What Women want in Vehicles
The Female Perspective on Cars: Johnson Controls Conducts International Study
When choosing a vehicle, women want design options that offer flexibility, allow them to connect to the outside world and offer more storage space. These are some of the key findings from a study conducted by Johnson Controls in the United States and Europe, in response to the recent women-focused trends and market indicators highlighting the increasing buying power of women. The company will utilize the data to inspire and drive industrial design and new product development that meets the evolving needs of women.
“Today’s women are more autonomous than ever before. As their lives evolve, it’s clear that their vehicles need to transform with them,” said Bill Fluharty, vice president, Global Research and Discovery. “The information gained from this study will help provide the insight that is critical for Johnson Controls to continue creating ingenious automotive interiors that meet the changing needs of female consumers.”
The results from both the United States and Europe were mostly similar. Some research result highlights include:
Women are in transition whether a recent college graduate or a retiree, transition resonated throughout the interviews. Women’s life stages, mind sets and responsibilities are evolving and their vehicles need to transition to address these changes. From the working woman with her mobile office to “mom’s taxi service,” vehicles need to be customized to offer features and products that meet their expanding roles.
Women are connected women of all ages are incredibly connected to technology and depend on the most recent technological advances to feel more connected to their family and friends. For women, technology is more than simply gadgetry and electronics — it offers them the safety, security and convenience they desire.
Women need more storage space women are creating their own storage areas because their vehicles (across most segments) fail to provide them with adequate space. In addition they would prefer to have reconfigurable storage compartments that truly optimize available space.
Women need style the study revealed that women long for greater style in their vehicles and miss the excitement of driving more “fun, non-mom” vehicles.
Women are environmentally conscious women are looking for ways to be environmentally friendly that are convenient to their lifestyle and sensitive to their budget.
Women feel good in their car the vehicle provides a feeling of safety and security, especially when they are alone in their vehicle. They use their commute as a way to take a break and relax. Women have a lot of personal items in their cars, which provide a feeling of being at home, and they wish to have more possibilities to create their interior to get more of the feeling of being at home.
To explore women’s current values, motivations and concerns and to better understand how the female perspective influences interior vehicle needs, Johnson Controls conducted a qualitative research study. A multi-method research approach of individual interviews, duo in-home interviews and focus groups were conducted throughout Chicago, Boston, Germany and the Czech Republic in the fall of 2007.
In addition to interior design insight, the information generated by this study also helped identify and prioritize some of the key criteria that women consider when purchasing a vehicle, including function, safety, style, gas mileage and price.
Johnson Controls’ Consumer Research Group utilizes advanced research methods — such as trend, target group, brand, product interior and concept research — to gain insight into consumer mindsets. The group then translates the gathered market and consumer intelligence for designers and engineers to create product developments that are targeted to the needs of the industry.
BMW tops quality survey, Hummer comes second
Luxury brands have once again dominated an annual U.S. vehicle quality survey conducted by Californian research company Strategic Vision Inc. However, in a surprise result Hummer came second. The results also showed that overall quality in the industry had actually dropped for the first time in four years.
Volkswagen Group, which includes the likes of Audi and Bentley, topped the results for a corporation with a total quality index score of 892 out of 1,000 possible points. GM finished second as a corporation at 867, followed by Ford and Honda, which tied for third at 862. Toyota finished fifth, at the industry average of 860, which had fallen from 864 points last year.
VW, GM and Ford were the only corporations showing improvement in this year’s survey.
Strategic Vision factored in information collected from 20,655 people in the U.S. who had owned a new vehicle for two to three months, and included characteristics such as reliability, dealership experience, styling, interior and exterior design and their overall perception of initial quality.
Interview with the CEO of Flexicar
Hi there…..
Its a little late for me to update about the latest stuff regarding my project, coz yesterday i was busy in my class, and they before yesterday i was busy doing nothing special !
But before it gets too late, i would like to put forward all that happened during the much awaited interview with Monique Conheady – The CEO of Flexicar – on tuesday ( 5th August 2008 ).
Some key points that came out during the interview regarding every minute things about car sharing -
- International experience shows that car sharing tends to work better in congested areas, where ” NO PARKING ZONES” are a common sight.
- Following types of people are their usual Target Customers -
People who already own one car in the family, and need a second car for a particular family member.
City singles ( young people, students, people who live without owning a vehicle )
Businessmen ( Who go to workplace, or urgent meetings on weekdays )
The last category of people are the usual converts to become business members.
- The first car they chose was the Smart ( for 2) because of the its ease of usability, because it matched the urban lifestyle, and because of the 5 star rating in Green vehicle category.
- But people often responded by saying that they can go to all those places where a Smart can go, in the public transport.
- Soon after, the Smart for Four was chosen as the preferred vehicle, until it was discontinued after 2 years due to following reasons – It doesn’t have a standard automatic transmission- and the triptronic wasn’t to everyone’s taste.
- They quickly learnt that people needed a car with good load carrying capacity, for ” Out of town” activities like camping, highway cruising etc, and also for doing cross-city trips without having to use the public transport.
- The company also looked at the standard favorites from Toyota stable – the corolla wagon, echo, Yaris, and the “GREEN” Prius – which to be precise, wasn’t a green car really, and neither it was a good hybrid for the company. It didn’t sport a standard ignition system, which created lot of confusion with the customers – after all – unfamilarity can be nerve-cracking for the occasional users.
- The company also considered the Honda civic hybrid, before finalising on the Honda Jazz.
- One of the many key points that were in the favour of the Jazz, was that it could accomodate a Mountain bike at the rear without having to get rid of the spare wheel.
- Amongst the other vehicles, Subaru Forester was chosen on the basis of customer’s demand – since it was the most commonly driven car by the people, and users felt very comfortable getting adapted to it. Although, point was made that the company would love a hybrid , more economical SUV ( a forester replacement to be exact ) in the future.
- When questioned about the way of approaching the customers – the CEO revealed that they usually conduct an annual survey alongside what they call as – STATISTICAL DESKTOP ANALYSIS – wherein the following key parameters are taken into consideration :
-Areas with high use of public transport.
-Areas with high use of internet usage amongst people.
-Areas of high MIG ( Middle Income group ).
-High population density areas
-Areas with higher dependance on personal vehicles.
Likewise, 5 key areas were chosen initially – Carlton, Fitzroy,Richmond, CBD and St.Kilda.
- Another key point that they made regarding the towing thing – their vehicles are not fitted with tow-bulls, since there isn’t any need for towing.
- Regarding Maintainence – they get rid of their vehicles after their warranty expires, and replace them with new fleet of vehicles. ( say for example – a vehicle comes with 3 year warranty – so its replaced at the end of 3rd year ). – and thereby try to reduce the maintainence cost to bare minimum.
- Regarding Insurance - If the member who has booked the vehicle is at fault, then he / she has to pay the excess amount. So far, only one major accident has been recorded, which is quite phenomenal ! To cover those inevitable scratches and dents which are impossible to pin-point as to who did it, and at what time and what part of the journey, they charge an annual insurance fee from all members.
- Regarding Cleaning – a couple of guys clean the cars on their respective locations once every week where they do the basic stuff like oil change, water change, paint touch-up etc – but in case of detailed cleaning , they take the car to the Car wash. Only 8 cars per day are taken to car wash , at the rate of 1 hour per car, ie. 8 hours total ).
- The cleaners travel in a heavily branded vehicle and thereby doing publicity for the company.
- Only permanent citizens of a city are considered as members, and there are no policies or memberships for tourists / travelers etc.
- The basic difference between the car rental and car sharing companies is that – car rental people want their members to take the vehicle for a longer period,i.e. a week or so, whereas car sharing company doesn’t want that.
- Regading Fuel – they have a fuel card inside every car – and the members can go to BP, Shell etc. and make sure that there is 1/4th tank of fuel inside the tank at the end of every trip.
- Regarding Customer Relations – They have a members manual inside every car which the member is supposed to read before starting on his journey, and in addition to that, they have a column in the journal, and a monthly newsletter for giving polite instructions to their members regarding Fuel usage, Keeping the car clean, and returning it back on time.
- Regarding Publicity – the company initially started the campaign as ” Green alternative” – and it didnt have much of an effect on the population – but they later on changed it to ” Cheap , Green and Easy ” – and thereafter started getting publicity and expanding their customer database.
- Regarding Government’s support – it gave a grant funding of 2,30,000 dollars to the company as a part of their basic infrastructure requirements. Also the Minister of environment went to Boston to study the Car sharing system and gave the funds through a Green House Policy. In addition to this, they provide parking free of charge for car sharing users in key congested areas – which is a huge benefit for the company ! It was like as if the government decided to hold ” TRANSPORTATION” as a key to reduce the greenhouse emissions – wherein till now issues like Water, Electricity had been addressed.
- Regadring the Competitors – only one major competitor exists till date – its the GO GET – which is spreading its wings in Sydney till now. The CEO expressed that competition is very helpful in the promotion of this business coz it promotes the concept of car-sharing- and not anything else – and so it doesn’t matter which company is getting the publicity or larger market share.
- Regarding Company Scale – she was very modest about the fact that there are only 4 full-time employees ( thats including herself ! ) , and one part-time employee, and 2 to 3 casual staff / cleaning staff . They have a fleet of 60 Cars – which are cleaned as per weekly cycle.
- Regaring the Technology – they have a software, which is developed by three people including herself – and is used to run the business – with the help of some IT companies. Then there is a hardware which is sourced from the tracking industry and used to receive wireless signals for transmitting the data. Lastly, there is that SWIPE CARD which acts as the final input device.
- Regarding the Pets - right now no pets are allowed inside the car – but given that the Pet ownership is on a rise in the city , and those are their future target members – she would like to have a car which can have a pet carrying component.
- Regarding Future Ambitions - again the humble and modest Monique was excited to put forward that in 10 years from now, she sees her business expanding through major potential spots in Australia and possible New Zealand – and her effort is to make Car sharing an inseparable part of the city’s public transport system – still retaining its significance !
The RMIT Experience
They say that “the opportunity is often taken care of; the time is generally what is taken for granted! ”. That is how I would be describing my experience till now; starting from the day I first came to know about doing my diploma project at RMIT. I knew I stood a chance for a diploma project in at least one of the many automobile companies, given the requirements of both the companies and the students. But what I didn’t know was that the rumor was going to be true. As I was approaching the end of the 4th semester, there was a news floating in the NID campus about 5 students from my discipline (Transportation and Automobile Design) were going to get an opportunity to go to RMIT as a part of an exchange program. In fact, until 3 days prior to leaving India, this rumor never seemed to end, and had transformed into a distant dream. The reason was the horrendous visa procedures that we had to undergo, which thankfully I did, owing to lots of patience (and off course, money as well). But more about the visa stuff later.
So as the days went by, there was no news about RMIT, neither from their side, nor from NID’s. All I did, was to submit a 5 page draft portfolio to NID (they say they required it, whereas I had to submit my portfolio thrice after that for many reasons, mostly because they said they required it!!!) and wait and wait and wait. In between, I started thinking twice about whether I really wanted to commit to the decision of doing my diploma project abroad, that too an university sponsored industrial design project, and not really going for a home-bred industry sponsored project. Off course, I realized that both of these options hold their own merits and de-merits, it was going to be my decision (and my parents, who supported me morally and financially, and yeah, more than anyone else, the people at Australian high commission, New Delhi, who were going to play a very vital role in this journey, more about that later!)
So one fine day, the proceedings started, and felt like they are never ending. Now everyone who was involved in the RMIT exchange started feeling that it was too late. But I, along with other students, where already committed to take a plunge and grab this opportunity, since it also involved great amount of planning in advance, and yes, financial planning as well (like booking air tickets, including return journeys, IELTS exam, etc). I had no idea that the visa procedures were such a headache. None of us had any proper information about what class of visa exactly we were supposed to apply under, it was just a group decision, and we kept on filling those millions of forms and taking ‘n’ numbers of photocopies of the documents on the way. I was going through a series of mixed emotions during this time, one thing I was certain of, that it was going to be a very tight finish to the ridiculous visa proceedings, and that made me more aware about the timeline, something which I think all the people involved from the administration department of the college had taken for granted. But we had one guy always supporting us at every step, and shall I say, it was Mr. Liam Fennessy who single handedly guided us through all the steps, and also gave the necessary motivation to everyone of us, and also stretching the timeline to its maximum in order to give us that extra bit of time, so that we can get our visa’s safely. Where the people at NID seemed helpless, he managed to reach till each one of us directly via his daily emails, and that really saved a lot of time and money, I must say. Off course, the international programs manager, Catherine, was a real help in coordinating between Praveen Nahar and Liam. The guy behind this exchange program from NID’s side was undoubtedly praveen, who worked in the background without letting us know about the proceedings.
The anxiety grew and became unbearable as July arrived, when we knew that we were going to fly from Mumbai International Airport on the 7th of July, and it was the visa that was the only major uncertain thing till then. At one point of time, I even went to the travel agent to cancel the ticket, if not, at least postpone it to an indefinite date. Off course, I still had to do some last moment shopping, which included a large suitcase (I would not be buying one if I need not be flying, right?) and woolen wear (because Ahmedabad and Melbourne have contrasting weather) and I had been calling the visa office and hearing just one answer everyday – “ The decision has been taken on your visa, and it should reach you very soon.” (Later I came to know that the decision that they were talking about could have been easily a negative one, which means NO VISA. Just imagine a situation like that, specially after waiting for the visa for over a month or so). The worst part about the whole thing was that I could not go home to meet my family, and was stuck up in the college at Ahmedabad. I was prepared to go to Mumbai and meet my family directly at the airport if possible, which could have been really sad, since I hadn’t been to my home since last 7 months.
Thankfully, I was lucky enough to receive my visa on time. By that I mean I got a last minute chance to go home and stay with my family for ONE full day! I did the last minute shopping and rushed home only to find that there was a huge rush of relatives and friends flooding into my home to wish me luck and I was really happy to see that it was them, and not really me, who were excited that I was going to Australia. The day ended with me not getting to sleep at home, not getting to eat at home (since I was too busy talking with everyone!), and next day I had to travel again to Bombay. It happened so that in those five successive days after I received my visa (i.e 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th ), I was in five different cities; viz Ahmedabad, Aurangabad, Mumbai, Singapore City, Melbourne ! Statistics like those would even rival those of the Prime Minister or the President of any country!
This was the end of the first part………….and what follows next is the actual action !!!!!
Mission RMIT kicked off in a rather unusual fashion, with me arriving at the Mumbai airport, and i didnt even know who all are exactly going to travel with me, since everyone was dying to get the Visa till the last moment.
