"A Win-Win Deal…Buyers Reduce Their Frustration and Save a Lot of Money in the Process…"
Exclusive Interview with MyNextMotor.Net Founder, Chris Aldridge
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We caught up with MyNextMotor.Net Founder and CEO Chris Aldridge on a crisp November day, at the company’s Seattle, Washington area corporate headquarters. Chris was gracious enough to spend time to offer his thoughts on the current state of MyNextMotor.Net, how it is uniquely tailored to the car buyers’ needs, and where he sees his company going in the future.
Now, you call yourself a CarFinder Service™ instead of a car broker. What's the difference?
Yes, I like that term, CarFinder ™ because it describes exactly what I do for the ordinary car shopper. It's more than just brokering a sale. Any car buyer who has worn out a pair of shoes walking around ten, fifteen, or more car dealerships knows that finding the car is half the battle.
But you also act as a broker, correct?
Correct. MyNextMotor’s Car Finder™offers a complete start-to-finish process, from taking car shoppers’ initial idea of what type of car they might want, all the way up to handing them the keys.
Earlier you mentioned that there are some dangers with dealings with some other auto brokers.
That's right. Not to name names, but here is an insider secret. Lots of people who hold themselves out as auto brokers really just work for auto dealerships, either on an official or unofficial basis. Now, that doesn't help the car buyer one bit. The car buyer gets railroaded into purchasing a car from a certain car dealer and doesn't have a wide range of choices.
Basically what these so-called “brokers” do is they take your information and they forward it to a car dealership. What's so hard about that? You could've done it yourself, and it does nothing to save you money or save you hassles.
Where do you get your vehicles from?
Well that's the great thing about dealing with CarFinder ™ from MyNextMotor. I start with the most basic thing, which is a definition of the car that the shopper wants. Then it's my job to beat the bushes and find a place that has a kind of car the buyer wants. So, this could include auctions, factory lease returns, dealer trade-ins, consignments, you name it.
No inventory problems?
No inventory problems whatsoever. We access a network of vehicles that is always fresh, every week there are thousands of new choices of all makes models and price ranges. It’s like having the biggest car-lot on the planet, with very little overhead. Plus, if you're going to a BMW dealership, chances are you're going to just get a BMW. My inventory spans the entire inventory of all vehicles on the market. How great is that?
Let's talk pricing. Most buyers’ agents are not really acting in the best interest of the buyer. In fact, they actually benefit if you spend more money. Realtors are a good example.
That's right. We do not have a percentage-based fee structure. And frankly, you do not want that for that reason you just mentioned. A flat-fee-based pricing structure has two great advantages. First, it is completely transparent. No hidden charges, no invisible fees. It's right there. Second, we can focus on making the best possible buy for you, both mechanically and in value, because our motivation is your satisfaction… not our commission check. We call it the No-Hassle Flat-Fee System, and our clients love it.
Now, I was reading that you’re at the forefront of this new system that lets buyers have a completely hands-free buying experience.
Well, I wouldn't call it hands-free because the buyer is dictating everything. We are the CarFinder ™ ; the buyer is running the show. What you're probably thinking about is how I allow busy people to get into the vehicle that they want, with practically zero hassle. I’ve been in this industry for a number of years now, and I’ve seen the progression—from miserable people dragging their families from car lot to car lot…all the way up to this dealership-free system of researching, finding, selecting, and even purchasing a vehicle electronically. We do all the work for you! MyNextMotor provides photos, condition reports, and title history reports. Our experienced professional staff actually goes out and drives each one of these vehicles to ensure the highest quality for your purchase.
Not possible before the Internet, right?
The Internet helps, but buyers can contact us through other ways. On our site, my MyNextMotor.Net, buyers can fill out a simple wholesale quote form and tell us exactly what they want. We have phone and e-mail access, where buyers can instantly get in touch with us and get up-to-date pricing and availability reports. And they can do all this from the comfort of their own workplace or home. In fact, we can even arrange a special fee-based option where the vehicles are delivered right to the buyer.
Can you just briefly outline what MyNextMotor does?
We take you straight to the source. In any car buying experience, there are three levels: the source, the middleman, and the car buyer. All of those car lots and dealerships and used car salesman are the middleman. We flatten down and minimize the obstacles between you and your car. That's why our motto is, "What Would You Like to Drive?” It's a question that all of these expensive dealerships rarely ask, because they're too busy burdening down the whole sales process with their extra charges, fees, and all of the other trappings of their overloaded sales process. MyNextMotor keeps things simple, and is focused on simply getting you in the driver’s seat and your foot on the pedal. Our focus is your satisfaction.
But aren't you a middleman yourself, of sorts?
All of life has middlemen. Buy a pack of gum at a store, and the store is the middleman. But what I'm saying is that we have studied and carefully identified all of the problems in the traditional car buying process. Then we either eliminated those problems or minimized those problems so that they are not an issue for the car buyer. We have simplified the process by offering a flat-rate fee structure.
The difference seems to be that you take on a different role in the car buying process.
That's right. You see, the problem with car dealerships... well, let me put it a different way. Times have changed. This is not like the old days when the only way you could sell a car was to have a five acre lot full of cars, with balloons and colorful signs and salesman roaming the lot. That's the old model. The new model is a much cleaner, technology-oriented process that cuts out and shrinks a lot of those expensive things. My car lot has 100,000 cars and it all exists electronically, because that's the pool of cars that I draw from.
So, I was reading that you tend to be very selective about the types of cars that you find for car buyers. Is there a reason for this?
Yes. You wouldn't believe the types of cars you find out there, all the way from rusted junkers to practically brand-new lease returns. I like to keep the quality of the cars that I work with very high. Now, I know that a lot of people might claim that, but I have several very good reasons for doing this. First, there are a lot of very good, high quality and quite desirable cars out there on the market. As automotive technology has increased over the years, it really has benefited the consumer. Secondly, where I'm getting my cars is not from some car parked on the street with a “For Sale” sign in the window. I am purchasing for my clients low mileage, well maintained, good condition automobiles, many of which are still under factory warranty. I won’t buy it if I won’t drive it.
So, what about all of these places where you find your cars? I could probably go out and do the same thing myself?
Technically, yes. But let's look at it in detail. Other than the licensing and bonding requirements, MyNextMotor’s CarFinder ™ does this on a daily basis, practically 365 days a year, and we are experienced at handling specialized things like auctions, consignments, lease returns, and so on. Most people who do not deal with this thing on a daily basis have no idea what this stuff is about. Even if they could find the outlets for these cars, they would have a hard time dealing with all of the problems that come with it. Believe me, a car auction is a tough environment, a lot of very seasoned professionals bidding on cars and they are very savvy and aggressive. They know exactly what they are doing. You don't want to get in the middle of that. Better to have a professional like MyNextMotor on your side, working for you. Also you have to factor in things like your own time. How much is your own time worth? Remember, buying a car is not like buying a camera from Best Buy. It's not like you look at the Sunday morning circular, check out the few cameras you want, and then bam!-- 3 hours later you have a camera. Car buying, when you do it by yourself, can take weeks and weeks, but more likely several months because you have to do this all on your own spare time, weekends, after work, at lunch time, and so on.
Let's talk a little bit about the MyNextMotor flat-fee based structure. How does that compete with going to the car dealership? The last time I checked, there were no fees involved with going to a car dealership.
It's not quite that simple. The car dealerships and high-pressure salesman all get their money. They're very sneaky about it, adding their fees into the total cost of the vehicle. But at MyNextMotor you can see the delineation. What we show you, very clearly and simply, is the cost of the car and the cost of CarFinder ™ fee. Nothing hidden.