Artificial intelligence (AI) is working its way into nearly every corner of business today. Dealerships are no exception, although some are showing some resistance when it comes to adopting AI. That resistance doesn’t just slow a dealership’s AI adoption; it could stall the entire organization’s growth and pace. On the latest episode of Loyalty-Based Sales Strategies, host Jen Suzuki, Founder and President of eDealer Solutions, joins us to break down how AI has moved past the point of being a side conversation and has quickly become a key part of business operations.
While leaders who haven’t warmed up to using AI in their dealerships risk getting left behind, Suzuki believes managers who were slow to adopt CRM systems are an example of what could happen. She claims those managers often relied on instinct instead of data, skipping notes and avoiding reports that would have shown exactly where their teams stood. That same pattern is starting to show up with AI and it carries the same risk of leaving managers disconnected from the tools their teams need to succeed, she said.
Over time, Suzuki said that disengaged managers lose touch with the tools, the data and the people they’re supposed to lead. That erosion eventually shows up in the coaching itself. A manager who doesn’t understand a system deeply enough can’t run an accountability conversation about it, and can’t train a team on tools they’ve stopped using.
Challenging AI skepticism
AI draws the same skepticism any new technology does, and most of it is fair. What matters is whether that skepticism stays an honest question or hardens into something that colors the whole team’s attitude.
For example, Suzuki said she had a team member who pushed back on AI, saying that it’s “killing polar bears.” People are entitled to their opinions and skepticism, she said, but she draws a line between an honest question and resistance spread through tone alone. Sarcasm, avoidance and dismissive comments in meetings do more damage than a single skeptical employee, Suzuki said. Newer hires pick up on that energy quickly, and momentum erodes one mindset at a time rather than all at once.
"AI is not replacing loyalty-based selling. It should strengthen it."
One area where AI has shown positive results is in customer communications. Keeping that connection intact, Suzuki said, is key to driving customer loyalty, as well as preventing follow-up slips when a team is busy or overwhelmed; customers who don’t hear back tend to disappear rather than complain. AI closes that distance by keeping communication consistent for customers and team members who would otherwise fall through the cracks, strengthening the same loyalty that keeps them coming back to the dealership.
Leadership sets the rules
Adopting AI in a dealership doesn’t mean letting go of oversight, Suzuki said. It means putting clear guardrails in place before the tools spread through the store. That responsibility falls on leadership, not on whichever team member happens to be curious enough to start using a new tool on their own.
Protecting customer information and company data sits at the center of that responsibility, according to Suzuki. Privacy has to be built into how a dealership adopts AI from the start, not addressed after a tool is already in daily use. Setting standards and training people responsibly, she said, is what separates leadership from teams that are simply reacting to whatever shows up next.
Sitting out entirely carries its own cost, Suzuki said. Competitors are already using AI to communicate faster, follow up more consistently, sharpen product knowledge, and write stronger emails and texts. Suzuki pointed to marketing, presentations and objection handling as areas where dealerships are already seeing that advantage play out, along with steadier customer retention.
Dealerships that build a healthy AI culture now, will hold a real advantage over competitors in the next few years. Growth inside a dealership usually starts with one person deciding to lean in, Suzuki said. Leaders who haven’t leaned into AI need to ask themselves why, and at what cost.
