Giving Buyers a Better View | IAA 360 View™

The saying goes, a picture is worth a thousand words.  For an IAA buyer, a picture represents on average about 1,800 parts.  Images are a key component to the bidding and purchasing process for IAA buyers around the globe.  But, really, what is in a picture?

Today over half of the inventory sold through IAA is purchased by a buyer who has researched, bid and bought online through one of our six auction channels.  Some may say that is common given the variety of items sold online today.  However, the vehicles sold at IAA are individually unique.

On a regular basis, IAA holds buyer forums for each segment of our purchasing population.  Across nearly all segments, buyers noted that the quality of images was a key item influencing their overall satisfaction during the researching, bidding and buying process.  Buyers in the forums detailed the importance of images, and their need to use images to assess the overall condition of the vehicle, as well as the specific components/parts.

Having listened to our buyers, we understand that there could be two vehicles for sale at IAA that are the same year, make and model.  One has damage to the driver side rear quarter panel and bumper, and the other has damage to the front bumper, hood and passenger side headlight assembly.  If our buyer is looking for a driver side rear quarter panel, being able to see the details of the part online is critical to their business.

Our forums helped us clearly understand the buyers’ need for visibility beyond a set of ten images with limited zoom or enlargement capability.  Buyers indicated the desire to be able to feel as though they were in front of the vehicle, able to walk around the unit, and look inside.

Through photo intelligence innovation, IAA developed new imaging technology allows us to take 360° images of both the vehicle exterior and interior during the check-in process.  IAA 360 View allows the buyer to spin the image as though they are walking around the car as well as view the interior of the car in a complete circle.  Buyers can also zoom in on areas of the vehicle that are critical to their bidding and buying decision making.

We found through our pilot program and direct buyer feedback that IAA 360 View provides the most consistent and best representation of the vehicle in comparison to other imaging methods in the industry.  Our global buyers felt they could significantly better assess the condition of individual parts, as well as the overall vehicle, resulting in increased bidding and buying confidence.  They also indicated that their research process was significantly more efficient, allowing them to comfortably and quickly select vehicles they were interested in and planned to bid on online or in-person.  Our IAA 360 View pilot program is still in progress and we look forward to provide additional feedback soon.

IAA has a long history of launching innovative solutions for our clients demonstrating our customer centric development process.  IAA 360 View is just one example of the many new and innovative solutions in our current pipeline.  Understanding the journey of our global buyers, and what drives their researching, bidding and buying satisfaction is a critical element of IAA’s success.  That customer research is also a critical component that feeds our innovation strategy to ensure products and services we develop meet and exceed our customers’ needs.