Jump On the Automotive Commerce Bandwagon with Order Management

When I started looking for my next car, the questions did not stop at whether to buy an internal combustion engine (ICE), an electric vehicle (EV), or a hybrid. I wanted to be a well-informed buyer before I made my final decision. I wanted to not only know all the information needed to make the optimal car selection but also wanted a hassle-free buying experience that included a future maintenance and services plan that works well for me. This got me thinking about automotive commerce and how businesses can leverage order management to help improve the car-buying experience for their customers.

We hear a lot about automotive commerce. This concept of buying automotives, parts, and accessories is nothing new. What has changed is the buying, processing, and follow-through journeys for the customer and the selling channels for the manufacturers and dealers. Let’s start with a one-sentence definition of automotive commerce. It entails all the end-to-end customer journeys, supply chain processes, tasks, and activities that go into selling, renting, and maintaining vehicles and automotive equipment.

Traditionally, customers would browse through paper catalogs or go to a physical dealership with limited inventory to browse for and buy cars. Modern customers have become more savvy. Ninety-five percent of car shoppers rely on online resources to gather information, bypassing dealerships as their starting point. They expect online research and comparison tools, broader and configurable product assortments, clear pricing that eliminates the negotiation process, flexible financing, self-served test drive scheduling, and delivery or pickup options.

So, where does order management fit into this? Concentrating on these areas will provide customers, manufacturers, and dealers with an enhancement of buy-to-sustain processes.

AI-infused Customer Service Chatbots and Virtual Agents

Chatbots have seen an enormous increase and adoption in the last three to five years. The chatbot market is set to expand at a remarkable 23.3% annually due to increasing demand for 24x7x365 customer services and a need to reduce operational costs. Chatbots accelerate response times, delivering answers faster on average and reducing human resource availability for live customer communication.

Empower and supplement the automotive customer service representative team with chatbots and virtual agents to help provide instant information to customers when they’re enquiring about vehicle details, comparative insights, configured pricing, financing options, test drive appointments, delivery/pickup options, and order status.  With 74% of online users preferring interacting with chatbots when looking for answers to straightforward questions, it has become critical for businesses to respond quickly and efficiently to customer questions.

According to HubSpot, 40% of consumers have no preference when it comes to engaging with a chatbot or a human for help, as long as they receive the support they need including services like scheduling for service and repair requests, information on replacement parts and warranty, and assistance with future maintenance schedules.

Managing Inventory Levels

Auto manufacturers and dealers are seeing a rise in days of supply. Nationwide, days of supply is averaging between 75 and 85 days that include domestic and international auto brands, and it’s trending upwards. As this industry expands with newer auto players and a larger dealer footprint, manufacturers closely track their manufacturing schedules and inventory balance positions while dealers look at efficiently managing product assortments and reducing overstocking in their showrooms and warehouses.

Empower manufacturers to improve their manufacturing operations by managing inventory levels, providing forecasting accuracy which can help optimize production fulfillment based on cost and geography. Automate the supply chain process that streamlines regulatory approvals and documentation that would ultimately result in reducing delivery times. Enable dealers to make data-driven decisions by providing them accurate supply and demand picture and flexibility to effectively manage, track, and audit their stock.

Dealer Integrations 

Seamless integration with suppliers and dealers to provide visibility to their orders and flexibility in managing their business processes is a key aspect to efficiently managing and providing proactive and enhanced customer experience. Dealers risk losing 37% of online leads through missed follow-up with a need for a seamless web-to-buy customer journey.

Empower the enterprise and its extended fulfillment network to leverage the capabilities of order management as an order and inventory hub that orchestrates and manages their order and optimizes inventory. Enable order modifications and processing flexibility for dealers to cater to their customers in real time. Provide visibility to order tracking and history that enables them to better serve their customers.

Maintenance and Repair

Manufacturers, dealers, and local service shops alike have a huge opportunity and incentive to provide a higher quality of post-purchase services and repeat customers. According to Infinity business insights, the Global Automotive Repair and Maintenance Service Market Size is projected to reach outstanding growth with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 7.6% during 2024-2032.

Empower dealers and maintenance service providers to follow through with customers after the sale. Enable capabilities for services related to vehicle maintenance, repairs, and servicing. This includes proactive customer communication and monitoring for routine maintenance and diagnostics, informing about recalls and repairs, and recommendations on upgrades and new and latest accessories.

In summary, order management systems are well aligned to play a crucial role in these areas by enhancing the overall automotive commerce experience through improved customer service, efficient inventory management, seamless and automated integrations, and following through with exceptional future maintenance and support services.