On the latest episode of Inside Automotive, we sit down with Durran Cage, founder and owner of Cage Automotive, to discuss a fundamental problem plaguing many dealerships today: underutilized CRMs.
While many stores chase more leads and invest heavily in AI or digital marketing, Cage notes that the real opportunity lies in nurturing the prospects already in the system. By shifting their mindset, enforcing accountability, and driving process adoption from the top down, Cage argues that dealers can dramatically increase their closing ratios without spending another dime.
"Time is a big part of love, like you're investing in it... So when we bring that into the CRM, a lot of dealerships are having to invest more love, more time into that CRM to make it right." – Durran Cage
Cage believes that the majority of dealerships don’t need more internet leads—they need to properly engage the ones already sitting dormant in their CRM. “When we think about love, one of the ways I equate love is time,” Cage explains. “A lot of dealerships have to invest more time into that CRM to make it right.” Too many stores are reallocating or dissolving their BDCs without preparing their sales teams to manage digital workflows. Without training, managers and reps struggle to turn online activity into showroom visits and sales.
According to Cage, salespeople are typically trained to prioritize face-to-face interactions, but digital engagement requires a different skill set, one that often goes untaught. He encourages leaders to reframe CRM tasks not as administrative chores but as steps in the familiar road-to-the-sale process.
Leadership buy-in is critical. Cage says many managers don’t actively use the CRM themselves, and their inaction teaches staff that usage is optional. “What we allow, we teach,” Cage says. When top performers are exempt from CRM rules simply because they sell 25 or 30 units a month, it undermines dealership culture. But Cage also sees this as an opportunity. If a 30-car-per-month salesperson isn’t using CRM and still thriving, imagine how much more effective they could be with the right tools and workflows in place.
He also emphasizes the importance of breaking down CRM usage and conversion data by lead source. A dealership could be converting first-party website leads at 25–30%, but if they also receive 250 low-quality third-party leads that convert at just 2–3%, their overall metrics will look worse, hurting internal morale and external perception. “That’s where we have to dial into our CRM,” he explains, calling for more nuanced analysis across departments, including marketing, F&I, and fixed ops.
Overall, Cage warns against relying solely on internet closing percentages to assess performance, especially when such metrics blend high- and low-intent lead sources. Instead, he encourages better cross-department communication and data segmentation to accurately track what’s working and to direct marketing and training investments more effectively.
