The automotive industry has long been one of the most disruptive sectors. The human desire to explore and travel both efficiently and safely has prompted constant evolutions in the technology available on the market. Today’s cars are smarter, more connected, and more eco-friendly.
However, it’s not just the models available in the automotive landscape changing at a record pace. The way customers interact with vendors and manufacturers is evolving too. More than ever, consumers are expecting omnichannel, intelligent interactions with companies aligned both in the offline and online worlds.
To stay ahead of the curve, automotive brands need to focus more heavily on putting customer experience first. Here’s how you can build a business case for CX in the automotive space.
Step 1: Focus on Competitive Differentiation
In a world of mass-produced vehicles, it’s virtually impossible for any company to outshine the competition with a focus on price and technology. When clients can access the same vehicles from a range of other vendors, customer experience is the only way to come out on top.
In the past, the process of purchasing a vehicle has been notoriously complex. Consumers have found everything from researching cars to connecting with vendors to be time-consuming and difficult. The best way to set yourself apart from the competition, is to make life easier for your customers. Remember, McKinsey notes that 50% of customers believe a better service experience is more important than anything else in their buying decision.
Evaluate the customer journey and look for ways you can streamline service and support for your audience. AI chat bots and similar tools could answer common questions about models and provide insightful information to customers who don’t want to wait to talk to a sales professional. Video conferencing solutions can provide companies with a way to show their customers around a car when they’re shopping remotely, reducing the need for in-person contact.
Step 2: Reassess the Customer Journey
The customer journey in the automotive space has changed drastically over the last for years. To stay competitive in this new landscape, automotive companies need to support and engage their customers across a range of environments. This means building a comprehensive omnichannel CX strategy, which follows consumers both online and offline.
Currently, about 60% of car buyers under the age of 45 are planning on buying their next vehicle online, and the number continues to increase. Prompted by the pandemic, people are searching for more convenient contactless experiences, so they don’t need to interact with brands as often in-person. Allowing customers to interact with sales agents through digital methods with a CCaaS system supporting video, messaging, and email is crucial.
It’s also worth looking for ways to digitize some of the most exhausting and time-consuming processes in the purchasing journey. For instance, 74% of customers say they’re more satisfied with a purchase from dealership when they can complete paperwork digitally. CRM tools with built-in solutions for e-signatures and document management can help with this.
Brands could even use SMS solutions and chatbots to remind customers of upcoming test-drives and appointments with vendors in-person.
Step 3: Look at Optimising Team Performance
Increasingly, research shows companies in all environments need to think more carefully about the concept of “Total Experience”. To outshine the competition, impress your audience and boost profits, you need to ensure your employees are as productive and efficient as possible. Fortunately, the right CX solutions can help with this.
Many CCaaS solutions can now be integrated with UCaaS technology to help employees on the floor, mechanics in the field, and manufacturer representatives communicate more effectively. This collaborative environment paves the way for faster, more informed customer service, as well as more efficient and engaged employees.
In a hybrid world of work, the CX landscape can also include service desks for employees to troubleshoot problems remotely without speaking to an IT professional. Or companies could implement workforce management tools to keep track of team performance.
Even AI and automation solutions in the workforce can make a huge difference to customer service outcomes. Bots can help agents look up model numbers and common issues faster, so they can deliver immediate answers to questions.
Step 4: Focus on Increasing ROI
One of the best ways to build a business case for the use of any new technology in the automotive industry, is to highlight the impact it can have on ROI. A good CX strategy leads to more satisfied customers, which increases earning potential through word of mouth recommendations and repeat sales. Indeed, 92% of dealers believe CX will be crucial to their future success.
With CX technology like CRM tools, companies can track the customer lifecycle, and discover new ways of increasing value over time. You can offer your clients regular service and maintenance solutions to keep them coming back and spending money with your company, while simultaneously making their investment last longer.
You might even discover new methods of upselling and cross-selling, with tools like solar panels for sustainable cars, AI assistants for the dashboard, and other innovative devices. Using connected assistants in cars, companies can also collect data about a vehicle’s performance, and suggest the best times for customers to take predictive maintenance measures.
Step 5: Future Proof the Business
Finally, it’s worth remembering CX isn’t just a valuable way to improve the potential of your automotive company today, it can also pave the way to better opportunities in the future. AI and automation tools make it easier to connect with customers across a wider landscape, so you can scale your operations faster, and deliver vehicles to buyers in a range of locations.
CCaaS technology can even work alongside disruptive new solutions like extended reality, to allow customers to personalise and build their perfect vehicle from scratch, using computer software. This allows manufacturers to deliver a more luxurious and personalised purchasing experience for high-value items like premium cars.
A CCaaS solution can pull multiple communication methods together, into one environment, so you can even collect data on which strategies are generating the best results. This helps you make better decisions about how to grow the company in the future, and which new avenues you should be investing in most.
