The Indian automotive sector uses technology to increase productivity and profitability across processes and platforms: from manufacturing to sales to distribution. Automakers are also using social listening and CRM platforms to better serve customer needs.
November 2, 2021 10:27 AM
Covid-19 has hit several industries hard, forcing companies to shift, innovate, and adopt new technology much faster. This digital transformation has enabled them to meet emerging customer requirements across all touchpoints. The automotive industry was no exception.
Plant closings, interruptions in the supply chain, a shortage of parts and low vehicle sales presented India, the world’s No. 5 largest car market, with major challenges. But automakers and customers embraced the emerging digital solutions. This included online retailers, home test drives and electronic registrations. The automotive sector saw high tech adoption over the past year, exceeding the cumulative rate of the past five years.
Ease of use, security, transparency and the growing trust of consumers in digital media have resulted in faster purchase decisions. According to a study by Google Auto Gear Shift India 2020, 95% of new car buyers and 94% of used car buyers first do their research online. Hence, it is imperative to pay attention to the brand’s digital personality and create a picture of customer focus online.
Keeping Customers First About Technology
After the pandemic, automakers are looking for a “phygital” approach to engaging consumers through a mix of digital and physical initiatives. Maruti Suzuki, for example, has digitized 24 of the 26 touch points of a car purchase trip from the inquiry to the booking, whereby test drives and delivery are still a physical experience. Tata Motors’ “Click to Drive” e-commerce platform has also made contactless end-to-end sales possible. Mercedes-Benz India received 15% of its sales volume from online bookings in the first quarter of 2021 after all of its dealer partners were seamlessly integrated into its e-commerce ecosystem.
The automotive industry continues to face a growing number of challenges, including shortened product life cycles, time-to-market, cost pressures, market volatility and competition. It is evident that integrating technology into everything from manufacturing to distribution to consumer engagement is the only way to go. From applying algorithms that leverage data for automated processes during vehicle setup to enabling better connectivity with smart devices, vehicle manufacturers are leveraging technological tools such as automation, AI, ML, analytics, big data and IoT for an improved user experience.
Automation and robotics occupy the largest market share in the Indian auto industry. They have reduced reliance on human labor. Automakers see many benefits of automation: mass production, faster time to market, and safer, greener vehicles.
The AI advantage
The global automotive AI market is expected to reach $ 8,887.6 million by 2025, up from $ 445.8 million in 2017, and grow at a CAGR of 45.0% from 2018 to 2025 .
The combined potential of AI, big data and machine learning can examine huge amounts of data according to defined parameters and target qualified prospects that users are most likely to buy. The AI system tracks consumers’ preferences and accordingly notifies them of companies that can serve them. For example, Toyota used AI and ML to better serve consumer preferences based on brands, models, and offers that matched each customer’s wish list. The resulting personalized customer journeys, which were created through digital engagement, helped the dealership to increase sales by 150%.
Indian companies are also on the AI train. Tata Motors uses Microsoft Azure Intelligent Cloud for advanced navigation, predictive maintenance, remote monitoring capabilities and AI innovation for its connected cars. Mahindra & Mahindra also uses AI-powered dynamic segmentation to optimize its spare parts inventory.
Benefits of social listening and a strong CRM platform
It is not enough to use technology to make it easy to sell or manufacture. At this time, having a user-friendly website and a strong social media presence is more important than ever. Omni-channel experiences are key. Customers expect a unified, seamless experience across multiple touchpoints.
A holistic customer experience management platform can enable personalized conversations to extend the overall customer lifecycle, with detailed insights into consumer behavior and market trends. Automakers also need to track metrics such as test drive conversion ratio, booking ratio, net promoter score, and customer lifetime value. These indicators help quantify the level of customer satisfaction so that teams can make data-driven decisions and respond to customers in a timely manner. Additionally, with CRM integrations, car brands can quickly adopt digital properties to capture leads and create greater opportunities for cross-selling and upselling. . From there, the leads can be routed to a call center and then to a local dealer for follow-up. With a single uniform digital solution, dealers can smoothly extend the customer journey that began on the car manufacturer’s digital real estate.
Social listening tools contribute significantly to improving customer relationship management and business performance management. Twitter, Facebook and Co. are flooded with valuable customer feedback. Tracking these comments and gaining insight from them is an effective lead generation tool that auto companies can use. The platform also helps with brand analysis, competitive benchmarking, identifying new market opportunities, handling customer complaints, and more.
The future is “phygital”
As customer journeys increasingly shift to digital media, car brands need to be present where their customers are. Hence, it is critical that the online shopping experience is as accessible, transparent, inexpensive and convenient as possible.
By using new technologies, omnichannel players are already providing more convenience and at the same time addressing customer needs. Merchants also have the added benefit of being better able to manage their inventory based on retail performance. In this way, they can offer their customers a “phygital” experience, a trend that is likely to continue in the future.
In PwC’s Digital IQ 2020 survey, 84% of respondents in the automotive sector worldwide said that revenue growth and profitability are likely to suffer unless they aggressively lean towards a fully digital organization.
Ultimately, automakers must work towards a networked omnichannel presence that connects customers, dealers, sales, service, marketing, manufacturing and suppliers across physical and digital touchpoints to ensure higher profitability as well as better customer service and loyalty.
Author: Shubhi Agarwal (COO), Locobuzz
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the original author. These views and opinions do not represent those of The Indian Express Group or its employees.
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