David Morton, Sales and Solutions Director at Arvato CRM Solutions, spoke to AM Online about how new technologies stand to improve the customer journey for automotive brands.
Car sales are increasingly influenced by technology, with smart technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) and automation transforming how businesses provide customer services to drivers.
Recent research has revealed that 62 per cent of businesses in the sector consider outstanding customer service as a key differentiator in a competitive marketplace. And there is now growing recognition that these new technologies are set to become one of the biggest drivers of the highest-quality customer experience.
Crucially, these digital tools present the automotive sector with an opportunity to overcome a key customer experience challenge – the loss of engagement following a sale. Brands that can capitalise on this innovation and offer a consistent and personalised service to their customers will in turn be rewarded with higher levels of customer retention.
In his piece, David explains how the sector can embrace this technology and transform the brand experience, providing customers with a personalised, seamless offering.
He says: “A key application of these technologies will provide a single view of the customer. Through automation, data can be continually collated from every customer touchpoint and integrated into one unified customer relationship management (CRM) system. These platforms will enable agents working in a brand’s contact centre or employees on dealership forecourts to access a spectrum of information about a customer, from their buying intentions to previous enquiries.
“We see a future of people and technology working side-by-side.
“As more automotive businesses recognise the importance of improving the quality of customer service across an increasing number of channels, the human element of experience must remain at the forefront. Roles will change as more transactional work, such as simple queries and FAQs are picked-up by more self-intuitive platforms, such as chatbots integrated with AI. But people will continue to play an essential role in strategic areas such as lead generation and customer retention and to deliver the detailed, hands-on advice that many car buyers seek.”
Read the full article here.
