West Chester, PA --  HomeNet Automotive today announced a “Free 30-Day Test Drive” of Facebook Marketplace for NADA attendees. The campaign to introduce automotive dealers to the power of Facebook’s Marketplace runs through February 11, 2011.

“What distinguishes our Facebook offering from the others is we provide unlimited premium listings of the dealer’s inventory on Facebook Marketplace as well as posting it onto the dealership’s fan page (other companies only perform the latter),” said Neal Gann, SVP of Strategic Development and Advertising Solutions at HomeNet.  “So, through HomeNet, our dealers’ inventory is exposed to 15 million monthly Marketplace users, not just their limited fan base of two to three hundred Facebook friends.”

HomeNet also directly integrates automotive listings on Facebook Marketplace with the dealer’s Fan Page and their website, so someone viewing a HomeNet dealer’s vehicle in the Marketplace can also see the dealer’s inventory, videos, employee and department pages, articles and other content, find similar vehicles, access the dealer’s website, become a fan, and generally focus their car shopping efforts around the dealers they like.

“Of course, the real power of this solution lies in the exponentially explosive, viral nature of Facebook,” adds Gann.  “As marketers, what we all want is for the consumer to promote us, and Facebook Marketplace does just that.  Each time one of those 15 million people comments on a vehicle, all of their friends see it.  As others join in the conversation, the dealer’s visibility then radiates throughout all of these friends-of-friends’ networks.  Best of all, as people peruse the Marketplace, they see listings that their friends ‘like’, adding invaluable credibility and trust to the shopping experience.”

Facebook has reached nearly 600 million users, and the Facebook Marketplace automotive section grew 354% last year. 

Dealers who sign up for Facebook Marketplace through HomeNet enjoy unlimited premium listings, saving them hundreds of dollars each month.  

HomeNet’s Facebook Marketplace includes:
• Integrated Marketplace listings with Dealer Fan Page, My Showroom, and My Listings pages
• Unlimited listings with priority placement in search results included
• Professional-looking, dealer-branded, vehicle display pages
• Friend-of-a-friend indicator on all listings, adding credibility to inventory and softening every sale
• One-stop syndication to over Oodle Pro’s 250 classified sites included, like Facebook Marketplace, Military.com, and Walmart.com
• Easy-to-use reporting monitors the impact and value of social media; conversions, traffic, page views, etc.
• Dealers can save hundreds of dollars through HomeNet’s unlimited listings and premium placement privileges

About HomeNet Automotive
HomeNet Automotive helps the automobile industry save time and sell more vehicles. It is the leading provider of inventory merchandising, management, and marketing solutions, led by its flagship product, Inventory Online (IOL) Internet Marketing Suite. IOL is a web-based vehicle marketing solution relied upon by thousands of automotive dealers to engage buyers online and bring them into the showroom by streamlining the process of converting raw vehicle data into consumer-friendly and rich online ads.  With 120 employees, HomeNet has garnered numerous awards, including a spot on Inc. Magazine’s "Inc. 5000" for the third year in a row, its fourth recognition by the prestigious magazine in as many years. HomeNet, based in West Chester, PA, with offices across the U.S., is a wholly-owned subsidiary of AutoTrader.com, a leading automotive marketplace and consumer information website.  For more information, please email [email protected], visit www.HomeNetAuto.com, or call (877) 738-3313.

02/02/11