Silver Bullet is offering dealers a three-month free trial of its online platform for car sales.
The platform, which is owned by Peter Vardy, offers full eCommerce transactions at a time when showroom traffic is expected to fall because of the Coronavirus threat.
SilverBullet said its clients are seeing 50% less time in the dealership for customers who build their deal through the platform.
“The SilverBullet team will endeavour to set as many retailers up to sell online, for free use over the next three months. Only non SilverBullet supplier charges will be applicable,” it said.
The Silver Bullet is one move in a market already responding to the current threat.
Online technology specialist iVendi said online sales could provide a lifeline to car and van dealers whose business will be disrupted by coronavirus.
James Tew, CEO at iVendi said that in the event that consumers were either afraid of visiting showrooms because of wanting to avoid unnecessary human contact or effectively confined to their homes, online could provide an effective route to market.
“We’re raising this subject with all due sensitivity but, in the event that footfall to dealerships falls dramatically, businesses need to find a way to keep functioning as normally as possible. Moving more sales online is a potential solution.”