Consumer research company IHS recently projected that almost 80% of the U.S. population that are of driving age will own smartphones by 2016. We generally know how these devices are used as the average consumer migrates toward a fully connected lifestyle; checking status updates, sending and receiving texts, finding a restaurant, maybe even taking a call or two after posting a new selfie. 

The ways these devices are used in a moving vehicle are resurrecting the issue of driver distraction among major media outlets as well as state and federal regulators. Learning of the practical and disparate impact of this usage can provide additional business opportunities for all mobile electronics professionals. 

According to Distraction.gov, a Department of Transportation website, there was a nine percent increase in the amount of vehicular injuries from 2011 to 2012 in crashes involving a distracted driver. Yes, you can be distracted while eating a sloppy burger, applying makeup or slapping the kids in the back seat, but this increase is likely due to more people using smartphones and other handheld devices while driving. 

The states have taken notice. As of February 2014, the Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA) reports that 12 states have banned all handheld in-car usage of cellphones and have made this a primary enforcement law, meaning that you can be cited for this offence alone and not in conjunction with another primary offence which was previously the case. In addition, 41 states have outlawed texting and all but four treat this as a primary offense. 

What about the practical issues? While driving at 55 miles per hour, sending or receiving a text takes your eyes from the road for an average of 4.6 seconds, the equivalent of driving blind for the length of a football field. 25% of teens respond to a text once or more every time they drive, and 20% of teens and 10% of parents admit to having extended, multi-message text conversations while driving. These are the people who admit to it; imagine the total percentage of drivers out there who are texting right now. You’ve seen them – weaving in a lane, blowing through a red light and braking hard to avoid a collision. 

There’s more. The AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, in a 2012 study, reported that newly licensed female drivers were twice as likely as males to use an electronic handheld device while driving. And in 2011 the Pew Research Center said cellphone owners between the ages of 18 and 24 exchanged an average of 109.5 messages on a normal day. Do you think they kept those smartphones in their backpacks while they drove? 

Remember the average age of a vehicle on the road today is 11.3 years, which means over 150 million vehicles are out there that need a hands-free solution and we can assume that a big percentage of those distracted kids are driving those cars. Advanced Bluetooth and voice control products are in your assortment right now, and they should be heavily pushed with the strong message that using a cellphone while driving will get you ticketed just like running a stop sign.  Have your customer imagine driving on the Interstate with their eyes closed for about 4 ½ seconds, the equivalent of sending or receiving the average text. Kinda scary, huh?

Getting past the negative sell makes the positive sell much easier. BT audio streaming is a joy once someone discovers it. Hands-free call making and taking isn’t distraction free but it won’t get you pulled over. And it’s a cool new in-dash receiver with a nice display, plus it also charges your phone (or e-cig…whatever) and is affordable – a bonus!

There is no silver bullet here – just a practical, sensible approach to selling safety and convenience. When a majority of your potential customer base is already distracted, they might likely appreciate what you are selling and reward you with their business if you know the facts and communicate the benefits with the understanding that you are not going to change their core behaviors. 

We are entering a new era where an increasing number of people are living a connected lifestyle.  More than ever, consumers will be seeking ways to improve their connected experience in their homes, in their cars and on the fly. As an industry, we must capitalize on helping customers achieve that experience by turning them on to more innovative, connected products and demonstrating them in ways that are fully relevant to their increasingly connected lifestyles.  

Being on the vendor side of the consumer electronics industry for nearly 30 years, I have participated in thousands of negotiations with retailers and have come away with five key points that have helped to cultivate great relationships based on mutual goals and respect. These are not the only points to consider and they are not in a particular order; they are merely offered up based on what I believe has consistently generated the most fruitful retailer relationships from the standpoint of the vendor.

I strongly believe that better retailer/vendor relationships begin with the mutual understanding that the retailer is in control of the relationship based upon choice of vendor. That choice is made regularly by the retailer which creates a responsibility of the retailer to make that choice based a proper assessment of the vendor. 

Rather than bore you with a sterile set of considerations, let’s do a quick role-play. Today, I’m your vendor and we are across the table from each other negotiating our business for 2014.  My goal is to prove to you that I’m a better vendor than the others. Here are five discussion areas I expect you to bring up in today’s meeting:

1. Set Expectations

Should I assume that your expectations of my company are the same as all other retailers? If I do, I’m an idiot and you should not be doing business with me. Take the time and explain to me what your specific expectations are of my company and of me this year. If I am a responsible vendor, I will exceed your expectations and consistently out-perform my competition. As long as you have explained exactly what your expectations are, I will also assume that you will be paying attention through the year and hold me accountable. If you don’t hold me accountable, I can’t help but assume that you weren’t serious about your expectations of me. My best dealer relationships are those that pick up the phone and let me have it when I fall short of their expectations. It makes me a better vendor.

2. Prepare a Vendor Plan

Seems like a no-brainer, but wow…I can’t believe how many retailers, who are businessmen and entrepreneurs, have little or no plan on how to do business with me for this year. So, what’s your plan? Are we growing the business this year? Have you planned your activities out against a calendar so I can accrue funding and come up with special buys in support of your plan? Do we understand each other enough to know if your requests are reasonable or not? As a responsible vendor, I ask you for this plan because I want to grow your business with me in a way that is in both of our long-term best interests. If all I wanted was more sales volume from you, I would just drop pricing and not care about planning our business together. But I’m a better vendor than that.

3. Credit Considerations

I need you to work with me a little here. My credit department is under tighter scrutiny these days – the economy stinks and the company is nervous about extending credit. You’ve shown me that you have good payment history, so why don’t we go a bit further and get some audited financials into the hands of my credit manager. Yes…I know this costs money and you’re a privately held company. You absolutely are not required to submit this. As a responsible vendor, I am asking for this information because I want to be doing business with you for the next ten years, and my company’s financial condition matters. If you can invest something in our relationship now, we’ll have a very good chance of growing our business together profitably in the coming years without having to downsize, cut back on support, pull back on business programs or raise prices. I intend on being a better vendor now and in the future. 

4. Direct or Distributor?

I want to sell you direct. Plain and simple. Not only can I manage our business together, our dealer agreement obligates all direct dealers to conform to various policies such as MAP, anti-transshipping, customer service and others that help keep the market stable and vibrant. There is value in doing business directly with me – but only if I have offered you the proper training on my products, prompt fulfillment of your orders, quick resolution of problems, timely responses to your requests and strong enough incentives and rewards for supporting our business together.  If I fail in any of these fundamental areas, then I can’t expect you to see the value in a direct business relationship with my company. Responsible vendors understand this dynamic and consistently work on improving the value of dealer direct programs. Yes, there are some vendors that don’t seem to care whether you buy direct or through distribution – some would prefer not to know you at all. But I’m a better vendor and I value your relationship with me. 

5. Get Access

As a responsible vendor, I have a lot of people and tools at my disposal to help execute on our business relationship. And I use them…and you have use of them too. I’m confident enough in myself and my colleagues in our alignment with your business direction that I’ll do something you wouldn’t expect: I’ll give you direct access to anyone in my company. Training needs? Go through me or call my training manager directly. Product idea or problem? Contact our product support manager. Problem with anything I did? Here’s the number of my boss. Of course, you can use this number to call him to complement me if I exceeded your expectations. I’m a better vendor and my team behind me is ready to prove it. 

If I have satisfied your expectations, worked to plan our business together, built our internal financial position to maximize your credit worthiness, proven my value to you as a direct supplier and confidently offered you access to my entire organization, does that not make me a better vendor than most? If so, choosing my company to be part of your business planning for 2014 is the right thing to do. If I have failed at any of these five areas, should you not re-assess our relationship and perhaps make a change? 

Mobile electronics manufacturers succeed or fail based upon their understanding of the market as well as the quality of their retailer relationships, and here is where all manufacturers can improve their game. Just when you think you have a handle on what it takes to succeed, a more careful examination proves that you have much to learn. 

I gained a lot of insight after reviewing and judging the Top 12 retailers in this year’s Retailer of the Year (ROTY) Award. In no particular order, I will share with you five lessons that every manufacturer should learn and understand from the Top 12:

1. The best retailers don’t rely on gimmicks to grow their business

The Top 12 retailers all had very straightforward approaches to earning the business of their customers, starting with an honest assessment of what products and services are offered and how each retailer possesses true differentiation from other retailers.  No “fake deals,” and few, if any, giveaways.  Manufacturers need to collaborate better with their best dealers and understand that broad-based, one-size-fits-all promotions will not necessarily work with specialist retailers.  Having a flexible, customized approach will earn more of the specialists’ business. 

2. The best retailers have commanded the art of the demonstration

These Top 12 retailers have system demonstration capabilities that are interactive, compelling, informative and convincing.  Many of these retailers utilize a system-selling approach which intentionally narrows down selection but offers the customer plenty of product choices while showing how installation craftsmanship makes the difference in performance and longevity.  We already know that the use of video displays is opportunity to showcase installation capabilities and other services, and some of these retailers took that to the highest level by using Apple TV and other tech solutions to pipe in photos, music and video content to create just the right in-store environment and to tell their complete story. 

3. The best retailers do more than car stereos

I’m sure this was born out of necessity, as traditional electronics product margins and ASP’s declined.  But most of the Top 12 retailers have successfully broadened their business into automotive accessories, fabrication, customization and detailing.  This bumper-to-bumper approach provides their customers with more reasons to spend their money with them. This takes a lot of commitment and risk; you can’t specialize in everything, right? But with careful assessment of their markets, the Top 12 retailers chose the right diversification strategies and most seem to be working well. Not all business extensions are successful, and a few of the Top 12 retailers were quick to make the necessary corrections with minimal pain. Manufacturers should pay attention to each retailer’s complete business strategy, find out what other revenue areas are succeeding and figure out creative ways to support those areas. 

4. The best retailers train their people, even if the manufacturers won’t

Manufacturer training is an area that has been on the decline for over a decade, with in-person training and instruction being replaced by online services and other hands-off methods. The trend is still troubling, however the Top 12 retailers are not sitting on their hands. They have all adopted training programs of their own alongside of industry training, with most of them embracing MECP.  The unspoken attitude here is that training your staff makes them more valuable, far beyond the direct or indirect expense of the training itself. Those vendors that offer informative, in-person training in addition to online resources ought to be strongly supported by specialist retailers – clearly these vendors have your long-term best interest in mind. Vendors that have decided to pull back on training as a cost cutting measure should reconsider or accept less business support. 

5. The best retailers know customers better than anyone else

Many of us career-long manufacturer members typically think that we know the mobile electronics consumer as well as any of our dealers…but in reality we don’t. Even after years of dealer roundtables, traveling through every market and having long conversations over too many beers, there are things we can learn about the end-user and what it takes to win their business. The Top 12 are in constant contact with their customers and have developed relationship-building skills that keep those customers for years (in some cases, multi-generational). It was impressive to see the community outreach, charity activities and local event participation.  Here is where manufacturers can take more of an interest; there might not be a short term buy-in opportunity but supporting these efforts can deepen their dealer relationships and create an appreciation that will be rewarded over time. 

Being part of the industry’s Top 12 retailers is a huge honor, and it doesn't happen without commitment, passion, constant learning, professionalism, relationship building, collaboration and reinvention. The Top 12 retailers are representative of all that is good in the mobile electronics industry – a love of music, craftsmanship and a job done extremely well. It is clear that a consumer visiting any of these fine retailers will have a great experience, learn a lot they didn’t know, and make some new friends. 

Keith Lehmann is a 30-year veteran of the consumer electronics industry, with executive experience in sales, marketing, technology and corporate management. Lehmann was most recently Executive Vice President of Kenwood USA Corporation, in charge of the company’s consumer electronics sector for over ten years. Today, Lehmann is a consumer electronics industry consultant as well as Managing Director of the Connected Car Council (www.connectedcarcouncil.com). 

C3 Report -- Infotainment systems, long a selling-point in consumer advertising by automakers, have reached a point beyond which basic information and entertainment can be easily accessed and operated. Consumers are now faced with a confusing array of features, touch-surfaces, “button-farms” and menu hierarchies that have added operational complexity beyond the comprehension of many people.

The source of this complexity? According to a discussion panel at the recent SAE World Congress titled “The In-Car Experience — What Does the Consumer Really Want,” automakers have become obsessed with technology to the degree that they have sacrificed intuitiveness and are alienating their customer base with unnecessary features that might not ever be used.

“Vehicles on the road today are overladen with tools,” said David Lyon, a former General Motors interiors designer who also claims that car companies need a “features intervention” that will allow them to better understand how people operate their vehicles. This will, in turn, identify features that are not likely to be used by drivers and provide guidance to automakers on which features to remove.

Fierce competition between automakers has spawned a “culture of incrementalism,” according to Andrew Hart of consultancy company SBD. “Technology is moving so fast that carmakers often design new systems before they understand what works and doesn’t work with their current systems.”

Consumers have spoken up loudly of their bewilderment with today’s infotainment systems and have cited these systems as a primary area of criticism. In response, automakers such as Honda have been collaborating much more closely with developers in the design and functionality of their next-generation infotainment systems. Still others have made the strategic decision to outsource basic infotainment system design to Apple and Google, albeit at an incredibly slow pace.

The SAE panel made an interesting, if not practical, observation as to why more automakers are leaving infotainment system development to the experts. “It’s surprising how many people at OEMs don’t know how their [infotainment] systems work,” SBD’s Hart noted. “That’s in sharp contrast to companies such as Apple and Google, where employees are the best advertisements for their products.”

Read the rest of the story here: http://www.cthreereport.com/todays-in-car-infotainment-systems-too-many-features/