Vehicle merchandising is everything that turns inventory sitting on a dealership lot into a vehicle a shopper can properly evaluate. That may include accurate inventory information, photos, video, exterior or interior 360s, dealer window stickers, window labels, Monroney labels, FTC Buyers Guides, branded media, background replacement, and getting the finished data and media where they ultimately need to go.
For lot-service companies, those tasks also have to be repeated across changing inventory and across dealerships that may buy completely different combinations of services.
WalkTheLot connects the field work around the vehicle with the publishing and distribution workflows that move the finished merchandising back into the dealer's retail ecosystem.
A vehicle can be in inventory without being fully merchandised. It may still need a complete photo set, temporary prebook photos while it moves through reconditioning, updated dealer window stickers or Buyers Guides, a video, 360 media, branded presentation, or another service the dealership uses to prepare inventory for shoppers.
The workflow should help the field team determine what needs attention, complete that work against the correct vehicle, and publish the finished result without requiring technicians to manually rebuild the same vehicle in downstream systems.
For lot-service companies, it also needs to remain practical when every dealership has its own services, media package, window sticker and Buyers Guide designs, inventory source, and distribution path.
At many dealerships, WalkTheLot receives current inventory from an upstream Tier 1 provider. The field technician can refresh that inventory when arriving at the lot and use filters to identify vehicles that still need photography or other attention.
For smaller or independent dealerships where WalkTheLot is the primary inventory source, the workflow can begin by scanning the VIN, decoding the vehicle, confirming its details, and creating the inventory directly from the lot.
Either way, the vehicle record becomes the foundation for the merchandising work that follows: photography, video, 360s, dealer window stickers, FTC Buyers Guides, media processing, services performed, publishing, and distribution.
The goal is not to create another disconnected media file. It is to move the actual vehicle closer to a complete retail presentation.
The exact service package varies by dealership, but the work can remain centered on the same inventory record from the beginning of the visit through publication.
Refresh inventory supplied by an upstream source or work from vehicle records maintained directly through WalkTheLot.
Use the current inventory to locate vehicles that need photos, additional media, window stickers, Buyers Guides, inventory updates, or other merchandising services.
Use MobileLot and identifying information such as VIN or stock number to work against the vehicle actually being serviced.
Capture standard or prebook photos, live video, exterior or interior 360s, or other media included in that dealer's merchandising package.
Print the dealership's approved dealer window stickers, window labels, Monroney labels, or FTC Buyers Guides from designs prepared ahead of time in WebLot.
Select the applicable dealer-specific billable services while the technician is still working with the vehicle.
Publish vehicle data and media individually as units are completed or later in batches when that better fits the field conditions.
Automatically return newly captured media to an upstream Tier 1 provider when that source controls distribution, or let WalkTheLot distribute inventory and media when it is serving as the dealer's primary inventory source.
Different dealerships define a merchandised vehicle differently. WalkTheLot gives lot-service companies a way to support those differences while keeping the field workflow centered on the dealer and vehicle.
WalkTheLot has been refined through more than 25 years of working directly with lot-service companies and continues to evolve as dealership merchandising practices change.
One account may purchase standard photography and dealer window stickers or Buyers Guides while another also uses prebook photos, video, exterior or interior 360s, background replacement, branded media, or another combination of merchandising services.
Some dealerships want vehicles online quickly even while they are still moving through detail or reconditioning. A provider can offer smaller prebook photo sets first and return later for the finished photo package once the vehicle is properly prepared.
Dealer window stickers, window labels, Monroney labels, and FTC Buyers Guides can be designed in WebLot, named in a way that makes sense to the technician, and made available in MobileLot once approved. Designs still being developed can remain in Draft status and stay out of the field selection list.
Photos can move through additional merchandising processes such as background removal and replacement or dealer branding. Video and 360 media can also support dealer-specific presentation treatments where those services are part of the account.
When the field work is finished, WalkTheLot can continue the workflow by returning media to the dealer's upstream provider or distributing inventory and media directly when WalkTheLot is the primary source.
WalkTheLot connects the physical merchandising work performed around a vehicle with the systems and destinations that ultimately use the finished inventory and media.
When inventory already exists through an upstream provider, technicians can refresh and work from those current records instead of manually recreating vehicles that have already been entered elsewhere.
When the lot-service company maintains the inventory directly, MobileLot can support VIN scanning, decoding, vehicle details, media capture, and publishing from the field.
Technicians can capture photos directly through MobileLot, use the phone's native camera and import the resulting images, or use DSLR equipment with WebLot Photo Match.
That allows providers to choose the capture method that fits the work without disconnecting the resulting media from the vehicle workflow.
Dealer merchandising can extend beyond still photos. WalkTheLot supports workflows involving live-captured video, exterior 360s, interior 360s, and other media used to give online shoppers a more complete view of the vehicle.
The provider can offer the combination that makes sense for each dealership instead of forcing every account into the same media package.
Photography can also move through additional presentation steps such as background removal and replacement or dealer-branded overlays. Different treatments can be used where appropriate for inventory categories such as new, used, or certified vehicles.
Video and 360 media can also support dealer branding and presentation workflows when those services are part of the account.
Administrators can create dealer window sticker, window label, Monroney label, and FTC Buyers Guide designs in WebLot and give them meaningful names for field use. Once approved, technicians can select those designs in MobileLot and print the required window stickers or Buyers Guides without rebuilding the layout on each visit.
Draft status can keep unfinished designs out of the technician's available choices until the provider and dealership are ready for them to be used.
When dealer inventory comes into WalkTheLot from another Tier 1 provider, the service company can complete its photography and merchandising work and WalkTheLot can automatically return the newly captured photos or media to that upstream source.
That provider can then continue handling distribution to the dealer website and other configured destinations without requiring the field technician to manually upload each vehicle again.
When WalkTheLot is serving as the dealer's primary inventory source, the workflow can continue beyond field capture. Vehicle data and media can be distributed automatically to configured destinations such as the dealer's website provider and other inventory or classified destinations.
The technician handles the vehicle. The configured data flow handles where the finished inventory needs to go next.
The field technician can select the dealer-specific services performed against the vehicle while the work is happening. That might include a photo package, prebook photos, window sticker or Buyers Guide printing, a 360 service, a label reprint, or another configured billable item.
The work can remain associated with vehicle details such as VIN and stock number and accumulate into the dealer's invoice without requiring the office to reconstruct the merchandising visit later.
WalkTheLot helps lot-service companies connect current dealer inventory with photography, video, 360s, dealer window stickers, FTC Buyers Guides, media processing, publishing, distribution, and billing through a workflow built around the vehicle.
Explore dealer inventory capture, automotive photography, recurring vehicle service, invoicing, and the broader lot-service workflows that support complete dealer merchandising.
Related search topics: VEHICLE MERCHANDISING WORKFLOW SOFTWARE INVENTORY MERCHANDISING WORKFLOW DEALER MERCHANDISING SOFTWARE VEHICLE INVENTORY MERCHANDISING
Explore additional WalkTheLot tools for dealership merchandising, lot services, and window sticker automation.
Related dealership topics covering vehicle merchandising, window labels, and dealership media workflows.
