3.0. Findings
In recent times, customers have increasingly become smarter and highly connected. Besides, they have also grown more demanding than any other time before. This trend has not spared the automotive industry. This means that every phase of the automotive clients life cycle starting from pre-purchase to ownership and transition presents novel challenges as well as opportunities to the businesses that need to be factored into their business management profiles. For instance, there has been media fragmentation and enlargements. The later entails the manner in which manufacturers of retailers communicates to lure new clients into their business segments. Similarly, another challenge has been posed by a condition of abundant data supplies (Miller & Vieregge, 2010, pp 41-42). This aspect constitutes the manner in which manufacturers analyze consumers data in order to understand their categorization in the high market or even what categories of vehicles the top consumers are searching for.
In addition, the automotive market also has increased expectations from the clients. This aspect considers some of the aspects such as if the business dealers have been delivering the best customers experiences for every individual. Similarly, the relevant communications also matters in this industry on how the manufacturers or dealers manipulate and tailors quick expansion of communication channels to realize their expectations of different consumers while at the same time understanding the right offers to attract clients for subsequent purchases (Misztal & Negoita, 2013, pp 54). It is very important to manage the automotive customers life cycle through leverage on data to drive profitability and subsequent customers retention in order to deliver consumers experience.
In the automotive industry, many enterprises have customized learning solutions for their clients that helps generate more motivated clients through designing of an exclusively employee-centered knowledge base in order to better answer customers inquiries. In this regard, automotive enterprises have been focusing on delivering a 360-degree perspective of the clients as well as their cars in order to lift consumers satisfaction scores as well as enhancing the customers lifetime value. In particular, many business enterprises in the automotive industry have also adopted the modest technologies that assist clients in integrating platforms that optimize online or web services for effective service delivery to the clients. These enhancements have been a major contributor towards enhanced customer satisfaction (Taylor & Duvall, 2010, pp 3).
The automotive industry has been longstanding dependent on innovations that develops the contemporary super-advanced cars. Such innovations have consistently revolutionized automotive consumers experience. For instance, one of the changes in the industry has been the need for faster horses which implies speedy vehicles. For instance, through this concept of fast horses revitalized the focus of Henry Ford in the automotive production through the newly defined concept of innovation as the introduction of novel ideas and methods. Other than faster horses, the world has automobiles which have made it hard to imagine life devoid of game-changing innovations. The modern automobiles have been a product of progressive innovations that has led to progressive improvements by majority of manufacturers including Ford (Yadav & Goel, 2008 pp 1005).
Similarly, the automotive producers note the essence of customers centricity within the industry. The contemporary consumers are also more informed and have been manipulating knowledge to empower their decisions but have not been comparing with their competitors within the same industry. Customers anticipate the best experience in the market for automobiles today than any other time in history. This creates considerable challenge to the manufacturers and marketers in enhancing consumers experience (Godlevskaja & van der Wiele, 2011, pp69-70). Studies carried out in 2013 indicated that more than 50 percent of the automotive consumers consider customers experience as very highly ranked in the decision making profile. Besides, about 68 percent of the consumers also consider engaging in the business activities within the automotive industry on the basis of positive communication (Bruhn & Hadwich, 2013, pp 18-21).
In the industry, enhanced connectivity has also effectively revolutionized vehicles. Almost every aspect of todays automotive business engagements have been connected via the web. This aspect has enabled many clients to become effectively connected through the web as well. In the study of automotive marketing segments, there has been identification of several issues that the automakers must resolve. For instance, through the advanced technologies across multiple sectors and the web connections, there have been concerns that future automobiles must be connected to the internet as well. This aspect would help drive an enhanced customers experience. Web-linked cars are also considered to be next to the digital frontier as well as essential constituents of the automotive industrys measures to lure younger car buyers (Humphrey & Memedovic, 2013 pp 36-37). This implies that individuals that are essential constituted within the framework of modern auto demand therefore focus on the technology enabled autos that are very important to the industrys future growth and sustenance (Shaw, 2007, pp 102). For instance, the ability of the drivers to use their social media via their vehicles also complements the overall goal.
Recent studies into the automobile consumers experience is regarding the engineering technologies, there has been a projection that foresees a situation that by 2020, there will be approximately 152 million cars that have active connectivity with internet enabled enhancements on the roads globally. As a result, this implies that there will be a $14.5 billion of values from big data assets such as locations, diagnostic and user experience among other enhancements on the automobiles. These elements are expected to boost the performances of the auto-market players that have seized and integrated this technology into their working profiles. Technology enhancement is expected to boost sales in automobiles, value additions and the overall consumers experience in the automobile sector in future (Grewal & Kumar, 2009, pp 8).
Some of the benefits associated with connected vehicles are robust. This technology does not only generate information for drivers such as allowing them absorb alternative routes to maneuver through traffic but also create proactive alerts for owners and the vehicle manufacturers or even dealing with car issues that appertains to its progress. These aspects have been characteristic developments between individual car users which determine their overall experience. In essence, research indicates that the power to drive the entire consumer bases is largely anchored on the hands of the consumers. With the GPS systems on the cars, this presents a novel technology but largely anticipated. The contemporary vehicles have also superseded the enhancements of stereo and GPS within their dashboard (Nobeoka & Madhok, 2002, pp 784). Instead, there has been provision of wholly connected experiences while the devices allow drivers to connect individuals who can assist them and respond to various questions.
Vehicle connectivity however run beyond entertainments In the contemporary production segments, the automakers have been embedding safety enhancements as well that may send necessary alerts when cars are involved in accidents. These enhancements are mainly driven by the customers needs and preferences as well as the need to manipulate production costs at large also encompass the motive to engage the modest technologies. Constant advances in technology have also been allowing drivers to tap other Smartphone functions while driving. For instance, in 2014, Apple had announced that numerous automakers had been starting CarPlay enhancement which is a system connecting both the iPhones for the drivers and the in-built system that enables them to make calls and send messages among other enhancements (Palmer, 2010, pp 345). These aspects are critical in manipulating development prospects with regard to technology enhancements of the vehicles.
The technology based functions in the modern world also tend to demand constant updating prior to the owners resell of the car. Research shows that people have been taking long time to change vehicles credentials during resale process an aspect that has been reducing effective and efficient product transfers. The dramatic enhancements in the cars demanding less servicing has been one of the factors associated with this scenario. This precedes the essence of enhancing technology of transfer. For instance, some automakers have launched automotives with Microsoft technology enhancements that can be updated automatically and regularly (Wong & Boon-itt, 2008). This enhancement is critical to the enhancement of market performance of the autos in the long-run hence, providing convenient consumers experience.
As a result of these advances, the automakers must ensure that technology interfaces of their cars are simple for their consumers to use. Sophisticated technologies released by customers are not prime time and complicates their use of the cars. This aspect has denatured the entire prospects of enhanced auto-use for the clients. Less sophisticated technology systems have a resultant effect of enhanced customer experience. The availability of data through the system of enhanced technology has also increased the efficiency of dealers which is essential in assisting dealers to provide optimum experiences to the clients as well as the peak-of-mind when similar clients return to the market of another automobile. The data available to the auto-makers should be used in reaching out to customers and allow them to note when their vehicles demands servicing that could otherwise be done automatically via the car enhancement connection (Martinez Sanchez & Perez Perez, 2005, pp 684). Proactive approach is also very important to ensure that car owners retain their cars at tip-top conditions as well as progressive relationship between dealers and the clients.
Dealers are credited with lots of information regarding their clients such as purchase history as well as their regarded service requirements and habits. Dealers can harvest data and send very specific information on the basis of lifecycle and customers behaviors. Devoid of regular interactions, it would be hard to retain business-customers relationship since there has been long periods between purchase and resell (Sudhir, 2011, pp 543). In particular, modern day purchasing journey is highly fragmented while customers tend to undertake lots of research prior to their initial contacts with sales person. These aspects results into increased demands by the customers on the car merchants. Both social and customized sites also change the prospective buying journey. With such information on automobiles by the consumers, they are able to undertake sufficient research prior to communication with the salesperson. The presence of information also ensures that it is easy for customers to compare different merchants and narrow their choices to the bets offers with regard to prices and qualities. Automakers and dealers have also been manipulating web to ease customers to acquire information regarding their vehicles of interest or even undertaking online purchases (Brown, 2009, pp 3). These advances have resulted into completely new customers experience while the car sellers have been competing to take over the already charged consumer bloc.
Other than the use of social media to enhance consumers satisfaction in the auto industry, automakers can also manipulates technological channels to create a better understanding of the customers needs and preferences. For instance, Ford has been manipulating social channels in gathering and evaluating potentially novel features and technological enhancements for the automobile companies. Since they have larger access to information, and are capable of making more informed decisions, buyers have also been willing to drive beyond the vehicle of their preference. In the past, majority of the car clients had been willing to engage up to 20 miles from their residence but have now been edging out to about 100 miles to explore and purchase the vehicle of their preference (Shaw & Ivens, 2005, pp 121).
Besides, advanced web technology has also facilitated customers towards customizing their respective vehicles through the online platforms and acquires the necessary specific features hence enhancing their abilities to make important purchase choices before proceeding to physical purchase of the vehicles. For instance, Ford has also installed online customization functions on the Mustang cars as well as Porsche that allow customers to develop their own vehicle. When seeking support, consumers have been using diverse touch points. In this regard, customers have been learning through live chats with preference on the models of communication such as emails.
4.0. Conclusions
In conclusion, in order to manipulate and enhance customers experience, the car dealers and automakers have to work in unison in order to assist them on making the best car purchase decisions. With advanced technology use in the car manufacturing segment, there has been increasingly complex vehicles and clients need to make the best out of their money. Besides, it is very important for the automakers and their counterparts, dealers, to ensure that consumers are aware of the operations of complex vehicles as well as being able to manipulate majority of its functions. In essence, business entities in the automotive industry must ensure that clients are in tandem with the modest technology and have the best capacity to use the cars easily. This would enhance car purchases particularly through enhanced information sharing between sellers and buyers amidst inevitable advancements in technology. The advances in technology is not isolated to the automotive industry and therefore consumers and dealers must anticipate an interaction between automotive industry technologies and other technologies such as the mobile technology that often tend to control the entire cycle of consumers advancements. Highly informed consumers however pose a challenge on the producers to generate productive capacities in the long-run as far as high-tech vehicles are concerned.
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