Chinese Automotive Industry: Growing Importance of Customer Experience Management (CEM)

COLOGNE and ESCHBORN, Germany, August 6, 2015 /PRNewswire/ --

• Detecon surveys specialists and managers of 22 automotive companies in China
• CEM processes at work in more than half of the companies
• Still lagging behind in channel integration and consistency and in CEM measurability (KPIs)

Customer experience management (CEM) is steadily growing in importance in the Chinese automotive industry. This is the conclusion of a recent study from Detecon International based on the responses to a survey conducted by the corporate consultants among 26 specialists and managers in 22 automotive companies. It indicates that more than half of the surveyed companies have established comprehensive CEM processes. Many of the plants have their own special CEM teams and utilize IT solutions in support.

The increasing saturation on the Chinese automobile market and the high competitive pressure are forcing operations to take action aimed at securing the sustained loyalty of their customers. "While CEM is not as widespread in China's automotive corporations as in countries like Germany or the USA, its fundamental importance has nevertheless been recognized," noted Torsten Oppel, head of Automotive Practice and a Partner at Detecon Consulting China.

CEM seeks to raise customer satisfaction 

The opinion that CEM is a blend of all of the customer contact points and business transactions is held by 46% of the respondents. About one-third of the companies is convinced that CEM creates customer experiences and that companies must put themselves into customers' shoes for it to be effective.

Over the course of the survey, three primary goals of CEM measures were determined: the highest priority was given to increasing customer satisfaction (27%), followed by strengthening of customer loyalty (25%) and the development of the company brand (18%).

A large number (69%) of the participants in the study indicated that customer experience management is already in use in their companies. Their responses show that 67% have been using CEM methods for more than two years, and in 39% of the cases, such measures have been in place for over three years. Of the automotive companies in which customer experience management has not played a role in the past, 38% are planning to implement CEM programs within the next two years. The other 62% plan to wait another two to three years before taking this step.

Recommendations for action 

Detecon has analyzed the results to determine concrete recommendations for action. A clear CEM strategy taking into account market and technology trends as well as customer viewpoints must be defined, then integrated into the corporate strategy. This type of strategy helps to recognize the most important factors for success and to reveal where shortcomings must be rectified. Moreover, customer experience management must be firmly anchored in the processes and the organization across all of the corporate units. In addition, the exploitation of data from effective channels is significant for the success of CEM. Determining the actual needs of the customers requires the effective use of big data methods that are constantly being updated.

A PDF version from the study "Customer Experience Management in the Automotive Industry in China" is available for downloading at this link: http://www.detecon.com/cemchina

Detecon International GmbH 

Detecon is a leading corporate consulting company operating worldwide; for more than 30 years, it has combined classic management consulting with outstanding technological competence. The focus of its activities is on the field of digital transformation. Detecon's expertise bundles the knowledge from the successful conclusion of management and ICT consulting projects in more than 160 countries. The company is a subsidiary of T-Systems International, the key account brand of Deutsche Telekom.

Contact:
Gerhard Auer
Phone: +49-221-9161-1013