Standing out from the competition

Marketing researchers and authors of Blue Ocean Strategy, W Chan Kim and Renee Mauborgne, contend that in order for a business to be successful they must create ‘blue oceans’ of uncontested market space ripe for growth. Such strategic moves, termed ‘value innovation’, create powerful leaps in value for both the business and its buyers, rendering rivals obsolete and unleashing new demand. Creating a blue ocean will largely come about through the development ofunique selling points (USPs). This is very much the story of carsales.com. The first unique selling point has emerged from the philosophy of the business-which is, to achieve a sale, not simply focus on creating another classified advertising avenue. This has led to the application of sophisticated, robust and efficient technologies that clearly help people sell things. carsales.com’s heritage is derived from automotive software, ensuring they have a specialised understandingof the business and future opportunities. The specific characteristics of this technology-based USP include:

• A range of robust online platforms
• Intuitive and accurate search functionality
• Quick and effective online ad creation
• Detailed data and information to enhance the buying and selling experience
• Immediate connectivity between buyers and sellers.

This USP has greatly contributed to carsales.com’s market leading position. The company holds the number one position by the key metrics (measures) in relation to traffic and revenue as shown inFigure 3 below.

Figure 3: