In today’s volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous world, we are facing unexpected impediments. And manufacturers are one of the most negatively impacted industries. Due to plant shutdown, Auto manufacturers alone in India incurred a loss of close to three billion dollars, and it continues.[i]
David Nabarro, WHO special envoy for COVID-19, stated, “I believe that the world will have to learn to live with Corona in our midst, and that means being on a constant defense everywhere as we do with other infectious diseases.” [ii]
Businesses that want to survive and win are looking out for avenues to create a system of disaster-response infrastructure. They understand that most customers are not loyal to a brand; they are loyal to their needs of that brand. “Needs” such as quality, prompt response, timely services, value for money, or priority privilege, and so forth. Organizations are finding ways to reach their customers and reassure their peace of mind.
To offer initial diagnostic service call, Consumer Priority Service Corporation, an international provider of repair and extended warranty services for the consumer electronics and appliance industries, has partnered with Zoom.[iii] Warrantywise, a British auto extended Warranty selling company, is now allowing their dealers to sell extended warranty policies from home.[iv] Almost all auto companies are offering an extension to their policies that are about to expire soon.
Is that enough to keep up the brand performance? How do the leaders ensure the safety of their employees and customers and still secure the supply chain efficiency? How can they manage near-term revenue and cash expenses while satisfying endless customer needs at the same time? Can sales be achieved as a by-product of responsive, reliable, and reassuring warranty services offered to the customers who are dealing with much uncertainty?
Dealing with such a situation, the leaders must equip their companies with a pandemic-response capability by building a robust digital infrastructure with the help of Aftermarket 4.0.
So, what is Aftermarket 4.0? It is an Aftermarket services version of Industry 4.0. Aftermarket 4.0 is an infrastructure and practice that includes cyber-physical systems, IIoT, cloud computing, big data, and predictive analytics to instill a culture and trend of automation and data exchange in the operations. The benefits are enormous, such as:
1. Data Access across the supply chain
2. Improved safety, output, and satisfaction for employees, workers, and customers
3. Enhanced customization based on customer and operational needs and different services offered
4. Improved productivity and business output
To enable these changes as a leader, you must follow the five points described below:
1. An Intelligent Warranty Management System: First thing first, all manufacturers that are in the business of warranty must go for a seamless Warranty Management system to automate complex human-led processes and decisions. Manufacturers must get rid of all their age-old on-premise solutions. They must aim for an intelligent cloud-based system that seamlessly binds different organizational aspects, both internally and externally.
2. Building AI Base: Leaders must consider the capability of the warranty management system to working seamlessly with near real-time data received over IoT and uses artificial intelligence to automate more decisions that were otherwise needed collaborative human interference.
3. Enabling Chatbot: By consulting and evaluating the historical customer queries, the AI system can identify and present various patterns of problems vs. solutions. Chatbots, backed by extensive data, can especially be very useful in responding to customers’ queries practically instantaneously. This investment towards the Chatbot can save the enormous human hours spent otherwise. And, at the same time, reassure customers with prompt and significant responses.
4. Prescriptive Maintenance: It is no longer enough to predict the failures alone. The ‘Smart Manufacturing’ demands ‘Prescription’ along with the ‘Prediction’. Prescriptive maintenance not only tells you that a problem is likely to occur but also shows you multiple response scenarios to choose from. By utilizing artificial intelligence and machine learning methods, perspective maintenance advises the technicians on what to do and how to perform a repair.
5. DIY Friendly products and solutions: The last step towards building the eco-system of robust customer satisfaction is to enable and offer more ‘Do-It-Yourself’ activities on maintenance for your customers. Encouraging your customers to use the mobile app version of your warranty management system to scan parts receipts/invoices to the appropriate places is a great way to replace the paper trail for the repair history, helping you to keep the warranty intact.
The clock is ticking. We are in unprecedented times. Nevertheless, there are many possibilities, but are any of them being practiced? And where do you get such a futuristic system? Reach out to us at [email protected] today. We got you covered!
References:
[i] https://www.deccanherald.com/business/business-news/coronavirus-impact-auto-industry-to-suffer-loss-of-rs-21000-crore-due-to-plant-closures-817266.html
[ii] https://www.indiatoday.in/india/story/coronavirus-new-reality-we-will-have-to-learn-to-live-with-it-who-official-david-nabarro-1660190-2020-03-27
[iii] https://www.cpscentral.com/consumer-priority-service-partners-with-zoom/
[iv] https://cardealermagazine.co.uk/publish/warrantywise-can-help-dealers/188765
