AI gets talked about in two extremes. Either it sounds like magic, or it sounds like noise.
This webinar with Mia gave dealers a much better place to start: what job should AI actually do inside the store?
That framing matters because most dealerships already know where the pressure lives. Phones ring too long. Leads sit too long. Appointments slip. Coaching happens inconsistently. Teams stay busy, but customer expectations keep climbing.
Mia’s framework was simple: AI should serve as coverage, coach, and teammate.
1. Coverage
This is where AI handles the repetitive, time-sensitive work that still matters but keeps pulling people away from higher-value tasks. Phone calls. Appointment booking. Basic service questions. Reminder texts. After-hours communication.
That kind of support creates breathing room fast.
One example from the webinar said a lot. A dealership went into a holiday weekend short-staffed with 48 service appointments on the books for Monday. By Monday morning, Mia had helped push that number to 88, then added 15 more in the first hour after opening.
Another operator put it even more plainly: “There is no missed phone calls anymore.”
That changes workflow. It changes pace. It changes how much pressure lands on the team before the day even gets started.
2. Coach
Scott Traylor made the point that AI can show teams how often humans overcomplicate simple customer interactions. Salespeople, BDC reps, and service advisors often start qualifying too early, layering in assumptions when the customer is just trying to solve one thing.
Does the car have blind spot?
Can I book an oil change?
Are you open?
AI keeps moving. It answers the question and goes for the appointment.
That becomes valuable coaching material. Dealers can review those interactions and spot where the team added friction, drifted off course, or made the conversation harder than it needed to be.
Consistency matters here. Traditional coaching depends on manager time and discipline. AI surfaces those moments every day.
3. Teammate
The third job is teammate.
This was probably the strongest mindset shift in the webinar. Scott argued that dealers should think of AI less like a tool and more like a staff member.
That changes the rollout immediately.
Team members get trained. They get workflows. They get expectations. The same approach works here. AI needs guardrails, process, word tracks, and leadership buy-in. It also needs internal trust.
Thuy Adomitis pointed out that the stores seeing the most success are the ones that adopt with conviction, align the team around the why, and let the system do the work it was built to do.
That mindset separates dabbling from real implementation.
What Dealers Should Take From This
Coverage protects opportunities that would otherwise slip. Coaching makes conversations cleaner. A teammate mindset helps stores actually operationalize the technology instead of just buying it.
And underneath all of it was the real pressure point: time.
That’s the resource every dealership is short on. AI works best when it gives some of that time back.
Dealer Playbook
Start with repetitive tasks. Focus on phones, appointment reminders, and simple scheduling.
Use AI conversations for coaching. Look for places where the team adds friction or assumptions.
Define AI’s role clearly. Coverage, follow-up, and support all need expectations.
Train the staff on the why. Adoption moves faster when the team sees how AI helps them.
Track missed-call volume and appointment show rate. Those numbers will show the impact quickly.
