Stellantis & You were exploring the possibility of launching a mobile app to increase customer engagement, encourage account sign-ups and strengthen long-term customer retention.
The business hypothesis was that having a presence on a customer's phone could increase loyalty and encourage customers to return for servicing, maintenance and future vehicle purchases.
The challenge was to understand whether an app could provide enough ongoing value to justify its place on a customer's device.
Rather than simply replicating the website, the opportunity was to identify features that would make vehicle ownership easier and create regular reasons for customers to engage with the Stellantis & You brand.
I reviewed competitor offerings, including Arnold Clark and other automotive brands, to understand how they were using mobile apps to support customer journeys.
I then explored potential user needs throughout the vehicle ownership lifecycle, including:
- Service and MOT reminders
- Vehicle health and maintenance tracking
- Service booking
- Vehicle document storage
- Finance and agreement information
- Loyalty and rewards
- New vehicle recommendations
Using these insights, I developed a series of early concept designs to explore how these features could be brought together into a cohesive mobile experience.
The outcome was a set of early-stage mobile app concepts designed to support vehicle ownership rather than simply provide access to website content.
The concepts focused on creating value for customers through convenience, personalisation and ongoing engagement.
The biggest learning for me was that successful apps need a clear and compelling reason for users to return.
Simply recreating website functionality in an app is unlikely to drive engagement or justify the effort of downloading and maintaining the application.
The most valuable opportunities emerged when focusing on customer needs throughout the ownership journey rather than on business objectives alone.
This reinforced the importance of starting with user problems and behaviours before deciding on the appropriate technology or platform.
