Ashley Garzone’s Post

A couple weeks ago, Goodyear Bike made the decision to eliminate my position, for economic reasons. Like so many others, I fell victim of the inventory crisis that is plaguing so many businesses in our industry, driving low sales and even lower forecast for this coming year. This came as a shock, as I have been working hard to bring more consistency in the processes and a clear product vision. There was a lot more to do, and I am disappointed that I won’t get to see this through. As the saying goes, you either win or you learn. To me, the learning came in the confirmation of something I already knew: sales are just an outcome. Focusing on sales only when your other processes aren't solid isn't sustainable in the long term. Without strong products, limited marketing and no sell-through strategy, the limit to how much the market will accept is incredibly low, no matter how hard you try to sell. Powerful Go to Market strategies take hard work, coordination and discipline, but when done effectively over time, they will ensure that sales take care of themselves. Moving onto greater things already - the next adventure is pretty scary, but so very exciting. This will take time to build, and I can't wait to get started.

🚀 Exciting Automotive Announcement Alert! 🚀 I've been diving deep into one of the most pivotal areas for growth in automotive stores - the BDC department. It's not just a department, it's a game-changer for our stores. After connecting with top leaders in our industry, one name kept coming up repeatedly. The impact was undeniable in every store that leveraged his expertise. That's why I'm thrilled to announce my partnership with Jason Miller& World Wide BDC to create the most advanced BDC training system to date. We've poured everything into this, and the result? Absolutely wicked. It's designed to revolutionize store profits literally overnight. And here's the kicker: I'm giving it away to the FIRST 50 STORES at zero cost, zero obligation. This is about making 2024 the year we up our skill in every area like never before. To get the training before it’s released text 480-780-2203 name and store. This is just one of the massive steps I am taking to help our stores set the pace for a skilled and highly profitable year.

Since starting my own business, I’ve always found it interesting how many industries seem to slow down during July and August, with people on annual leave and kids off school. But for the automotive industry, it’s the complete opposite—this is one of the busiest times of the year. August is a key month, with events, product placements, and preparations for the release of the new registration plate on 1st September. This period is especially important for new car sales, as buyers look to drive away with the 74 registration plate. And for those of us in the automotive industry, this is the time to make sure we’re fully prepared. #AutomotiveIndustry #MarketingConsultant #Automotive

INTENTION: A Thing Intended; An Aim Or Plan. By now most of you know at least part of my story: Most know when I came into the car business December 2018 I said I would be a General Manager in 5 years. Most people laughed at that goal. Most know the 28 months I sold cars, I sold over 600 units and led my dealership in sales every month in a Passport INFINITI store doing 80-120 units per month. Most know I was promoted to Sales Manager there and spent the next 6 months becoming proficient at variable operations. Most know I spent the next 2 years after that at Len Stoler Lexus as a Sales Manager refining The Luxury Dealership Experience. Most know I went to Heritage MileOne CDJR as a General Sales Manager to refine my skillset in variable and fixed operations with an iconic domestic “Every Man’s Brand” Most know I went to Heritage MileOne Toyota to rebuild the business after the GM, GSM, multiple sales managers, and half the sales staff walked out. Most know I was involved in multiple rebuilds there and assisted in building a team that consistently put 1M of variable gross on the books monthly and a high of 304 units. Why do most that follow me know these things? Because I strongly believe in INTENTION. I believe if you speak your goals out loud, and have as well as maintain the right INTENTION, the Universe will find a way to hold you accountable to what you said you wanted to accomplish. With that, at 5 years and 6 months in the business, I am elated to announce I have embarked on my first General Manager opportunity as I take the lead at Antwerpen CDJR in Catonsville Maryland. It’s not luck. It wasn’t given. It hasn’t been easy. It didn’t happen overnight. INTENTION made this a reality. Stay focused and keep the main thing THE MAIN THING! I am extremely grateful for every opportunity I have had in Automotive Retail and will keep learning and growing every day! #Automotive #AutomotiveRetail #Leadership #GeneralManager #CDJR #iamTheSocket #iamTheInfluencer #iamRasean

When you look back on your month, year, quarter, etc. as a sales leader in automotive, are you considering the investment you're making into lead management? FordDirect's emphasis on lead management gives valuable insight into where auto sales are headed, and I'm excited to see Foureyes help spearhead this shift in the conversation around #leadgeneration vs #leadmanagement

We caught up with James Galloway, our Customer Success and Remarketing Manager, as our first employee spotlight 🌟 James joined us just over a year ago, and like many members of our team, he wears many hats. Here's what he had to say about being on Team Blue, and what he gets into once the bell rings: 🚙 Tell us a little about your role at Lever. What does a typical day look like? 🧔♂️ Typical day is connecting with our current customer base to provide white glove service. Ensuring that our dealers have everything that they need to be successful is our primary focus. Reaching out to local auto auctions to make sure that we are partnered so we can provide our dealer partners with as many resources as possible for them to acquire inventory. And, working with those local auctions to handle our remarketing efforts. 🚙 What's your favorite part about working at Lever? 🧔♂️ The team culture. Everyone is willing to step up and lend a hand even if it is not in their scope of responsibility. 🚙 What’s your favorite car and why? 🧔♂️ Twin Turbo Lamborghini Huracan - Whats better than an exotic car with 1500hp? 🚙 Outside of work, what are your hobbies or passions? 🧔♂️ Been passionate about Motorsports my entire life. Love going to all racing events that I can, Drag racing, Nascar, Burnout competitions.. If it's got an engine and burns rubber I'm a fan of it. 🚙 If you had a theme song that played when you walked into the office, what would it be? 🧔♂️ Luke Combs - Beer Never Broke my Heart Love to hear it James! We're lucky to have you on the team 💪

How many people work for the same brand for more than.. 🔹️2 years 🔹️5 years 🔹️10 years 🔹️25 years According to the latest data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average number of years a person stays with the same employer is currently around 3.9 years. This means the median employee tenure is roughly four years. Check out this story about Jill Martinette that took this stat over 6x! #legendarycareer

20 THINGS A GENERAL MANAGER MUST DO EVERY WEEK Jim Ziegler, CSP, HSG, The #AlphaDawg Delivers an incredible experience titled..... https://lnkd.in/eS_mw-V This is information from Jim's Magazine article from February 2018 with the same title in Auto Dealer Today Magazine. Hard-Hitting and content rich, https://www.autodealertodaymagazine.c... . This Video will change the way many GMs do business. Some of Ziegler's finest work. "20 Things a General Manager Needs to Do Every Week". https://lnkd.in/eS_mw-V The Dawg says, "If I Bought Your Dealership Today or assumed the position of Dealer Principal or GM, I would hold employees, service providers, and vendors accountable for results and sales, measured by profits and relative comparative metrics to the market and to competitors." One of the thing's that really pisses him off is the fact that there are so many people out there teaching Automotive Retail Management who have never been a Manager themselves. Most of them are former sales persons who left the car business because they weren't successful, and now they're teaching management based on their Facebook Credentials. Ziegler was an executive record-setting manager with several of the largest dealerships and platforms in the car business. As a consultant to some of the biggest dealers in the country, Ziegler earned his reputation for being able to grow dealerships to huge numbers in a very short time. You can read Jim's resume and qualifications here ... https://lnkd.in/e9Up7Tes... . Arrive early, speak to everyone, review all financial statement and DOC variables ie: Contracts in transit, cash position, etc. Open the mail personally, and sign all checks. Department head meetings, what format? Inventory, 20-Group comparisons, performance reports, individual manager meetings; these are just a few of the things a General Manager must do weekly. In this video, Ziegler reviews his PowerPoint of the speech he performed at the Digital Dealer Conference and key points to this award-winning article. https://lnkd.in/emQ-U-6M

Great read! If you want to learn a little more about the best leader there is, check out this article! Wonderful and very humbling!

Grateful for having the opportunity to attend, together with customers, business partners and Adevinta colleagues, another NADA (National Automobile Dealers Association), this time in Las Vegas. Over 23,000 leaders gathered, setting the stage for the future of automotive. The NADA Show 2024 ('Driving the Future') offered 700,000 sq ft of innovation and networking, education through 90+ workshops and 20+ exchange sessions, inspiration with key notes from Jon Taffer, Danica Patrick and Kurt Warner. Content shared varied from 'the dealership of tomorrow', RoI on digital marketing, leveraging AI, the state of EV adoption etc. Some key takeaways: 🚗 NADA Data; 16,839 new car dealerships, $29,586 avg selling price used vehicles sold, California highest dollar sales for all dealerships, avg 63 employees per dealership, avg age of vehicles on the road 12.5 years; 📲 68% (+12pp vs 2019) of advertising expenditures ($8.5bn total, $718 per unit sold) by dealers is spent on internet, 10% TV, 8% radio and 6% direct mail, 4% newspapers and 4% other; ✋ Top risks auto dealers 2024 are increasing interest rates, employee retention, direct sales (agency model), pressure on profitability and short of technicians; 🚺 Women are key for the future new car industry, they influence 85% of household buys. There also was a dedicated event organized 'Women Driving Automotive Retail' exploring gender diversity in the auto retail industry; 📈 Car inventory levels are increasing substantially, driving a steady rise of sales incentives that negatively impact OEM and dealer profitability in 2024; 🔌 EV share (7%) of new car sales (US) continues to disappoint, driven consumer uncertainty and high vehicle prices. This is just a glimpse of the education which was shared, more content we will share with our customers soon. Personally I do like the ongoing passion & energy (+their upselling skills, also in restaurants 😀) the Americans exhibit and their great storytelling - when it comes to digital automotive retailing we, as Europeans, are really on the right track and are definitely not behind. Special thanks to Paul de Vries and Johan Lammers for organizing the trip to Grand Canyon and 'Holland House borrel' which both was a great opportunity to engage with our dealers and business partners. Feel free to reach out to me in case you might have a need for further information or just want to have a session on exchange of ideas on automotive retail.