Fort Lauderdale, Fla. — A study of more than 300 AutoNation stores revealed that AutoUSA sales leads, which are sourced from Edmunds.com, Kelley Blue Book , MSN Autos and Yahoo! Autos, and other specially chosen independent Websites, generated a 20-percent better closing rate than other third-party lead providers utilized by the dealer group. A reason sited for the higher closing rates is that the majority of Internet shoppers visit these sites. In fact, a recent independent study that found that approximately 80 percent of Internet auto shoppers visit an independent automotive Website as part of their shopping process when researching a new vehicle.

“Dealers can be certain that having a presence on the top independent automotive Websites will ensure they connect with the customers who are ready to buy,” said Phil DuPree, president of AutoUSA. “Our initial and ongoing strategy of sourcing the highest-quality leads from the best-rated sites has paid off and our dealer customers have the close rates and ROI numbers to prove it.”

AutoUSA partners with Edmunds.com, Kelley Blue Book, Yahoo! Autos and MSN Autos, as these sites have established themselves as attracting qualified buyers and passing that information to dealers.

Edmunds.com attracts car shoppers conducting research during the buying process. “Our dealer and OEM partners continually report that our leads are the highest closing leads in the industry. This is largely because we don’t introduce consumers into the leads channel until they are ready to buy,” said Lisa Ackerly, executive director of Edmunds.com. “The leads generated from Edmunds are from consumers who conduct research on our site; we never acquire leads from outside sources. We are proud of our partnership with AutoUSA as we share a common goal of delivering the highest-quality leads to the marketplace.”

Kelley Blue Book is well known for its tools used by consumers to determine the value of their trade-in vehicles. Kbb.com receives more than 13 million unique visitors every month, and 87 percent of the visitors buy a car within six months of visiting. “Our focus is not to just provide a lead, but a buyer that has a high level of trust already integrated into the process,” said Mike Romano, vice president of dealer strategy at Kelley Blue Book. “Our goal is to provide consumers with all the information they need and provide a seamless handoff to our dealer partners. AutoUSA is an integral part of this process.”

Yahoo! Autos relies on its brand recognition and vast network of well-informed consumers who trust Yahoo! to connect them with local dealers. “Thanks to expert video reviews, thousands of user ratings and comprehensive safety and reliability information, consumers are well educated before submitting a lead,” said Michael Yang, vice president and general manager of Yahoo! Autos. “We are proud to connect these high-quality, ready-to-purchase consumers with AutoUSA’s collection of the nation’s best dealers.”

AutoUSA continues to partner with only the top-rated automotive Websites to deliver leads that have the highest closing rate in the industry. They most recently received the highest score in business generation and lead quality in the 2007 J.D. Power and Associates Dealers Satisfaction with Online Buying Services Study.

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