TrueCar, the negotiation-free car buying and selling platform, surpassed 1 million downloads of its smartphone app as more consumers turn to mobile devices to make purchasing a vehicle simpler and seamless. Mobile usage by TrueCar customers was more than 40% at mid-year and continues to grow.
"We are seeing a tectonic shift from the old 'shop online, buy-offline' model to a future where consumers shop and buy seamlessly on their mobile devices," said Scott Painter, founder and CEO of TrueCar. "This has to be one of the most aggressive technology mass-adoption curves in history.''
The TrueCar Price Check feature, introduced this year for users of iOS devices, allows a consumer to get pricing and vehicle information by scanning the window sticker of a vehicle while on the lot of a TrueCar Certified Dealer. It is expected that consumers will be able to access this feature on Android devices later this month.
David Libonate Jr. recently used TrueCar's Android app on both his smartphone and tablet to price and purchase a 2014 Ford Focus ST 5-door hatchback from Apple Ford in Columbia, Maryland -- becoming the 1.5 millionth TrueCar user to buy a car along the way.
"After seeing a commercial online for TrueCar I was able to use my Android tablet to configure the car I wanted and see what others were paying. Within minutes, I had e-mails from dealers showing me they had the car I wanted,'' Libonate said. "I knew what the right price was for the car I wanted, and thanks to the app I was able to easily access TrueCar's data on my Nexus 5 phone while at the dealership.''
TrueCar's car-buying app for consumers was introduced for iOS devices in 2013 and expanded to Android devices earlier this year. To date, about 75 percent of the installs have been for iOS and a quarter for Android devices.
More changes are on the way as TrueCar plans enhancements to further eliminate stress for customers and improve the sales process for TrueCar Certified Dealers.
"In less than five years, we anticipate that nearly all transactions will be completed using a mobile device at the dealership,'' Painter said. "Virtually every relevant retailer or service provider will be mobile-enabled.''
