AutoTrader.com Continues Marketing Momentum With Multi-faceted Advertising and Sponsorship Campaign.

Business Editors & Automotive/Technology/Internet Writers

ATLANTA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 5, 2001

Online Auto Classifieds Leader Announces $40 Million

Marketing Budget, Despite Industry Dot-Com Gloom

AutoTrader.com, the leading Internet destination and marketplace in the United States for buyers and sellers of used vehicles, today unveiled the company's new marketing campaign, which will build on the momentum of last year's successful mass market television advertising debut.

The $40 million campaign will include a new broadcast commercial and a combination of multiple broadcast spots and online exposure, targeting used car shoppers with ad buys during prime time television NBA, NCAA basketball, and NASCAR coverage for the first half of 2001. Other major sports will also be targeted during the remainder of 2001.

This year, AutoTrader.com will employ an ongoing sponsorship approach to reach its target audience repeatedly through a variety of sources, rather than rely on a few select ad buys. Broadcast advertising during widely viewed sporting events combined with online marketing partnerships will reinforce AutoTrader.com's brand as a household name synonymous with smart used car shopping. Earlier this month, AutoTrader.com announced an expanded multi-year alliance with America Online in which AutoTrader.com has become the exclusive provider of used car classified listings and search capabilities across all major AOL brands. This partnership brings together the largest automotive online classifieds marketplace and the largest consumer audience in cyberspace.

"With the success of last year's Super Bowl spot, we're continuing to focus on building our awareness within the key audience of men aged 18-49," said Clark Wood, vice president of marketing, AutoTrader.com. "This year, rather than focusing our efforts and budget on one big event like the Super Bowl, we will reach our target demographic through a variety of ongoing sports sponsorships, building nationwide awareness and keeping AutoTrader.com top of mind."

The spots will run aggressively throughout the NBA season on Turner Sports, including commercials during the playoffs and All Star weekend. AutoTrader.com will sponsor an online contest on CNNSI.com, The AutoTrader.com Classic Trades in NBA History Sweepstakes, where viewers vote for the best trades made by NBA teams. Winners will be entered into a drawing to win a trip for two to visit the Inside the NBA set. Another major component of AutoTrader.com's advertising campaign is a series of media buys throughout CBS Sports' coverage of the NCAA basketball season, including the Final Four and Championship games. AutoTrader.com will also reach an enormous audience through an aggressive marketing partnership during the first half of the NASCAR season on Fox.

"As we have all seen from the recent dot-com shakeout, it is tough to build an online business without having a memorable brand supported by strong, ongoing advertising," said Chip Perry, president and CEO, AutoTrader.com. "Our marketing strategy last year, which started with the Super Bowl, acted as a springboard to create awareness of our unusually strong value proposition for consumers. With the geocentric growth we've seen in all aspects of our business, it makes perfect sense to continue with and enhance such a successful offline and online strategy."

Survival of the fittest has really become the name of the game in the dot-com industry with more than 300 companies closing their doors in 2000. AutoTrader.com's $40 million marketing campaign underscores the ongoing, success experienced by the online automotive classifieds company as well as the strength of its business model. The aggressive campaign will continue to use the successful tag line, "Your Car is Waiting" and will emphasize how AutoTrader.com empowers consumers by offering the largest selection of used vehicles and empowering decision tools. AutoTrader.com's new commercial, entitled Buddies, will air on February 5th, and again utilizes the distinctive, memorable work of Digital Domain, a special effects company best known for their work on the motion pictures, "Titanic" and "Apollo 13." The commercial employs high-tech digital effects to visually demonstrate that the site is quick, responsive and easy to use. In addition, it emphasizes the unsurpassed selection of used vehicles and resources available for consumers including assistance with insurance and financing. The new ad is dominated by stunning visuals of cars rushing up through the floor, responding to the requests of the customers. Doner of Southfield, Michigan, has once again developed the campaign.

AutoTrader.com has rapidly established itself as the leading player in the $370 billion used car marketplace and in the $4.5 billion automotive classifieds market. In year over year comparisons, AutoTrader.com's user base has grown 300% to more than 4 million per month, and has seen a 150% increase in the number of vehicle searches (up to 16 million per month from 6 million at this time last year). Average monthly page views have increased from 17 million to 98 million and average monthly unique visitors have more than doubled from 1.9 million to 3.9 million.

Jupiter Communications expects that by 2004, online-influenced new vehicle sales are expected to exceed $128 billion and approximately 1.3 million cars will be sold online that year, up from 17,000 in 1999. J.D. Power & Associates' 2000 Used Autoshopper.com Study reported that AutoTrader.com is the leading Internet destination for used vehicles buyers. Twenty-one percent of buyers who located their vehicle online used AutoTrader.com to do so.

About AutoTrader.com

AutoTrader.com is the leading Internet destination and marketplace in the United States for buyers and sellers of used cars, light trucks, vans and sport utility vehicles and for consumers seeking information regarding automotive products and services, such as insurance, financing and warranties. AutoTrader.com, through its strategic alliances, aggregates in a single location an extensive network of industry participants and a comprehensive database of 1.5 million vehicle listings and automotive information to create an open marketplace that is local, regional and national in nature.

AutoTrader.com was formed in 1997 and is a majority-owned subsidiary of Manheim Auctions, Inc. which has been in business since 1945 and is the world's largest operator of wholesale auto auctions. Manheim Auctions, a wholly owned subsidiary of Cox Enterprises, Inc., a leading media conglomerate, is AutoTrader.com's principal stockholder and one of AutoTrader.com's strategic partners. Other investors and strategic partners include Trader Publishing Company, ADP, Inc., eBay, Inc. and the venture capital firm, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers.