5 Ways to Use AI to Grow Your Automotive Business in 2026 | Automotive Advantage EP040
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Year one is in the books. In this one-year anniversary episode of Automotive Advantage, Jamie and Justin lay out five practical ways to use AI in your automotive business in 2026, share hard numbers on where the aftermarket actually stands at the halfway mark, and pull the marketing lessons hiding inside the World Cup.
This is the business side of the automotive aftermarket. Real strategy for shop owners, builders, manufacturers, and marketers who want to grow. From using Claude to read contracts, spot revenue trends, manage Shopify catalogs, and audit Google Analytics, to the Midway Plus Wholesale Index showing the industry up 12.3% through the first half of 2026, this one is packed with things you can use Monday morning.
5 ways to use AI in your automotive business
1. Spot revenue and market trends in your own data
2. Read contracts, flag your exposure, and prep pitches
3. Lock in brand voice, tone, and style-guide compliance
4. Connect Shopify + Google Analytics to run catalogs and reporting
5. Write copy — press releases, emails, social — that doesn't sound like AI
State of the aftermarket, first half of 2026 (Midway Plus Wholesale Index)
- Wholesale revenue up 12.3% year-to-date vs. 2025
- Wholesale order volume up 52% year-to-date
- June-over-June sales up ~28%
- 32% of all wholesale transactions happen after business hours
What the World Cup teaches the aftermarket about marketing
$10.5B in global ad spend — and the brands that won didn't always have the biggest check. Nike, Gillette, Levi's, and the Dodge Demon on how constraints become campaigns.
Plus: our first-ever sponsors — welcome Spec Coffee and Midway Plus — and a tribute to Brian Loundsbury, founder of Midway Plus.
Chapters
0:00 Cold Open: The Great AI "Slop" Debate
0:41 One Year of Automotive Advantage
1:58 Year One by the Numbers
6:50 First-Ever Sponsors: Spec Coffee & Midway Plus
10:19 Taking the Podcast Live (Cars at the Station, SEMA)
13:02 State of the Industry: First Half of 2026
17:26 Midway Plus Wholesale Index + Tribute to Brian Lounsbury
37:56 5 Ways to Use AI — #1 Trend Spotting
41:22 #2 Reading Contracts & Pitches
46:17 #3 Brand Voice, Tone & Style Guides
50:47 #4 Connectors: Shopify & Google Analytics
57:37 #5 Writing Copy That Doesn't Sound Like AI
1:05:53 AI News: Ford Recalls 300+ Engineers
1:07:39 Automotive News: EPA Pardons & 7-Year Car Loans
1:10:22 World Cup Marketing Lessons for the Aftermarket
1:18:42 Here's to Year Two
Automotive Advantage is a business-first automotive podcast for owners, operators, builders, and marketers in the performance aftermarket. Grow your business and get smarter in about an hour.
Subscribe for a new episode every week(ish).
Hosted by Justin Cesler (Driveline Studios) and Dr. Jamie Meyer (6757 Consulting).
#AutomotiveAftermarket #AutomotiveBusiness #PerformanceAftermarket #ShopOwner #AutomotiveMarketing #AutomotiveAdvantage #AITools #SmallBusinessGrowth
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