Omnichannel Digital Retailing: The #1 Strategy for 2025
But first, a story:
At Rimrock Subaru, my team and I faced a challenge familiar to many dealers: plateauing sales. For two years, we tried everything to break 80 cars a month. Nothing worked—until we rethought how we operated.
We had to ask some hard questions about how our showroom and our online presence were running:
- How long are customers spending with the sales team?
- Is there a disconnect between what they see online and what they’re told in-store?
- Are simple deals tying up the sales and finance managers?
- Is the sales process transparent and easy for customers to follow?
- Are salespeople presenting aftermarket products 100% of the time?
- What are the most common frustrations the sales team faces?
At the same time, we had just launched WebBuy on our website and were floored to see that the deals coming in online were not only faster and easier but more profitable as well.
It was a no-brainer to start driving as much traffic to our website as possible. We used strategies like adding QR codes to direct mail and even in our service drive. Then we took the next step: bringing digital retailing into the showroom.
By doing so, we didn’t just break our plateau—we smashed it. Today, we’re selling 120 cars a month, a 50% increase, and we’ve doubled profitability.
Out with the old. In with the NEW.
Looking back, all of our changes added up to a completely new way of selling cars. We stopped doing things the old way—going back and forth, wasting time on simple deals. Everything became easier, faster, better. The desk managers were freed up to focus on tougher deals, and the sales team loved how smooth the process was.
And consumer adoption skyrocketed—from 400 sessions per month before digital retailing to over 1,000 per month.
If you want different results, you have to change it up and you have to believe in it. Go. All. In.
The 3-Step Play for Omnichannel Digital Retailing
If you want to see results like this, here’s the play:
1. Commit to Your Website
This is the easiest place to start—no buy-in needed from your team.
- Use an omnichannel digital retailing tool that's fully transactional with rich merchandising, pre-qualification, and JD Power trade appraisals built in.
- Get the right CTAs on your site, eliminate dead ends and friction points, and make sure the experience is seamless.
- Then direct your marketing spend to drive as much traffic to your site as possible.
2. Start Every Deal in Your DR Tool
Whether it’s online or in the showroom, every first pencil should happen the same way. Here's why:
- About 50% of deals will close quickly and easily with a digital retailing tool. Customers love the transparency, and it's easy for the salesperson and the customer to build the deal to the penny—all in one tool.
- Everything is pre-done by the desk managers, freeing them up to focus on the tough deals instead of wasting time on ones that should be cut-and-dry.
- Every customer sees every product, 100% of the time, in a clear and easy-to-understand way, boosting backend profits.
CarMax, Carvana, and Tesla are all doing this. Your customers know they can go to them for a smoother experience. Why not offer the same? And don’t worry—the right DR tool can mirror your “secret sauce.” It should be fully customizable so that whatever you are currently doing, it can do the same thing digitally and automatically.
Here’s the key: get your desk team on board. Help them see that this approach makes their job easier, deals more profitable, and eliminates tedious back-and-forth negotiations on simple deals. And if necessary, let them know this change is happening—with or without them. (And if YOU'RE the desk manager, send your leadership team to me, and I'll explain why you want to change it up.)
3. Let the Results Do the Talking
Once you’re up and running, the results will be impossible to ignore:
- Higher lead conversion rates (we’re talking 30% or more).
- Less time spent per deal, which means happier customers and more sales per team member.
- Boosted gross profits from better product presentation and transparency.
- Higher CSI scores because your customers love how easy and stress-free the process is.
Keep the momentum going by giving your team the support they need. Work with a DR provider that offers real customer success managers who actually pick up the phone and check in regularly. They’ll make sure your team is using the platform to its full potential and solving any issues fast.
The Bottom Line
Omnichannel digital retailing isn’t just a trend—it’s what works. We proved it at Rimrock Subaru, and I know it can work for you, too.
Steve Zabawa
CEO, WebBuy
