First I want to talk a moment to thank everyone for being a part of LVL Up. After officially announcing the release of 1.0 on 12/9 the amount of interest and support we’ve received has motivated us to push harder, work longer and build bigger. I am proud of how this idea is evolving and the direction we are heading and we can’t do that without dealerships and vendors like you.

LVL Up News

Once Centralized Feed

We’ve been working tirelessly on our News feature, designed to simplify how dealerships discover the latest industry updates in one centralized feed. By connecting to the channels vendors already use to share product news, partnership announcements, case studies, and innovations, we’re making it easier than ever for you to stay informed. Right now, nearly 400 vendors are connected, and we’re adding more every week.

Customizable and Comprehensive

• Custom Feed: Tailor your experience by reordering or removing categories to see exactly what you need.

• 21 Product Categories: Ranging from marketing to inventory management, fixed ops, and more.

• 9 Article Types: Access a wide array of content, including product announcements, case studies, partnership announcements, industry reports, and more.

• Powerful Search: Quickly filter through approximately 1,000 articles (with 18–20 new ones added daily) to find exactly what you’re looking for.

Fast, Seamless Experience

• Desktop: Loads 210 articles in 4–5 seconds across all 21 categories, with full customization options and a more commanding view.

• Mobile: Loads 100 articles in just 3 seconds, optimized for casual browsing and on-the-go use.

What’s Next?

We’re still building out additional capabilities for News. One of our top priorities is to connect each user’s customized feed to a periodic newsletter, so you can receive updates straight to your inbox based on your personal settings. Keep your ideas coming, your feedback over the past two weeks has been incredibly insightful. Yes, we hear you: AI is on our radar to and will likely play a key role in our future developments.

Super Reviews are coming

Over the past few months, my partners and I have spent a lot of time thinking about how to elevate product reviews, how to gather them, make them truly credible, and innovate so they’re more useful for dealerships.

The Challenge with Reviews Today

Dealers often find that many testimonials lack authenticity or have been influenced by sponsored podcast appearances. Traditional reviews and recommendations from other dealerships, while helpful, can fall short on the technical deep-dives needed for confident purchasing decisions. Every dealership is unique in its technology ecosystem, brand, and market strategy, so a one-size-fits-all review model often doesn’t cut it.

Our Solution: Super Reviews

1. In-Depth User Feedback

   • We interview and survey ~15 dealerships that currently use the vendor’s product.

   • Each dealership completes a standard survey covering 18 key sections, followed by a more detailed written assessment and an overall rating.

2. Hands-On Product Evaluation

   • LVL Up receives demo access to evaluate the product’s UI/UX, features, and “under the hood” technical details.

   • We conduct a video interview with a company leader from the vendor to capture their insights on the product’s roadmap.

3. Comprehensive Aggregation

   • We combine all user feedback, our in-house product evaluation, and vendor interviews into a single, holistic Super Review.

   • You’ll see both objective data from real users and our expert assessment of the product’s strengths, challenges, and future direction.

   • This final Super Review is shared within the LVL Up platform and made available to the vendor as well.

4. Partner with Heroes

   • We help expand the awareness of the these reviews with the help of the LVL Up Heroes: https://www.lvlupauto.com/heroes

We’re already working on our first round of Super Reviews. If you’re a vendor interested in participating or a dealership that wants a particular vendor reviewed, please reach out to me directly at [email protected].

Thank you for being part of LVL Up’s journey. We can’t wait to share even more exciting updates as we continue to improve and grow. Your engagement and feedback help shape our path forward, so please keep the ideas coming.

Sincerely,

Jon Berna
Founder