This is a special episode of the Miracle Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram Podcast! For this week, host John Haggard speaks with Dr. Jerry Faulkner, the president of Volunteer State Community College in Gallatin, TN. Throughout the half-hour, they tackle on vital topics such as:

Dr. Faulkner’s Personal Background

His Life Pre Vol State

Life in the 60s Compared to Today

Dr. Faulkner’s Hobbies

How and When Dr. Faulkner Started at Vol State

The Difference Between State Colleges and Universities

Vol State Campuses

From College Dropout to College President

Programs Offered at Vol State

The Future of Academia

Vol State’s Scholarship Programs How You Can Contact Dr. Faulkner

Transcript

John Haggard 0:02

Welcome to the Miracle Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram Special Edition podcast where we also interview community presidents and leaders on topics that are of interest to the Gallatin area as a whole. And today, we’re honored to have Dr. Jerry Faulkner on the podcast. Jerry is the president of Volunteer State Community College in Gallatin known by some folks as Vol State. Hey, Jerry, welcome to the podcast.

Dr. Jerry Faulkner 0:26

Thank you. Thank you. My pleasure to be with you.

John Haggard 0:28

Great to have you before we dive in it’s always interesting to know about the person behind the job, the person behind the scenes. Tell us a little bit about your background. Did you grow up in Gallatin or in this area?

Dr. Jerry Faulkner 0:42

I did not. I grew up near Knoxville and live there a significant part of my life in a little community called Corryton, kind of Northeast of Knoxville. So only came to Middle Tennessee when I when I came to Vol State.

John Haggard 0:58

All right, so you are a Tennessee Native?

Dr. Jerry Faulkner 1:01

Yes, never lived outside the state.

John Haggard 1:03

Right, okay. So in your area just north of Knoxville, where did you go to high school?

Dr. Jerry Faulkner 1:08

Yeah, I went to high school at Carter High School, the Green Hornets, in Strawberry Plains Tennessee. Again little east of Knoxville and outside of Knoxville proper.

John Haggard 1:21

Now did you play sports or anything special in high school that you did when you were there?

Dr. Jerry Faulkner 1:26

Yeah, I did not play sports. Probably the special thing I did was I was on the yearbook staff my senior year of high school and that was a great experience.

John Haggard 1:38

Yeah, the yearbook. So you collect all the pictures, do the articles. And I always remember about a yearbook, the seniors always have those, you know, parting words that they write into the yearbook. So I guess you would see a lot of that as well.

Dr. Jerry Faulkner 1:52

Yeah. We had you know, we had a whole staff of students plus our faculty advisor and and yeah, all the pictures and all the candid pictures of events. It was a very enjoyable experience.

John Haggard 2:05

Now you came to Vol State when? What year?

Dr. Jerry Faulkner 2:08

I came in May of 2012.

John Haggard 2:10

Okay, May of 2012. And so do you have family here in this area as well?

Dr. Jerry Faulkner 2:15

I do not. All of my family is in East Tennessee mostly clustered somewhere around Knoxville.

John Haggard 2:22

Well, you know the great thing about family even if they’re not right next door, you have Skype and all these online ways, FaceTime. It seems like the world’s very small these days because we can see them live video.

Dr. Jerry Faulkner 2:34

Oh, absolutely. It’s remarkable to be able to connect in the ways that we do you know I… Folks my age, remember the Dick Tracy wrist radio…

John Haggard 2:46

Yes!

Dr. Jerry Faulkner 2:49

How far out that seemed in that day, but it’s what you know, with the Apple Watch. It’s totally possible today.

John Haggard 2:56

It is and I actually take calls on the Apple Watch and it’s really Really cool to think that it really happened. You remember the James Bond movies when he had a what a phone

Welcome to episode 10 of the Miracle Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram podcast! This week we talk with Michael Cart, the Finance Manager at CDJR. Michael is from the Middle Tennessee area. In this episode we get the opportunity to learn more about:

Michael’s backstory and how he ended up at Miracle CDJRHis role at MiracleGetting financing through Miracle vs getting credit from outside sourcesHow easy it is to get approvalWhat makes Miracle differentThe Miracle VIP Advantage Program

This is another great episode, so enjoy!

Transcript

John Haggard: 00:02 Welcome to the Miracle Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram Podcast, where each week you’ll learn the best ways to purchase, lease, service and maintain, accessorize, and sell your vehicle for the highest resale value possible when you’re ready to do it. I’m your host John Haggard and throughout each month right here, as you know, we’ll have different team members join us from Miracle to bring you tips that you can use. And you’ll also see a transcript of each podcast for quick reference. On this podcast, today we’re speaking with Michael Cart. He’s the Finance Manager at Miracle Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram in Gallatin. Hey Michael, welcome to the podcast.

Michael Cart: 00:38 Hey John. Thanks for having me. How are you doing?

John Haggard: 00:40 I’m doing great man. I appreciate your taking the time to, to talk with us. You know, finances is a big, big deal in everybody’s life, whether it’s a car, whether it’s a house, you know, buying furniture, it’s just a big thing and looking forward to talking about that. But before we do, just to get to know you a little bit better, are you from this area? Did you grow up in Gallatin?

Michael Cart: 00:59 I actually grew up in a Sumner county. I grew up in White House, Tennessee. So I’m local. I’m from White House and now me and my wife, we live in Gallatin. Just five, 10 minutes down from work. So it’s real nice, I like it here.

John Haggard: 01:13 So you’ve been here all your life, you didn’t move away. You’ve always been here?

Michael Cart: 01:17 Yeah. Correct. John. Yep, born and raised. Yes sir.

John Haggard: 01:20 Okay. And so where did you go to high school?

Michael Cart: 01:23 I went to school in White House, Tennessee. So White House High School.

John Haggard: 01:27 White House High School. Okay. And was that school, did it have any special area of learning? You know, like some cities have a space program, like if they’re in Florida or whatever.

Michael Cart: 01:37 Ha ha ha!

John Haggard: 01:37 No? You’re laughing!

Michael Cart: 01:40 No, unfortunately. White House is a small town. So you know, I think that they’re special learning was, what do you call it? They have like FFA, like Future Farmers of America. But nothing for like a space program though.

John Haggard: 01:53 Gotcha. Well if you’re from here, you must have family here as well.

Michael Cart: 01:58 Yeah, I do. My mom’s side of the family is from Springfield, Tennessee and my dad’s side of the family is from Nashville, Tennessee. And my mom and dad, they still live in White House and we got family all over the place in Nashville and in White House in Springfield, just surrounding counties.

John Haggard: 02:14 Yeah. So any of them in the car business?

Michael Cart: 02:17 No, not at all. First one in the family in the car business. Yeah.

John Haggard: 02:21 First one in the family. All right. So once you got out of high school, did you do college as well or did you just elect to go ahead and work early?

Michael Cart: 02:29 Yeah, so I went to,

Welcome to episode 9 of the Miracle Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram podcast! This week we talk with Ben Harvey, the Parts Manager at CDJR. Ben shares details about his life, his growing up in Florida and how he ended up in Middle Tennessee. He also shares great information about Miracle Mopar Day that is coming up in just a few short days on September 22 at 1:00pm! Enjoy!

Link to Facebook Event: Miracle Mopar Day

Transcript

Intro

John Haggard: 00:02 Welcome to the Miracle Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram podcast, where each week you’ll learn the best ways to purchase lease service and maintain, accessorize and sell your vehicle for the highest resale value possible, when you’re ready to do it. I’m your host John Haggard and throughout each month right here we’ll have different team members join us from Miracle to bring you tips you can use and you’ll also see a transcript of each podcast for quick reference. On this podcast, we’re speaking with Ben Harvey. He’s the Parts Manager at Miracle Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram. Hey Ben, welcome to the podcast.

Ben Harvey: 00:35 Hi, thanks for having me.

About Ben and How He Ended Up in Nashville

John Haggard: 00:36 Glad to have you here. We do understand there’s a special event coming up, which we are going to be talking about for this Sunday, September 22 but before we get to that, we always like to learn a little bit about the people behind the scenes. Tell us a little bit about you, like where did you grow up, for example?

Ben Harvey: 00:50 I grew up in a little town called Port St. John, Florida. If you don’t know where that is, that’s a little bit about 20 minutes east of our Orlando, Florida. So I basically tell people, if you take Orlando, go about 20 minutes from Disney world and you’re right there in my hometown.

John Haggard: 01:08 All right. 20 away. 20 minutes away. And so how long have you been up in this area?

Ben Harvey: 01:13 I’ve been here two years.

John Haggard: 01:15 Two years. Okay. So what got you to Nashville?

Ben Harvey: 01:17 Miracle Chrysler got me to Nashville.

John Haggard: 01:19 All right. So they were searching around and of all the people throughout the US and they found you?

Ben Harvey: 01:24 Yep. I I used to work with the, our service director, Robert Fleites. He talked to me and offered me you know, a job and I said, why not? You know, I’d love to, I’d love to check out Tennessee. And he told me how great Tim Galvin was. So I decided to move up here.

John Haggard: 01:39 You know, sometimes jobs really are about relationships, aren’t they? I mean, it beats going onto the Internet and competing with, you know, 5,000 people with resumes. Sometimes. It really is who you know and not what you know.

Ben Harvey: 01:50 Yes sir. I 100% agree.

John Haggard: 01:51 But I bet you know a lot. So I guess you went to High School in Florida as well?

Ben Harvey: 01:58 Yep. I went to Space Coast High School.

John Haggard: 02:00 Yeah. So was there anything special about that school in terms of you know, space industry or, cause sometimes Florida is known for high tech and space industry and just wondered about that.

Ben Harvey: 02:11 Oh, we just had a very good community basis about that high school. It was that you felt like you’re in a big family rather than actually go into school.

John Haggard: 02:18 Didn’t specialize in anything?

Ben Harvey: 02:20 No Sir.

John Haggard: 02:21 Okay. So do you have family in this area as well Ben?

Ben Harvey: 02:25 No, I do not. All my family’s back in my home town.

Welcome to Episode 8 of the Miracle CDJR Podcast! This week we talk with Mike Olari, the Commercial Fleet Manager of both Miracle Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram and Miracle Ford. In this episode, Mike shares a little bit about his origins in California and how he ended up in Tennessee, his love for Sports and what Miracle can offer large businesses in terms of Commercial Fleet pricing and service. This is a great episode that you do not want to miss! Enjoy!

Transcript

John Haggard: 00:02 Welcome to the Miracle Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram podcast, where each week you’ll learn the best ways to purchase lease service and maintain, accessorize and sell your vehicle for the highest resale value possible, when you’re ready to do it. I’m your host John Haggard, and throughout each month, right here, we will have different team members join us from Miracle to bring you tips that you can use. And you’ll also see a transcript of each podcast for quick reference. On this podcast, we’re talking with Michael Olari. He’s the Commercial Fleet Manager at Miracle Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram. Hey Mike, welcome to the podcast.

Mike Olari: 00:36 Hey John, how are you doing?

John Haggard: 00:37 Doing well. Glad to have you along with us. You know, people always want to know who’s behind the scenes. Let’s find out a little bit about Mike before we get into your role as commercial fleet manager at Miracle Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram. So did you grow up here in Nashville area? Right? Where are you from?

Mike Olari: 00:53 I did not. I’m actually born and raised in California.

John Haggard: 00:56 California. California. So how long have you been in this area?

Mike Olari: 01:01 I’ve been here almost five years.

John Haggard: 01:04 All right. So what got you to Nashville?

Mike Olari: 01:07 Well, my parents actually moved out here almost 15 years ago and decided it was time to go.

John Haggard: 01:14 All right. Wanted to be closer to family? So where did you go to high school in California?

Mike Olari: 01:19 Went to high school at Alto Loma high school.

John Haggard: 01:22 All right, so that Alto Loma California as well then?

Mike Olari: 01:25 Yes sir.

John Haggard: 01:26 All right. All right. And so when you’re not working, what do you like to do on your time off?

Mike Olari: 01:31 I’m a big sports fanatic. I love to watch football, baseball, everything.

John Haggard: 01:37 Gotcha, Gotcha. So you go to games, watch primarily. Are you one of those that has like eight games up on your television set where you can look at all eight of them?

Mike Olari: 01:45 Do I have to answer that one?

John Haggard: 01:49 Ha, I hear you. So what other hobbies do you have when you’re not doing sports?

Mike Olari: 01:53 I like to go out and just hang out with friends and I actually do like to do my yard work and kind of keeps me level-headed.

John Haggard: 02:01 Gotcha. Absolutely. So how did you get started in the car and fleet business, Mike?

Mike Olari: 02:07 Well, I got started in the car business about six and a half years agom=, out in California. A buddy of mine called and said he needed some help. I told him I’d never been a salesman before. He said, give me six months. If you don’t like it, we’ll part ways. We’re still friends now. Six and a half years later, I’m still doing it. I enjoy what I do.

John Haggard: 02:24 Well, so now before you got in automotive, what did you do before?

Mike Olari: 02:28 I did construction for almost 20 years. I’m electrical for

Welcome to the 7th episode of our weekly podcast here at Miracle Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram! In this episode, we talk with Robert Fleites, the Parts and Service Director at Miracle Auto Group.

Topics Discussed:

Robert’s BackstoryTechnology in the Service DepartmentSolutions in accessorizing your vehicleWarrantiesThe Miracle VIP Advantage ProgramWhat makes Miracle DifferentTop questions that people ask in the Service and Parts department

Transcript

John Haggard: 00:02 Welcome to the Miracle Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram podcast, where each week you’ll be able to learn the best ways to purchase lease service and maintain and sell your vehicle for the highest resale value possible when you’re ready, as well as accessorize your vehicle. I’m your host John Haggard and throughout each month, right here we’ll have different team members join us from Miracle to bring you tips you can use. And by the way, we will also post a transcript of each podcast so that you can easily refer to it for information that you would like to have right there at your fingertips on this podcast.

John Haggard: 00:33 Today we’re talking with Robert Fleites. He’s the Parts and Service Director at Miracle Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram. Hey Robert, welcome to the podcast.

Robert Fleites: 00:41 How you doing?

John Haggard: 00:42 Doing great. You know, a lot of people always want to know who is the man or the woman behind the curtain. And so the folks who could know a little bit more about you, Robert, tell us, where’d you grow up, by the way?

Robert Fleites: 00:52 I grew up in south Florida.

John Haggard: 00:53 So how did you get started in automotive service and repair?

Robert Fleites: 00:57 I got started as a young man. When I finished high school, I joined the, Ford asset program. It’s about a two and a half year program. When you graduate, you have an associates and automotive and then you go to the participating dealership that trained you and, and started off as a technician and then moved my way up through the ranks, from a Technician to an Advisor to the Service Manager to a Parts and Service Director.

John Haggard: 01:23 All right. As you look at technology, that seems to be one of the big things that when people are ready to trade, maybe it’s been two or three years, technology is moving so fast now these days. In the service department, compared to maybe just even three years ago, is there new technology in repair as well?

Robert Fleites: 01:40 Oh yes. That technology changes quarterly, believe it or not, or yearly for sure. That’s why our technicians have to keep a certain level so they can perform certain repairs. So the training never stops.

John Haggard: 01:54 Right. Right. And so what would be, if you were going to tell someone, hey, here’s one of the coolest things that’s going on now in repair that we didn’t have before. Something that’s new in the technology area, what would that be?

Robert Fleites: 02:05 Man, there’s so many things. Technology-wise, I mean pretty much the car tells you everything. When it’s due for service, it’s got all kinds of icons or lights come on that’s gonna prep you on what’s going on with the vehicle. And even if the vehicle’s not operating the way you should at that time is going to notify you. So it’s really, really good for the consumer.

John Haggard: 02:27 Gotcha. And so a lot of people, at least some people like to accessorize their vehicle. And what about the inventory of accessories? What do people like, what’s exciting that you can put on and accessorize a vehicle with?

Robert Fleites: 02:41 Well, we’re fortunate that, with our lines, we have the Jee

Welcome to the 6th episode of our weekly podcast here at Miracle Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram! In this episode, we talk with Joe Smith in Commercial & Retail Sales at CDJR, where we discuss the Ram 1500.

Topics Discussed:

Joe’s backstory and how he got in the car businessJoe’s Role in the DealershipTop questions that people ask about the Ram 1500What differentiates the Ram 1500’s ride from it’s competitorsRam 1500 Gas MileageRam 1500 Interior TechnologyRam 1500 Safety TechnologyWhat differentiates Miracle CDJR and Miracle Auto Group from it’s competitorsWhat Joe likes to do on his time off

Transcript

Opening

John Haggard: 00:02 Welcome to the Miracle Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram podcast, where each week you’ll be able to learn the best ways to learn, purchase, or lease, maintain and accessorize, and really just how to sell your vehicle for the highest resale value possible, when you’re ready to do so. I’m your host John Haggard and throughout each month right here we will have different team members join us from Miracle to bring you tips you can use. And by the way, we also post a transcript of each podcast. You can easily refer to it for information. If you want to go back and look without having to listen to the entire podcast, you can go right there and get the information that you were just listening to.

John Haggard: 00:38 On this podcast, we’re talking with Joe Smith, he’s in commercial and retail sales at Miracle Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram. Our topic today is the Ram 1500 and really what makes the Ram 1500 so different compared to all of the competitors. Hey Joe, welcome to the podcast.

Joe Smith: 00:55 Hey John. Thank you. It’s a pleasure.

How Did You Get Started in the Car Business

John Haggard: 00:56 Well, glad to have you. And you know, we always like to know before somebody talks about what they’re doing. How did you get started in the car business? Did you grow up from age six washing cars and stuff or how did you get in?

Joe Smith: 01:07 Oh, well it’s kind of a funny story. I’m actually prior military and when I was coming back from a tour over in Japan, my dad recently moved around here in this area. I bought my first vehicle from here, kind of enjoyed the experience. And then few years later when I moved back here, while I was going to school, I saw that the dealership had an opening. Again, I enjoyed the experience here, so I figured I’d apply and at least try and see how I fit into the automotive industry here.

John Haggard: 01:32 Hey, by the way, thank you for your service.

Joe Smith: 01:34 Thank you. I appreciate that.

John Haggard: 01:35 What did you do when you were in the military?

Joe Smith: 01:37 I was a structural civil engineer for the Air Force.

What is Your Role in the Dealership

John Haggard: 01:41 Gotcha. Gotcha. All right. And so tell us what your exact role is at the dealership. When we hear a commercial and retail sales that that seems to sort of explain itself, but is there anything else you do?

Joe Smith: 01:53 I do a little bit of everything here, so yes, you’re right. I do the commercial sales as well as retail. I also help do dealer trades for other salesman if we don’t have the exact vehicle here that the customers want ,and I have the ability to find them one and get it here in a timely manner to make sure they are fully satisfied. And I also help out with the backup finance department here as well.

What are the Top Three or Four Questions they You Get From Customers about the Ram 1500

John Haggard: 02:12 Okay, got it. What would you say today, Joe, are the top three or four questions that you get from people when they’re saying, “

Welcome to the 5th episode of our weekly podcast here at Miracle Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram! In this episode, we talk with Marcy Miller, a Business Development Center Representative.

Topics Discussed:

Marcy’s backstory and how she got in the car businessThe role of the BDC (Business Development Center)Frequently Asked Questions that customers askWorking with customers with challenged creditWhat makes Miracle differentThe difference between a “locally owned” dealership and a “corporate giant”What Marcy enjoy’s doing during her time off

Transcript

Opening

John Haggard: 00:02 Welcome to the Miracle Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram podcast, where each week you’ll be able to learn the best ways to purchase or lease, maintain and accessorize, and how to sell your vehicle for the highest resale value possible, when you’re ready. I’m your host John Haggard, and throughout each month, right here we’ll have different team members join us from Miracle to bring you tips that you can actually use.

John Haggard: 00:25 We do post a transcript of each podcast so you can easily refer to it for information. Maybe you heard something and you just want to get more detailed. What was it that he said or she said? Well, you can go right to the transcript and see it and not have to listen to the entire podcast to get back there, so we’ll have that for you.

John Haggard: 00:42 On this podcast, we’re talking about what a Business Development Representative does at Miracle Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram in Gallatin. We’ve got Marcy Miller with us here today. Hey Marcy.

Marcy Miller: 00:52 Hey John. How are you?

John Haggard: 00:54 I’m doing good. Hope you are too.

Marcy Miller: 00:56 I’m doing great.

Tell Us a Little Bit About Yourself

John Haggard: 00:57 Great. Well, welcome to the podcast. You know, anytime we have a guest on the podcast, Marcy, people want to know something real about this person. It’s not just a talking head, if you will, but really get to know them. So tell us a little bit about you. Where’d you grow up? How did you get started in the car business?

Marcy Miller: 01:12 Okay. Well I came here from Ohio, honestly. I grew up in Ohio. I’ve been around the country, lived in [inaudible], lived in Los Angeles and landed in Nashville 21 years ago, a singer. So I followed the music and ended up in Nashville. So…

John Haggard: 01:30 You know, a lot of people do that. Don’t they. Say we’re going to come to Nashville. Do you still sing? I mean, do you do like any of that?

Marcy Miller: 01:36 I do. I sing a lot. And I try to karaoke any time I can. I don’t do anything professionally, but I just do it for fun and enjoy it.

How Did You You Get Into The Car Business?

John Haggard: 01:46 Yeah. Yeah. So tell us how you wound up going to work for Miracle.

Marcy Miller: 01:50 Okay. Well, I started in the car business 14 years ago. I’ve been in a lot of dealerships, and I have been a salesperson before. But I figured BDC was kind of my specialty. I was really good at being on the phones with customers and I’m great with people. So, I just got better and better at it and I’m still in the BDC, so I’ve been here for four years and I love Miracle. It’s a great company and it’s a great family owned dealership to work for. And I feel like I’m family.

What Does BDC Mean, and What Is Your Role On The Miracle Team?

John Haggard: 02:23 Yeah. And when you say BDC, just for the folks out there, that’s the Business Development Center that we’re talking about, is that right?

Marcy Miller: 02:29 Yes sir.

John Haggard: 02:29

Welcome to the 4th episode of our weekly podcast here at Miracle Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram! In this episode, we talk with the Body Shop manager, Marty Denson. Both Miracle CDJR and Miracle Ford share the same body shop, located behind the Miracle Ford Dealership. This is another great episode, so enjoy!

Topics Discussed:

The types of vehicles that the body shop works onDealing with insurance, estimates, and Tennessee’s right to chooseThe Technology used in the body shopHow to preserve your vehicle’s paint jobWhat does Marty enjoy doing outside of work?

Transcript

Opening

John Haggard: 00:03 Welcome to the Miracle Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram podcast, where each week you’ll also be able to learn best ways to purchase or lease, maintain and accessorize, and how to sell your vehicle for the highest resale value possible, when you’re ready to do that. I’m your host John Haggard, and throughout each month, right here, different team members will join us from Miracle and they will bring you tips that you can use.

And by the way, we do post a transcript of every podcast so you’ll easily be able to refer to it for information on anything that you might’ve heard. And you said, gosh, I didn’t quite get that. What was it that he said or she said? Well, you’ll have it right there. Word for word

On this podcast today we’re talking about body shop repair when there’s been an accident or other damage to a vehicle and what some of the misunderstandings are out there, what your rights are and what separates Miracle Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram from other body shops. So today on the podcast we have Marty Denson and he’s the Body Shop Manager, actually located at Miracle Ford. Marty, welcome to the podcast.

Marty Denson: 01:00 Thank you John. Appreciate it. Nice talking with you.

What Types of Vehicles Do You Work On?

John Haggard: 01:03 Well glad you’re here. Folks want to find out some information here. Now you’re over at the Ford store. So, you only work on Ford vehicles, or how does that work? Because there is a Miracle Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram as well.

Marty Denson: 01:16 Right, we work on everything. Of course we are located behind the Ford store, because that was the newest store that was built. But we do all the work for Miracle Chrysler Dodge Jeep as well. Actually we even do the work for the Toyota store here in town, but we’ll work on any make and model of any vehicle.

John Haggard: 01:35 Right. And the Ram too as well, right?

Marty Denson: 01:37 Oh yeah. Oh yeah, you do lots of Rams.

Dealing With Warranties

John Haggard: 01:39 Absolutely. You know, a lot of people today want to know about warranty. Is it factory authorized, or am I sure I’m going to get my warranty, or how does that work today? The warranty business, like let’s say if you work on a Toyota or Chevrolet or something like that.

Marty Denson: 01:55 Right. Actually everything that we do, we give a limited lifetime warranty on our work. We try to keep everything, to use parts and everything that’s not going to affect your normal factory warranty, with whatever vehicle you have. So, as long as you take care of your car, even if you don’t take care of your paint or your vehicle. You know, we can’t cover regular wear and tear, but if it’s anything to do with anything we did, we definitely stand behind it.

What Technology Do You Have in the Body Shop?

John Haggard: 02:28 Gotcha, Gotcha. And another thing that people ask about today, especially with new vehicles is, “well, what kind of technology do you have in there, in that vehicle”, or if you think about a body shop, a lot of people think, “well there can’t be really anything too high tech in there”

Welcome to our third episode of a weekly podcast that we are doing here at Miracle Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram! In this episode, we talk with the Owner Loyalty Manager of Miracle CDJR, Mike Woodruff. Mike is a Tennessee native, and has lived in Gallatin since 1987. In this episode, Mike talks about our VIP program, and our new service initiative, the Miracle Express Train. He also discusses the pro’s and con’s of purchasing a vehicle online in the digital world that we live in, and revisits the benefits of leasing as we spoke about in Episode 2. Enjoy!

Transcript

John Haggard: 00:02 Welcome to the Miracle Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram podcast, where each week we hope you will be able to learn the best ways to purchase, maintain and accessorize your new or preowned vehicle and how to sell your vehicle for the highest resale value possible, when you’re ready to do so. I’m your host John Haggard and throughout each month, right here we’re going to have different team members join us from Miracle to bring you tips that you can use. And by the way, we will also post a transcript of each podcast so that you can easily refer to it for information. Maybe something you heard on the podcast and you want to just go pick up that line, what was said, it will be right there for you right at your fingertips. On the podcast today we’re talking about different ways to own or lease a vehicle and how the process has changed over the last several years. And on today’s podcast we have Mike Woodruff, he’s the Owner Loyalty Manager at Miracle Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram. Hey Mike, welcome to the podcast.

Mike Woodruff: 00:59 How are you John, my friend?

New Speaker: 01:00 I am doing well. Hey, you know, before we get started, folks like to know a little bit about you and just anybody who is on the podcast. Hey, who is this guy and how did he get started? How did they get in the car business? Where is he from? That type of thing. So give us a little bit of background about you, Mike.

Mike Woodruff: 01:14 Well, actually I’ve lived in the community since 1987. My previous career was in healthcare management and actually retired from that some years ago. And then later, I was looking for something to do at the suggestion of my wife. Ha, Yeah. And I knew some people at the dealership, and I’d spoken with a couple of people there and they suggested maybe working for the dealership. I had never done anything like that before. And I thought, well, that’ll be different. I thought it would something I would probably do for a couple of years. And, seven years later, here I am.

John Haggard: 01:54 Seven years later, you’re still there. So when you were doing healthcare, when you said a manager, what were you doing?

Mike Woodruff: 02:00 I was in health care management. I was managing clinical areas of one of the local hospitals and later went into practice management with group of physicians.

John Haggard: 02:09 Gotcha, Gotcha. So, you knew some people down at Miracle and that’s how you wound up actually going to work for them.

Mike Woodruff: 02:17 Exactly.

John Haggard: 02:18 Gotcha. So you say you are you from Gallatin?

Mike Woodruff: 02:21 I’m originally from Donaldson right outside of Nashville of course and been up here since 1987.

John Haggard: 02:29 Gotcha. Now somebody said in the notes here that I’m reading that you have, I think it’s nine grandchildren.

Mike Woodruff: 02:34 I have nine grandchildren I sure do. Nine beautiful grandchildren and four children. And that keeps me busy during my off hours.

John Haggard: 02:42 I was going to say, what do you do on your off hours? Do you have any, ha! Well, Mike, I understand you are the Owner Loy

Welcome to our second episode of a weekly podcast that we are doing here at Miracle Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram! In this episode, we talk with General Sales Manager of both Miracle CDJR and Miracle Ford (Miracle Auto Group). Mark talks a little bit about his history in the car business, the benefits and details of leasing instead of purchasing a vehicle, and also shares what he enjoys doing in his spare time. This is a great episode that you do not what to miss! Enjoy!

Transcript

John Haggard: 00:02 Welcome to the Miracle Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram podcast, where each week we hope you’ll be able to learn the best ways to purchase, maintain and accessorize your new or preowned vehicle and how to sell your vehicle for the highest resale value possible. When you’re ready to do it. I’m your host John Haggard, and throughout each month, right here we’re going to have different team members join us from miracle to bring you tips that you can use. And by the way, we will also post a transcript of each podcast so that way you can easily refer to it for information that you would like to have right there at your fingertips. Today on the podcast we have Mark Ledford, the general sales manager at Miracle Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram. Hey Mark, welcome to the podcast.

Mark Ledford: 00:44 Hey John, how are you doing today buddy?

John Haggard: 00:45 Good man. Glad to be here. You know, we always, when we bring somebody onto the podcast, before we start, people like to know, well, who is this guy that you’re getting ready to talk to? People just love to hear stories about how others got into a particular profession. So tell us a little bit about your background, how you started, how long you’ve been doing this, and how long you’ve been with Miracle Auto Group. Really specifically. How did you get into the car business?

Mark Ledford: 01:10 Well, you know, it’s very similar to the Galvin’s, which you guys heard obviously before, which my father was very, very inspirational in making that happen for me. It’s funny, as I watched my father, when I was growing up, my comment, it was, I’m never getting in the car business. You know, he was very inspirational, you know, as far as me getting into this industry after college. And, you know, I watched his work ethics and, the thing that stood out to me most about, I saw the joy in watching him help others accomplish their goals. And I said, you know what? I think that’s me. I think that’s something I need to give a shot sometime soon. And, a little time after that, I was able to land my feet at a dealership and I spent many summers working at the dealership, washing cars, things like that back in high school. And, so I guess it was meant to be John, you know, just one thing led to another and then at an early age, popped in the business, been in it for about 25 years, been around it for about 35 years, and absolutely love it.

John Haggard: 02:16 Alright, you’re about ready for some gray hair, aren’t you? 35 years. Ha!

Mark Ledford: 02:19 Yes sir. It has started. You know, I can’t believe I’ve been able to hold it off this long.

John Haggard: 02:25 Well there you go. There we go. Well today’s topic on the podcast is leasing versus buying a vehicle and while we won’t be able to cover every topic about leasing in just one podcast, we did ask Mark to help us understand some key components about the differences in leasing versus owning. So we’ll devote future podcasts to learning more about other aspects of leasing versus owning. So a lot of people today, Mark, you know, they’re looking for a better way to acquire a vehicle, perhaps a cheaper way. In other words, you know, save money the best way they can and folks always hear, well should I lease or should I own?