Car Dealer Trade Appraisal Software

What to check before you buy

Ask what sources each tool includes and how often each refreshes. Do local retail demand and days to sell show next to the book value?

Look at how the appraisal reaches the desking tool and the inventory system without retyping. Do a photo and condition report stay with the record?

Does the tool support the consumer-facing instant cash offer and in-store appraisals with the same numbers? Then run a week of your real trades through two tools.

Compare the results to what each vehicle later sold for.

Condition and reconditioning belong in the appraisal record. The appraiser should log the adjustments made to the book value and the estimated reconditioning cost.

The gap between appraised value and later sale price is how a store learns whether its appraisals are accurate. Find out whether the tool can report that gap by appraiser and by vehicle type.

Ask also how a customer-facing offer and the in-store appraisal stay consistent. A consumer may get an online instant offer and a different number at the store.

The store needs a recorded reason for the difference, such as condition found at inspection. The tool should make that reason easy to capture and show the customer.

Questions to put to every car dealer trade appraisal software vendor

• Is the connection read-only or bi-directional?
• Who pays each integration fee?
• What breaks when either product changes?

Other categories dealers compare alongside Trade appraisal & valuation: CRM & sales enablement, Digital retailing, Desking & deal structuring, and Equity & database mining.