With Volvo’s concierge service, it seems you may never have to stop at a gas station, go to a car wash or service your car again.
The Swedish automaker is rolling out a pilot program in San Francisco, targeting Volvo owners driving the new XC90 SUV and S90 sedan. The program will start this month and include up to 300 Volvo owners.
“Imagine parking your car in the morning at work and when you head home your car has been serviced, cleaned and refuelled. These are the kind of services we want to deliver to our customers. Our research shows that people spend hours every week doing these small errands – we want to give that time back to Volvo drivers, so they can do something more valuable instead,” said Volvo exec Bjorn Annwall.
During their research, Volvo found that over 70% of their customers want fueling services at their fingertips, while 56% would like their car picked up for routine maintenance. Furthermore, 49% said they would like to have their car moved to a separate location whenever desired.
“Our approach is a simple one – we aim to make life easier by employing the latest connected technology in an easy-to-use smartphone app. We are taking an open and agile approach to this and welcome collaboration with partners with new and innovative service offers. This is just the beginning,” explained Anders Tylman-Mikiewicz, VP of consumer connectivity services at Volvo.
Owners participating in the pilot program can use the app to identify concierge services available in their vicinity and place an order with their smartphone. Request are then processed by an authorized Volvo service provider, who will handle the refueling, performed scheduled maintenance and any additional services the owners of the cars may request.
The app also provides users with a one-time-use digital key, which is then sent out to the authorized service provider. When services are complete, the car is locked and the digital key expires.
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