Mad maxine executive summary

The Automotive Experience Lab by Good Rebels 1

www.different-spin.com/womenMad Maxine - Does Automotive Fail Women?2

Foreword

“I expect you’ll want to go home and consult your husband”. So said a car dealer to a divorced, high net-worth businesswoman, about to spend £30,000 on a year-old, premium convertible. Part of a conversation between customer and dealer, not in 1982 but in 2014.

Something has to change in the car industry. And change radically. From motor shows to showrooms, the female customer experience is in the most part negative; indeed, the findings of this report claim that the industry is fundamentally failing women, and that they feel disenfranchised by the automotive world.

For those of us who care about cars, who believe in the track record of manufacturers to evolve and adapt to changing behaviours and demands, it is inconceivable that the answer is to sit back and do nothing.

At Goodwood, we are passionate about automotive innovation, working with manufacturers and motoring enthusiasts since the inception of the Festival of Speed in 1993. The arrival of the Moving Motor Show in 2010 gave us a new, privileged opportunity to work alongside the public and industry together, engaging in discussions around the consumer.

To complement the experiential journey, we have sought the best market intelligence and data-driven insight on a significant scale; to help us all understand our audience better.

To that end, this year we have partnered with Good Rebels, whose automotive experience innovation lab, Different Spin, conducts insights projects on the issues we know matter to you and your customers. We are pleased, therefore, to present the latest Different Spin research project, focused entirely on female car buyers: what are they looking for, how do they view the buying process? And what do they feel about the ownership experience?

Why are women such an important demographic? Why should manufacturers single them out as a group? And why should the industry pay attention to this report?

In the UK, women are expected to own 60 per cent of all personal wealth by 2025. From the unparalleled sample of 48,345 UK women surveyed by Different Spin, the deeper dive survey of 719 women and the panel of 68 women, the results are staggering. This report gives you a comprehensive, unique insight into a crucial demographic, but one finding is worth particular mention: 90 per cent of the women questioned would not visit a car dealership without a male partner, male relation or male friend.

It’s time we all looked for a revolution in the female consumer experience of automotive. We hope this report will whet your appetite, as it has ours at Goodwood, to look outside the familiar industry constraints for new solutions to support your female customers.


ApproachThis project is a ‘state of the automotive nation’, understanding the total female experience of automotive. To dig deeply into the subject, our methodology has borrowed from ‘design thinking’, a human-centred approach to innovation that combines analytic and creative processes. Yes we analysed large volumes of data using statistically significant samples. But we also used our intuition to engage with the women who participated in our research. We recognised patterns and understood concepts that are emotionally meaningful as well as functional. We enabled our participants to express themselves through techniques beyond the traditional survey.

Nobody wants to run an organisation on feeling, intuition, and inspiration alone, but an over-reliance on the rational and the analytical is just as risky. Design thinking provides an integrated third way.

We have spent 3 months running an ‘Experience Lab’, immersing ourselves in the reality of the end-consumer experience, in this case four segments of women:

• Millennials

• Mothers

• Professionals

• Empty-nesters

This has allowed us to clearly understand the need states of the female consumer when it comes to automotive and get a robust view of where the sector is delighting and dismaying female consumers.


Experience Lab methodology

During the 3-month Experience Lab we used a variety of techniques to get under the skin of this topic in an unprecedented way. We integrated quantitative analysis of data with in-depth qualitative analysis via open-ended surveys, audience panels and interviews.

1. Automotive purchasing and behavioural data Sample size: 48,345 UK women

2. Deep dive survey Sample size: 719 UK women

3. Hark research panel Sample size: 68 panel members

4. One-to-one interviews Sample size: 12 in-depth interviews

We partnered with Mumsnet and Reevoo to reach their consumer panels of women to conduct the deep dive survey. Survey participants spanned a cross-section of the UK, including region, age, family types and social-economic group.

All data sources include representation from, and can be segmented into, the following demographic groups:

• Empty Nesters Female, aged 45-64 with children aged 21+

• Millennials Female, aged 19-34

• Mothers Female, aged 18-64 with children under 21

• Above average earning professionals (Professionals) Female, employed, personal income of £32,001+


Experience Lab tasksIn order to get beyond the data, we asked our Experience Lab members to carry out a series of creative tasks including:

• Writing a love letter to an auto brand

• Writing hate mail to an auto brand

• Visualising their shortlisting process

• Uploading or creating a visualisation of the experience of dealerships

• Evaluating car advertising

More detailed information on methodology and data sources is found in the Appendix on page 92.


Executive summary, experience is everything

In today’s connected world consumer experience is your brand. Your brand is defined, not by a marketing team or agency, but by how people experience it.

Our study shows unequivocally what we think the industry has known instinctively for some time; women are disenfranchised by the automotive industry.

The picture is a nuanced one. There are elements of the experience that delight and dismay the female consumer in equal measure. We explore both sides in this report.

Parts of the consumer experience are so broken that they are tarnishing the entire female perception and experience of the industry. Marketing, dealership and service experiences are disproportionately exasperating and are driving a wedge between women and automotive as a whole:

• 90% of the female consumers surveyed would not visit a car dealership without a male partner, male family member or male friend

• 56% said they felt patronised by car advertising

• 34% believe that no car brand understands women

Some of the stories shared by the members of our Experience Lab will make you chuckle, some will make you wince and some will make you downright angry.

Did you know? In the UK alone, women are expected to own 60% of all personal wealth by 20251. You already know what an important demographic women are. There are great initiatives underway in some major automotive players; the problem is that these iterations are not radically transforming the female consumer experience.

How is the automotive industry, ripe for disruption, going to tap into this potential? Will traditional OEMs develop experiences that are capable of connecting powerfully with the female market without diminishing their value to men? Or will it take a bold new entrant (from Silicon Valley or beyond?) to finally create a delightful experience for every female car buyer?

It is time to stop iterating and start innovating. It is time for a consumer experience revolution in automotive.

1Source: Centre for Economics and Business Research


ContentsForeword 2

Approach 3

Experience Lab methodology 4

Executive summary, experience is everything 6

Introduction 9

Brand experience 13

Favourite car brands 14

What makes a favourite? 15

Least favourite car brands 16

What makes a least favourite? 17

Do car brands get women? 18

Mini and ‘gendering’ 19

Even women stereotype women 20

Does car advertising work? 20

Women don’t think car advertising is for them 21

What ads do women love? 22

What type of ads do women dislike? 23

TV ads are struggling to be memorable 25

Buying experience 26

New consumer journey model 27

Trigger points 29

Scoping 30

Inspiration 31

Hardcore research 31

Price comparison 32

Validation 33

Test drive 33

Purchase 34

Sources of information and advice 34

What are women looking for in a car? 35

Substance over styling 36

Reliability 36

Size and space 37

Performance 38

A bit of character 38

Room for emotional connection 39


Dealership experience 40

The dealership in the car buying process 40

The role of the dealership 42

Importance of the test drive 43

Dealership for showrooming 43

A new kind of showroom experience 44

Dealership for negotiations 45

Dealership to build confidence 45

Are women ready for a full end-to-end online experience? 46

Case study: BMW Retail Online 46

What do women really feel about the dealership experience? 47

What do women hate about dealerships? 49

6 dealership commandments 49

1. Thou shalt not make wild assumptions 49

2. Thou shalt not make me feel like a small child 50

3. Thou shalt not direct all conversation to my husband 51

4. Thou shalt not look at my children with fear in thine eyes 51

5. Thou shalt not direct me straight to the family cars 52

6. Thou shalt listen to my needs 52

Going the extra mile really pays off 56

Ownership experience 59

Servicing and maintenance 59

Little things = big difference 61

From ownership to advocacy 61

The recipe for success 63

From advocacy to loyalty 64

Surpassing ownership expectations 65

Forming an emotional connection 65

How to earn a customers’ long-term loyalty 67

Customer experience for service-based companies 68

What women want 71

But what does being customer-centric really mean? 73

Experience Innovation 74

Creating a delightful consumer experience 76

Ripe for disruption 76

1. Complex experiences 76

2. Broken trust 76

3. Redundant intermediaries 76

Don’t understand, empathise 77

Do one thing 78

Download the full report for £250+VAT www.different-spin.com/women


Face it. Automotive has a problem. In today’s connected world, consumer experience is your brand and our research shows women are disenfranchised by the auto industry.

CAR BUYING

OWNERSHIPDEALERSHIP

CAR B

RAND

It is essential that auto brands develop product, service and experience that demonstrates true empathy with ‘women like me’. Stop iterating, start innovating. It is time for a consumer experience revolution.

BUY THE FULL REPORT AT DIFFERENT-SPIN.COM/WOMEN SOURCES: DIFFERENT SPIN @ GOOD REBELS EXPERIENCE LAB, MUMSNET,

REEVOO, GLOBALWEBINDEX.

Different Spin the automotive experience innovation lab from GoodRebels.com. In association with Goodwood.

OF WOMEN INVOLVED IN BUYING A NEW FAMILY CAR WITH THEIR PARTNER ARE EQUALLY OR MAINLY RESPONSIBLE FOR RESEARCH, PLANNING AND DECISION-MAKING.

DISSATISFIED

SATISFACTORYBAD

Yes No Don’t Know

PatronisingForgettable BoringRealistic Make assumptionsabout families

CAR BRANDS UNDERSTAND VERY STEREOTYPICAL WOMEN. NOT ALL WOMEN, NO. THEY’RE VERY GENERALISED IN THE WAY OF IT BEING ‘ALL GIRLS LIKE SMALL CARS, PINK STEERING WHEELS...’EMMA, 22

THE TOP PRIORITIES WHEN BUYING A CAR

WOMEN THINK CAR ADVERTS ARE...

WHAT WOMEN SAY ABOUT CAR DEALERS

WOMEN’S FEELINGS ABOUT OWNING A CAR

GOOD

41%

FUEL

ECO

NOMY

45%

RELIA

BILIT

Y

57%

PRIC

E

0%

BECA

USE

IT’S

PI

NKMAKE ME FEEL GROWN UP - WELL SPEC’D AND SENSIBLE BUT POWERFUL.LEIGH, 46

TRADITIONAL AND FORWARD THINKING, RELIABLE AND STYLISH, AFFORDABLE AND INSPIRING.FAYE, 24

OF WOMEN WOULD NOT VISIT A CAR DEALERSHIP WITHOUT A MAN

WOMEN ARE 3 TIMES MORE LIKELY TO SAY THEY HAD AN

IN A DEALERSHIP THAN AN

Mad maxine executive summary

Automotive

Transcript of Mad maxine executive summary