The Dealer Playbook – Details, episodes & analysis

In this episode my guest is, Michael L. Wood, General Manager at Checkered Flag Jaguar Land Rover VW, to unpack something that I think everybody in business should be paying attention to: unreasonable hospitality.

What does that even mean, right? Well, think about it this way: How often do you leave a place (whether it’s a restaurant, a store, or even a dealership) feeling like they actually cared about you, like they went beyond the sale to make your experience truly unforgettable? Probably not often enough. But Michael’s figured it out, and let me tell you, it’s changing the game in the auto industry.

In this episode, Michael shares how he’s using small, thoughtful actions to create a lasting impression on his customers—and how it’s leading to loyalty and referrals like you wouldn’t believe. We talk about everything from using social media to better understand clients before they even walk through the door, to the importance of leadership that empowers your team to think for themselves.

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In this episode, my guest is the COO of Ziegler Auto Group, Sam D’Arc, and trust me when I say this is not your typical conversation about selling cars. In fact, we’re not talking about selling cars at all. Sam and I dive deep into what really makes a dealership thrive—and spoiler alert—it’s not just about inventory or car payments.

 But here’s the deal: Sam and I go beyond the sales floor and get into what really makes an auto group thrive. We’re talking culture, passion, and what it means to create a lifelong love affair with your people. Imagine walking into a dealership where the focus is on celebrating employees living their best lives, not just pushing numbers. We dig into how Ziegler is making that happen across 41 rooftops and what it means to foster an environment where people can grow, evolve, and find their calling—whether it’s turning a wrench or syncing someone’s Bluetooth. 

But more than that, this episode is about breaking the mold—how treating your employees right leads to treating your customers right, and why chasing a journey with no end might just be the key to lasting success. You’ll walk away from this one inspired, with a fresh perspective on leadership, culture, and the power of doing business differently. Plus, I threw in a couple of listener questions, including one about Sam’s favorite failure that will hit home for anyone who's ever faced a setback.

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This Episode's Sponsor

Sell Smarter, Not Harder

AutoFi helps progressive dealers like you sell smarter, not harder—on your dealership website and, now, in your showroom, too.

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Go to AutoFi.com/dealerplaybook to learn more. And start selling smarter, today.

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Are you ready to revolutionize your approach to Business Development Centers (BDC) and transform your dealership's operations? 

In this episode I sit down with Anthony Alagona, the founder of Appointments That Show and a true BDC master. Anthony's innovative strategies and relentless discipline have made him a leading expert in the industry, and he's here to share his secrets with you.

What We Discuss in This Episode:

We dive deep into the core principles that drive BDC success. You'll discover the importance of persistence and consistency, both in personal fitness and professional endeavors. Anthony's daily fitness routines serve as a powerful metaphor for the kind of discipline required to excel in BDC operations. Learn how to create a culture of accountability, set and achieve daily, weekly, and monthly benchmarks, and enhance your customer experience through effective communication and CRM optimization.

A few takeaways

• Effective Communication: Learn how to improve communication between your BDC, sales floor, and management team to enhance customer experience.
• CRM Optimization: Get practical tips on leveraging CRM tools to personalize and elevate customer interactions.
• Hospitality and Accountability: Understand the importance of creating memorable customer experiences and setting benchmarks to ensure consistent performance.

Anthony’s insights are not just theoretical—they’re proven strategies that can help you increase appointment show rates and boost overall customer satisfaction.

Thanks, Anthony Alagona!

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Listen to the full episode for insights and context from Anthony Alagona

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Looking for a reliable, high-performance dealership marketing partner? Visit https://www.flexdealer.com to discover why more and more dealers are choosing them over big-box providers.

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In this episode of The Dealer Playbook Podcast, Michael shares his thoughts and ideas on how sales pros can not only survive, but thrive in a slow economy. The world hasn't exactly stopped before; there may have been a few pauses along the way, but they only lasted as long as it took for someone to think outside the box and find a solution—to go on by taking the next logical steps forward.

In business, especially in the automotive industry, the economic climate is always changing. For much of the time, the changes that take place are caused by outside factors we are powerless to control. In that case, do we need to fear or panic?

No! We need to be prepared to take action and do whatever is ethically necessary in order to. Take the opportunity and seize the opportunity that is in front of us now.

The key to Ali Reda's success as a top car sales professional is what we'll refer to as "relationship selling." Relationship selling is a method in which the salesperson puts their relationship with the customer ahead of everything else about the sale. They develop trust, usually by adding value and spending a lot of time with prospects before attempting to close.

Compare and contrast Ali Rita’s interview with mine and think about what he's saying and how you can apply it to the context of your circumstances. You're not in the same city, you're not selling the same product, you're not in the same market or community or whatever it may be. There's going to be some nuance and subtle differences. So listen and say, "Okay, so what am I doing currently? What do I think I could be doing differently to strengthen these relationships? What's that one crazy idea that I've always had that I want to try to build a relationship with somebody that I haven't done it yet?

It doesn't matter if you're selling super luxe cars or used Saturn ions. What matters is what kind of relationship you build with people, especially during this period of time that we're about to embark on - and that, frankly, we're already in, but nobody is willing to admit it yet. It's on us to stand out.

We’ve been here before. Times have been tough. We’ve survived and learned valuable lessons along the way to make us better people, smarter salespeople and stronger business leaders. If you believe the depressing and negative news, you'll struggle through difficult times. But if you take a break from the news and concentrate on what's positive in the world and the principles we talked about in the episode, you'll soon come up with innovative solutions on how to thrive in such a slow economy.

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Shari Levitin is one of the top Keynote Speakers in #Sales and the best-selling author of Heart and Sell: 10 Universal Truths Every Salesperson Needs to Know. As the creator of the Shari Levitin Group, she has assisted businesses in more than 40 countries in generating an extra $1 billion in income.

In this episode, Shari shares insights on how to use video to increase sales and exceed quotas.

Find out why using videos to sell is one of the most effective marketing strategies in 2022, what kinds of sales videos to produce, how to use them, how to engage your team, and so much more.

Making simple sales video messages will assist your sales team in connecting with existing clients and contacting new prospects, all while developing a virtual connection and brand trust. Using video for sales can reap the same benefit you have been getting from in-person communication — the authentic human connection — and help you crush your sales targets.

Asynchronous video is nothing short of a sales secret weapon since it restores the mutual accountability and high-fidelity face-to-face connection that occurs with in-person interactions. Asynchronous video messages help vendors stand out from the competition by allowing customers a behind-the-scenes look at their personalities. Salespeople put their humanity on full display while explaining their offerings, advantages, business methods, etc.

The sales process doesn't matter. What matters is the buying process.

Daily sales emails are sent to potential consumers. With a sales video, you can stand out from the crowd of prospecting emails. Whereas it's simpler to make your views understood in a video than in a lengthy email or PDF.

The better you convey the benefits of listening and watching your video, the more engagement you will get. The goal is to make them interested enough to reply. That's it. No more. No less.

Listen to the full episode for insights and context from Shari Levitin!

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More Dealers Are Choosing To Partner with FlexDealerLooking for a reliable, high-performance dealership marketing partner? Visit https://www.flexdealer.com to discover why more and more dealers are choosing them over big-box providers.

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RC Hazzard, Servant Leader, Army Veteran, and Country Singer, is now among the top car dealers in the auto industry.

Working with Protective as the Regional Sales Director, RC shares his background story of how he came about joining the auto industry after serving in the army for six good years while singing country music, his evolution, what changed, and how he found himself in the auto industry.

In this episode, RC Hazzard expands on his role in helping automotive dealers around the United States review their current reinsurance positions and create the most effective reinsurance or DOWC (Dealer Owned Warranty Company) to assist their future growth.

RC makes keen observations about the auto industry: "I had these single moms coming in or people that were from depressed areas and people would judge 'em when they saw 'em. They wouldn't ask 'em what they needed. They were just trying to sell them something. And very quickly, my managers realized I wasn't there to sell people anything. I was there to help people accommodate whatever they needed in their life."

RC believes that helping others can dramatically benefit your business. Helping is the new economic currency that can revolutionize businesses in the auto industry.

Dealers should not compare themselves against other dealers or get discouraged over where they're positioned versus where their competitors are. All that matters is what they can do within their context of circumstances and forget about what others are doing. "If you're a, you know, a 20-store dealer and your goal is to get to 40, you can't compare yourself against a, you know, a Dan Cummins that's trying to go from a thousand to 1,500."

The car dealer, male, female, whoever they are, can always make as much as possible without negatively affecting anyone around them.

RC aims to help every dealer understand what they have in their reinsurance position and then show them what they can do with what they currently have or what they can do if they take a different opportunity.

Listen to the full episode for insights and context from RC Hazzard!

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Looking for a reliable, high-performancedealership marketing partner? Visithttps://www.flexdealer.c

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Glen Lundy is the CEO of the 800% Elite Automotive Club and founder of Breakfast with Champions on Clubhouse. Lundy is an extremely successful automotive industry expert who has made it his mission to help other dealers across North America.

Glenn grew a small dealership in a 9,600-person town by 800% in just 5 years, making it the second-largest used vehicle franchise dealership in the nation. Additionally, he has worked with hundreds of dealerships around the country, is a renowned author, a keynote speaker, and a two-time winner of the Chevy Dealer of the Year Award. He has also been featured in well-known automotive journals and prominent television outlets.

How To Save Your Dealership

By growing a small used car shop in Lexington, Kentucky into the second-largest company of its kind in the US, Glenn began his ascent to success in the auto sales market. Under Lundy's direction, the dealership saw an 800% increase in sales, ranging from selling roughly 120 automobiles a month to over 800. In this episode, Lundy shares how he got started in the auto industry, his experiences along the way, and the creation of the 800% Club.

What is the 800% Elite Automotive Club?

Glenn shares his story of how he grew as an individual. He went from salesperson to general manager of an initially small dealership in a small town and grew that dealership by 800% in just under six years.

We have many different vendors that serve various purposes for marketing, websites, and so many other things. We also have much different management, finance, and sales training programs. But the auto business is lacking one thing: nobody is training the owners and holding them accountable.

Dealers require responsibility, plans, and a network - a group of people with whom they can grow with, address difficulties as they arise, and discuss topics that are not merely business-related, such as how to improve as a leader in one's job or how to improve their marriage when they're scaling and growing.

There is always more to learn as a dealer, whether you have owned a dealership for a short time or many years. Both success and failure foster individual and professional development. But it's always a good idea to take a few cues from some of the best and most experienced auto car dealers.

Listen to the full episode for insights and context from Glenn Lundy!

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Thanks, Glenn!

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Dan Collingridge is the chief technology officer at FlexDealer, and has been keen on technology from day one. But he had no clue that passion would lead him into a tech-driven career in the auto industry. In this episode, Dan talks about how he met Michael and the story of how they teamed up to work together after years of their childhood friendship taking many different paths.

What we discuss in this episode:

Managing inventory involves much more than simply tracking things. This crucial area of business cannot be ignored or compromised, and, for good reason, auto dealer inventory management demands the newest, most cutting-edge technology and creative solutions.

In this episode, we go into detail about the value of inventory for auto dealers, how to make it even better, how Michael and Dan developed their inventory tools at FlexDealer, and where their latest inventory project is headed.

Dan Collingridge shares his insights about the importance of a healthy workplace based on his experiences helping manage various teams at FlexDealer for over two decades.

Dan and Micheal talk about how and why culture is hugely important to the success and overall health of your company, your people, and your customers, and why it's helpful to spend time considering why your company's culture is the way it is and why it must stay that way (or change).

While culture is so influential, it's challenging to maintain the more extensive a business gets. Side-conversations form, resentment can grow, and you can lose control of the culture you've worked hard to build.

Owning a business with a friend can be very challenging because doing so involves setting expectations and creating accountability that does not typically exist in a friendship alone. Michael and Dan reflect on how they made it possible to collaborate successfully despite (or because of!) being friends with a range of common and differing interests, goals, and priorities.

Learn how FlexDealer transitioned from the dying magazine print model to a digital model that involved creating a website portal and inventory capabilities from the ground up, plus hosting all of their inventory and digital services in the newly created model.

Listen to the full episode for insights and context from Dan Collingridge!

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In this week's episode, we're joined by two talented leaders in the automotive industry - Fanie Scholtz, a Managing Director at FS Media, and Peter Viljoen, Managing Director at SydSen Uthintane (PTY) LTD.

They share how they paired to work on a big project popularly known as Let's talk Automotive, a weekly automotive talk show, as we also discuss the big question as to if Dealers Love The Agency Model.

What we discuss in this episode:

How Fanie and Peter met and the story behind them joining hands and collaborating in making Let's Talk Automotive and what the project is about.

Fanie and Peter share how important creating content is for growing a business, especially for the automotive industry, in a way that original, high-quality content demonstrates to your customers that you are reliable and knowledgeable. It's more important than ever to get content onto our social media platforms that add value, is interesting, and is funny and entertaining. In that way, we will build relationships of trust that will lead to that potential buyer on the other side of that device becoming a customer.

Peter shares an observation he made about dealers who make content; he notes, "A mistake that the dealers start making when creating their content is they make that content around the vehicle itself. And they try and put specials out there. And it's not enjoyable for the consumer to watch that kind of content. So it's essential to make the exciting content stuff, even if it's not about the vehicles".

We discuss the commonalities that exist within the automotive industry in different countries. Comparing South Africa to the rest of the world, where the commonalities reside in defining a business from a financial point of view in that South Africa has a competitively intense market, and they also have dealer operations that are very small compared to most parts of the world.

Fanie and Peter dig deep into the positive and negative Impact of the pandemic on the dealership landscape and how the automotive industry pumped the brakes hard in the early months of the global COVID-19 pandemic. Sales had dropped, but the industry's engines never shut down. From the third quarter of 2020 to the first quarter of 2021, automakers worldwide saw rapid (and, in some cases, record) low production levels. As with multiple industries and geographic regions, the pandemic has accelerated the trends already forming along the mobility value chain.

With plenty of dealers expressing different feelings about The Agency Model, debates are still ongoing about the move's potential benefits and impact on the automotive sector. With the Covid-19 pandemic still looming over the economy, it faces an uphill battle. The current economic situation has made it clear that original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and dealerships must transition to a sustainable sales model. Although such a transition promises cost savings and price and customer data control, it also carries significant risks if not carried out with caution.

Tune into this episode as we try to answer the most tricky question: Do Dealers Love The Agency Model?

Listen to the full episode

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Scott Simons is a successful car dealer that is involved in multiple businesses across many industries. Scott’s main focus is in the auto industry. He is the Managing Partner and General Manager of five Carter Myers Automotive dealerships in West Virginia. He is a speaker, business consultant, astute investor, and purveyor of filling the cups of anyone who is willing to put in the effort.

Scott shares specific tactical advice you can apply and how he continues to push himself by surrounding himself with those he can learn from .

What we discuss in this episode:

If you own or manage a dealership, you must be willing to explore new growth opportunities and embrace new ideas. Dealerships that embrace the future will maintain their profitability and relevance in the coming years. Those who do not will be squeezed out of a tightening landscape. In this week's episode of the Dealer Playbook, Scott Simons goes into great detail about Creating A Dealership Growth Environment. As a true leader and an excellent communicator, he ensures that each member of his team understands their role and works together to further the company's growth.

While Building a Great Team. Investing in employee training, retention, and happiness is critical to growth and success for your dealership. A motivated, positive team is your greatest asset in building competitive advantage for your business over the long term.

Customer service is easily the auto industry’s best salesperson. With customer emotions running so hot,it's crucial for your auto dealership to give every facet of customer service the finest polish imaginable. Due to the "virtuous circle" nature of the automotive industry, where strong customer service performance brings customers back later to the showroom floor—and the other way around—there is no doubt that this will pay off in amazing ways.

How doing business with your own people make your climb to success is better

Scott stocks his view on training employees “training is not it's not a knowing issue here, people know what to do. It's a motivation issue. And I need to help motivate them and get the best out of them. That's my job is to give them all the tools in order to be successful and give them an environment to thrive.”

Chain of Command in Organizational Structure establishes accountability, it lays out a company’s lines of authority and decision-making power. A proper chain of command ensures that every task, job position and department has one person assuming responsibility for performance.

To unify competing desires and perspectives, emphasize that choices be made in the best interest of the customer.

How Scott pours back into his team weekly including monitoring their personal credit, managing expenses, and much more that’s lead to saving their lives

Growth and rewards have always been critical components of human resources and employee motivation. Furthermore, most people want to advance in their careers. To keep employees longer in your organization, you should provide them with a Personal Development Plan. You can use this plan to map out employee development. How does a Junior Developer advance to the level of Senior Developer? Or, how can a Manager improve in his or her position? Another advantage of employee development is that by promoting employees internally, you can easily fill senior positions within your organization. Furthermore, because you already know e

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