Driving Automotive Growth through Opportunities in the Digital World - Accenture

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Driving Automotive Growth through Opportunities in the Digital World - Accenture
Driving Automotive Growth
through Opportunities in the
Digital World
Driving Automotive Growth through Opportunities in the Digital World - Accenture
Many significant developments
                                                      have taken shape in recent years.
                                                      Among them is the resurgence of the
                                                      global automotive industry that was
                                                      teetering on the brink of collapse only
                                                      a few years ago, and the rise of the
                                                      digital world, which is dramatically
                                                      transforming the ways in which
                                                      products and services are consumed and
                                                      business is conducted.

2   Copyright © 2015 Accenture All rights reserved.
Driving Automotive Growth through Opportunities in the Digital World - Accenture
Since the economic crisis of 2008, the       India, Italy, Japan, and the U.S., an          are much more in touch with each other,
auto sector in large part has made steady    overwhelming 93 percent of all surveyed        brand owners and retailers. As a result,
progress, particularly in the U.S. market,   drivers seeking to purchase a new vehicle      such ubiquitous communication is making
where automotive original equipment          are using some form of digital process to      it necessary for OEMs and dealers to react
manufacturers (OEMs) and auto dealers        research their buying preferences, while       faster to car-buying needs to remain
have maintained strong performances,         nearly two-thirds (62 percent) of them         competitive. And, while they are doing
fueled by high demand. In 2014, sales        are initiating the process online, including   so in large part — responding to rising
reached an annualized 6.2 million units      consulting social media, before entering a     consumer demand in areas like in-car
based on a compound annual growth            dealer showroom.                               technologies — the digital revolution has
rate of 9.2 percent,1 which was an                                                          only just begun and will affect the global
improvement over the 15.6 million cars       Moreover, the study shows that more            auto market that is once again on a
and light trucks sold in 2013.2 Improved     than half (54 percent) want personalized,      course toward change.
economic conditions; increasing consumer     tailored information made available
confidence, moderate fuel prices, and        via industry online channels to make           Accenture has identified six key trends
greater credit availability were among the   researching for a new vehicle easier. Such     that will challenge the ability of OEMs
key factors contributing to the market’s     an improvement is of particular interest       and dealers to succeed in the future. These
rise in sales.                               to 62 percent of respondents in China,         trends involve a shift in market conditions,
                                             and 60 percent of those surveyed in India      and a transformation of today’s business
At the same time, the explosive growth of    and the U.S. market. Seventy percent           environment that is moving inexorably
digital technology and its pervasive use     of India’s respondents also would value        toward a digital business model. It is a shift
by consumers around the world in their       more comparison sites and 69 percent of        that will disrupt the competitive landscape,
daily lives is having a profound impact on   Chinese consumers would welcome an             including auto retailing. As a consequence,
the business world, including OEMs and       augmented reality feature.3                    it will be important that auto companies
dealers. According to a new Accenture                                                       take these trends under consideration in
global survey of 10,000 consumers            With the increasing use of social media        preparation for future growth.
in Brazil, China, France, Germany,           and mobile technology, consumers also

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Driving Automotive Growth through Opportunities in the Digital World - Accenture
4   Copyright © 2015 Accenture All rights reserved.
Driving Automotive Growth through Opportunities in the Digital World - Accenture
Six Key Trends in the Automotive and
Digital Space

1.   Sales wars will escalate
                                                                 are slowing due to population
                                                                 decline, and economic growth
                                                                 in many of the emerging
                                                                 markets is slowing.4
                   Although global auto sales
                   have increased since the                      In addition, the dramatic sales gains
                                                                 generated in U.S. market may be
                   downturn, there is still                      counterintuitive, as the market is
                   a degree of uncertainty                       expected to remain at 16.4 unit levels
                                                                 through 2021.5
                   regarding the market’s
                   progress long-term. As                        Global market uncertainty and
                                                                 constrained U.S. sales have the potential
                   western Europe’s recovery,                    to result in fewer traditional growth
                   for instance, continues to be                 opportunities and intensified competition
                   fragile, overall sales in Japan               throughout the global market.

2.   Profit margins will be under more pressure
                   In such a business environment, OEM           The average incentive spend rose from
                   and dealer margins will be under greater      $2,536 on Fusion, Camry, Altima and
                   pressure, as spending on incentive            Accord models in August 2013 to $3,251
                   programs will increase to capture sales.      a year later – an increase in spending of
                   In response to the downturn, OEMs             nearly $800.7
                   from Asia, Europe, North America and
                   other regions implemented creative            In addition, the emergence of third-party
                   marketing strategies to entice reluctant      lead websites like True Car, which are
                   consumers as most experienced double-         focused on providing increased pricing
                   digit percentage declines in sales.6 But,     transparency, present the potential for
                   the trade off for implementing such           further erosion of dealer margins. For
                   initiatives typically adds to margin          instance, average street prices for the
                   erosion, and results in tighter markets. In   Fusion, Accord and Altima compared to
                   the U.S. market, for example, incentive       True Car prices on the same models were
                   spending in the midsize car segment,          lower by an average of $800 to $1,000.8
                   the largest and most competitive of
                   the product segments, has increased           In such a scenario, OEMs
                   significantly, impacting margins.             and dealers will have to
                                                                 accelerate lead generation
                                                                 and lead conversion efforts
                                                                 rather than engage in an
                                                                 incentive war that will only
                                                                 reduce profits.
                                                           Copyright © 2015 Accenture All rights reserved.   5
Driving Automotive Growth through Opportunities in the Digital World - Accenture
3.           Loyalty programs will grow in importance
                                               Sales and service customer satisfaction      Today, as part of their retention strategy,
                                               will continue to be critical to boosting     OEMs typically only mail a welcome
                                               sales and increasing service and             package or send an email to customers
                                               re-purchase retention, especially more       after a purchase. Furthermore, very few
                                               challenging.                                 OEMs and dealers communicate with
                                                                                            the customer throughout the ownership
                                               According to Accenture                       cycle, while most re-purchase loyalty
                                                                                            programs only equate to about $1,000 in
                                               research, the top performing                 bonus cash.10 This may not be a strong
                                               dealers retain less than 70                  enough incentive for significant repeat
                                               percent of consumers that                    business. The first brands, whether in
                                                                                            developed or emerging markets, to
                                               have purchased a vehicle                     create a sustained customer engagement
                                               from them and plan to return                 model will increase service and
                                                                                            re-purchase loyalty that will help drive a
                                               for service.9                                sustainable competitive advantage.

4.           Car-buyers will increase mobile use for shopping
                                               The wireless industry has observed that      As the use of mobile technology
                                               mobile subscribers are using their digital   increases with a focus on research and
                                               devices less for speaking with each other    comparison shopping, not only will car
                                               and more to consume more data services       shoppers become more knowledgeable
                                               to browse, download content, and             about products of interest, but more
                                               perform other self-serve activities.         accustomed to using mobile channels to
                                                                                            shop compared to face-to-face showroom
                                               With respect to auto                         interaction alone. This means that OEMs
                                                                                            and dealers will need to focus more on
                                               shoppers, connected devices                  enabling customer interactions across the
                                               are driving greater research                 mobile space that does not require direct
                                               activity.                                    customer service contact.

5..          Digital services will expand customer options
                                               Digital technology is providing an           traditional point-to-point single
                                               increasing level of interconnectivity        channel interactions to capitalize on a
                                               between smart devices and a growing          marketplace transitioning to digital.
                                               array of digital services that run the
                                               gamut from health and wellness to            OEMs should consider
                                               information and product needs.
                                                                                            re-directing inertia and
                                               It is creating an entirely new generation    aggressive investment away
                                               of connected customers, who want
                                               to consume on multiple platforms,
                                                                                            from traditional collateral
                                               interacting with the device of their         materials and one-size-fits-
                                               choice, at their convenience, and on their   all websites and focus on
                                               terms. These consumers are even willing
                                               to pay a premium for such flexibility.       providing interactive, state-
                                               Innovators are focusing on this trend
                                                                                            of-the-art digital services
                                               toward digital services rather than          that are more relevant to
                                                                                            car shoppers.
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Driving Automotive Growth through Opportunities in the Digital World - Accenture
6.   Consumers will seek more control over outcomes
                Increasingly, consumers want more              The future levers of control
                control, whether it is having the ability to
                purchase online via their mobile or other      will reside with customers
                digital devices at anytime or anywhere;        and key influencing
                being able to better manage outcomes           institutions and intermediary
                from their fundraising support; or
                securing the best financing options as a       enterprises. To succeed in this
                result of their own efforts. New entrants      environment, OEMs will have
                to the digital space like Puddle, LevelUp
                and Square recognize this need for more        to satisfy the expectations
                control and are developing services that       of consumers that are being
                shift more of it to users.                     created by innovators in
                Their open platform approach to serving        other industries, which begs
                users will enable such third-party
                providers that are closest to customers
                                                               the question, which OEMs
                to develop and integrate the products          and dealers will become the
                and services into their business model         disrupters of the automotive
                that appeal most to users. This strategy
                is challenging and disrupting other            industry?
                industries like banking in terms of
                relationship-building and meeting the
                needs of today’s changing customer.

                                                        Copyright © 2015 Accenture All rights reserved.   7
Driving Automotive Growth through Opportunities in the Digital World - Accenture
Disruption will be Key to
Succeeding in the Global
Auto Market

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Driving Automotive Growth through Opportunities in the Digital World - Accenture
Disruption in the auto industry is   The findings also reveal that
not new. Many have taken place       consumers are open to using
in different areas of the sector     emerging online channels for
over the years. Not so long ago,     purchases, as nearly two-thirds
the traditional used-car buying      (63 percent) of all surveyed
experience was upended by the        would be interested in buying a
“one price, no hassle” concept       new car through online auctions.
introduced to the market and         In China, 90 percent of drivers
executed by big box auto stores.     would entertain such an option,
                                     while 78 percent in India and
Moreover, our survey suggests        75 percent of Brazilian drivers
that more disruption may lie         would be interested.11
ahead, as 75 percent of all
respondents say that they would      Given that many, particularly
consider conducting the entire       in emerging markets, would
car purchase online, including       consider a total online vehicle
financing, price negotiation,        purchase and new online
back office paperwork, and           options underscores the need for
home delivery. Two-thirds say        OEMs and dealers to not only
they have either bought or           focus on in-showroom sales,
would consider conducting the        but be prepared to pursue an
car purchase online. Fifty-three     aggressive digital online strategy
percent of Chinese consumers         to create a seamless, integrated
alone state they would               experience that accommodates
definitely buy a car online. And,    all customer needs.
apart from Japan, France and
                                     Those companies that are
Germany, more than 20 percent
                                     first to aggressively serve the
of respondents in the other
                                     connected customer will be the
surveyed countries definitely
                                     digital disrupters in the auto
welcome being able to buy,
                                     sector – an important step
finance and have their purchased
                                     toward succeeding in today’s
vehicle delivered to their home
                                     business environment.
via online interaction.

                               Copyright © 2015 Accenture All rights reserved.   9
Driving Automotive Growth through Opportunities in the Digital World - Accenture
How to become an automotive digital disrupter
                                                There are a wide range of disruptive opportunities that auto companies can capitalize
                                                on by re-engineering their focus on igniting sales, re-energizing aftersales, and
                                                exploring new revenue streams. Below are some of the key questions OEMs and
                                                dealers should ask themselves regarding engaging today’s customers to capitalize on
                                                disruptive opportunities:

      IGNITING SALES                                     LEVERAGING                               TAPPING NEW
• Why does a young family view                           AFTERSALES                             REVENUE STREAMS
  the same web page as a retired
  grandmother?                                  • Why can’t customers be engaged in the      • Can the merchandizing of commercial
                                                  first three months of their purchase         services and products be expanded
• Why does a search for a vehicle lease           with the right accessories?                  by marketing them through vehicle
  result in a page presented with only                                                         handsets or in-vehicle dashboard
  inventory listings and a message that         • Can service customers be engaged             displays?
  reads “call for pricing.”                       more effectively with push
                                                  notifications and radically changed        • What partnerships should be formed to
• Why can’t a shopper, who did not make           service?                                     succeed in the digital space?
  a purchase, but is still in the market,
  receive a personalized campaign to            • Can customer relationships be
  re-engage their interest within hours?          sustained throughout the ownership
                                                  lifecycle in a more meaningful way?

Increasing sales through digital disruption
                                                OEMs and dealers are more likely to          page are vehicles that are not aligned
                                                boost sales by using digital channels        with their intent; national lease offers
                                                to convert and attract shoppers to           instead of local offers in the area where
                                                the showroom. They also should               they reside; or poor page design that
                                                communicate through digital channels         does not drive a conversation toward the
                                                as an aid to creating a sense of intimacy    vehicle of interest.
                                                during the purchase process, conveying
                                                to the customer that there is strong         Advertising copy also is typically not
                                                interest in selling them the vehicle that    relevant to a consumer’s situation. This
                                                they want. It will be equally important      includes advertising copy that is not
                                                to provide information on their websites     keyed to their geographic location or
                                                that are relevant to the particular user     that will elicit a call to action. Web
                                                viewing it.                                  pages should be interactive, displaying
                                                                                             one physical page that offers, for
                                                For example, today when consumers are        instance, 5000 or more variations
                                                interested in leasing a vehicle, they will   of information for each model that
                                                first search for leasing information on      consumers can access. This relevant
                                                the model of their choice on the Web.        approach will be compelling to web
                                                Often what they will see listed on web       visitors, and greatly help convert them
                                                                                             to customers.
10    Copyright © 2015 Accenture All rights reserved.
Creating loyalty through aftersales and more
                  The dealer service process has remained      Companies also can begin to lay the
                  relatively unchanged in recent years,        foundation for a true loyalty program
                  making it a strong candidate for             by benchmarking the recommended
                  revitalization that will help achieve        practices of hotels, airlines and other
                  customer loyalty. In fact, the survey        loyalty program leaders. Ways in which
                  found that the weakest areas of the          today’s customer loyalty programs can
                  buying process in terms of digital           be more effective, for example, include
                  experiences were aftersales and the          sending a customer welcome packet and
                  online availability of pricing and extra     email to a customer with a young family
                  add-on options. Twenty percent and           a 10-question survey with an offer for a
                  17 percent, respectively, of all surveyed    $25 dollar iTunes card or complimentary
                  feel that these areas need the most          oil change if the survey is completed,
                  improvement. Twenty-eight percent            and promoting such initiatives through
                  of Japanese consumers, 24 percent of         digital channels. Also, in the first three
                  French respondents, and 21 percent           months, the customer could receive an
                  of drivers in Germany and Brazil agree       email, highlighting popular accessories
                  that aftersales is the weakest, while        for their vehicle with a 25 percent
                  22 percent of Italian and 20 percent         discount retail offer. This might trigger
                  of Indian consumers believe online           additional needs, such as all-weather
                  information about pricing and extra          floor mats or cross rails for the vehicle’s
                  options is another weak area.                roof if the customer is an avid skier. The
                                                               result would be an additional visit to the
                  By creating a wave of strategic online       dealer for the purchase and rails
                  communications to aftersales customers,      installation, further contributing to the
                  tying incentives to them, and promoting      customer relationship.
                  convenience, OEMs and dealers can
                  establish enduring loyalty. For example,     Ongoing communication also should
                  when asked which special offers or           include sending periodic “thank you”
                  valued customer services those surveyed      correspondence to customers’ digital
                  would like to receive after completing       devices as part of a push notification
                  a new-car purchase, 65 percent of all        campaign based on visits to the dealer
                  respondent cite car insurance discounts,     for service. Acknowledgements of
                  while 62 percent would welcome               birthdays, and offers based on the
                  discounts on fuel. Forty-one percent         frequency in which the customer returns
                  want mobile phone reminders for annual       to the store for service also should be
                  service maintenance check-ups.12             communicated in the same way to help
                                                               build loyalty.

Establishing new revenue streams
                  The surging popularity of the                in the vehicle to promote a broad range
                  connected vehicle has opened a               of commercial services and products –
                  wealth of opportunities for OEMs,            from entertainment, food and lodging to
                  telecommunications companies, and            tolling – using in-vehicle infotainment
                  handset makers. While companies in           headsets (IVI) and/or IVI dashboard
                  each industry are vying to become            displays. By adopting this approach,
                  dominant players in the marketplace,         auto companies can enhance their
                  perhaps the true winners will be those       profitability, working with various cross-
                  companies that collaborate with each         industry collaborators to create shared
                  other across industry lines to create new    merchandising packages of interest to
                  sources of revenue.                          consumers. This approach also will offer
                                                               new avenues for reaching potential
                  In the case of OEMs and dealers, they        customers and foster relationships via
                  have an opportunity to monetize their        the digital space.
                  companies by applying application
                  programming interface technology (APIs)

                                                         Copyright © 2015 Accenture All rights reserved.   11
Building an Effective Digital
Customer Experience is a Journey

12   Copyright © 2015 Accenture All rights reserved.
Establishing a compelling digital customer experience today is made more challenging by
the fact that OEMs and dealers must keep pace with the changing needs of the connected
customer. It is a journey that will involve constantly improving the digital customer
experience focusing on continuous improvement in three distinct stages of the journey that
include pre-sales and sales, ownership and re-purchase.

 PRE-SALES AND SALES                                 OWNERSHIP:                                  RE-PURCHASE:
  PROCESS: START OFF                               MANAGE CUSTOMER                            EXECUTE WELL AND BE
        RIGHT                                        INTERACTION                                   REWARDED

Critical digital touch points during this        One of the major goals during the           Ensuring that every online touch point
stage should be fully exploited to create        ownership stage is to ensure customer       throughout the customer experience is
awareness, consideration and the purchase        satisfaction. This includes providing       executed well, including providing the
of a vehicle. This includes tapping into         online customer satisfaction surveys        right message through the appropriate
social media and providing relevant              and aggressively promoting aftersales       digital channel at the right moment, will
information through mini-sites, and online       accessories and service discount            help generate significant customer loyalty.
advertisements. In the case of relevant          campaigns through all digital channels      Moreover this will aid in pre-disposing
information, the survey found that when          to communicate the benefits of such         customers to re-purchase, particularly
asked which kind of customized services          initiatives to owners. In addition,         during the period when their lease is up
would influence buying or leasing a new          technical and safety campaign               for renewal. And it will contribute to
vehicle, 68 percent of all polled say free       information should be featured as part of   executing effective re-purchase programs,
oil changes and maintenance options.             enhancing customer relationship building    which should include engaging all
And more than half (54 percent) want             through digital channels.                   re-purchase touch points online to grow
access to free manufacturer partner                                                          the activity.
membership services.

U.S. drivers were most interested in
receiving free oil changes and maintenance
options, followed by China, Italy, India, and
Germany. Sixty-three percent of Indian
and 57 percent of Brazilian respondents
had the highest interest in receiving free
manufacturing partnership memberships,
while Italian consumers at 37 percent
valued it the least.13 Using analytics as part
of digital initiatives can help companies
gain insights into such preferences and
determine what relevant promotions
should be pursued via the various digital
touch points. Key shopping tools like
dealer conferencing and dealer locators
also should be readily available to
website visitors.

Moreover, sales staff should be
knowledgeable regarding information
featured on the website for continuity
when making first contact with shoppers
visiting the showroom who have viewed
the site.
                                                                                       Copyright © 2015 Accenture All rights reserved.   13
14   Copyright © 2015 Accenture All rights reserved.
Conclusion   Despite continuous growth in
             the years since the economic
                                              In addition, generating growth through
                                              traditional car-buying methods will
                                              become increasingly more challenging,
             downturn greater challenges      as consumers influenced by the
                                              wide array of advances in consumer
             for the global auto industry     technology – from ever-more
             may be looming. With market      sophisticated smart phones to wearable
             uncertainty in some emerging     technology – will gravitate more toward
                                              consuming products and services
             economies, a recovering          through digital means.
             Europe, slowing sales overall
                                              To sustain success in this changing
             in Japan and a U.S. market       business environment, OEMs and dealers
             that is anticipated to stay      will have to focus more on engaging this
                                              rising “connected” customer. This will
             around 16.4 million unit         mean establishing a pervasive digital
             sales levels through 2021,14     presence, engaging customers through
             companies could face             all available digital channels with car-
                                              buying information that will take into
             the very real prospect of        consideration customer sensitivity and
             increasing competition and       be relevant to their particular
                                              car-buying needs.
             tighter auto markets in the
             coming years.                    The growing use of digital technology
                                              by consumers around the globe is
                                              driving a profound change in the world
                                              of business that will impact every
                                              enterprise, including OEM and auto retail
                                              businesses. Indeed, the digital business
                                              model is on the verge of becoming the
                                              new engine for growth in key economies,
                                              both emerging and developed. OEMs and
                                              dealers who are innovative, aggressive
                                              in pursuing digital strategies that
                                              engage the connected customer, and
                                              proficient in communicating the right
                                              message through the appropriate digital
                                              channels at the right time, will become
                                              automotive disrupters that can sustain
                                              growth in the global automotive market
                                              into the future.

                                        Copyright © 2015 Accenture All rights reserved.   15
For more information, please       About Accenture                                       References
contact:
                                   Accenture is a global management                      1. IHS Global Insight, 2014
Luca Mentuccia                     consulting, technology services and
                                   outsourcing company, with more than                   2. “IHS hikes 2014 U.S. auto sales
Senior Managing Director
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Global Automotive Industry Group
                                   more than 120 countries. Combining                       17, 2014, Automotive News
luca.mentuccia@accenture.com
                                   unparalleled experience, comprehensive
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Jason P. Coffman                   capabilities across all industries and
                                                                                            Consumer Survey, December 2014
Managing Director                  business functions, and extensive
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North America                      companies, Accenture collaborates                        European Auto Market Outlook.
jason.p.coffman@accenture.com      with clients to help them become                         February 2, 2015; Toyota Remains Top
                                   high-performance businesses and                          in Global Vehicle Sales, Beats VW,
Christina Raab                     governments. The company generated net                   GM, The New York Times, January
Managing Director                  revenues of US$30.0 billion for the fiscal               21, 2015; “Emerging markets enter
Automotive Industry Group          year ended Aug. 31, 2014. Its home page                  slow growth era,” Financial Times,
Germany                            is www.accenture.com.                                    October 12, 2014
christina.raab@accenture.com
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                                                                                         7. Accenture Research, 2014

                                                                                         8. Accenture Research, 2014

                                                                                         9. Accenture Research, 2014

                                                                                         10. Accenture Research, 2014

                                                                                         11. Accenture Digital Marketing
                                                                                             Consumer Survey, December 2014

                                                                                         12. Accenture Digital Marketing
                                                                                             Consumer Survey, December 2014

                                                                                         13. Accenture Digital Marketing
                                                                                             Consumer Survey, December 2014

                                                                                         14. IHS Global Insight, 2014

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