Your website says 60-minute oil changes. Your Google reviews say two and a half hours. And AI just chose your competitor.

Brian Kramer, one of the most influential voices in automotive retail and VP at Cars Commerce, joins Sarah and Ted for a conversation that every dealer, service director, and fixed ops leader needs to hear RIGHT NOW — because the rules of digital visibility just changed permanently.

👉 Register for the upcoming Fixed Ops Roundtable Event

What we discuss in this episode:

In this episode, Brian unpacks the single biggest shift happening in automotive marketing: the rise of Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) and why your Google reviews, Yelp page, Reddit presence, and Dealer Rater profile are now make-or-break factors in whether AI search engines even recommend your store.

What you'll learn:

• Why bots and AI agents now conduct MORE searches than humans, and what that means for your website structure
• The EEAT framework (Expertise, Experience, Authority, Trustworthiness) and how to reverse-engineer Google's algorithm to dominate local search
• How mismatched information across your platforms is silently destroying your ranking and how to fix it fast
• Why paid search is losing power (down from 70% to 50% of search share in one year) and what replaces it
• The real reason most dealers never crack 0.5% service drive acquisition, and what the top performers do differently (hint: no amount of automation can replicate it)
• Why Reddit is the #1 untapped platform for recruiting technicians right now

Brian also breaks down why the dealerships hitting 3–5% service drive conversion rates all share one thing in common and it has nothing to do with the technology they're using.

If you think you can buy your way to the top of AI search, Brian has a wake-up call for you. And if you're still relying on the same digital playbook from three years ago, this episode will tell you exactly what to change.

Listen to the episode featuring Brian Kramer for even more insights!

Enjoying The Fixed Ops Roundtable Podcast? Please leave a rating and review 👇

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/fixed-ops-roundtable/id1608656237

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/15HHYoyvCo1PSFwYn02UXY

Thanks, Brian Kramer

Connect with Ted Ings and the Fixed Ops Roundtable:

• Register for the next Fixed Ops Roundtable Event
• Ted Ings on LinkedIn
• Center for Performance Improvement

What if the biggest thing holding your wholesale operation back… isn’t sales, but cash flow?

In this episode of the Fixed Ops Roundtable, we get real about one of the most frustrating (and misunderstood) challenges in fixed ops: accounts receivable, slow pay, and the silent cash-flow killers hiding in wholesale parts and B2B service work.

I’m joined by Dave Schell of Interstate Billing Service and Tully Williams from The Niello Company, and what starts as a conversation about AR quickly turns into a masterclass on how dealers can eliminate credit risk, unlock cash faster, and grow wholesale without losing sleep.

This isn’t theory. This is street-level fixed ops talk from people who’ve lived it.

👉 Register for the upcoming Fixed Ops Roundtable Event

What we discuss in this episode:

• Why wholesale parts margins feel razor-thin, and how AR delays quietly erase your profits
• How dealers are floating six figures of cash without even realizing it
• Why “we’ve always done it this way” is costing stores more than they think
• How getting paid tomorrow instead of 60–120 days later changes everything
• The hidden stress wholesale creates for parts managers and business offices
• What happens when you take credit risk completely off the dealer’s plate
• Why cash flow, not gross, is what really keeps the lights on

Tully brings real-world perspective from running fixed ops at a multi-store luxury dealer group, while Dave breaks down how Interstate Billing Service removes the hardest part of wholesale: collecting the money.

Listen to the episode featuring Dave Schell & Tully Williams for even more insights!

Enjoying The Fixed Ops Roundtable Podcast? Please leave a rating and review 👇

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/fixed-ops-roundtable/id1608656237

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/15HHYoyvCo1PSFwYn02UXY

Thanks, Dave Schell & Tully William

Connect with Ted Ings and the Fixed Ops Roundtable:

• Register for the next Fixed Ops Roundtable Event
• Ted Ings on LinkedIn
• Center for Performance Improvement

If trust is the real currency of fixed ops… how are you earning it the moment a customer pulls into your drive?

That’s the question that sets the tone for this episode of The Fixed Ops Roundtable, and it’s one of the most honest, practical, and human conversations I’ve had in a long time.

I sat down with Spiro Morogiannis of BG Products, Inc., a true advocate for dealers and fixed ops teams, to unpack something that often gets overlooked in all the talk about technology, tools, and 2026 planning: the fundamentals of people, process, and trust. What unfolds is a real-world, boots-on-the-ground discussion about how small moments in the advisor process either build lifelong loyalty… or quietly push customers out the door.

👉 Register for the upcoming Fixed Ops Roundtable Event

What we discuss in this episode:

• Why the advisor meet-and-greet is the most undervalued moment in fixed ops
• A real (and uncomfortable) service experience that shows how fast trust can be broken
• How consistency beats complexity when it comes to advisor processes
• The difference between “doing an MPI” and earning the right to present it
• Why menus, walkarounds, and expectation-setting calm customers before selling anything
• How technology should support the human conversation, not replace it
• The truth about severe service intervals and why most customers already qualify
• What post-warranty retention really looks like—and why independents win when dealers don’t have a plan
• How BG’s Lifetime Protection Plan becomes a loyalty strategy, not just a product
• Why a “Highline experience” shouldn’t be special… it should be standard

This episode isn’t theory. It’s not hype. It’s a reminder that customers don’t come back because of a system, they come back because of how you made them feel, how clearly you communicated, and whether you proved you were worthy of their trust.

If you’re building your 2026 fixed ops plan, leading advisors, or wondering why retention feels harder than it should… this conversation will hit home.

Listen to the episode featuring Spiro Morogiannis for even more insights!

Enjoying The Fixed Ops Roundtable Podcast? Please leave a rating and review 👇

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/fixed-ops-roundtable/id1608656237

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/15HHYoyvCo1PSFwYn02UXY

Thanks, Spiro Morogiannis

Connect with Ted Ings and the Fixed Ops Roundtable:

• Register for the next Fixed Ops Roundtable Event
• Ted Ings on LinkedIn
• Center for Performance Improvement