Digital Dealer - September 2019 - 27

find cars and for us to get referrals, and
ultimately to sell cars.
We still depend on third-party
vendors such as Autotrader & Cars.
com, but we don't rely on them. The
difference is intention. When you rely
on them, you essentially buy whatever
they sell you and wait for the results.
When you depend on them, that means
you hold each other accountable and
work as partners. Our relationship with
third-party marketplaces has always
been a two-way street - we measure
conversion, not click through's and
leads, not impressions. It's a key
distinction.
DEALER MAGAZINE: What is
your management style: hands-on or
delegator?
DANNY: I'm a delegator, and here's
why: I can only run so fast. To achieve
what we want to, I know I need to
surround myself with people who will
bring us all higher; a rising tide raises
all ships. Define your vision (macro and
micro), and work with your team leads,
one-on-one to flush the vision out, and
then, work on getting things done.
DEALER MAGAZINE: What
separates your dealership from others?
DANNY: Our niche - I believe
different is better than better. We
have very high standards around what
we buy, how we recondition it, what
type of warranty comes on it and so
forth - however, I think what makes
us different is our variety of cars in the
$5-15k price range. We also knew that
people buying our cars often didn't
have another car in the driveway. That
meant, the vehicle they were buying
from us was very important to them as
their sole means of transportation. We
take that personally - and it shows.
Our goal has been and still is,
to deliver a $5,000 car, but with a
$30,000 type of experience through
the way that we recondition the car, in
the way that we warranty the car, as
well as our Country Hill-only promises
and incentives. At the end of the day,
we sell used cars. The history of cars,

or anything mechanical for that matter,
is wear and tear. Allocating money for
what we call "policy work" or "make
right" allows us to go above and beyond
our warranty. We don't argue with our
customers; we solve their problems.
DEALER MAGAZINE: It's rare when
we get to interview someone who owns
a VANDERHALL franchise. What
attracted you to these three-wheeled
beauties?
DANNY: We love power sports and
especially things that go fast. We love
driving down the road with our hair on
fire! We came across VANDERHALL
through one of our partnerships
where we buy cars from. They had
recommended us to VANDERHALL as
a dealership that might be interested
in becoming a dealer. The first time we
drove one, we got so excited and loved
it for several reasons.
First, it's fun. It's hand-built, fast,
well-made, and aligned with the
consumer process we aim for. Also,
relative to other things like it in the
market, the vehicles are well priced
considering the craftsmanship and
engineering.
Again, different is better than better.
Don't try to be better, try to figure out
a way to be stand out. VANDERHALL
is another way in which we allow
ourselves to be different.
I drive one home often. If I didn't
own the franchise, I would certainly
own a VANDERHALL. They are so
much fun.
DEALER MAGAZINE: What drives
your business philosophy?
DANNY: At Country Hill Motors, we
have three pillars: invest, innovate, and
train. When we started the company,
the first thing we wanted to do was
invest in ourselves, and the way we
did that was to be self-sufficient. That
meant deciding to be debt-free and
deciding not to have a floor plan,
deciding to go slower, and only buy the
inventory we wanted to buy.
Over the years, we have turned
our invest pillar outward to our

community. We call it Country Hill
Carma. Most notably, our yearly
Season of Giving charity helps three
families right here in our city. Through
partnerships with our vendors such as
TV and radio stations, we ask Kansas
City to nominate someone they know
and love to receive one of these very
special gifts. One family receives a
minivan, another a new water heater or
furnace, and the third food for a year
from our partners at Sprouts. Each also
receives thousands of dollars of gifts
and essentials. Each year we get nearly
1,600 nominations - it just shows how
much of a need exists right here in our
own backyard. Hard to believe this year
will be our twelfth year.
Another way we give back is through
our partnership with Dave Ramsey.
Over the last decade, it has allowed us
to teach and graduate over 400 people
from Financial Peace University, right
here in our dealership.
DEALER MAGAZINE: Let's
continue with your three pillars. What
about the second one?
DANNY: Innovate - We ask
ourselves often, what's our plan to stay
relevant? Because the car business
is rapidly changing, we continue to
work to build our brand to be bigger
than just selling cars. The way we've
done that is through what I've already
shared with you: giving back to our
community and investing in our team.
It's also working with our
partnerships to align with vendors
who are committed to our success
and in refining our referral business.
We created three calls for action: Buy
from Us; Sell to Us, which is what
we call our VBC or Vehicle Buying
Center; and Refer to Us. Each one of
these initiatives grows each month and
allows us to grow our business.
Along the innovate path, we've
created programs for our consumers
designed to make their lives easier and
better to do business with us. We're an
independent car dealership. We don't

D I G I TA L D E A L E R . C O M

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SEPTEMBER 2019

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Digital Dealer - September 2019

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