Behind the Decision: How a Rural Mitsubishi Dealer is Scaling with AI Employees

Running a small dealership is a little bit like running a startup. Every customer matters, every lead counts, and every lost opportunity hurts more than it would in a large metro store. The flip side is that every positive impact is magnified.

Bringing AI into a dealership is not just about adding technology. It is about reshaping how teams work and where their time is best spent. For one rural Mitsubishi store, averaging 50 new vehicles and 70 pre-owned vehicles per month, the decision to onboard AI Employees was driven by a simple reality: too many opportunities were slipping away.

This is the story of why they decided to start, what challenges they expect AI to solve, and the targets we will measure as the program goes live.

The Situation

With limited staff and multiple lead sources such as the dealership website, Google and Facebook Ads, Facebook Marketplace, Autotrader, Cars.com, and Cargurus, the team was spread thin. Every day, valuable time went into manual follow-ups while some prospects never heard back at all.

Key pain points before launch:

• Leads waiting hours or days for responses
• New-vehicle leads growing cold after 72 hours
• Service lane upgrades rarely being offered
• Walk-outs and lost customers not re-engaged
• Renewal opportunities missed due to late contact

Objectives and Success Targets

To define success, the team set measurable goals:

• Response time: under 60 seconds across all digital channels
• Show rate: lift above 60% (current average around 50%)
• Close rate: target 30% or higher (current around 25%)
• Incremental sales: capture 5–7 per month across new, used, and finance
• Efficiency: save 30–40 staff hours each month through automation

Activated Use Cases

The dealership is onboarding with six AI Employee use cases designed to achieve these targets.

1. Lease and Finance Renewals

Plan: AI Employees will monitor the DMS for upcoming maturities and begin outreach 6 to 12 months in advance.

Challenge solved: Missed renewals and customers quietly renewing with competitors.

Target impact: Secure 2 to 3 additional renewals per month, equal to about $4,500–$6,000 in gross profit.

Example outreach:
“Hi Julie, your lease on the 2021 Mitsubishi Outlander is ending soon. Would you like to see upgrade options with a similar payment?”

2. New-Vehicle Web Leads (72h Follow-Up)

Plan: Any lead unconverted after 72 hours will be re-engaged automatically through SMS, email, and voicemail.

Challenge solved: Cold, forgotten internet leads.

Target impact: Recover 2 additional sales per month, equal to about $6,000 in gross profit.

Example outreach:
“Hi David, I noticed you were checking out the Eclipse Cross online. Do you still want to book a test drive this week? I can hold a time for you.”

3. Service-to-Sales Evaluations

Plan: Every service appointment becomes an opportunity for trade appraisal, with data collected automatically and sent to sales.

Challenge solved: Missed upgrades during service visits.

Target impact: Convert one upgrade per week, equal to about $2,500 in gross profit each month.

Example outreach:
“While your 2019 RVR is in the shop, would you like a free appraisal? Many customers discover they can upgrade to a newer model with a similar payment.”

4. OEM Recall Campaigns

Plan: AI Employees will manage recall campaigns such as those for the Outlander PHEV by sending personalized notifications and booking links.

Challenge solved: Low recall completion due to ignored OEM letters.

Target impact: Save 20 to 30 staff hours per campaign while increasing recall completions and service revenue.

Example outreach:
“Hello Marc, your 2020 Outlander PHEV has an active safety recall. Please schedule your free appointment here: [link].”

5. Walk-Outs and Lost Customers

Plan: All showroom visitors and online leads that do not close will enter structured re-engagement campaigns.

Challenge solved: Walk-outs never being contacted again.

Target impact: Recover at least one lost sale per month, equal to about $3,000 in gross profit.

Example outreach:
“Hi Sarah, thanks for stopping by yesterday. Was it price, financing, or availability that held you back? I would love to help find an option that works.”

6. Second and Third Chance Credit Leads

Plan: Credit-challenged leads will be managed with empathy, with AI Employees guiding them step by step and collecting documents.

Challenge solved: Abandoned or incomplete files.

Target impact: Close 2 additional subprime deals per month, equal to about $4,000 in gross profit.

Example outreach:
“Hi Jean, I just need your proof of income to complete your approval for the 2022 Mirage. You can upload it securely here: [link].”

Why This Matters

For this dealership, success will mean more than hitting sales targets. It will mean that every customer receives a timely response no matter the hour, the sales team spends their time with qualified buyers instead of chasing missed calls, and managers have full visibility into lead handling and campaign results.

10–15 Business Day Rollout for Mitsubishi Dealerships

We follow a structured onboarding process that balances quality with speed. For this Mitsubishi dealership, our goal is to have AI Employees live in 10–15 business days, fully aligned with your brand, your inventory, and your customers.

Phase 1 – Configure

• Align brand voice with Mitsubishi standards and set supported languages (French first, English when required)
• Configure consent rules and SMS identity for customer communications
• Set up scheduling logic: appointment status, service photos, shuttle and transport options
• Connect CRM (Activix) and DMS (Serti) for lead logging, renewal pulls, and equity checks
• Map business rules for escalation to sales managers, renewal desk, and finance team
• Train AI Employees with dealership knowledge:
  • Mitsubishi models and trims (Outlander, Eclipse Cross, RVR, Mirage, PHEV lineup)
  • Regional market dynamics and local competitors
  • Common objections (price, availability, trade-in value, credit challenges)
  • Edge cases (recall campaigns, subprime financing, walk-outs)

Phase 2 – Initial Launch

• Activate priority cohorts:
  • Lease maturities from Serti equity pulls
  • Equity-positive customers ready to upgrade
  • End-of-warranty owners
  • Lapsed service customers (9+ months inactive)
• Launch lean, outcome-driven cadences designed to generate quick appointments
• Test service-to-sales evaluations in the shop (ex: offering trade-in appraisals while vehicles are in for service)
• Validate objection handling and escalation workflows

Phase 3– Optimize & Scale

• Tighten message caps and confirm stop conditions to avoid over-communication
• Speed up handoffs to the renewal desk, sales consultants, and finance managers
• Refine cadences based on early engagement data
• Expand to additional cohorts:
  • Walk-outs from the showroom
  • Unsold internet leads beyond 72 hours
  • OEM recall campaigns (e.g., Outlander PHEV)
• Fine-tune AI knowledge for handling price-sensitive customers, competitor comparisons, and subprime credit conversations

Outcome

By the end of the second week, the Mitsubishi dealership has AI Employees fully embedded:

• Instant response to website, ads, and Marketplace leads
• Structured follow-ups for renewals, service-to-sales, recalls, and lost customers
• Consistent objection handling that reflects Mitsubishi’s positioning
• Measurable ROI through faster lead response, higher conversion, and 30–40 staff hours saved every month

Behind the Decision

The decision to add AI Employees came down to one fact: hiring more staff was not realistic and missing opportunities was too costly.

By launching with renewals, aged web leads, service-to-sales evaluations, recalls, walk-out recovery, and credit-challenged leads, the dealership is aiming for more conversions, better efficiency, and a faster path to ROI.

This is Behind the Decision, where smart dealers are choosing to start their AI journey.

Don't know where to start? Check out our new ROI tool for car dealerships.