Helping buyers save time
Michael Ryan O’Connor, CEO
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Michael Ryan O’Connor, CEO
Time appears to be the new currency for consumers and businesses: no one has more of it to give. At this year’s NADA Show, Michael Ryan O’Connor, President and CEO of online auction E-Block said their main focus is to help buyers on the platform save time.
“Our slogan is about time because we really save them time,” said O’Connor. “E-Block was built from a buyer’s perspective. We really cater towards the buying experience. When you build something that’s designed for buyers, it naturally becomes better for sellers.”
In the auction world there are auction buyers — and then there are the people who buy online, said O’Connor. That’s changing now as there are more and more online buyers. But E-Block caters to the people who are used to the brick and mortar experience.
“There’s a massive run list in advance. We have people buying 20-30 cars,” said O’Connor. “There’s this misconception with online platforms that they’re slow, so it’s exciting to show dealers cars being sold in 60 seconds.”
Dealers are “fighting at the margins” on new (and used) vehicles, he said. They are looking for ways to acquire cars, but with margins shrinking they don’t have the luxury of shipping the vehicle to the auction, paying salaries and fees. “And usually when dealers bring cars to the auction, they aren’t coming back. Then they’re stuck,” said O’Connor.
“We have a really high closing ratio for dealer consignment. We’re converting it to over 50 per cent in our live auction and the no-sales, which are a fact of life, every option has them. And guess what, they’re still in the dealer’s yard.”
E-Block offers post-auction services such as transport services and storage compounds, along with arbitration/PSI Services, title processing, EFT guaranteed payment and more.
“The dealer has full control over their assets at all times and they’re not tracking it back and forth. There are times where they will ship it (the vehicle) to the auction sale. And there have been times where it’s been brought it back,” said O’Connor. “As you can see we’ve done some exciting growth.”
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