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      09-13-2019, 09:45 AM   #39
CLABRO
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Drives: BMW M Sport G30
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Great write up!

I think the idea is very cool and attractive to car enthusiasts or those who just switch cars often. However, that is not the majority of people and thus their target consumer is a very small population. Furthermore, at this price point, some people in the target consumer base simply won't do it because it's not financially worth it for them (I'm in that category. It looks cool and would be fun to switch from cool car to nice car, etc., but not worth the price.) That dwindles the consumer base even further.

So you're left with a cool and attractive service, but only utilized by a very, very small population of people. I think this is the case with any of these car subscription services that other manufacturers offer. In addition, these services seem to have been rolled out half ass. It's been really sloppy and lacks advertising and information/details. This isn't specific to BMW, but all of the manufacturers offering this- Ford, Volvo, and whoever else. In their defense, they're relatively new I guess. They need to step their game up and start running more efficiently and listening to their customers like you if they want to improve/continue this service.

Lastly, and this could be one of the biggest hurdles; you have to let the consumer adapt to this new way of life (not owning a car and just paying for a car subscription). That doesn't happen overnight so this process is going to continue to be a slow build up of customers. This isn't as simple as talking someone into requesting an Uber via their phone for the first time instead of going outside and waiving down a taxi like they've always done. That's a $10 scenario and thus people adapt more quickly. A car subscription service of $1,000/month on the other hand is much more significant and will require much more education and information from the car manufacturers to consumers before you have droves of people subscribing to these car services.

It sort of reminds me of gesture control that BMW put in. It's a cool and unique experience and everyone who has it will surely try it one or two times, but 98% of people don't ever use gesture control again after that first or second try. The added benefit of gesture control simply isn't worth deviating from the way I've always turned up the radio which can be done with the reach of your arm.

With all that said, I hope BMW continues to press forward with this service and listens to what the OP said. I agree that they need to run like a well oiled machine and have better line ups/options across the platform so people don't feel like they have to keep the car so long. I believe all of these services need to be priced competitively (i.e. ~ $800 instead of $1,000 for the "Icon" or entry level BMW subscription would be much more attractive). It's still a relatively new service so I hope to see improvements and further information being passed along to consumers.
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Last edited by CLABRO; 09-13-2019 at 09:50 AM..
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