Dealer groups vs single stores: where the buying decision sits

Some dealerships are one rooftop with one owner. Others belong to a group that runs many stores across brands and states. The product can be the same; the sale is not.

Single stores

The owner and GM are close to every decision, and a good conversation can turn into a trial quickly. The risk is reach: each store is its own sale, so your process has to be efficient.

• Reach the department head and the GM at the same store, with the same store-specific point.
• Use what the store sells: brands, new or used mix, size.
• Keep the ask small: a short call, a pilot, a look at their numbers.

Dealer groups

Groups often decide some things centrally and leave others to each store. Contracts that touch every rooftop, such as the DMS, CRM, accounting or group marketing, tend to sit with group-level leaders. Department tools can still be chosen store by store.

• Find out which level owns your category before you pitch.
• Start with one store where a GM or department head wants the result, then use that store as proof inside the group.
• Map the group: which rooftops it owns, which brands, which managers.

One won store inside a group is your best reference for the next one, because the managers already talk to each other.

Seeing the group behind a store

DealerData links each store to its dealer group, so you can see every rooftop in a group and the managers at each one. See which roles buy which tools in 8 types of dealership software.

Frequently asked questions

How do you sell to a dealer group?+

Find out whether your category is bought centrally or store by store, win one store where a manager wants the result, then use it as proof with the group’s other stores.

Who decides purchases at a dealer group?+

Group-wide systems such as the DMS, CRM and accounting are usually decided by group leadership; department tools are often chosen by each store’s managers.