Dealers: Get out of your own way. The future is Transparency.

[nash_midwest]

Listen, I’m from the Midwest and I’ve been in dealerships since I was 12. I've lived and breathed car sales for 20 years—Fords, Chevys, Rams, Toyotas—I’ve run the desk, run finance, and run service. I've even run from the building on the 1st of the month after a 30-day grind just to get roasted by a review.

I'm not here to talk about me. I'm here to talk about the death of the "Lead Bank" scam.

Everyone is chasing "speed to lead." 5 minutes? 2 minutes? Next year it'll be 30 seconds. You’re burning cash on leads that jam up your CRM and waste your team's time.

The Fix: Give them what they want upfront with zero gates.

1. Best Price (Live & Automated).
2. Real Trade Value.
3. True Availability.
4. Full History/Service Highlights.

No name required. No email required. Let them print it and walk in.

The Result: You stop paying for "trash" leads. Your closing rates on the leads that do come in skyrocket because the "mystery" is gone. You can cut the BDC bloat, trim the sales staff to the killers who actually want to close, and stop the 15% closing rate bleed.

In my next post, I'm going to tell you why you probably don't even need a Sales Manager anymore. Brace yourselves.

 

[Jeff Kershner]

Andrew, what exactly are you trying to accomplish here?

 

[nash_midwest]

Andrew, what exactly are you trying to accomplish here?

Jeff, that's a hell of a question, and a fair one at that.

I was operating under the assumption this was a forum. If people on here are unfamiliar with what a forum is, let me educate: a forum is an online or physical gathering place where people discuss topics, exchange ideas, and seek advice. My topic is the broken system 90% of dealerships are following and about to fall even deeper into. Now, after I’m done with my soliloquy, we can exchange ideas, and some may ask for advice. Advice I’m happy to give. Do I have something to sell anyone? I'm not on the clock at the moment.

Dealerships have for years been paying out the rear end to these lead companies (who are all on vacation in the Bahamas, by the way). I mean, what evil genius came up with this scam? The dealers have the inventory and the salesmen, yet we pay a company to lead customers away from the dealer's website, only to charge the dealership to buy back their own customers at a premium. And not only that, maybe 3 out of 10 that you pay for will actually buy. How about a round of applause for whoever designed this?

But it gets better, because this same guy came back and said, "I have an even better idea, let's see if they fall for this: you need to get to the customer the fastest, and if you don't, well that's your fault. Because ya see here, the response time was not good enough. Not our fault, keep writing them checks."

But there's a problem there. Ya see, AI arrived, and now AI is onboarding at every dealership, every second. So what happens now? Our response times shrink down to 30 seconds—instant—and then what? We are still closing 3 out of 10 leads. Hold on, that makes no sense... wait a minute. Right then and there, that guy's phone will no longer work. You know what they say: if you're standing in a room of sharks and you can't find the sucker, IT'S YOU.

So to get to my point, Jeff: I believe the industry is headed to a sharp realization that I am simply trying to warn about. The solution is painted on the wall: Transparency. And the dealership that gets on board with transparency will be the most successful in 2026, 2027, and 2028.

Look at the stats:

• Over 90% of car buyers conduct extensive research online before making a purchase.
• Over 90% arrive at the dealership having already researched their specific make and model online.
• A significant majority (59%) prioritize overall price and value over brand loyalty and are happy to travel for a better deal.
• Up to 82% of car buyers highly value transparency in the vehicle purchasing process. Consumers consider open communication and clear pricing essential for building trust.

82% is staggering, yet we continue to play the "just get them to the dealership" game. Let's sort through 400 leads a month and waste valuable time and money. It's not a numbers game anymore, guys. It's a transparency game. It's a "lay your hand down and learn how to be the best customer service representative you can possibly be" game. If you know how to buy cars and have a good service department, you can turn a profit. If you don't, you're screwed, because your margins are going to get slimmer and slimmer.

So Jeff, it is no sales pitch. Just a roadmap to success for the dealership of the future:

1. Put the best price online. 2. Give the customer the tools you use for free, like trade appraisal tools. Allow them to know what their car is worth.
2. Tell them when the vehicle they want is truly available and on the lot with a live tracker.
3. Give them the full vehicle history report—where it came from and what your shop did to it.

And lastly, because this will become a problem: everyone is using AI to clean the vehicles up online. How much business are you going to lose when the customer keeps showing up realizing the pictures on the internet are a depiction of the car and not the truth? Use video evidence. Show them the blemishes. And the last piece for the person who truly wants to follow the right path: Give the customer sound. Record the vehicle starting up and going on a test drive, maybe even a video of the speedometer so they can match the dash with the sound.

You do all that, and you have a loyal customer base. Your closing ratio goes through the roof because the people coming to the dealership and calling want to buy your car because you have the best price, you've given them all the information, and you never once acted like a Salesman. Because it doesn't matter what year it is: no one likes a salesman.

That's all for free, and now we discuss it. Lets see what I have accomplished

 

[Rob]

lol what on earth did I just read

 

[MattCopley]

Hah. Nash Midwest is a slop bot.

 

[nash_midwest]

lol what on earth did I just read

tell me how I'm wrong Enlighten me

 

[nash_midwest]

What we're seeing right here in this forum is exactly where the industry needs to change. Dealerships across the nation are filled with pretentious egomaniacs who would rather run the bus into a brick wall than admit they're wrong and turn the wheel.

It’s that exact type of arrogance and refusal to learn that has this industry paying a premium just to beg their own customers to come to the dealership. If they took ten minutes to actually look at the data, they’d realize that a 5% close rate—I don’t care what you're selling—doesn't cut it.

But when talentless sales managers have spent their entire careers fattening up their own salaries by depleting other departments in the dealership, they get comfortable. It's real easy for a sales manager to look at a CRM, see 400 leads, say, "Yep, we're closing at the national average, I've done my job," and clock out. Don't be ashamed; there are many, many of you out there doing exactly that.

I’m not spamming, my guy. I’m simply laying out the facts that nobody wants to hear. I'm not trying to insult anyone, and I apologize if I did—but if you took offense to this, I'm guessing you are exactly the type of manager I’m talking about.

Do yourself and your dealership a favor: do some research. Try to see how you can actually improve your dealership's numbers. Get involved with the community, and try for a second not to just concentrate on your comfortable bottom number.

Nobody likes change, but take a peek out the window: change is coming. You better get up off that chair and start making sure you're a part of it, or you will wash away with the rest of the guys who choose to stick their heads in the sand.