Dealer World announced that automotive industry sales leader Eric Gidney is joining the company as director of sales.
As director of sales, Gidney is responsible for the development and execution of the strategic sales plan for Dealer World and all associated business development with franchised and independent dealers.
Gidney is a seasoned sales professional with over 20 years of experience in the automotive industry. He began his automotive career in 1996, working as a sales consultant at a single-point Nissan dealership in Suburban Philadelphia. In 1998, he moved on to another dealership, where he helped manage internet leads before most dealers even had a website. According to Gidney, his success managing online leads put him on the radar for AutoTrader and landed him his next job, an advertising consultant at AutoTrader, where he increased annual sales revenue and total client base by nearly four times year-over-year. He then moved onto AutoUpLinkUSA, where he served as president and founded a self-funded automotive and inventory management agency. Under his leadership, annual revenue grew to a high of $1 million by the fourth year of operations.
More recently, Gidney was the regional sales manager for vAuto (Cox Automotive), and before assuming his role at Dealer World, served as area sales manager at CarNow, where he almost doubled their presence in the market. Rounding out his marketing and advertising experience, Gidney also spent some time at iHeartMedia as a senior account executive where he focused on automotive for broadcast radio, streaming services, “Over-the-Top” platforms, digital and email marketing campaigns.
Commenting on the addition of Gidney to the team, Troy Spring, Dealer World CEO, stated, “As a well-known sales leader with more than two decades of experience working in the automotive industry, Eric understands the science behind profitable dealerships. I have known Eric for over 20 years and have always thought it would be great to work with him. I am not only excited that time has come, but also think it is the perfect timing in our careers.”
“While running my AutoUplinkUSA franchise, I got to know Troy. The way he runs Dealer World and the way I like to operate as far as taking care of clients is wildly similar,” said Gidney. “When Troy and I looked into the possibility of me joining Dealer World, I sat back and thought about what was important to me in my next job, and that is making a difference. I wanted to be somewhere I felt I had an impact, could positively affect the clients I serve, and be around folks that get it, understand the industry and get things done. Ultimately, the reason I chose to join Dealer World is that the things I was looking for in my next role are the same things dealers are looking for in Dealer World. When those two things were aligned, I knew it was the right choice,” Gidney added.
