Why online business attracts SMEs?

E-commerce is slowly changing the landscape of the country’s small and medium enterprises, especially in the delivery private and public transport sector. One particular area is how these firms can quickly gather or replace their fleet of vehicles with the help of online shopping made easier by online vehicle ads platform such as Carmudi Philippines—one of the country’s leading dedicated car buying and selling websites today.

Miggy Gozun, co-owner of Gozun Cars, a dealer of used vehicles based in Pampanga, said that online car classifieds has helped them increased their sales in just a short period of time. “We saw a tremendous increase in our sales leads after just putting our ads in a vertical car selling and buying site as compared to using different offline platform.”

Gozun further explained that before their business was limited to customers coming from nearby provinces and shoppers from Metro Manila who were looking to score a bargain. However, after posting their vehicles online, they received leads—in the form of calls and emails—from different places. “Some we just have to turn down, as we could not ship the vehicle to their place,” adds Gozun.

The Pampanga dealer is not alone in these changing times. Many dealers who have posted on Carmudi and other online car buying and selling sites have also received tremendous leads over the past few months. In the recent report from Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines Inc. (Campi) and the Truck Manufacturers Association (TMA), last year vehicle car sales in the Philippines grew by 30-percent with 234,747 units sold. While it is hard to track how online car ads have contributed to this record performance, it is safe to assume that the Internet has provided a platform where vehicle sellers and buyers can meet.

Subir Lohani, managing director of Carmudi Philippines, explains that their website and apps have shortened the car buying process for many of their site visitors. “You can easily narrow your search, compose your shortlist and even negotiate when you use our platform. Gone are the days when a dealerships potential customers were only those around him.”

Lohani explained that what actually takes weeks of rigorous surveying for a brand new or used vehicle- be it cars, motorcycles or commercial vehicles, can now be done in as little as a few hours. “We live by the what-you-see-is-what-you-get dogma. What is posted on our site from pictures to its information are accurate and optimized for better user experience.”

He also adds that on the side of the dealer, their website can help them clear their inventory fast without compromising their ROIs. “We know that car prices devaluate fast. Instead of it sitting in parking lots, we want it to find a suitable buyer who also wants the exact car so that he can use it for a variety of purposes from commuting to work up to performing deliveries for his business.”

Today, there are several growing industries that require the service of vehicles. This includes the infrastructure sector, SMEs and public transport.