Ford transforms the EV experience with Pega

The Business Issue

With over 120 years as a family-owned brand, Ford Motors holds a trusted legacy in the automotive industry. But the industry – as well as government regulations – are changing, signaling a shift to electric vehicles.

In response, Ford launched the Ford Explorer EV in Europe, where 80% of customers are new to EVs and 50% of potential buyers are predicted to convert from competitor brands. Ford’s primary objective was to capture this high-potential market by offering an exceptional customer experience that would differentiate their EVs from the competition.

At the core of this challenge was the need to overhaul Ford’s existing test drive booking process. Previously, customers had to submit requests through Ford’s website and wait for a follow-up from dealers, resulting in inconsistent experiences that didn’t align with the streamlined, personalized service customers now expect.

Ford needed a scalable solution that would:

• Provide a frictionless test drive booking experience for customers across channels
• Empower dealerships to offer a seamless, branded experience
• Deliver a consistent customer experience across all 2,000 dealers and 19 European markets
• Ensure compliance with GDPR regulations for privacy and data security

Ford partnered with Wipro, leveraging the Pega Platform™ to deliver a unified, omni-channel experience that would transform the EV customer journey while aligning with Ford’s operational and compliance requirements.

The Solution

To meet these ambitious goals, Ford partnered with Wipro to re-envision the test drive process with a solution that centered on three pillars: customer experience, dealer enablement, and scalable architecture. Together, they implemented the Pega Platform, which allowed Ford to unify their customer experience across all dealerships and customer touchpoints, while also empowering each dealer with the tools needed for seamless execution.

• Customer-centered test drive booking process: To create a streamlined booking experience, the new platform introduced a simple, three-step process that enabled customers to book test drives at their convenience. Pega also facilitated omni-channel bookings, allowing customers to initiate test drives online, by phone, or directly at dealerships.
• Dealer consistency across regions: Wipro’s team collaborated directly with Ford’s dealers to identify specific operational needs, integrating the test drive system with each dealer’s existing tools and CRM systems. This unified platform provided transparency across inventory and customer interactions, allowing dealers to engage effectively while maintaining Ford’s brand standards.
• Robust, compliant, and scalable architecture: By building on reusable components from Ford’s U.S. guest experience program, they successfully scaled their European solution across 2,000 dealers in 19 countries thanks to Pega’s flexible architecture. The solution was delivered in less than six months, achieving comprehensive GDPR compliance through automated data anonymization, encryption, and secure data storage processes.
• AI-driven insights and predictive analytics: Leveraging generative AI capabilities, the system gathers data from each test drive to generate predictive insights. By assessing purchase propensity scores after test drives, the platform flags high propensity leads for follow-up, ultimately boosting conversion rates.

The Results

Ford Motors has set a new benchmark for customer experience in the EV market by reimagining the test drive journey, delivering remarkable results:

• Exceptional customer experience: The simplified, omni-channel booking system has transformed the customer journey, delivering a consistent and frictionless experience across digital, physical, and dealer platforms. By giving customers transparency into vehicle availability and test drive options, Ford saw a 30% increase in customer satisfaction scores related to test drive experiences.
• Empowered dealership network: With a unified platform supporting both agent and dealership models, Ford has enabled consistent, branded experiences across 2,000 dealers in 19 countries. Dealer adoption has been high, thanks to tools that empower them to provide seamless test drive bookings and receive real-time inventory insights. The solution’s seamless integration also resulted in a 25% higher conversion rate from test drives to sales.
• Scalable, future-ready solution: The Pega-powered platform’s modular architecture has made it easier for Ford to expand and optimize their EV strategy in the European market. With built-in GDPR compliance and AI-enabled analytics, Ford now has a robust system in place to continue capturing EV market share.

Watch their journey unfold in their PegaWorld session.