merchandise their vehicles online for their omnichannel sites and a lot of dealers now simply want the opportunity to work with non-preferred vendors that have new technologies and an expanded reach into other markets.” said Louis Norman, Director of Operations, of Dealer Image Pro. “Dealer Image Pro has been affected by preferred vendors firsthand, as we’ve been forced into auto groups, but have also been ripped away from happy customers, so we wanted to understand what exactly pushes dealers to a preferred vendor and if it is based on successful results.”  

For more information on how to streamline your merchandising for a whole auto group or an individual dealership, like Dealer Image Pro, please visit https://www.dealerimagepro.com/demo/ to request a demo of the company’s innovative dealership merchandising solutions, today.   

About Dealer Image Pro    

Dealer Image Pro™ is a photo, video, and 360º software company for auto dealerships based out of Sacramento, California. They focus on teaching auto dealers and groups better photo methods and provide the hardware and software to streamline their merchandising process. From professional-style photos, studio consultation, and refined lot processes, they combine technical mastery and real-time problem solving to deliver superior service.  For more information visit https://www.dealerimagepro.com.