10:45 am, July 14, 2025
Remote selling has reshaped the motor trade, and Neive Ewing from Arnold Clark Mercedes-Benz has lifted the lid on what it’s like selling cars to customers solely by phone or email in her job as franchise lead and retention manager.
Her job was a new role within the Mercedes-Benz franchise of Arnold Clark, where she deals with inbound leads from online customers – and works to convert them into sales over the phone.
Speaking on Car Dealer’s Drive Her Success podcast, Ewing explained: ‘I have one of those job roles that everyone goes, ‘What?’ It’s a long title you’ve got to explain.
‘I’m based in our Perth branch, but I do a lot of work on the sales side of things for all five of our Mercedes-Benz branches.
‘Monday to Friday, half eight till half five, I’m on the phone, emailing, selling cars all day for five sites.
‘Then in quieter spells I’ll reach out to existing customers whose contracts are ending. It’s sell, sell, sell.’
The nature of the role can mean day-to-day is faster paced than a sales role in a physical dealership, with a constant stream of leads from all over the country.
Ewing said: ‘You might have ten new leads and that’s for one site. Your phone’s going, emails are flooding in – it takes a lot more organisation than when I was on the sales floor.’
Talking about the volume of customers happy to buy a vehicle they’d never walked around or test-driven, she said: ‘After COVID, we did click-and-collect. I thought, why would you buy a car you’ve never seen?
‘But we’ve got buyers from London ordering up here in Scotland – young, old, transactional or emotional buyers, they all trust us.’
Ewing’s own journey through the dealership mirrors the industry’s digital shift. She grew up on Top Gear and classic car shows, and got her foot in the motor trade door working on reception at Eastern Western BMW before moving over to Arnold Clark Mercedes-Benz as a product genius. From there she went into frontline sales and, ultimately, to her current role.
‘I grabbed it with both hands,’ she said. ‘I always vocalised that I want to do well and I’m happy to take on whatever opportunity there is.
‘This wasn’t even a job role when I started – it was something that Mercedes-Benz brought in. The motor trade is always moving.’
You can listen to the interview with Ewing in full by clicking the player above. You can also for Drive Her Success on Spotify, Apple, Amazon and other podcast platforms where you’ll also find out other interviews with amazing women working in car dealerships.
