Automaker investment and engagement with so-called “new mobility” services is on the rise, as more organisations view the endeavors as data-gathering exercises for a possible future without car ownership. However, the user experience (UX) of these new services is often an afterthought, particularly for car-sharing services.
A new report from the In-vehicle UX (IVX) group at Strategy Analytics, “Most Consumers Satisfied with Mobility Services, but Not All Models are Winners” surveying current and former mobility service users in the US, Western Europe, and China, has found that despite some tempered enthusiasm among car owners in Europe, consumer satisfaction is strong and wide-ranging. In particular, satisfaction with ride-hailing was especially strong in China.
Key report findings include:
- In contrast to consumers in the US and China, no “new mobility” offering stood out in Western Europe. Enthusiasm for these services remains more muted in Western Europe than elsewhere, particularly among vehicle owners.
- Current and former LeShare users in China are far more likely to recommend this service to others compared to similar services. Though a majority of EVCard users are likely to promote the service in China, without changes to the UX, their relatively large segment of critics will hold them back.
- For those who already own a vehicle, there is a clear hierarchy among car-sharing services in the US: the free-floating model of Car2Go appears to be winning the space, as Zipcar stays a close second due to limitations with its app and station-based service model. BMW’s ReachNow service appears to be losing out, likely due to its long-lingering app performance issues.
- However, this car-sharing hierarchy appears to be reversed in Europe, where BMW-based DriveNow holds an edge over Car2Go. As Daimler and BMW merge their mobility services, each provider must leverage lessons learnt in all ventures and regions to improve the UX of all future offerings.
Derek Viita, senior analyst and report author commented, “For any service that wishes to improve their perception among users, we urge a greater focus on UX-centric factors important to travelers, particularly the usability of the service itself via the app, the on-board experience, or the availability model.”
Added Chris Schreiner, director, Syndicated Research UXIP: “With upcoming expansions and mergers, services that deprioritise or ignore key UX-centric factors affecting transport choice will likely struggle.”
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