As dealerships navigate a more competitive sales environment, many continue investing in staffing while searching for ways to improve performance from existing leads. According to Kyle Disher, Founder and CEO of RevDojo, the biggest opportunities may not be in generating more traffic, but in improving how stores engage shoppers after first contact.
On today’s Inside Automotive, Disher shared insights from nearly 1,000 sales candidate interviews conducted through RevDojo hiring events and more than 120,000 mystery shops completed in 2026. While many dealerships have expanded their sales teams after operating leanly during the inventory shortages that followed the COVID-19 pandemic, his research suggests persistent weaknesses in follow-up, appointment-setting and management involvement.
One dealership highlighted during the interview sold roughly 240 vehicles per month with just 14 salespeople, a figure Disher cited as an example of how lean some sales operations have become.
"You don't need more advertising. You don't need more cars. All you need is to pay attention to the calls that are currently coming into your store."
As inventory levels normalize and consumers gain more choices, dealerships are once again relying on core sales fundamentals, including prospecting, follow-up, appointment-setting and relationship-building. RevDojo’s mystery shopping data, based on 120,000 mystery shops, suggests many dealerships are still struggling to execute those fundamentals consistently:
- 17.6% of dealerships sent a custom video response to shoppers.
- Only 6.3% sent a personalized video message.
- 44% of salespeople asked for an appointment through text or email.
- Management engagement occurred on 33% of leads, a figure Disher believes may be overstated.
The analysis also identified practices that improved results, such as in one four-store study, trade-in discussions nearly tripled close rates. Disher added that dealerships implementing RevDojo’s processes typically see a 2% to 5% increase in internet close rates.
Mystery shops missed opportunities
According to Disher, the mystery shops revealed a consistent pattern of salespeople often answering customer questions but failing to guide shoppers toward a dealership visit. During a live mystery shop demonstration conducted during the interview, sales representatives provided vehicle information and discussed alternatives, but never directly asked for an appointment.
Additionally, Disher notes that management involvement is a common issue, as dealerships often focus on managers monitoring showroom traffic, while inbound calls and internet leads are often overlooked. This trend results in missed opportunities to boost conversion rates.
For dealers looking to boost sales performance, Disher’s findings point to a straightforward conclusion: improving execution on existing leads may deliver greater returns than simply generating more of them.
