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What if one number could cut burnout, fix your follow-up, and turn “lost” leads into lifetime service customers?

Kristine Lentz from Urban Science joins Auto Collabs for her first-ever podcast—and promptly makes everyone smile while talking about the least smiley topic in retail: customer defection. From starting in support to leading a team, Kristine lays out how dealers can spot where customers slip away, why our instincts often lie, and how to turn cold data into warm conversations that actually convert.

We get into the uncomfortable stuff—ego vs evidence, “those lead sources are trash” (spoiler: they’re often not), and why about 20% of the leads in your CRM may have already purchased elsewhere. The unlock? Use defection as your North Star to stop chasing ghosts, redirect messaging, and re-humanize sales. In a world racing toward AI-everything, Kristine argues that human is the new premium—and shows how to deploy people exactly where they matter most.

Timestamps

0:00 — First-Time Guest, Big Topic

2:12 — Salesperson to Data Sherpa

3:53 — The “Dealer Reality Check”

8:53 — Your North Star Isn’t Sales—It’s Defection

10:07 — Ego Off, Evidence On

11:20 — The Lead Source Myth

12:28 — The 20% You Should Stop Calling

12:57 — Flip the Script, Win the Relationship

15:57 — Human > Bot (Used Wisely)

18:45 — Human Is the New Premium

21:17 — Culture That Connects

24:50 — Action List for Dealers

Connect with Kristine Lentz at https://www.linkedin.com/in/kristine-lentz-a2582910b/

Learn more about Urban Science at https://www.urbanscience.com

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Apple Store energy meets Ford retail as JB Burnett builds a concierge dealership that actually fits how people buy.

Today’s guest, JB Burnett (GM at Preston Automotive Group), went from serving tables at 20 to running his first dealership at 23. He’s now opening what Ford calls the world’s first Signature 2.0 facility—a wide-open, concierge-style showroom where advisors work on iPads, coffee comes before paperwork, and financing options hit the screen in about a minute and a half. He’s betting big that the future of car buying isn’t one lane—it’s dozens—and the store should flex to match every guest’s journey.

We get into the “why” behind the build: Apple-like consult spaces, a barista bar that starts the experience, and tech (AutoFi) that connects online starts to in-store finishes without the dreaded “let me ask my manager” lap. We also talk team prep, culture shifts, and why experiential retail is resurging right as everyone debates online vs. in-store. Spoiler: a dealership isn’t just a place to transact—it’s a place people actually want to be.

0:00 — The Apple Store Feeling That Broke the Dealership Mold

3:54 — Meet JB: From Server to GM at 23 (and What Flipped the Switch)

4:37 — “I Wouldn’t Buy a Car From Me” — The Brutally Honest Epiphany

7:18 — Why Some People Need 8 Hours—and Others Want the Keys in 8 Minutes

10:12 — Inside Ford’s Signature 2.0: Barista Bar, iPads, and Zero Cubicles

15:45 — Weeks From Opening: The First Signature 2.0 Store in the World

18:37 — The 90-Second Finance Loop: AutoFi + RouteOne Changes the Game

20:49 — Open Lines of Sight = Open Trust: Service and Sales Merge

23:20 — Moving a Dealership a City Away: Why Environment Elevates Behavior

24:24 — From Salespeople to Concierges: Training the Mindset, Not Just the Tools

27:20 — Physical Retail Isn’t Dying—Bad Experiences Are

28:38 — Experiential Retail Wins: Make the Store a Place People Choose to Be

Connect with JB Burnett at https://www.linkedin.com/in/jb-burnett-14534626/

Learn more about the Preston Auto Group at https://www.prestonmotor.com/

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Streaming is splintered, AI is the new TV guide, and last-click is dead—Michael Kraut lays out the dealer playbook for what’s next.

Auto Collabs history: our first ever in-studio guest! Experian’s Michael Kraut sits down with Paul to map the new media reality—where streaming splinters attention, Yahoo and Amazon quietly re-emerge as ad heavyweights, and AI agents become the front door to what we watch and how we buy. Marketing isn’t just media, it’s math—and Michael explains how identity, enrichment, and hygiene turn messy dealer data into competitive advantage.

We dig into practicals dealers can act on today: service as a growth engine, outcome-based measurement borrowed from retail media, and the signals that actually predict lift. We also get real about affordability, totaled-vehicle dynamics, fewer true “new” model launches, and a Gen Z buyer who cares more about tech than badge. Plus a little Syracuse nostalgia and a hot take: we may all be headed back to a cable-like bundle (with AI riding shotgun).

Takeaways

0:00 — Our First In-Studio Guest & Why Being In-Person Changes the Conversation

0:58 — “We’re Building More Sets”: The Plan to Bring Dealers to Syracuse

3:17 — From Circuit City to CarMax: Why Adaptation Beats Legacy Every Time

4:11 — LinkedIn’s Organic Reach Is Gone: What We’d Do Differently (x5 Harder)

6:42 — Your Ads Are Everywhere (and Nowhere): The Platform Explosion No One Can Manage

8:32 — Streaming Fatigue Is Real: Why “Cable 2.0” Might Win the Sunday Sports Fight

10:32 — AI As Your TV Guide: Voice-In, Watch-Now, With Ads Baked Into the Agent

12:46 — Your Best Data Isn’t for Sale: CRM/DMS Hygiene as the Unfair Advantage

16:33 — Stop Worshiping Last-Click: How Outcome-Based Marketing Actually Looks in Auto

18:32 — Measuring Lift the Real Way: Service RO Signals, Search Intent & Scheduling

24:07 — What We’ll Talk About at NADA: Fixed Ops as the 2025 Growth Thesis

25:22 — Affordability Won’t Blink: Totals, Insurance, and the Case for Keeping Cars Longer

26:32 — Fewer True Launches, More Rebadges: Why Creative Has to Sell Utility, Not Novelty

27:17 — Gen Z Isn’t Loyal to Badges: If the Tech Works, They’ll Switch

29:23 — From 13 Subscriptions to One Bill: The Bundle Is Coming Back (With Hyper-Personalization)

Connect with Michael Kraut at https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-kraut-1b9b3/

Learn more about Experian Automotive at https://www.experian.com/automotive/

⭐️ 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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🎧 Like and follow our other podcasts:

1. Automotive State of the Union
2. ASOTU CON Sessions