8 Customer Integration NTT Data automotiveIT 2012 individually and permanently Here the re levance of the information is crucial for the customer This cannot be provided by mass communication However the changes in consumer be haviour have also resulted in some major opportunities The areas with the greatest potential are Personalised addressing of costu mers Never before has more personal information been in the public domain Linking this information can help provide a better understanding of customer needs As a result marketing communication can be highly personalised with regard to content situational context and communi cation medium The interaction between customer and company is therefore much more useful for both parties Spreading of information Informa tion on vehicles and services is available at all times in many portals and forums These internet channels influence car purchases and are often not controllable by companies and thus not considered in media planning By actively serving these channels and posting relevant and positive content such as test reports and user in structions manufacturers can offer added value to the target group which has posi tive impact on the brand Even complex technical information can be communica ted transparently this way Obvious brand messages on the other hand would trigger resistance Speed of communication Social me dia platforms provide a high transparency of public opinions and statements and al low trends to be quickly identified This in turn provides companies with the oppor tunity to comment immediately on critical issues and to spread positive messages without media breaks without scatter loss with a high degree of credibility and using viral effects Identification of brand ambassa dors Individual opinions are becoming increasingly transparent As a result the advocators of a brand a vehicle or even a certain feature can be easily identified Car manufacturers have the opportunity to spread positive brand messages via social media and they can also create their own forums to provide ambassadors with a suit able platform The recommendation of a person like me can give the key impulse for the decision to configure a new car with a higher grade of equipment Integration in the value chain Cu stomers are increasingly willing to perform value creating activities for companies While the telecommunications industry has already been making use of this phenome non for some time with first level queries being answered by their own customers this is not widespread in the automotive in dustry apart from a few exceptions in the product development process As well as potential cost reductions this integration also provides significant opportunities in respect of customer relations involvement creates transparency and trust Q ue lle C irq ue nt