ATLANTA, Aug. 16, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- In July, consumers generated over 257,000 instant trade-in offers through AutoTrader.com's Trade-In Marketplace™; this was the highest number of offers generated in a single month and a 12.5 percent increase year-over-year. Key drivers of the growth in offers include increased site traffic to AutoTrader.com and natural consumer demand. To date, over 6.5 million offers have been generated through the Trade-In Marketplace.

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"New vehicle retail sales reached double-digit gains for both June and July when compared to the same time last year, and this increase in demand for new vehicles translates into more people who need to dispose of their current vehicles," said Juan Flores, director of operations for the Trade-In Marketplace at AutoTrader.com®. "The Trade-In Marketplace has proven to be a valuable tool that makes the trade-in conversation easier for both the consumer and the dealer."

The Trade-In Marketplace enables consumers to get an instant offer on their used cars, sight unseen, and those offers are backed by AutoTrader.com. The offers generated through the Trade-In Marketplace are based on an extensive set of parameters, including VIN-specific information, details surrounding the condition of the car and the impact of the specific vehicle's history and after-market equipment.

The result is that consumers receive an offer on their vehicles that represents an amount that a dealer would be willing to pay for their vehicle immediately. As long as the shopper accurately represents the condition of the vehicle, he or she never has to accept less. Shoppers can redeem their Trade-In Marketplace offer at a participating dealership to turn the offer into cash or use it toward the down payment on another car.

According to independently fielded consumer follow-up surveys, 65 percent of shoppers who redeem their Trade-In Marketplace offers indicated that they traded in the vehicle for a replacement instead of just selling the car to the dealership and walking away with a check.

History of the Trade-In Marketplace:

Initially launched in a few select markets in June 2009, the Trade-In Marketplace became available nationwide in October 2010. One year later, AutoTrader.com partnered with Kelley Blue Book®, a subsidiary of AutoTrader Group™, to bring the Trade-In Marketplace to its award-winning KBB.com website.  In August 2012, AutoTrader.com worked with another AutoTrader Group subsidiary, vAuto®, to integrate the Trade-In Marketplace into vAuto's Provision® inventory management system.

Consumers who are interested in generating an offer on their vehicles can go to tradein.autotrader.com to access the Trade-In Marketplace.

Auto dealers seeking more information on the Trade-In Marketplace program can visit http://timfordealers.autotrader.com/ for more information or speak with their AutoTrader.com representative.

About AutoTrader.com
Created in 1997, Atlanta-based AutoTrader.com is the Internet's ultimate automotive marketplace. As a leading resource for car shoppers and sellers, AutoTrader.com aggregates millions of new, used and certified pre-owned cars from thousands of dealers and private sellers and provides expert articles and reviews. AutoTrader.com, which also operates the AutoTraderClassics.com® auto marketing brand, is wholly owned by AutoTrader Group™. Additionally, AutoTrader Group owns Kelley Blue Book® (KBB.com) as well as three other companies that provide a full suite of software tools that help dealers and manufacturers manage their inventory and advertising online: vAuto®, HomeNet Automotive® and VinSolutions®.  AutoTrader Group is a majority-owned subsidiary of Cox Enterprises. Providence Equity Partners is a 25 percent owner of the company. For more information, please visit http://press.autotrader.com.

SOURCE AutoTrader.com