The NADA (National Automobile Dealers Association) Convention is a pivotal event for dealerships, offering a unique blend of networking, education, and innovation. After the recent NADA conference in New Orleans, it’s clear that staying ahead in the automotive industry requires more than just keeping up with trends—it’s about harnessing the power of data, improving the customer experience, and adopting new technologies to ensure long-term success. For those who missed the event, here's a summary of the key takeaways and why dealerships should be paying close attention to the evolving landscape of 2025.
Why NADA is Invaluable for Dealers
NADA is one of the most significant events in the automotive world, providing dealers with a chance to learn from industry leaders, connect with vendors, and explore the tools and technologies shaping the future of car sales and service. For dealers, it’s more than just an opportunity to learn—it’s about understanding what works, what challenges are on the horizon, and how to stay competitive.
As Skip Soucie, founder and CEO of Edifice Automotive Marketing, pointed out, one of the biggest benefits of attending NADA is the ability to engage with experts and peers outside of the dealership environment. Dealers can get away from the day-to-day grind, attend best practices sessions, and gather invaluable insights that help them improve both operations and customer experience. The opportunity to discuss current challenges and get a peek into what vendors are offering can help dealers adapt and position themselves for success in the coming year.
The Growing Importance of Customer Data Platforms (CDPs)
A major focus of NADA 2025 was the importance of Customer Data Platforms (CDPs). As consumer behavior becomes more complex and data-driven, dealerships must adopt tools that allow them to unify and analyze customer information across various touchpoints. CDPs are increasingly being recognized as essential for providing personalized, relevant experiences to customers.
Skip highlighted the growing need for data to be integrated and shared across different systems in the dealership—whether it’s the Dealer Management System (DMS), Customer Relationship Management (CRM), or appointment schedulers. The siloed approach to data simply isn’t sufficient anymore. In order to provide a seamless customer experience, all the data needs to be accessible and actionable in real-time. This is where a robust CDP comes in, helping dealers not only track but also predict customer needs, ultimately improving sales and service retention.
At Edifice, the CDP Elevation is designed to empower dealerships with transparent, actionable data. Elevation goes beyond just tracking customer interactions—it offers deep insights into sales and service opportunities, providing dealers with a comprehensive view of their customer base. With Elevation, dealers can easily access the data they need to make informed decisions and craft personalized marketing strategies that resonate with today’s consumer.
Elevation’s Transparent Data: Driving Success Through Insights
In an industry saturated with data, one of the biggest challenges dealers face is finding information that is not only accurate but also transparent and actionable. Elevation addresses this by offering real-time insights into sales, service, and customer engagement, helping dealers make decisions based on actual data rather than assumptions.
A key takeaway from NADA 2025 was the emphasis on holding vendors accountable for the data they provide. Skip emphasized the importance of transparency in data reporting—both the good and the bad. Only by having access to clear, honest data can dealerships identify areas of improvement and growth. Elevation provides this transparency by offering a full view of customer interactions, allowing dealers to address weak spots, refine marketing strategies, and focus on high-potential opportunities.
Elevation doesn’t just present the data—it translates it into actionable strategies that dealerships can implement immediately to boost both service and sales. By offering insights into micro-profit centers, Elevation enables dealerships to optimize their operations, improve customer retention, and ultimately increase revenue. As Skip noted, dealerships that focus on reprocessing existing customers—rather than always chasing new ones—are in a better position for long-term success.
Embracing the Customer Experience
A key theme at NADA 2025 was the growing importance of customer experience. As consumers become more tech-savvy and expect seamless, convenient interactions, dealerships must adapt by offering better experiences both online and in the showroom. Technology like artificial intelligence and machine learning is helping to facilitate more relevant, personalized experiences by streamlining processes and improving convenience.
In fact, the customer experience is quickly becoming one of the primary ways dealerships can differentiate themselves from competitors. As Skip emphasized, the two things dealerships can truly control are convenience and price. While price may be a race to the bottom, convenience—driven by an excellent customer experience—is what will set successful dealerships apart. By investing in customer-facing technologies and integrating data to make every interaction more personalized, dealerships can build loyalty and reduce the need for constant price negotiations.
Moving Forward in 2025: Focus on Data, People, and Processes
As we move into 2025, the road ahead for dealerships is clear. Success will depend on how well dealerships can integrate data, improve the customer experience, and streamline their processes. Whether it’s leveraging a CDP like Elevation to create a more personalized experience or using transparency to uncover hidden opportunities, dealers must focus on using data to their advantage.
Additionally, as Skip pointed out, it’s the basics—people and processes—that determine long-term success. Dealers need to invest in their teams, refine their workflows, and create a culture of convenience and customer-centricity.
Ultimately, the insights gained from NADA 2025 reaffirmed that the future of automotive retail is data-driven. By embracing CDPs, leveraging transparent data, and continuously improving the customer experience, dealerships can thrive in an increasingly competitive landscape. Now is the time for dealers to act—those who adopt these best practices will be well-positioned to succeed in 2025 and beyond.
If you're looking to start implementing some of the practices we've discussed, don't hesitate to reach out to us! At Edifice, we specialize in Data optimization and CDP implementation through our custom CDP, Elevation.
Click the link below to see Elevation in action and schedule a FREE market study where we will do an in-depth dive into your market and projected campaign results with one of our account executives.
