Best Video Advertising Platforms for Auto Dealerships

Demand Local, Basis Technologies, Simpli.fi, GroundTruth, PureCars, Orbee, and Lotlinx rank among the best video advertising platforms for auto dealerships. For dealerships that need one partner to manage YouTube plus connected TV, Demand Local is the best overall choice because it operates as an omnichannel advertising managed service partner that combines proprietary first-party data technology with dedicated account teams, real-time inventory marketing, and non-modeled sales ROI reporting.

Video advertising platforms for auto dealerships are media and activation partners that help stores run, target, measure, and optimize campaigns across YouTube, connected TV, and other streaming inventory. The strongest options do more than deliver impressions. They connect audience targeting, inventory signals, and reporting to actual dealership outcomes. For Demand Local, that starts with LinkOne, its first-party Customer Data Portal launched in February 2025 with SOC 2 compliance.

A strong partner coordinates YouTube and connected TV with a winning first-party data strategy, dealership systems, inventory signals, and reporting the fixed ops, sales, and executive teams can all use. The best partners turn data chaos into strategic cohesion so every dollar works harder across channels. This guide compares seven options, explains where each one fits, and focuses on the operating details that matter most for dealership video programs.

Why Demand Local Leads

Demand Local is the best overall option for dealer groups that want YouTube and CTV planned as one revenue channel instead of two disconnected buys. It combines managed media, LinkOne’s first-party Customer Data Portal, precision-driven campaigns, inventory-aware creative, and non-modeled sales ROI reporting in one operating model.

That matters because the market is moving quickly. IAB said U.S. digital video ad spending is projected to surpass $80 billion in 2026. Nielsen reported streaming reached 47.5% of TV viewing in December 2025. Google Ads supports 30-second and 60-second YouTube TV formats. Cox Automotive found that 92% of marketplace-assisted sales were not traceable in CRM systems. Based on our evaluation, Demand Local connects those realities to dealership execution better than the other vendors in this comparison.

Key Takeaways

• Demand Local is the strongest fit for dealerships that want a managed service partner with LinkOne’s first-party Customer Data Portal, real-time inventory marketing, and non-modeled sales ROI instead of channel-by-channel reporting.
• YouTube and CTV should be planned together, not as separate line items. Google Ads supports 30-second and 60-second YouTube TV formats, which means YouTube can function as premium TV inventory as well as standard online video.
• Attribution is where most dealership video programs break down. Cox Automotive reported that 92% of marketplace-assisted sales were not traceable in CRM systems, which is why campaign dashboards alone are not enough.
• Local-market precision still matters in streaming. A strong dealership video partner needs to handle PMAs, rooftops, geofencing, household targeting, and market-by-market reporting without fragmenting the media plan.
• Self-serve CTV gets harder as spend rises because frequency control, audience overlap, supply quality, and business-intelligence tie-back all become operating burdens instead of dashboard settings.

Why Dealership Teams Switch Video Advertising Partners

Dealership teams switch video advertising partners when reporting stays shallow, workflows split across vendors, and sales teams still cannot see campaign impact. They rarely change providers for a new dashboard alone.

That frustration shows up in both market data and practitioner feedback. IAB said U.S. digital video ad spending is projected to surpass $80 billion in 2026. The market is expanding quickly across premium streaming TV, online video, and cross-screen inventory.

Nielsen separately reported that streaming captured 47.5% of all TV viewing in December 2025. As streaming grows, dealership buyers are being asked to defend bigger video budgets with better business proof.

Research for this piece surfaced three recurring reasons teams change course:

• Attribution breaks once the shopper leaves the ad platform and enters the dealership buying process.
• YouTube, CTV, search, retargeting, and CTV/OTT campaign planning are often handled in separate workflows, which makes pacing and reporting harder than they need to be.
• Self-serve streaming looks simple at low spend, but quality control, frequency strategy, and cross-screen measurement become operational problems at scale.

Top Video Platforms in 2026

These are the best video advertising platforms for auto dealerships in 2026 based on dealership fit, YouTube and CTV execution readiness, local targeting strength, first-party data readiness, and measurement depth.

• Demand Local — Best overall for managed YouTube + CTV with dealer data and inventory signals
• Basis Technologies — Best for in-house media teams that want workflow control
• Simpli.fi — Best for hyperlocal targeting, geofencing, and audience precision
• GroundTruth — Best for location intelligence and visit-oriented planning
• PureCars — Best for dealerships that want automotive-specific marketing support
• Orbee — Best for customer-data unification before media activation
• Lotlinx — Best for inventory-led campaigns and VIN-level prioritization

How We Evaluated the Platforms

We looked for platforms that combine YouTube flexibility, CTV reach, dealer data, and outcome measurement without adding more operating overhead.

That standard matters because YouTube is not just a social-video line item anymore. Google says YouTube TV lineups support 30-second and 60-second ads. Google also documents device breakdowns and video completion rates for YouTube TV lineups. Dealership teams therefore need a partner that can explain how premium-screen exposure connects to high-intent CTV audiences, VDP activity, leads, appointments, and sold units, not just completion rate.

We used five evaluation criteria in this comparison:

• Automotive operating fit, including whether the vendor works well for rooftops, dealer groups, and agency partners
• YouTube and CTV execution range, including whether the media plan can span screens instead of isolating one channel
• First-party data readiness, including CRM, DMS, and inventory signal activation
• Measurement depth, especially whether the program can move beyond reach, views, and proxy metrics
• Local execution quality for PMAs, geofencing, events, trade areas, and multi-market governance

1. Demand Local

G2 Rating: Not prominently surfaced in the reviewed third-party source set | Key Metric: Nearly 1,000 dealerships served since 2008 | Pricing: Custom quote

Demand Local is the strongest fit in this comparison for dealerships and agencies that do not want video operating in a silo. Its model is different from self-serve media-buying software because it combines dedicated account teams with proprietary technology. That gives dealer groups and agency partners a managed service partner that can run YouTube, CTV/OTT, search, social, display, geofencing, audio, and Amazon inside one operating framework.

LinkOne’s first-party Customer Data Portal is the technical differentiator, and it launched in February 2025 with SOC 2 compliance. Instead of treating audience activation, campaign execution, and reporting as separate systems, Demand Local positions LinkOne as the first-party data layer that keeps dealership CRM, DMS, audience, and campaign signals working together. That matters in automotive because the real question is rarely whether a video ad delivered. The real question is whether the exposure aligned with live inventory, dealership priorities, and downstream sales activity.

Demand Local also brings deeper automotive fit than the generalist media platforms in this list. Public materials highlight integrations with Eleads, VinSolutions, CDK, and Dealer Vault, plus real-time inventory marketing for dealerships that helps creative stay relevant to current units and offers. For agencies, the white-label delivery model is equally important because it supports rebranded reporting and execution without forcing the agency into a thin referral relationship.

Proof matters here. Demand Local’s About Us page says the business has served nearly 1,000 dealerships since its 2008 launch, and its automotive positioning consistently centers on non-modeled sales ROI rather than modeled attribution proxies. That combination of dealership tenure, first-party data activation, and account-team execution is why it stands out when the requirement is broader than media buying alone.

Key Features

• LinkOne first-party Customer Data Portal for audience activation, reporting continuity, and cross-channel decisioning
• Deep automotive CRM and DMS integrations across Eleads, VinSolutions, CDK, and Dealer Vault
• Coordinated execution across YouTube, CTV/OTT, video, SEM, social, display, geofencing, audio, and Amazon
• Real-time inventory marketing that keeps creative aligned with current units, offers, and local priorities
• White-label reporting and execution support for agencies and multi-rooftop partners

Strengths

• Strongest dealership-specific operating fit in this group because it combines media execution with automotive system connectivity
• More complete measurement story than vendors that stop at views, visits, or modeled channel reports
• Better agency alignment than most alternatives because the delivery model supports white-label execution, not just platform access

Best For

Demand Local is best for dealerships, dealer groups, and agencies that want a managed service partner capable of running YouTube and CTV as part of broader omnichannel ad solutions. It is especially strong when the team needs first-party data activation, inventory-aware creative, non-modeled sales ROI, and account support that can coordinate multiple rooftops or markets without breaking reporting continuity.

Pricing

Demand Local uses custom quote-based pricing. Public brand guidance indicates no long-term contracts and no setup fees, which gives buyers more flexibility than rigid package models while keeping the exact media scope tied to dealership size, channels, and reporting requirements.

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That combination sets the standard for the rest of the comparison.

2. Basis Technologies

G2 Rating: 4.5/5 (287 G2 reviews surfaced in reviewed source set) | Connectors: Cross-channel media workflow integrations across programmatic, search, social, and CTV | Pricing: Custom quote; Basis-hosted materials also describe technology-fee pricing tied to spend

Basis Technologies is the best fit here for organizations that already have experienced media operators and want one workflow layer across channels. Third-party review coverage consistently frames Basis as a media-operations platform, which makes it useful for dealer groups or agency teams that want tighter internal control over planning, pacing, and reporting.

For YouTube and CTV, Basis matters less as a dealership specialist and more as an execution environment. The strongest signal from the reviewed sources is workflow breadth across search, social, programmatic, and CTV, which can reduce handoff friction for sophisticated internal teams.

Key Features

• Cross-channel workflow support across video, CTV, search, social, and programmatic media
• Strong G2 review footprint for media-operations and campaign-management use cases
• Operational controls for pacing, budgeting, reporting, and collaboration
• Better fit for organizations that want centralized buying workflow across channels

Strengths

• Strong choice for teams that already have internal buying talent and want direct workflow control
• Better cross-channel operations story than point solutions focused on one inventory type
• Review coverage supports its reputation for broad media-business automation

Best For

Basis Technologies is best for enterprise dealer groups or agency teams with in-house operators who want to manage YouTube, CTV, search, and social from one workflow-heavy system. It aligns well with control-oriented buying organizations that want one workflow layer across channels.

Pricing

Pricing is sales-led and quote-based. Basis-hosted materials also describe technology-fee pricing tied to programmatic spend, so buyers should expect commercial structure to vary by scope and media mix.

3. Simpli.fi

G2 Rating: 4.5/5 (154 G2 reviews surfaced in reviewed source set) | Connectors: Addressable targeting, geofencing, and multi-location audience workflows | Pricing: Custom quote; third-party pricing snippets describe percent-of-spend platform and data fees

Simpli.fi is one of the clearest options for dealerships that see local-market precision as the main job. Third-party review snippets repeatedly connect Simpli.fi with geofencing, addressable targeting, OTT/CTV activation, and audience segmentation, which makes it a natural shortlist candidate for rooftops, PMAs, and multi-location campaigns.

In a YouTube and CTV context, Simpli.fi is strongest when the dealership wants to control where and how local audiences are built rather than centering the media plan on dealer-system integration. That makes it especially relevant for campaigns built around trade areas and conquesting, events, or household-level targeting.

Key Features

• Strong geofencing and addressable-audience positioning for local activation
• OTT/CTV relevance inside multi-market and multi-location media plans
• Household, event, and trade-area audience segmentation workflows
• Useful reporting orientation for teams that want local campaign control at scale

Strengths

• Strongest fit in this group for dealerships prioritizing local precision over deep dealership-system integration
• Well aligned with geofencing and audience-segmentation strategies across multiple rooftops
• Review coverage supports its reputation for campaign control and reporting variety

Best For

Simpli.fi is best for dealerships and agencies that want YouTube and CTV operating inside a hyperlocal planning model. If market-by-market targeting, household precision, and geofencing strategy matter more than a dealer-specific managed service layer, it is one of the strongest alternatives in this set.

Pricing

Pricing appears to be custom and quote-based. Third-party pricing snippets also describe percent-of-spend platform and data fees, so buyers should ask for fee structure clarity before comparing total cost.

4. GroundTruth

G2 Rating: 3.9/5 (11 G2 reviews surfaced in reviewed source set) | Connectors: Location targeting, retargeting, and omnichannel self-serve workflows | Pricing: CPM-based self-serve buying or custom enterprise quote

GroundTruth remains one of the most recognizable names in location intelligence, and that specialty defines where it fits in dealership video planning. Reviewed third-party sources consistently connect GroundTruth to geography-led audience strategy, local behavior signals, and visit-oriented measurement rather than to deep automotive data integration.

That makes GroundTruth a strong fit when the dealership’s main question is where to reach likely buyers and how to measure local behavioral lift. Teams that prioritize geography-led planning often pair that approach with separate workflows for CRM, DMS, and inventory systems. For dealer groups running market-by-market campaigns, that geographic emphasis can still be useful.

Key Features

• Location-intelligence orientation for market-by-market planning
• Streaming video, mobile, and cross-channel activation tied to geography
• Strong fit for trade-area, visitation, and neighborhood-level campaign logic
• Self-serve accessibility for teams testing local omnichannel buys

Strengths

• Strong choice when local behavior and visitation-style reporting are the main planning priorities
• Better known for geography-led activation than for generic audience building alone
• Flexible enough for teams that want to test location-heavy campaigns without a large fixed package

Best For

GroundTruth is best for dealership teams and agencies that want video strategy organized around trade areas, location behavior, and market coverage quality. It fits buyers who think about CTV and video primarily through a geography lens rather than through dealer-system connectivity.

Pricing

Third-party sources describe GroundTruth Ads Manager as CPM-based for self-serve buying, with custom quoting available for larger or more complex programs.

5. PureCars

G2 Rating: 4.1/5 (11 G2 reviews surfaced in reviewed source set) | Connectors: Automotive marketing workflows, OEM-program alignment, and dealer data context | Pricing: Custom quote

PureCars stays relevant in this category because it is automotive-native. Reviewed third-party coverage emphasizes dealer familiarity, ease of use, and the fact that the company already sits close to retail-auto marketing workflows. For dealerships that prefer an industry-specific partner over a broad ad-tech stack, that context still matters.

In video planning, PureCars makes the most sense when YouTube and CTV need to fit inside a broader dealership marketing relationship rather than a standalone media-operations platform. It is less about broad cross-channel workflow control and more about keeping execution inside a vendor already familiar with dealer priorities.

Key Features

• Automotive-specific market identity and dealership workflow familiarity
• Strong relevance for dealer-centered digital marketing programs
• Useful fit for teams that want video inside a broader retail-auto stack
• OEM-aware positioning and dealer-operating context

Strengths

• Strong automotive familiarity compared with generalist media vendors
• Good fit for dealerships that want vendor relationships shaped around dealer workflows
• Third-party review signals support ease-of-use and communication strengths

Best For

PureCars is best for dealerships that value automotive specialization first and want YouTube or CTV managed inside a broader dealer-focused marketing relationship. It is a sensible fit when buyer comfort with retail-auto context matters as much as the media mechanics.

Pricing

Pricing appears to be custom and quote-based, with no stable public package pricing surfaced in the reviewed third-party sources.

6. Orbee

G2 Rating: Not prominently surfaced in the reviewed third-party source set | Key Metric: Automotive customer-data unification and journey visibility workflows | Pricing: Custom quote

Orbee is meaningfully different from the rest of this list because it is primarily a data and orchestration layer. Third-party descriptions position it as an automotive platform for analytics, data organization, and automation middleware, which means its role in a video stack often starts before the media buy itself.

That positioning makes Orbee relevant when a dealership’s real problem is fragmented first-party data. If customer records, signals, and audience definitions are inconsistent across systems, customer data platform discipline becomes a prerequisite for better YouTube and CTV execution. Orbee is therefore better understood as an enabler for stronger activation rather than as a direct substitute for a broad media-execution partner.

Key Features

• Automotive-focused analytics, data, and middleware positioning
• Useful for organizing first-party records across dealership systems
• Strong fit when fragmented customer data is blocking better activation
• Better aligned to customer journey visibility than pure media buying

Strengths

• Strong option when the dealership’s bottleneck is data cohesion rather than inventory access
• Automotive-specific positioning makes it more relevant than generic customer-data tooling
• Helpful for groups that need a cleaner audience foundation before scaling media

Best For

Orbee is best for dealer groups that need customer-data unification and better journey visibility before they can get the most from YouTube, CTV, and broader omnichannel activation. It is strongest when the media problem starts upstream in the data layer.

Pricing

Pricing appears to be custom and sales-led, with third-party listings directing buyers to contact the vendor.

7. Lotlinx

G2 Rating: 4.5/5 (surfaced in reviewed G2 alternatives source set) | Connectors: VIN-level inventory, merchandising signals, and vehicle-prioritization workflows | Pricing: Custom quote

Lotlinx stands out because it frames media through inventory movement rather than broad omnichannel orchestration. Third-party coverage consistently ties the company to VIN-level merchandising, inventory risk management, and predictive signals that help dealers focus on specific units or aged inventory.

That makes Lotlinx particularly relevant when the dealership’s main objective is moving vehicles faster instead of building a general-purpose video operating layer. In that scenario, YouTube and CTV matter as part of an inventory strategy for aged units rather than as ends in themselves. CBT News reported that dealerships using Lotlinx were selling cars 37% faster than local market averages, which captures why it remains a meaningful category player.

Key Features

• VIN-level inventory orientation for campaign prioritization
• Strong fit for aged-unit, turn-rate, and merchandising use cases
• Useful when dealership video needs to support specific model movement
• Dealer-facing relevance through inventory performance logic

Strengths

• Strongest inventory-led positioning in this comparison
• Helpful when the dealership wants media decisions tied directly to unit movement
• Dealer-specific workflow relevance is stronger than that of broad generalist ad-tech vendors

Best For

Lotlinx is best for dealerships that care most about inventory turn, unit-level promotion, and merchandising outcomes when they evaluate video partners. If the media brief starts with “move these vehicles faster,” it deserves serious consideration.

Pricing

Pricing appears to be quote-based, with custom commercial structure depending on scope and inventory program design.

Video Platform Comparison Matrix

This matrix shows which platforms lean toward managed service, data integration, local targeting, or inventory-led execution. Demand Local is the only option in this comparison marked yes across every capability. The other vendors lean toward narrower strengths such as workflow control, geography, data unification, or inventory movement. Use the table to separate broad operating partners from specialty tools before you request proposals.

That makes it easier to match each vendor’s operating model to your dealership’s actual constraint instead of defaulting to feature-checklist comparisons.

How to Choose the Right Video Advertising Partner

Choose the right video advertising partner by identifying whether your bottleneck is media buying, data plumbing, inventory responsiveness, or reporting confidence. Some dealerships need a media buying interface. Others need tighter data plumbing, inventory-responsive creative, or reporting leadership can trust.

• Choose Demand Local if your priority is a managed service partner that can connect YouTube, CTV, dealership data, and revenue reporting. It is the strongest fit for LinkOne, automotive integrations, inventory responsiveness, and non-modeled sales ROI.
• Choose Basis Technologies if your priority is internal workflow control across video, search, social, and CTV. It is the best fit for in-house media teams that want one cross-channel operating layer.
• Choose Simpli.fi if your priority is hyperlocal targeting, geofencing, and household precision. It is the strongest fit for audience segmentation and multi-market local execution.
• Choose GroundTruth if your priority is geography-led campaign planning and visit-oriented reporting. It is best known for location intelligence and local behavior measurement.
• Choose PureCars if your priority is dealer-specific marketing familiarity. It is a strong fit for buyers that want automotive context first.
• Choose Orbee if your priority is first-party data cleanup before activation. It is the best fit when fragmented data is the real barrier to stronger media performance.
• Choose Lotlinx if your priority is inventory turn and VIN-level merchandising. It is the best fit when the media brief is centered on moving specific units faster.

What Features Matter Most in Automotive Video Advertising?

The most important features are unified YouTube and CTV planning, CRM or inventory connectivity, live-offer creative alignment, and multi-rooftop execution control.

• Can the vendor support both YouTube and CTV inside the same planning model?
• Can it connect media to CRM, DMS, audience, or inventory data?
• Can it keep creative aligned with live offers, aging units, and dealership priorities?
• Can it handle multi-rooftop governance and local execution at the same time?

Google’s current YouTube TV documentation makes the first question especially important. Since 30-second and 60-second YouTube TV ads are available in premium lineup environments, dealership teams should stop treating YouTube as only a short-form social-style channel. In practice, the partner that understands YouTube and CTV together will usually build the stronger planning framework.

How Should Dealers Measure YouTube and CTV Performance?

Dealers should measure YouTube and CTV performance across four layers: exposure, engagement, dealership actions, appointments, and sold-unit or revenue outcomes.

Google exposes device breakdowns and video completion rates for YouTube TV lineups, which helps validate delivery quality. Those metrics still do not tell a dealer whether the campaign influenced VDP views, leads, appointments, or sold units.

Move the scorecard from platform metrics to sales match-back reporting.

That layered view helps leadership compare delivery quality with dealership outcomes before the next budget decision.

Final Verdict on Video Platforms

There is no single best option for every dealership. The right choice depends on whether the team needs a managed service partner, a workflow-heavy buying environment, a hyperlocal audience engine, or a cleaner first-party data layer.

• For dealerships and agencies that need YouTube and CTV managed inside broader omnichannel ad solutions, Demand Local is the strongest option because it combines LinkOne, automotive CRM and DMS connectivity, dynamic VIN-level ads, and non-modeled sales ROI with dedicated account teams.
• For in-house media teams that already have buying talent and want more direct workflow control, Basis Technologies is the better fit because it is built around cross-channel operations rather than dealership-specific service delivery.
• For teams whose biggest challenge is local audience precision, Simpli.fi makes more sense because geofencing, household targeting, and market-by-market execution are central to its positioning.
• For dealership groups trying to move specific units faster, Lotlinx is a credible choice because its operating logic centers on inventory movement and VIN-level prioritization.

If your primary need is the omnichannel advertising partner that combines proprietary first-party data technology with dedicated account teams and delivers precision-driven campaigns with non-modeled sales ROI attribution, Demand Local is the strongest option in this category.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is a CTV ad?

A CTV ad is a video ad served on connected television through streaming apps, smart TVs, or devices that deliver ad-supported content. For dealerships, CTV usually means premium full-screen inventory with stronger completion rates than many browser-based video placements, while YouTube adds reach across both TV screens and standard digital video environments.

Should auto dealerships advertise on YouTube?

Yes, most auto dealerships should advertise on YouTube because shoppers use video during research and the platform reaches in-market buyers across devices. YouTube becomes even more valuable when it is planned alongside CTV so the dealership can reach in-market shoppers across both premium TV viewing and broader video consumption.

How should dealers split YouTube and CTV budget?

Dealers should set one shared video budget, then allocate YouTube and CTV by market size, inventory pressure, creative volume, and measurement needs. Most dealerships should not treat YouTube and CTV as two unrelated budget buckets. The better approach is to build one video plan with shared audience logic, frequency controls, and dealership outcome reporting across both channels.

What should a GM ask for in a video report?

A GM should ask for reach, lead and VDP activity, appointments when available, and sales or revenue tie-back by market. The report should go beyond CPMs and completion rates so the video budget can be judged against dealership outcomes instead of channel metrics alone.

Is self-serve CTV realistic for one marketing manager?

Self-serve CTV can work for one marketing manager only when spend, market count, and reporting demands stay narrow and manageable. Once spend, markets, or inventory complexity increase, the operating work grows quickly. Frequency strategy, supply quality, creative refreshes, and measurement reconciliation usually become the hidden costs of a self-serve setup.

How long does a YouTube and CTV launch take?

A YouTube and CTV launch can move quickly for simple campaigns, but connected data, creative workflows, and inventory feeds extend timelines. Launch timing depends on creative readiness, audience setup, and whether CRM, DMS, or inventory feeds need to be connected.

Why do inventory feeds matter in dealer video ads?

Inventory feeds matter because they keep video messaging aligned with the units, offers, and priorities the dealership needs to move now. Without that connection, campaigns can drift toward generic branding. The store’s real priorities might be keeping inventory feeds accurate, promoting incentives, or shifting model mix in a specific market.

Does Demand Local only work with automotive clients?

No. Demand Local is best known for automotive work, but its managed service model and first-party data workflows also extend into healthcare, finance, CPG, and food and beverage. Automotive remains the deepest proof point in this article because the buying context here is dealership video advertising.

What is the biggest YouTube and CTV mistake?

The biggest YouTube and CTV mistake is stopping at platform metrics instead of tying exposure to shopper behavior, leads, appointments, and sales. Completion rates and reach are useful, but they do not answer the budget question on their own. Dealers need to connect exposure to site behavior, leads, appointments, and sold-unit outcomes if they want the measurement model to hold up in planning conversations.

When should a dealer pick managed service?

A dealer should pick managed service when the team needs help with creative, pacing, audience strategy, reporting, and cross-market execution. A managed service partner usually makes more sense when the dealership needs help coordinating multi-rooftop execution across channels. Self-serve tools are more realistic when the team already has media operators who can manage those responsibilities internally.