In Search Of...

Dealer Distrust, Better Partnerships & the Accountability Standard (w/ Jason Monaghan)

What happens when dealers assume vendors are the problem… while vendors assume dealers just don't understand the data? Distrust is common in automotive vendor relationships. Missed expectations, unclear reporting, weak communication, and underperforming campaigns have trained many dealers to stay skeptical. But skepticism alone doesn't create better outcomes. In this episode of IN SEARCH OF…, host Zach Billings is joined by Jason Monahan, a rare operator who has worked on both the dealership and vendor side of the business. With firsthand experience inside stores and inside agencies, Jason offers a grounded perspective on where relationships break down, how accountability should actually work, and what dealers can do to get more from every partnership. Together, they unpack the friction that often exists between vendors and dealerships—from mismatched expectations and green reps to poor onboarding, bad communication, and performance conversations that start with blame instead of solutions. More importantly, they explore what strong partnerships actually look like when both sides own their role. Why Watch • Understand dealer distrust – why skepticism exists, and when it's justified • Build better vendor partnerships – what separates real partners from order-takers • Raise the accountability standard – how to ask smarter questions and expect clearer answers • Improve onboarding outcomes – why many vendor relationships fail in the first 90 days • Spot bad fit early – when the issue is the rep, the process, or the provider itself • Strengthen performance conversations – how to solve problems without defensiveness or finger-pointing • Learn the market factor – why competitors, pricing, and conditions matter more than many reports show • Get more from your team – why dealership ownership is essential to vendor success • Demand clarity without hostility – how strong operators challenge vendors productively • Avoid reactive decisions – when to pivot, when to stay patient, and when to move on If you're a GM, Dealer Principal, or Marketing Director trying to improve results, hold vendors accountable, or build partnerships that actually move the needle, this episode will help you separate frustration from opportunity.

Paid Media Myths, Outsider POV & the Automotive Blind Spot (w/ Emma Davis)

What happens when an industry spends millions on paid advertising… but still measures success by the cheapest possible lead? In automotive, cost per lead has become the default scorecard. Lower is better. Higher is a problem. But outsde of automotive, that way of thinking has already been left behind. In this epiosde of IN SEARCH OF..., host Dave Estey and Wikimotive Co-Founder Zach Billings are joined by Emma Davis, CEO of Working Planet and host of the Data Planet Podcast, to examine dealership marketing through a completely different lens. Drawing from experience with higher-impact verticals, Emma brings an outsider POV that challenges how automotive defines performance, measures success, and makes decisions. Together, they unpack the gap between how dealerships think they're measuring marketing, and how high-performing organizations in orther industries actually do it. From outdated attribution models to short-term decision making, this conversation exposes where automotive falls behind - and where it's more aligned than we may realize. Why Watch • Rethink cost per lead – why other industries prioritize revenue, not just efficiency, when evaluating paid media • Understand the automotive blind spot – how outdated systems and attribution gaps limit true performance visibility • Learn how other industries measure success – from CAC to cohort analysis and incremental lift • Break out of the 30-day mindset – why short-term thinking leads to reactive decisions and missed growth • Apply the scientific method to marketing – how to test, measure, and iterate with confidence instead of guesswork • Identify hidden performance signals – using mid-funnel metrics to optimize before revenue shows up • Avoid "vanity changes" – why reacting too quickly can do more harm than good • Diagnose the real problem – separating marketing performance from sales process, inventory, and operational issues. If you're a GM, Dealer Principal, or Marketing Director trying to understand why more spend and more leads aren't translating into better results - and how to make smarter, more accountable marketing decisions - this episode will challenge how you measure success.

The Data Lie, Process Discipline & Experience Advantage (w/ Dan Moore)

What happens when your dealership keeps increasing marketing spend to drive more traffic… only to realize the real problem isn't traffic at all? Many stores fall into the trap of chasing more leads and more tools, when the real breakdown is happening in process, data ownership, and customer experience. In this episode of IN SEARCH OF… host Dave Estey and Wikimotive Co-Founder Zach Billings sit down with Dealer Funnel's Dan Moore to unpack one of the most common blind spots in automotive retail: confusing activity with effectiveness. It's a dealer-first look at why "data-driven" often means narrative-driven, how technology can quietly break both experience and measurement, and why most performance issues start upstream in people, process, or inventory—not marketing. Why Watch • Stop masking problems with more spend – why marketing often gets used to cover operational inefficiencies • Rethink what "data-driven" actually means – the difference between reporting activity and making decisions that • Expose the digital retailing gap – how fragmented tools and iframes create blind spots in both experience and • Diagnose performance correctly – why inventory, staffing, and process often explain swings more than marketing • Break the race to the bottom on price – how lack of value forces discounting, and what actually builds preference • Build a real customer experience – why convenience, clarity, and consistency outperform feature-heavy technology • Leverage what you already own – how past customers and employee advocacy outperform cold traffic when • Move from reaction to strategy – why month-to-month thinking creates bad decisions and long-term drag If you're a GM, Dealer Principal, or Marketing Director trying to understand why more activity isn't translating into more results—and how to fix the real constraint in your store—this episode will change how you diagnose performance.

Adrenaline Marketing, Data Discipline & the SEO Backbone (w/ Jim Dodd)

What happens when your dealership keeps increasing marketing spend to drive more traffic… only to realize the real problem isn't traffic at all? Many dealerships fall into the trap of "adrenaline marketing" relying on short-term paid tactics to stimulate results instead of building sustainable marketing infrastructure. In this episode of IN SEARCH OF… host Dave Estey and Wikimotive Co-Founder Zach Billings sit down with Jim Dodd of NADA to unpack one of the most common blind spots in automotive marketing: confusing marketing performance with sales performance. It's a practical, dealer-first look at how to diagnose performance problems across the marketing funnel, why SEO remains the backbone of long-term visibility, and how disciplined measurement can reveal whether the real issue is traffic, conversion, inventory, or process. Why Watch • Stop blaming marketing for everything - why sessions, leads, and sales must be measured separately to find the real leak in the funnel • Understand the "adrenaline marketing" trap - how overreliance on paid tactics can mask deeper operational or conversion issues • Build your SEO backbone - why organic visibility compounds over time and reduces dependence on increasingly expensive paid traffic • Measure what actually matters - the difference between soft engagement metrics and the hard conversion events that drive revenue • Use data instead of gut instinct - how a Moneyball-style approach to dealership analytics simplifies decision-making • Diagnose bad months correctly - the simple comparison process that reveals whether a drop in performance is marketing, pricing, inventory, or process • Fix the website experience first - why every conversion starts with frictionless navigation, clear calls to action, and mobile usability • Run smarter marketing experiments - how tracking pricing, engagement, and conversion data helps identify the true "sweet spot" for inventory and campaigns If you're a GM, Dealer Principal, or Marketing Director trying to understand why more traffic doesn't always mean more sales, and how to make your marketing ecosystem actually work together - this episode will change the way you look at your data.

Digital Storefronts, Conversion Drag & the Clutter Tax (w/ Lance Boehmer)

What happens when your dealership is spending $20K–$100K/month driving traffic… only to send shoppers into a digital storefront that's cluttered, slow, and quietly killing conversion? In this episode of In Search Of, new host Dave Estey and Wikimotive Co-Founder Zach Billings sit down with Lance Boehmer of Motive to break down the real cost of outdated website platforms—and why "good enough" websites create conversion drag that bleeds both paid and organic performance. It's a practical, no-fluff look at what a modern website should do (and stop doing), how to evaluate your current provider without getting lost in buzzwords, and why reducing clutter—online and in-store—might be one of the fastest ways to sell more cars with the same traffic. Why Watch • Stop conversion drag at the source — why your website isn't just a $30K/year expense, but the bottleneck for every marketing dollar you spend • Cut the clutter tax — how too many CTAs and bolt-on tools create decision paralysis and lower lead conversion • Speed matters more than hype — why load time and friction kill shoppers faster than any "bad offer" ever will • Make your data usable again — how cleaner event tracking and better visibility into shopper behavior drives smarter decisions • Merchandise like a pro (online + on-lot) — using search behavior and inventory insights to feature what shoppers actually want and move what's aging • Fix the CRM blind spots — why knowing what else a shopper looked at changes the entire sales conversation (and close rate) • OEM content shouldn't be a cage — how locked pages and duplicate content limit organic opportunity—and what modern platforms should allow instead • Mystery shop your own website — the simplest gut-check that instantly reveals what your team has gotten used to ignoring If you're a GM, Dealer Principal, or Marketing Director trying to get more out of your website without buying another shiny tool—this episode will hit home.