The Future of Connected Vehicles: Deliver Personalized Experiences Faster

The Future of Connected Vehicles: Deliver Personalized Experiences Faster

Create personalized, contextually correct experiences for drivers quicker using connected vehicle data.

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The automotive industry is experiencing a major revolution as connected vehicles become more prominent in the market. Research shows that by 2030, connected cars will represent 95% of new vehicles sold.

Connected vehicle data has the potential to redefine the driving experience. Yet, the industry struggles to establish the capabilities to deliver in-car experiences and offers that drivers expect - and demand - from connected cars.

To stay ahead of the curve, automotive OEMs need to integrate all of their connected vehicle, driver, service, and retail data - from any source - to personalize driver experiences, in-car offers, and over-the-air (OTA) product and feature upgrades. The bottom line: data is at the root of it all.

In this blog:

How to make connected vehicle data work for you
Key considerations for connected vehicle data
Deliver immersive experiences with connected vehicle data
Create differentiated in-vehicle experiences with Salesforce

How to make connected vehicle data work for you

Data powers connected cars to new levels of innovation and personalization. The vast amount of data generated by these vehicles represents a wealth of information that can be used to transform ‌driving experiences. It's estimated that by 2030, each connected vehicle will generate 25 gigabytes of data per hour - that's the same amount of data it takes to stream 578 hours of music.

With so much data on hand, how can you make it work for you?

First, start with a single source of truth for all your data. An automotive customer relationship management (CRM) platform that integrates connected vehicle data can bridge the gap between driver data and vehicle data. With all your data in one place, you can effectively use it to create real-time, personalized experiences and offers. It also helps with instant vehicle health monitoring so you can catch vehicle reliability issues before they manifest. The ability to provide these kinds of experiences and monitoring helps to increase brand loyalty.

Once you have a CRM in place, you need to get the data into the system so it's accessible to those who need it and the artificial intelligence (AI) required to support an OEM's millions of vehicles in operation.

Next, make sure your data is consistent and accurate. Harmonizing the data and confirming there are no duplicates is critical, especially when so much data is involved. This includes rationalizing all the different ways a driver might appear in the system. For example, Joe Smith might show up as "J. Smith" in one system and "Joe Smith" in another. Having consistent, accurate data will allow you to create always-up-to-date dynamic profiles of the driver and the vehicle.

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Key considerations for connected vehicle data

It's important that the data is accessible to all those across the automotive ecosystem. Automotive partnerships span OEMs, dealerships, finance, service, and marketing. Everyone in the ecosystem can benefit from connected vehicle data to delight the driver. The data can be used for service alerts, upsell opportunities, or new feature trials.

With so many people and processes involved, data security and trust is a key factor. Implementing strong security measures will protect all information and allow all parties involved to confidently use the data for their specific purposes. This also helps meet the requirements of laws like the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA). These statutes establish policy and protocol for consumer privacy. In the automotive ecosystem, success hinges on having trust in your data and in each stakeholder.

Let's take a look at some of the possibilities of how connected vehicle data can be used to create personalized driver experiences.

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Deliver immersive experiences with connected vehicle data

By making the most of the abundance of connected vehicle data, automakers can create in-vehicle experiences that are personalized to the individual needs and preferences of each driver.

For drivers, connected car data is what helps their car instantly recognize them and where they are. With this information, the vehicle can offer uniquely personalized recommendations. This can include making suggestions about where to park or offering free trials for parking assist features when they are in the city.

In addition to these features, connected vehicles can also transform the in-car entertainment experience. Drivers can already stream their favorite music and passengers can watch movies or play games on the car's infotainment system. Now, drivers can get even more personalized options. For example, with integrated household data and trip data from the navigation system, instead of just watching a movie, a driver could get recommendations for a trial of a new family-friendly entertainment app before a long road trip.

From a service perspective, connected vehicles can automate many routine tasks right from the dashboard. For instance, the vehicle could inform the driver that a specific tire shows greater wear and needs replacement, or that the entire set of tires requires replacement. It can infer this because the vehicle is transmitting tire speed back to the OEM. When tire speed increases at a fixed MPH, it means the tire diameter is getting smaller, reflecting tire wear. This capability saves drivers time and ensures their car is always in top condition.

A chip runs every feature on connected vehicles, and each chip generates data that is fed into a telematics control unit (TCU). Each vehicle has multiple TCUs supporting various systems, including the engine, navigation, and infotainment. Previously, updates to cars required a trip to the service center. Now, the OEM can send OTA updates to the TCUs. This means drivers can have their vehicles updated or purchase new features without having to go back to the dealer.

These experiences offer a glimpse into the future of mobility, where vehicles aren't just a mode of transportation. They're personalized companions that add convenience to drivers' everyday journeys.

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Create differentiated in-vehicle experiences with Salesforce

With their ability to generate and transmit comprehensive connected car data, connected vehicles are transforming the automotive industry. This data has the potential to fundamentally change the driving experience. It allows automakers to create real-time, contextually correct interactions with the driver that cater to their unique needs and preferences.

The Salesforce Connected Vehicle app, part of the Salesforce Automotive Cloud, equips automakers with the capabilities needed to unlock the full potential of connected vehicle data. We developed a "bring your own data" approach, partnering with Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Qualcomm to ensure automakers have the flexibility to integrate all of their connected vehicle data, customer data, vehicle service data, and retail data from any source.

The future of driving starts now, with features including:

• Actionable telematics framework: Monitor and act on comprehensive telematics data in real-time. This helps improve driver safety by automatically alerting drivers of a potential safety issue.
• Vehicle status monitoring: Track and monitor key performance metrics, like vehicle condition, fuel status, engine condition, and more in one platform.
• Remote vehicle actions: Use pre-built processes and workflows for common actions, like locking vehicle doors or sending alerts to the driver via the vehicle console.
• Vehicle data visualization: Provide better in-car experiences, like remote assistance, and surface relevant new features and services to consumers at the right time.
• Real-time interactions: Use AI and automation to facilitate monitoring and instant communications with drivers.

The Salesforce Connected Vehicle app helps automakers deliver innovation for their software-defined vehicles quicker than building it on their own. It empowers automakers to build the driver's confidence in the vehicle with real-time monitoring and personalized vehicle health communications. Delivering personalized offers and experiences that are contextually correct increases driver satisfaction.

The future of mobility is here. With the ‌Salesforce Connected Vehicle app and the expertise of our partners, automakers can seize new opportunities and deliver exceptional experiences for drivers and passengers.

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Vicki is Salesforce's Automotive Industry Advisor with over 30 years of experience, including more than 18 years in automotive executive roles. A former Honda CXO and Salesforce customer, Vicki joined Salesforce post-retirement as an Industry Advisor. At Honda, Vicki held executive leadership... Read More roles in general management, sales, marketing, technical service and aftersales, and automotive product planning. Vicki also held manufacturing and GM executive roles with a Tier 1 supplier. Vicki holds a B.S. in Chemical Engineering from Drexel University and an MBA from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.