TrueCar and now... CarWoo?

Just saw this article on TechCrunch about CarWoo. One of the main things in this whole TrueCar scenario (other than data) was TrueCar's goal of removing salespeople from the process.

I thought this part of the article was interesting.

"That’s the promise of CarWoo, a startup that looks to take the stressful negotiation tactics and pushy salespeople out of the equation, allowing consumers to buy their car online with a relatively small amount of hassle."

Here's the whole article... "CarWoo Raises $6 Million to Spare You the Car Dealership Blues"

Is this TrueCar Part 2?

[EDIT: CarWoo IS getting data on two ends. First, they're getting consumer data straight from the consumer. Then, as dealers bid, they're getting pricing data on what dealers are WILLING to sell the car for. It may not be from the DMS, but it's still data.]

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Comment by Arnold Tijerina on December 15, 2011 at 4:51pm: Thanks Tommy. I just read the article and interpreted it in a different way, maybe it couldve been phrased better but TechCrunch is consumer facing so I get that. I know several dealers on your program who are happy.

That being said, one of the key arguments (again, excluding data and now that you've clarified it, excluding a goal of eliminating salespeople) is diminishing margins. I "get" what you're doing. Transparency in pricing is NOT going away. Consumers are used to having this information and, at some point in time, dealers opened this Pandora's box. I was simply sharing the article. I did question that part of it but the main gist is that there are so many sites LIKE TrueCar (that affect margins for dealers) that it's a futile gesture for people to target. This transparency is not going away and the more dealers fight over why consumers shouldn't have this information because the dealers aren't making money, the more dealers are going to be perceived by consumers as being the "bad guys". Today it's TrueCar. IF (and I dont think it will) TrueCar goes away, there will always be another site giving consumers information that they want... it's never-ending and rather than fight transparency, dealers should embrace it. Yes, protect your data. I agree. Know where its going, who you're giving it to and what they are doing with it but stop the argument about consumers should recognize that dealers should be able to make a profit. They'll all agree with that argument... that a dealer is a business and needs to remain profitable to survive... but they'll want you to be profitable on someone other than them. A reverse auction is great for a consumer but isn't it essentially devaluing the car down to a price and discounting the value-add that is a good dealer? That's the same thing that TrueCar and many other sites do. What's the solution? I don't know. What I do know is that eliminating transparency in pricing and the availability of all of this information to consumers is not going to happen.

Tommy, you state that CarWoo supports dealers and believes that salespeople are important but you only sell a price. Isn't making a dealer bid the lowest to get the sale only going to make the dealer MORE pushy when the customer comes in to buy seeing as they now need to work extra hard to overcome front-end gross that they gave away by making money in finance?

You aren't connecting buyers with any salespeople - pushy or not. 90% of the time you are connecting buyers to a sales manager's desking...and I can pretty much guarantee that he's making up for the lost front end gross by packing the back or is planning on UA'ing the customers trade..etc. ... when they come in... and when they DO come in, you can bet that that customer will get straight to a closer.. the most aggressive one they have.

Not saying you have a bad product, just saying it's not necessarily in a dealer's best interest to play the low ball price ANYWHERE. That's a slippery slope.

Comment by Keith Shetterly on December 15, 2011 at 4:48pm: Tommy - I think it would be good to further differentiate yourself from TrueCar. Please consider a post on the subject, here and elsewhere. Are you an alternative? What is your dealer value? How much do, or will, you inject yourself into the buying process? What is your ultimate vision for your future and the future of dealers? Etc. Your time to shine, if you will. Thanks!

Comment by Tommy McClung on December 15, 2011 at 2:53pm: Arnold, I'm the CEO of CarWoo! Happy to answer any questions people have. There is a clarification that I'd like to make to your post above. We do not want to get salespeople out of the equation, we do want to help buyers connect with dealer sales people that aren't pushy. We believe salespeople are the most important part of the buying equation and truly make the difference in holding margin and great customer experiences.

Comment by Stan Sher on December 15, 2011 at 1:50pm: Please read "Scott Painter (CEO of TrueCar) speaks to Stan Sher (President of D...