Investment from CarGurus Drives Significant Growth for PistonHeads in 2020

• Leads to car dealers have increased 86% year-on-year
• Visitors to PistonHeads classified pages are up 27%
• Major site rebuild improves user experience, with redesign of home page, classified pages and make and model landing pages

PistonHeads, the UK's leading premium car marketplace(1), has carried out a substantial site rebuild which has brought significant improvements for both car buyers and dealers alike. The technology upgrades are part of CarGurus' ongoing investment in the platform following its acquisition of PistonHeads in 2019.

The recent PistonHeads rebuild was focused on enhancing the user experience for consumers and driving improved return on investment for dealers that list vehicles on the site. These changes helped result in PistonHeads experiencing a 27% increase in visitors to the PistonHeads classified pages(3), and an overall 86% increase in leads to dealers(4).

Key to this success was a comprehensive refresh of the website homepage. The redesign streamlines the buying journey for PistonHeads users and creates a more seamless, intuitive flow from editorial articles and forum advice content through to the classified adverts. This not only enables buyers to find their next car more easily, but also delivers Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) benefits for the platform to drive organic audience growth.

Another priority was to better leverage PistonHeads' high quality editorial content to aid consumers in their car buying process. Make and model landing pages on the site were redesigned to include relevant editorial reviews, road tests and buying guides alongside larger and cleaner imagery of the classified adverts. The new user interface and improved functionality have resulted in greater user engagement, with nearly 3% higher click throughs to the classified advert details pages(5).

With more visitors being directed to the classifieds pages on PistonHeads, improvements were also made to convert this traffic into leads for dealers. Classified adverts now feature larger images and a gallery with increased functionality. Clearer calls to action, including more prominence for telephone numbers and contact forms, along with cleaner design, allow users to find the information they need.

Wendy Harris, Vice President of European Sales at CarGurus and PistonHeads said: "CarGurus acquired PistonHeads with clear intent to leverage our technology expertise to grow the platform and drive greater value for consumers and dealers. We've been working hard to test and implement significant technology enhancements to the site, and our dealer customers are now seeing the impact of that innovation.

"For dealers that have historically listed vehicles on the site, it's a good time revisit the new and improved PistonHeads. Not only have we enhanced the user experience across the site, PistonHeads is now attracting significantly more buyers to our classifieds and generating substantially more leads to dealers. That means we can deliver outstanding return on investment for our dealer partners."

ENDS

(1) PistonHeads is the leading premium car marketplace in the UK. (Based on Comscore's Automotive - Information/Resources category. Premium car marketplace consists of sites focused on premium cars. Comscore MMX Multi-Platform, Total Audience, Q2 2020, UK. Custom list defined by CarGurus includes: PistonHeads sites, Jardinemotors.co.uk, Classicandsportscar.com, Stratstone.com, Sytner.co.uk,Carandclassic.co.uk)

(2) PistonHeads is the largest motoring community in the UK. (Based on Comscore's Automotive - Information/Resources category. Motoring community consists of sites focused on motoring. Comscore MMX Multi-Platform, Total Audience, Q2 2020, UK. Custom list defined by CarGurus includes: PistonHeads Sites and CarThrottle.com)

(3) Total classified users 2019 H2 vs total classified users 2020 H1. CarGurus defines classified users as visitors to classified pages on the PistonHeads mobile and desktop sites.

(4) 86.04% increase in total leads Q3 2019 vs Q3 2020. PistonHeads defines leads as user inquiries via its marketplace to dealers by phone or email.

(5) 34.54% Click Through Rate (CTR) to Vehicle Description Page (VDP) from new Classified Landing Pages (CLPS) vs 31.85% CTR to VDP from Search Results Page

James Drake at CarGurus - UKPR@CarGurus.com / 0208 541 3434 / +44 07809 657178

About PistonHeads:

Founded in 1998, PistonHeads is the leading premium automotive marketplace and the largest online motoring community in the UK(1), (2). The platform connects millions of buyers, sellers and admirers of premium and performance cars and is known widely for its active member forums, distinctive editorial content and used car marketplace. PistonHeads was acquired by CarGurus in 2019 and continues to operate as an independent brand.

PistonHeads is a registered trademark of Pistonheads Holdco Limited. All product names, trademarks and registered trademarks are property of their respective owners.

To learn more about PistonHeads, visit www.pistonheads.com
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