The anxiety of transparency (auto industry adjusts to new web influences, and vice-versa)

Observation:   A recent story from the New York Times takes an interesting look at how the automobile sales industry is changing, thanks to companies like TrueCar.com, which aggregate data from all over to show consumers the kind of price they should reasonably expect on their next car.  Click here to see the story.

Implications:  I found this story interesting because of the way some stakeholders would discourage greater transparency in the car-buying process. 

Hasn’t that train already left the station?

The Internet has empowered information to flow where consumers want it to be.  (And if that hasn’t happened in some situations, it’s only a matter of time.)

Are you on the leading edge of bringing transparency to your industry category?  Or is your company among those who might try delay the age of more candid commerce?  Can the latter possibly succeed, in an age where information is so difficult to keep in its cage?

Mike Anderson, for the Elm Street Economics consumer trends blog. A service of The Center for Sales Strategy, Inc.