The salience of UX in modern car ownership: Part one
For designers, makers, thinkers; particularly those passionate about mobility the past year has proved to be one of tension. With the pressure that comes with a continued downward trend in new car sales against the removal of social stigmas surrounding electric vehicles; scooters, bikes, and cars alike. When you consider the various options and costs of owning a vehicle, it becomes clear that the value of modern car ownership is quantified by the experience of your personal transportation rather than the access to it. Therein lies an insight, that actually new cars don’t get to simply be cars anymore, cars serve to be a full mobility service.
As we have become familiar with personalised experiences with our products and services, we expect this in every area of our lives, including transport. This study begins with the relationships that brands build with their audiences; identifying the tension created by the ever-increasing demands of mainstream culture. The introduction of new technologies such as the mixed reality and voice assistants that are purpose-built for their user have raised the expectations of all brands in the eyes of the user. In short, more of our lives are now experienced through the lens of a brands working to satisfy customers. This digitalisation of our lifestyles has forced brands to fundamentally rethink their marketing and design approaches. The brands that are leveraging modern technology to create relevant experiences are constantly redefining their respective genres. In providing services and offering a lifestyle, not just a product these brands create a beacon that individuals can aspire to and/or align themselves to.
What does this look like in the automotive industry? I hope to bring my perspectives across these two essays. The first a series of insights and thought-starters from my wider final year dissertation thesis and the second to follow as a more visual case study response.
Firstly, relevancy is key. As the sheer amount of choice increases, the capacity for user compromise decreases, therefore more personal customer-to-brand relations become invaluable. When your audience sees value in your product or service beyond the sum of its parts, they have emotionally aligned themselves with the brand. By constantly living out your brand mission an automotive company has the opportunity to remain relevant. For example, the Sweden-based Polestar brand promises to “borrow from tomorrow. Not fifty years from now.”. They are very careful not to alienate their audience by going too far into the future while still encouraging the potential buyer to consider what their next drive, commute, journey looks like in a Polestar. A concept that creates cognitive ease amongst the general public. When dealing with cutting-edge technology it could be easy to lose people, especially if the ideas are complex and highly subject-specific. With so many companies now choosing to go electric, it’s a great time to use their owned communications to create a beacon for early tech adopters.
Secondly, allow for brand agility. Again with the power shift that occurred throughout 2020, brands were starkly reminded that the power belongs to the people. It’s in their interests to genuinely evolve with the ever-changing perspectives of the general public. The earlier discussion surrounding customers' pre-purchase experience evolves further when you consider the post-purchase experience. What does it mean to be inside a car? What is the future of personal transport if I were to borrow from 50 years ahead? Well, it’s hard to look past autonomous mobility which the industry is currently on the cusp of. But this writing would argue that the introduction of untraditional car companies like Uber have led the wider automotive industry to consider alternative ownership and usership models. In a world where you are being driven or vehicles drive themselves, car manufactures have a completely new challenge to face. If we understand that the audience’s perspective of transport is changing then it is necessary to change the way we understand the audience. When revealing Mercedes’s latest vision car, Vera Schmidt, who directs Mercedes-Benz’s advanced user experience explains that the next generation of machines approach humans, not the other way around. This level of anticipation works to enhance the concept of car ownership in both the users and the manufacturers. The intention to link so directly into the lifestyle of a user, in the way that a mobile application achieves, can then be a tangible value proposition. Which added to the familiarity that comes with ownership translates into a holistic view of the future of transport.
Finally, tech simply for tech-sake isn’t enough. Having garnered the scarce attention of the user, then conformed to their motivations, you are in a prime position to communicate. It became clear from an interview with Johnny Budden, AKQA, that first-in-class branded services offer empathic conversations, not monologues. In current B2C relations brands are required to wait on the user until such a time as they need you and to speak only once spoken to, but you are still required to speak. The most important insight is that people really do care, they’re invested in both physical and digital communities narrated by brands. And might I suggest that the opportunity to listen before speaking allows for a more informed response. In the context of car ownership, let’s consider the user's experience as non-verbal brand communication. Picture then ownership as an experience totally built around lifestyle integration that manifests across in and out-of-car touch points. The strength of this is that rather than a brand relying solely on anticipating their audience, they are able to react to the behavioural needs of the user. Where in most cases brands do not have the opportunity for extended periods of exposure, the average commute in the UK is 26 minutes each way, providing ample time for intentional interactions with the user. In addition, the routine nature of driving means the ability to integrate into the users every day. There the influence of big data and emerging technologies like personalised, context-aware voice assistants will define the next generation of car ownership. Technology provides the opportunity for dialogue — our role is to prepare for the users eventual commute? road trip? school run? To be ready to speak when spoken to.
As I conclude this essay, that keyword empathy returns to mind, the simple truth without expiration. Will the automotive industry be quick to express a love and patience for their audience in ways that they haven’t had to previously. Clearly, I think they should and thankfully I believe we are already beginning to see it. Executions such as the KITH for BMW collaboration highlight the search for relevance, while the introduction of Sonos to future Audi models shows the agility required to respond to evolving perspectives. This study urges designers to consider the whole user journey as other areas of their lives become increasingly blended. In an industry that looks to be defined evermore by audience-centricity what does car ownership look like to you? Let’s imagine how that looks and sounds, take pride in creating an empathetic automotive ownership experience!
Thanks for reading, I’ve been Eugene Ekuban, a final year visual communications student at Birmingham’s Institute of Creative Arts, at the time of writing. Stay tuned for part two where I’ll be answering more questions than asking, as well as sharing a case study titled ‘What does travel powered by Google look like?’.
I’d love to hear your thoughts and views on the subject area, feel free to connect with me on Linkedin or email me: eugene.ekuban@outlook.com
Special thanks to Paul Schouten, Nigel Bromley, Paul Ostryzniuk and Johnny Budden who all helped inform this critical debate.
With thanks, God bless. Ekuban, E
