In this episode, host Lou Ramirez and co-host Fred Lennartz, of the popular Car Guy Coffee Podcast, interview special guest Michael Cirillo. It's a big ol' switcheroo! Michael, who is the CEO of FlexDealer, an automotive marketing and technology company, will be a featured Keynote Speaker a...

In this episode, Michael Cirillo sits down with WB Cavender, the fourth-generation owner of Cavender Auto Group, at their headquarters. WB shares the story of how he entered the automotive industry and the core values that have driven their family-owned business for over 80 years. They delve into th...

Lou Ramirez is the CEO of Solutions at The Certified Solutionaries and co-host of the Car Guy Coffee podcast. Discover the layers of their inspiring conversation as they explore the importance of encouraging individuals within the automotive business and eradicating negative stigmas assoc...

Matt Jones is the Director of Corporate Communications for TrueCar, Inc. In this episode Michael Cirillo sits down with Matt Jones to discuss his deep connection with people in the automotive industry. Growing up in the San Fernando Valley, Jones saw the stark differences between the "haves&...

In today's fast-paced digital world, it can be challenging for brands to stand out and be memorable. Whitney Norrad is the Director of Demand Gen at Flexdealer.com. In this episode she joins Michael to discuss marketing stickiness and how to make brands more memorable to customers. Here are some...

Ann-Marie Johnson is the Director of partner relationship at ASOTU. In this episode, We discussed her journey in the automotive industry, the concept of "moments of truth," and how it applies to both personal and professional interactions. By recognizing the importance of these moments, An...

Eric Barbosa is the newly appointed Vice President of Variable Operations at Cavender Auto Group. Eric has over two decades of experience in the Auto Industry. Starting as a teenage car detailer, Eric climbed the ranks to become one of the youngest GMs and Operating Partners in the industry. His pas...

Paul Daly and Kyle Mountsier (ASOTU) join Michael Cirillo to talk about their perspectives on the importance of human connection in the auto industry. They emphasize the power of belonging, fulfillment, and the role of the industry in fostering these values. The trio discusses the importance of cre...

David Kain is the President of KainAutomotive.com. His life is fuelled by two great passions: helping good people become exceptional salespeople and conquering challenging trails on his mountain bike. Born into a family that believed in the power of the automotive industry, David is one of nine sib...

Joshua Negron is a seasoned Director of Business Development with a wealth of experience in the automotive industry. Over the years, he has honed his skills in business development, advertising, lead generation, personnel management, leadership, customer service, sales, and business software. In th...

In this episode, Michael experiments with something new by revisiting an older episode that has stood the test of time. With nearly 600 episodes, many of them recorded in a way that ensures they remain evergreen, Michael dives into an interview with Grant Cardone that was recorded six years prior. T...

I'd like to welcome my guest this week, Weldon Long, who provides an insightful and practical guide on how to change one's life by examining and transforming one's mindset. He also happens to be one of the nation’s most sought-after sales experts. In 2003, Weldon Long walked out o...

Sandy Zannino is the founder of Innovative Auto HR Solutions and started in the car business in 1998 as a dealer’s assistant and corporate office manager. She's a passionate problem solver with a broad range of experience and has found ways to save dealers money while minimizing risks and ...

Is your business as successful as it could be? Do you have goals of improving revenue, growth, and long-term scaleability?  Aaron Sheeks is the co-founder of Auto Miner and President of Pure Cars. In this episode, Aaron joins us to discuss the journey of building a successful business in the a...

Is Your Dealership's Marketing Strategy Failing? Tune in as Stream Companies EVP Reveals the Key to Thriving in a Challenging Market. Subi Ghosh is the Executive Vice President of Strategic Partnerships and Marketing at Stream Companies.  In this episode Ghosh shares her insights on the...

Are you ready to get more leads with an improved ad strategy? Then this episode is for you! Lisa Gener is a Chief Revenue Officer (CRO) at Dealer Alchemist and a seasoned expert in the world of digital advertising with 17 years of experience in the automotive industry. Lisa's passion lies in ut...

In this episode, Michael takes us on a journey through the recent NADA 2023 event that took place in his hometown, Dallas. Michael reflects on the unique energy of the event and how attendees were more focused and open to conversations compared to previous NADA conferences. 2023 is off to a roaring ...

In this episode of The Dealer Playbook, host Michael welcomes Ali Reda, the world's top-performing car sales professional. Yes, you read that right! Instead of a traditional interview format, Michael presents exclusive audio from a monthly office hours call for clients only, featuring Ali Reda a...

Ted Lam is the Founder and CEO of AITHR Automotive Intelligence. Ted has a wealth of experience in the industry, including a background in the non-prime market  and a fascinating story about why he decided to build a software for dealers. Ted's journey in the industry began as a car salesp...

Elise Kephart, founder of The Elise Kephart Experience, a leading training company in the automotive industry. Elise Kephart or maybe you know her as "The YouTube Diva" is a five-time guest on the show and master of BDC lead follow up. In today’s episode we discuss the buzz around...

Emer Sanabria is an accomplished Marine Corps veteran and a highly-successful business leader. His experience both on and off the battlefield has made him a sought-after leadership consultant with a track record for turning stagnant businesses into growth machines.  What we discuss in this e...

As we approach the end of 2022, it's important to reflect on the events of the past year and look toward the future. This year has certainly been a rollercoaster, with the ongoing pandemic, economic challenges, and various other obstacles. However, it's also been a year of resilience, innova...

Mike Svoboda is the GM of Buchanan Automotive and Buchanan Auto Park in Waynesboro, PA. In a town of just over 10,000 people, Mike has taken his dealerships from being average to being the best in their area and region in sales. Mike uses a combination of his marketing strategies and forward-thinkin...

Carol Marshall is the Chief Operations Officer at ActivEngage, Inc., an innovative leader with expertise in building teams and developing the very best collaborative environments. Carol has extensive experience in the automotive and contact centre environments, and her strategic vision and analytica...

Colby Joyner is Vice President of Sales at Konect.ai, a lead management system that is primarily housed and geared around artificial intelligence (AI) and a leader in automotive artificial intelligence. Their mission is to maximize conversion rates and profits for dealers with faster and more effici...

Glenn Pasch is CEO of PCG Digital, an Inc 5000 agency that specializes in helping dealerships and businesses generate qualified shoppers. As a leader in digital marketing and leadership training, he’s been featured in CBT News, Dealer Marketing Magazine, Auto Success, and Automotive News. ...

Nathan Hays is a car sales professional who has risen to the game's highest level by building local community relationships. His popular hashtag, #AskForNate has become a staple among his clients and has helped generate new car sales opportunities through repeat and referrals. In this episode, ...

Ben is the CEO and founder of Autogenous, a community of high-growth dealership marketing specialists that identifies challenges and creates innovative technologies to solve them. Ben has worked at some of the most prominent firms in our industry, including Prodigy (now Upstart), Clarivoy, and Deal...

Ilana Shabtay is an expert in digital marketing, AI, and the automotive industry; she is also an inventor and growth hacker. Skilled in Public Speaking, Customer Relationship Management, Social Media, and Search Engine Optimization (SEO). She is an excellent community and social services professiona...

Shaka Dyson is the Founder and CEO of Dealer F&I University, He was also a teenage father, a high school dropout, and somebody abandoned by his mom at two years old. Today's guest truly knows how hard life can be. Today, as an entrepreneur, a business expert, and a powerful speaker, he's...

This episode of The Dealer Playbook Podcast is unique as Michael Cirillo is on location with Glenn Lundy and dozens of automotive industry professionals at the 800% Elite Automotive Club retreat in Atlanta. With loads of fascinating conversations happening surrounding technology, culture, sales, and...

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...

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....

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 yea...

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 8...

Dan Collingridge is the chief technology officer at flexdealer.com. Dan Collingridge has always been focused on technology from day one. But he had no clue that that passion would lead him into a career in the auto industry.  In this episode, Dan talks about how he met Michael again later in l...

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...

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 consu...

Darren Doane is an American filmmaker, actor, and music video director who has worked with artists like Christian Bale, Ken Daurio, and Blink 182. He also has a keen eye on the automotive industry and sees an endless supply of opportunities.   What we discuss in this episode: Darren shares...

In this episode of the Dealer Playbook, Michael shares his thoughts about the next season of the retail automotive industry. The last two years have been unique. Dealers have been earning recording profits despite a chip shortage and inventory shortage. That begs to ask: what's next?   ...

Steve Roessler is the Chief Evangelist at DriveCentric, a modern take on an automotive CRM that features unified customer communications in an easy-to-digest interface. Steve shares his vantage point about why engagement is the key metric that dealerships need to track and how that's helping his...

Bart Nollenberger is an Executive Director with the John Maxwell Team, automotive trainer, and author. In this episode, Bart shares his compelling story of recovery and sobriety and the four steps to help shape the next generation of automotive professionals.    What we discuss in t...

Today's conversation with Brett Morris, Chairman at PerceptionPredict, stemmed from one of Michael's LinkedIn posts about the important need for amazing car sales professionals. Brett commented on the post with a compelling chart visualizing how high-performing employees can be predicted wit...

Josh Little is the founder and CEO of a compelling startup called Volley, an app that aims to make communication more efficient across organizations and peers. His unique perspective about communication and the mission of Volley provides an interesting use case for how to improve communication with ...

Paul Daly and Kyle Mountsier (ASOTU) join the pod to talk about some really exciting projects they have in the works, one of which is an exciting new podcast called Auto Collabs hosted by Paul, Kyle, and Michael Cirillo. They are on an adventure to bring the rebirth of the automotive conference comi...

Kaylee Felio is the Sales and Marketing Manager for PartsEdge, the power tool for helping your parts department generate higher profits. It's no secret that hanging onto aging auto parts inventory can cause many problems for retail auto dealers. The most obvious challenge is that if the parts be...

Brooke Furniss is the President/Founder of BZ Consultants Group and host of the Facts Not Feelings automotive podcast. In this episode of the show, aside from talking about her obsession with Nike sneakers, we explore the attributes of successful leaders within the retail car business.  Key ...

Paul de Vries is the founder of DCDW (Digital Car Dealer Network), ambassador for Marktplaats (Holland), and a brand new owner of a Ligier franchise dealership in Holland. He is an expert at lead handling and works with several OEMs in Europe to improve their lead handling and appointment show perce...

Brian Pasch is the founder of PCG Companies, which is comprised of Brian Pasch Enterprises, PCG Digital, Localiente, and PCG Research. He's an author, keynote speaker, marketing contrarian, and a beacon of light within the retail auto industry as someone who has always been an advocate for the d...

Mike Welch is the president and CEO of tirebuyer.com which merged with tirescanner.com, a US-based tire retail marketplace, in 2019. In this episode, Mike shares how we went from working at dealerships and small independent repair shops in the UK to founding and operating one of the most successful ...

David Oates is a crisis PR expert with 25 years of experience in the field. He helps organizations repair their brand's reputation in the press and online. With the emergence of web3.0 and a rapidly evolving digital landscape, there are sure to be brand pivots and crises and with David's pro...

In this episode of The Dealer Playbook Podcast, Michael reflects on an experience he had while attending the Digital Marketing Strategies Conference in Napa Valley and why that's inspired him to talk about the 4 levels of competency.  There is so much to learn about the retail automotive i...

Brian Kramer is the General Manager of Germain Toyota of Naples and joins the podcast to share how his store successfully completed the first metaverse car sale. Long-time listeners of the show know that Brian is a pioneer when it comes to technology adoption within the retail auto industry. He'...

Amberly Allen is the CEO of Dealer Merchant Services, a firm that is helping car dealers save up to 75% on their credit card processing fees. In this episode of the Dealer Playbook, Michael and Amberly explore how dealers can save thousands of dollars per month by reframing the way they handle credi...

Glenn Pasch is the CEO of PCG Digital, author, speaker, and one of the most reputable voices in the retail automotive industry when it comes to marketing management, leadership, and growth. In light of the recent Carvana announcements, there have been two narratives throughout the industry. Either y...

Kevin Frye is the Head Marketing Coach at Jeff Wyler Automotive Family, an industry veteran, and subject matter expert when it comes to innovating within the retail automobile industry. In this episode of the show, Kevin walks through the process that led one of their stores to the first cryptocurre...

Vasilios Lambos is the Chief Marketing Officer at CognitionDigital.io, an ad-tech company that helps auto dealers utilize Amazon's various advertising channels. In this episode of the Dealer Playbook, you'll learn about how Amazon advertising can help expand your paid media effectiveness and...

Damian Boudreaux is an internationally-recognized speaker, consultant, and teacher in the automotive industry. His 30+ years of experience selling, training, and connecting with auto professionals across the US and Canada is the perfect recipe for those who are hungry to improve every area of their ...

Dan Moore is the President of Vistadash, an automotive analytics company that helps dealers understand what metrics are contributing to actual growth. Dan is also a best-selling author and Ted-X speaker who has a unique set of skills that can help any organization understand and deploy strategies th...

Stacey Hanke is the author of "Influence Redefined... Be the Leader You Were Meant to Be," and is on a mission to equip leaders within organizations to communicate with confidence, presence, and authenticity. She is a world-renowned keynote speaker and has been featured in Forbes, The New ...

Paul J. Daly is the founder of ASOTU.com, the first-ever dealer-owned publication in the automotive industry. Michael and Paul recently joined up to collaborate at NADA with live streams, social media posting, and video production. What we discuss in this episode: Perfection is the enemy of &q...

Kyle Mountsier is a partner at ASOTU, the first dealer-owned media outlet in the history of the car business. He is also the founder of Contagious Auto, a firm that helps dealers create and build innovative marketing teams.  What we discuss in this episode: When Kyle worked at Nelson Mazd...

Together with   Bill Parlaman is the CMO at FullThrottle.ai, a company that generates and transforms 1st party household data for agencies, media, and brands. His experience from both within and out of automotive has granted him unique insights into how dealerships can be self-reliant in ...

Car shoppers are looking for more ways to research and purchase vehicles, but that doesn't mean they want to do the entire process online (yet.) The car business is a people business, which means that in this day in age, it's more important than ever to understand people.    Napole...

There's one time of year that we actually look forward to commercials, and that time of year is Super Bowl Sunday. It's a time when advertisers pull out all the stops and put forward their best effort to create a 30 second spot that captures attention, makes viewers feel something, and hope ...

Chris Potgieter is the Product Marketing Manager at automotiveMastermind and joins the show to express the importance of dealers being proactive in creating loyal customers. The pandemic has demonstrated our ability to react to unforeseen circumstances, but similar to automakers, it's time to be...

Marija Cvetkovska is a seasoned dealer group BDC Director and paid campaign manager, and joined the show to share valuable wisdom about how retail car dealers can learn how to listen and hear their customer and respond to them with the information they are seeking regardless of their BDC, Internet T...

Liza Borches is the CEO of the Carter Myers Auto Group and is a shining light in the retail auto industry when it comes to culture, leadership, and thought-leadership. With several rooftops (and expanding) and hundreds of employees, Liza has proven that a healthy work environment can, in fact, drive...

Andrew and Doug MacIver are the stars of hit reality show, Bargain Brothers, which provides a irreverent but honest look at a day in the life of used car dealers. Through creativity, humor, and authenticity, The Brothers of Bargain have been able to carve out a niche in the Canadian car buying marke...

Dave Farrow is a two-time Canadian Guinness World Record holder for most decks of playing cards memorized in a single sighting. His trademarked "Farrow Method" is helping business teams perform at turbo-charged levels and was even the subject of a double-blind study at McGill University. ...

What a year! 2021 had many ups and downs; many experiences that left us shouting hooray and others that left us scratching our heads.  Despite everything going on in the world, there is one fact that remains the same. It's all in the past. 2022 is right around the corner, and it's an...

Micheal Burt is an acclaimed business coach, author, speaker, and leader who has amassed a following of monster producers and high performers. In this replay episode, Coach Burt shares how car sales professionals can become people of interest in their communities -- a topic that is hyper relevant ...

Marcus Sheridan is the bestselling author of "They Ask, You Answer," and is known for his creative approach to marketing and sales. By leveraging the power of content marketing, Marcus took his local pool installation company from obscurity to a leading national pool and spa company. Altho...

Chris Voss is an internationally-acclaimed negotiation expert, masterclass instructor, best-selling author, and former FBI hostage negotiator. In this episode replay, Chris shares valuable insights about how anyone can learn to negotiate and create win/win scenarios in business and life. What we di...

Glenn Pasch is the CEO of PCG Digital, an automo tive and RV marketing agency that helps dealers grow their online business.  This episode was originally recorded in 2015 and we're bringing it back from the vault because the principles Glenn teaches still hold up today, many are still as v...

Nathan Hays is a car sales professional who has risen to the highest level of the game by building local community relationships. His popular hashtag #AskForNate has become a staple among his clients and has helped generate new car sales opportunities through repeat and referrals. What we discus...

George Nenni is the founder of Generations Digital and is a highly-sought after expert when it comes to helping dealers eliminate advertising waste and maximize their marketing dollars. In this episode, George reveals practical tips for dealers to fully utilize Google My Business listings to win mor...

Shaahin Cheyene is considered one of the leading global minds on what's next in e-commerce, Amazon and the internet. He is described as the "Willy Wonka of Generation X" by the London Observer and Newsweek and is one of the most forward thinkingers in business. Shaahin joins the s...

As 2020 ends, I want to take a few minutes to express my appreciation for you; the DPB GANG! Your attention means the world to me.  This year we've grown. The DPB is now listened to in over 70 countries and experience triple digit growth.  That's a testament to how hungry and w...

"A bad culture is still a culture." Moving into 2021 and beyond, car dealers worldwide must focus on creating an inclusive, nurturing, and diverse culture. Think of it as the local business's last stand against the wiles of the digital beast. Dealership leaders are responsible for ...

Joshua Mitchell is the Internet Sales Director at Capitol Chevy Austin, a BDC trainer and founder of the BDC RAW event and podcast. Joshua joins The Dealer Playbook to discuss how car dealers can evolve strategically as leaders, employers, teams, and customer specialists in 2021 and beyond. Joshua...

"Visual content is king; quality visual content reigns supreme." 94% of first impressions are based entirely upon the design of the content someone sees.  Under that microscope, it's easy to understand why it's essential to pay attention to more than just publishing conten...

Human beings process visual information 60,000 times faster than the written word. Amy Balliet is an expert on visual communication and provides tips and insights about how dealerships can engage any audience and speed up the consumer purchase journey with high-quality visuals. Now, I know what s...

Dealership operations are complex and contain a lot of moving pieces to grow. Matt Lasher, Marketing Director at the West Herr Auto Group, shares a crucial element to remaining focused and moving the ball forward.  "It's about process and self-awareness. Each dealer has different pr...

The hustle is real. The grind is hard. So is the need to build mental resilience.  Back for the 4th time, Elise Kephart joins the show to share her behind-the-scenes story about growth, overcoming challenges, and building the mental strength needed to play the game well.  Listen carefu...

In this episode, Michael provides a logical and straightforward breakdown of attracting more of what you want in life.  Whether it's better relationships, money, love, happiness or fulfillment, the secret to getting more of what you want is in your proximity to those things.  Gener...

Keeping projects and tasks organized is a key to moving the ball forward. It's also an easy way to recognize an immediate boost in productivity. Car dealers today have staff who rarely communicate effectively on all the work that needs completing.  With a simple software like Asana (or s...

There is a lot of conversation about the technology and services that help car dealers sell more cars, but what about software that can help streamline productivity within the dealership?  There are many reasons why a dealership owner or manager should consider improving productivity, includ...

Fear holds many people back from stepping into their greatness. Many have convinced themselves that there is a dependency on others to make the business environment work properly.  Paul Long shares how important it is to push beyond your comfort zone so that you can accelerate your personal ...

Paul "The Dodgefather" Long didn't waste any time making a name for himself in the retail auto industry. He has proven that being a "rookie" in years doesn't mean you have to be a rookie in action.  In this episode, Paul shares his mindset and the behaviors that h...

Matt Lasher is the Marketing Director for the West Herr Auto Group in New York. Spanning 26 rooftops and counting, Matt provides unique insights into OEM programs, COOP initiatives, and what retail car dealers can do to balance internal marketing efforts with OEM and government regulations.  ...

Peter Leto's experience at Google helped him see retail car dealers' opportunities to maximize their marketing efficiency.  In this powerbomb episode, Peter lays out some ways that you can save money on your marketing budget while getting even better results from it.  Access th...

Peter Leto, former Director of Automotive at Google in the United States joins the show to share valuable insights and tips that will help dealers get better control of their digital marketing efforts.  His unique vantage point spans the entire US automotive industry, and has helped him unde...

When it comes to disruption, retail dealers worry that Carvana's business model will continue to capture market share.  While it has proven to show signs of viability, recording over 200,000 units sold in 2019, there are many things car dealers can do to provide fantastic service and dis...

Marco Mentenuto is an Audi Brand Specialist with an inspiring story about crushing it as a car salesperson. His journey in the car industry started like many others, with no onboarding or car sales training.  That didn't stop Marco, though. He used it as fuel to power an impressive caree...

Dealers worldwide see a significant uptick in appointments, shows, and closed deals because they stood out during the relationship-building process. The easiest way to stand out is by personalizing your communication with video.  In this episode, Jason Price, CEO of COVIDEO, joins Michael to...

Automation can be both a blessing and a curse in the business environment without proper implementation. Car dealers that rely heavily upon automation lack the human element of communication. Those that don't find themselves buried in manual work.  In this week's powerbomb episode, M...

Car sales professionals are missing out on deals because of poor follow up. That's the mission Marc Lavoie, founder of the Autobahn Academy, is on.  Mastering the follow-up process takes commitment and practice. Marc shares his best advice about what dealers can do today to improve their...

There is a fixed belief in the retail car business that one must be active on all social platforms. In this episode, Audi Brand Specialist, Jennifer Worsley reveals why she chooses only to use Instagram, and how you can leverage the platform to grow your brand in car sales.  Among some of he...

During this rollercoaster of a year, car dealers have proven that they have what it takes to adapt and evolve. Bill Zadeits shares that people (dealership employees) are why the market can recover from the pandemic-induced lockdowns of 2020.  That begs to ask an important question: What is ...