Volvo Becoming Transparent and Listening

March 6, 2007
Filed Under Branding/Buzz/Viral, Change Management, Customer Experience |

I’ve been car shopping - mostly to just get down to my short list for now. I’d like to point out one brand seems to be moving in the right direction with edgy new styling and design and marketing transparency - Volvo. A short summary:

Launched Volvo XC60 Concept site before Detroit Auto Show. It shows Steve Mattin, Volvo Cars’ Design Director, talking about the evolving Volvo DNA and innovation. It has an educational frame - which is a positive thing.
The site is very open. Many of the videos have been downloaded and received thousands of views on places like Youtube, Autoblog, etc.
Launching the XC60 Concept sit created enough of a stir for people to create drawings of what a new S40 might look like with the same design principles, this got a few good blog postings. One post even stated that the new S40 “may grow to be 3-Series fighter“.
The only thing I’d change about the concept site would be to add a direct text feedback form instead of the vague questionnaire that is on the site. Most people are passionate about their car opinions. Somewhere in that potential mountain of text would have been potential competitive advantages so it’s a lost opportunity.

On many current Volvo models the inside cabin rearview mirror could be mounted higher and adjustable. I’d like to see a day when my two o’clock position is not obstructed by mirrors that hang too low and that all cars have at least 40 inches of headroom. They should also use the space between the seat and the floor effectively when a driver wants it - the current Volkswagen GTI is an example of a car that does this quite well. Hopefully Steve Mattin and his team are monitoring the blogosphere, if not, they should be. If Steve or anyone on his team would like to contact me, I’d be happy to go into more detail on this issue.

Also, while at that dealer, they told me about the new C30 that will be arriving soon, I’m on a list for a test drive focus program that they will be conducting. The next few years should be quite interesting for Volvo.

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One Response to “Volvo Becoming Transparent and Listening”

Volvo C30 Designer Blog and More On Listening on March 11th, 2007 10:22 pm

[...] more note on Volvo, as I mentioned last week they are doing so many things right at present but it’s clear that thy need to close the loop by actively listening to and acknowledging [...]

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