Franchise dealers have always lived at two speeds: now, and now (but faster).
Service demand starts stacking up at 7:30 a.m. and again at 4:45 p.m. Sales demand comes in waves. Meanwhile, your best people spend too many minutes on busy work that doesn’t even move the customer forward.
This is where AI belongs in your store.
Not as a wall between dealer staff and buyers. Not as a shiny gimmick cobbled together by a company that was in a rush to get something, anything, on the market before anyone else. AI should be adopted carefully and with the explicit understanding that it is a force multiplier. That approach will give time back to the dealers who want to create real value.
Dealership AI should empower your people, without positioning to arbitrarily replace them. If your dealership doesn’t need people to make the machine run, then the machine doesn’t really need your individual dealership, does it? Instead of focusing only on the potential cost-savings of replacing people, focus on the value-output; in other words, adopt AI technology that makes your dealership greater than the sum of it’s parts.
Let the software handle the chores that slow you down: data entry, appointment setting, lead cleanup, call summaries, after‑hours responses, missing‑doc flags and much more. Free your sales pros, advisors, and BDC to do what only people can do—provide clarity, trust, negotiation, coaching, and importantly: reading the room.
This should be the point. More attention for your customers, and less for your screens and keyboards.
If customers feel less friction, from one end of the journey to the other, your team did its job to ensure they keep coming back to spend their hard-earned pay.
Used well, AI can anticipate and help meet your team’s needs, keeping the dealership voice consistent across all channels, and making next steps obvious. It doesn’t just add a layer of cold and sterile automation; it removes the extra clicks and callbacks that slow you down.
AI is not magic, and despite the best intentions of some, nobody wants to feel like they are being handed off to a robot when they are trying to purchase a vehicle. So, what does practical and responsible use of AI look like? For the most part, I would argue that it generally just looks like time-saving.
Shiny new tools don’t fix a busted culture. You are not going to run out and buy a new piece to add to your software Franken-stack that will make up for bad processes and a lack of discipline.
The message to your team should be unmissable and repeatable: “We’re using AI to handle the grunt work so you can focus on your customers.” Then execute on that.
Start small. One workflow. Short pilot. Put your best foot forward to make it work.
Measure what matters. Time saved. Speed‑to‑lead. Show rates. Close rates. CSI. Dollars per RO. Turn and aged units, etc.
Iterate and refine with the people who live it. Advisors, BDC, desk managers, bring them all into the loop and keep them there.
Scale deliberately. When your analysis (and the team) says “greenlight”, move to the next workflow and optimize.
That’s how you build trust instead of barriers and resistance.
There are so many distractions and shiny objects popping up in this space over the last couple of years, but we should be asking ourselves: what is the actual output we hope to achieve with this adoption?
Variable ops
Fixed ops
Desking & F&I
Marketing
AI is not the strategy. It’s a force multiplier for your strategy.
Car dealers that want to win in their market will treat AI as adaptive cruise-control, a co-pilot, rather than an autopilot. They will remove repetitive work. They will reinforce the human skills that make retail automotive great.
The advantage will go to dealers, and industry partners, who adopt and offer solutions that have purpose, This will allow them to protect their customer relationships, and never lose sight of the people who make it all happen.
The most useful AI won’t just feel like another app. It will feel like a teammate.
The goal should not be Autonomous retail– which is a system that doesn’t really need dealers, or their partners, or many OEM’s for that matter. The real goal should be an augmented dealership where consistency and speed go up, and the human connection gets stronger.
At Solera, we are working to build for that future with a dealer‑first (and people‑first) view of the market. Learn More >
The views and opinions expressed in this blog are those of the sponsor and do not reflect the views, opinions, or positions of J.D. Power.
Earl Brown: He is a veteran automotive marketing leader with nearly 20 years of experience advancing dealer, OEM, Marketing, and SaaS growth. He has led award-winning product launches, national OEM partnerships, and omnichannel initiatives that improved dealership performance during major industry shifts. A data-driven strategist and cross-functional operator, Earl blends creative storytelling with rigorous KPI ownership to elevate CX, strengthen fixed and variable operations, and scale results. | Solera Dealer Solutions, Solera.com
About Solera: Solera is the global leader in vehicle lifecycle management solutions, spanning automotive software-as-a-service, data, and services. Through four lines of business – vehicle claims, vehicle repairs, vehicle solutions, and fleet solutions – Solera is home to many leading brands in the automotive and vehicle ecosystem, including Identifix, Audatex, DealerSocket, Omnitracs, LoJack, Spireon, eDriving, cap hpi, Autodata, and others. Solera’s solutions empower customers to succeed in the digital age by providing a one-stop platform that streamlines operations, delivers data-driven insights, and enhances customer engagement – helping clients drive sales, improve retention, and increase profit margins. Solera serves over 280,000 customers and partners in more than 120 countries. For more information, visit www.solera.com.