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Since launching about a year ago, Facebook Marketplace has grown to become a viable alternative to classified-ad stalwart Craigslist for car buying and selling (we’ve detailed the two platforms’ relative strengths and weaknesses in the past). But for those of us who are habitually shopping for cars or trucks, regardless of need or intent to buy—or even for more mainstream vehicle shoppers—Marketplace has been lacking in a few key areas. The listings seem to defy chronology, and worse, the search options have been extremely limited, offering only searches on keyword, price range, and location.
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But big changes are afoot as Facebook brings its Marketplace more in line with other car-shopping sites. It’s adding dealership listings through partnerships with Edmunds, Cars.com, Auction123, CDK Global, and SocialDealer and is installing messaging options that will let consumers communicate directly with auto dealers.
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Facebook Marketplace is also launching an enhanced vehicles section, where users can filter search results by year, make, model, mileage, vehicle type, and transmission. This update will apply to private listings, too. A spokesperson for Facebook could not give an exact date when the change will take place but said it’s expected to be rolled out “in the next week or so.” New features are also on the way for other Marketplace categories such as jobs, event tickets, retail, and residential rentals.
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- Can Facebook Compete with Craigslist for Used-Car Listings?
- Dealers: Internet Be Damned, People Still Want to Buy Cars in Person
- How to Sell Your Car the Modern Way: We Put Seven Online Services to the Test
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Facebook, of course, is a social-media monster, permeating the lives of more than 2 billion active users each month. It also allows people to join groups such as Obscure Cars for Sale or view pages for very specific vehicle types. Facebook said more than 550 million people are active each month in buying and selling groups, and “millions” peruse its Marketplace section daily. They’ll soon be getting a better user experience.
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