What
Future Does Telematics Hold for Diagnostic Companies?
By Charlie Gorman - November, 2013
Automotive telematics is such a broad field covering so
many aspects of our daily lives, some of the information we want
requires data from our vehicle and other information, not so
much. When you look at it, a lot of what telematics promises can
already be done without data from the car. Automotive telematics
just takes what we already can get from a smart phone and moves it to a
screen on the dashboard. This is an important thing to understand
because it means that much of what telematics entails is already being
handled by companies better suited to those functions than traditional
diagnostic companies, or car companies for that matter. I do not
see diagnostic companies offering a competitive product to Google maps
for example.
This means that it is highly unlikely that diagnostic companies will be
able to deliver complete telematics solutions to anyone on their
own. So what role will diagnostic companies play in the
telematics space?
Traditionally Diagnostic companies provide tools and information to
professionals engaged in repairing and maintaining vehicles.
These services are delivered in repair shops with the vehicle
present. Customers notice problems with their
vehicles then seek professional help to correct the problem. The
vehicle is either driven or otherwise delivered to the point of
diagnosis and repair.
Telematics promises two changes to this scenario. First,
telematics can provide a new and improved method of determining what
maintenance or repair is required. Through telematics vehicles
can notify motorists that a service is due, or something is wrong and
needs attention. It can also notify a motorist’s selected repair
facility of the same information. Second, telematics can provide
a remote connection between a vehicle and a repair facility that will
allow a technician to perform diagnostic routines on the vehicle
without actually seeing it. It’s kind of like the remote repair
function that all windows computers have where you allow experts access
to your computer and diagnose software issues from afar.
These are the telematics functions where ETI diagnostic companies can
not only play a role, they can excel. It is amazing to me how
many telematics companies wrongly claim they provide telematics based
diagnostics when they really know very little about it.
Diagnostics is much more than reporting codes with nondescript
explanations and there are few telematics companies who have the
expertise required to actually claim true diagnostic capability,
especially in the aftermarket.
So clearly, diagnostic companies need to look upon themselves as expert
app developers who can claim OEMs, telematics system providers, repair
facilities and of course motorists as their potential customers.
Yes, motorists! Telematics doesn’t really exist without motorist
buy-in and diagnostics has to be tailored to their wants and needs.
OEMs develop diagnostics aimed at the needs of new car
dealerships. Aftermarket diagnostic companies develop diagnostics
for a broader base of repair facilities and usually focus on older
vehicles. Remote diagnostics ties these capabilities
to the motorist. This would be easier if the motorists were all
the same, but they are not. Motorists require different
information depending on the demographic. The information a
do-it-your-self motorist wants is
different from the information a retired couple wants.
All of this has to be taken into consideration as companies develop
their presence in the telematics space. They will need to go
beyond their typical customer base and they will need to develop brand
recognition beyond B2B all the way to the consumer.
To help in this effort ETI plans to conduct a marketing survey on
telematics, specifically remote diagnostics. Instead of surveying
our usual suspects in the usual way, we need to take this survey to
consumers and to do that we will have to change tactics.
In the past we have used professional magazine email lists to
distribute online surveys. This won’t work with consumers,
because we do not have access to consumer email lists. And it
won’t work for shop owners and technicians because the subject matter
is too esoteric even for them.
The marketing committee has determined that the best way to conduct
this survey is through the use of small focus groups. The focus
group model allows us to provide critical background information to the
participants so that they know what the subject matter is. Using
a professional focus group company we will identify small groups of
people who share a particular demographic, develop a set of questions
and talking points and conduct interview sessions. From the
sessions we will develop a report that will then be shared with ETI
members.
If this kind of effort interests you and you are an ETI member, please
get involved in the Marketing Committee. We can use your help in
determining the demographic groupings and the questions we will ask
each group. Just email trishad@etools.org
and ask to join the
marketing Committee and we’ll get you signed up.
ETI member companies involved in diagnostics are used to dealing with
repair facilities and OEMs. With a few notable exceptions dealing
with consumers is a new factor to be considered. The aftermarket
Telematics rallying cry states that the data a vehicle produces belongs
to the motorist and this means that the motorist should make the
decision regarding who is allowed access to it. It sounds to me
like this means that the motorist will make the decision regarding
which
telematics products will interface with their vehicles.
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