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If your competitive edge is still price, you’re already losing—the real battle is happening in experience, simplicity, and how you make people feel.

Glenn Pasch has logged over a million miles in the air and many hours helping dealerships rethink how they market, sell, and retain customers. In this episode, the crew unpacks what he’s seeing now. The market has shifted. Inventory is no longer the advantage, and the real differentiator has quietly become something most dealers still underestimate: the experience.

From friction-filled processes to the rise of convenience-first competitors like Carvana, Glenn explains why simplicity is becoming the ultimate strategy. The conversation goes beyond AI buzzwords and focuses on what actually moves the needle: clean data, strong processes, and teams that know how to make customers feel remembered. Selling a car isn’t just about the car. It’s about how easy, personal, and human you make the journey.

Key Takeaways

0:00 The Guest Who Opened Doors. Why Glenn Pasch Shaped Their Early Careers

2:19 A Million Miles of Perspective. What Travel Teaches About Customer Experience

6:17 Inventory Isn’t Your Advantage Anymore. What Actually Matters Now

7:30 Dealers Are Splitting in Two Directions. Control vs Convenience

8:48 The Experience Economy Is Here. Why Ease Beats Price

9:54 Complexity Is the Enemy. Why Simplicity Wins Everywhere

10:30 Carvana Didn’t Win With Tech. They Won by Removing Friction

12:24 The Hidden Revenue Leak. How Small Frictions Cost You Deals

13:41 A $2 Interaction That Proves Everything About Personalization

14:42 You Already Have the Data. Why Aren’t You Using It?

16:30 Customers Don’t Care About the Car. They Care How You Treat Them

18:39 AI Isn’t the Strategy. Execution and Clean Data Are

20:00 The Most Misunderstood Role in Dealerships. Marketing Managers

22:31 Why In-Person Events Still Matter More Than Ever

26:29 Ignore People and Process. Fall Behind. It’s That Simple

Learn more about Glenn Pasch at https://www.linkedin.com/in/glennpasch/

Learn more about PCG Digital / Digital Marketing Strategies Conference at https://www.digitalmarketingstrategies.org/

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Automotive spent years patching old systems together and now AI is forcing the industry to confront what should have been rebuilt a long time ago.

Misty Tippets of Podium joins the show with a perspective the industry badly needs: one foot in modern SaaS, the other in the reality of retail automotive. With a background in agency work, Salesforce implementations, and enterprise tech, she brings an outsider’s clarity to one of the biggest questions dealers are facing right now: why does adopting new technology still feel so messy, expensive, and fragmented?

This conversation quickly moves past the usual AI hype and gets to the deeper issue underneath it: infrastructure. Misty breaks down why bolt-on AI tools are already falling behind, why month-to-month vendor culture may be doing more harm than good, and why fixed ops could be the biggest overlooked opportunity in the market right now. It’s a sharp conversation about contracts, data, operational discipline, and the narrow window dealers still have to leap back to the front of the pack.

Timestamped Takeaways

0:00 AI Moved Fast Dealers Went From “Maybe” to “We Have No Choice”

2:22 Why Misty’s Tech Background Made Automotive’s Systems Gap Impossible to Ignore

4:24 What Salesforce Implementations Reveal About How Underbuilt Auto Tech Really Is

6:01 Dealers Don’t Actually Want Salesforce, They Want Modern Systems That Finally Fit 2026

7:35 Automotive May Be Years Behind on the Data Foundation It Needs

9:47 The Bolt-On AI Era Is Ending Faster Than Most Vendors Want to Admit

12:04 COVID Gave Other Industries a Reason to Rebuild Automotive Mostly Kept Selling Cars

13:49 Fast Onboarding Sounds Great But Some Tools Should Take 90 Days to Get Right

14:39 Month-to-Month Contracts Might Feel Safe But They Can Quietly Kill Real Partnership

18:46 The Vendors Winning Trust Aren’t Selling from a Distance They’re Sitting Inside Dealerships

20:20 This Isn’t Really an AI Conversation It’s a Technology Reckoning the Industry Delayed Too Long

21:23 The Biggest AI Opportunity in Auto May Be Fixed Ops Not the Sales Floor

Connect with Misty Tippets at https://www.linkedin.com/in/mistytippets/

Learn more about Podium at https://www.podium.com/

⭐️ Love the podcast? Please leave us a review here — even one sentence helps! Consider including your LinkedIn or Instagram handle so we can thank you personally!

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At the NY Auto Forum, Lance Woelfer, Vice President of Automobile Sales at American Honda, breaks down a major shift in strategy as the EV transition slows across the U.S. market. While early momentum was driven by government incentives and aggressive timelines, changing consumer demand and infrastructure gaps are forcing automakers to rethink their approach.

This conversation goes beyond headlines to explain why Honda is doubling down on hybrids and value-driven vehicles instead of rushing further into EV expansion. From affordability pressures to regional demand differences, the focus is shifting toward flexibility—meeting customers where they are, not where the industry expected them to be.

Woelfer makes a clear case: the future isn’t one-size-fits-all. With EV adoption still in the single digits, dealers need the right mix of hybrid, gas, and electric options to serve their markets effectively. This is a practical look at how product strategy, pricing, and consumer behavior are reshaping the next phase of automotive retail.

Timestamped Takeaways

0:00 Intro

0:20 Lance Woelfer’s Role at American Honda

1:00 The Current State of EV Strategy

2:00 Why Honda Shifted Away from Certain EV Plans

3:10 The Impact of Government Incentives and Infrastructure

4:20 Why Consumer Demand Isn’t Matching EV Supply

5:30 The Role of the Prologue in Honda’s Lineup

6:40 What Happens After the EV Lease Cycle Ends

7:50 Hybrid Vehicles as the Bridge to the Future

9:00 Global vs U.S. EV Strategy Differences

10:10 EV Adoption Rates and Market Reality

11:20 Living with Past Industry Decisions

12:20 What Dealers Are Asking For: Affordability

13:30 Balancing Hybrid and Gas Production

14:40 Why Regional Demand Shapes Inventory

15:50 The Importance of Flexibility in Product Mix

17:00 The Honda “Base Station” Concept Explained

18:20 Expanding Customer Experience Beyond the Vehicle

19:30 Final Thoughts on Consumer-Centric Strategy

Connect with Lance Woelfer at https://www.linkedin.com/in/lance-woelfer-62a6a861/

Our coverage of the NY Auto Forum is brought to you Force Marketing. Learn more at https://www.forcemarketing.com/

⭐️ Love the podcast? Please leave us a review here — even one sentence helps! Consider including your LinkedIn or Instagram handle so we can thank you personally!

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