Designing the moments that matter across the ownership journey
A premium automotive brand focused on deeper relationships
Our client, a premium automotive brand, sought to deepen customer relationships and create memorable ownership experiences across three distinct brands. With an ambitious vision to move beyond transactional interactions, they wanted to design ‘moments that matter’ that would amplify brand affinity, drive customer loyalty and differentiate their offering in an increasingly competitive premium market. Their overarching objective was clear: understand what truly creates love for the brand and translate that into tangible, repeatable customer experiences.
Identifying ownership moments that truly resonate with customers
The client faced a critical tension. While they recognised the opportunity to create distinctive ownership moments, from handover experiences through to long-term engagement, they lacked deep customer insight into what would genuinely resonate across their diverse customer base.
The challenge was multifaceted. First, they needed to understand which experience concepts would land with real customers and why. Second, they had to navigate the complexity of designing scalable, luxury experiences that felt personal and special, not mass-produced. And there was organisational pressure to balance innovation with fundamentals: customers consistently flagged that exceptional service experiences wouldn’t matter if basic reliability and consistency faltered.
In addition, each brand had separate customer segments and needs stretching from adventure to practicality to exclusivity. Creating a unified ‘moments that matter’ strategy that honored these distinctions while maintaining brand coherence was complex.
The real tension? Customers were sceptical. They’d seen luxury brands oversell experiences before. Trust needed to be earned through authenticity and genuine value, not marketing rhetoric.
Using customer insight to co-create meaningful experiences
We deployed an integrated Community insight approach, combining qual research, co-creation workshops and iterative concept testing across all three brands. Our approach was deliberately collaborative, embedding ourselves within the client’s teams and becoming true partners in the discovery process rather than distant researchers.
Using live Community engagement and deliberate tension-testing, we moved beyond surface-level feedback. We didn’t just ask customers what they wanted; we showed them concepts, watched their genuine reactions and pressed on the inconsistencies between what they said and what they actually valued.
Key to overcoming organisational silos was creating a unified structure that gave each model a voice while identifying cross-brand insights. We identified that, despite model differences, all customers prioritised reliability and consistency as the foundation upon which any signature moment could build.
Our tech-enabled approach allowed rapid iteration. We tested multiple concept variations, synthesised feedback in real time and adapted recommendations dynamically. This agility meant we could move at pace while maintaining rigour.
Critically, we helped the client embrace what felt uncomfortable: prioritising “getting the basics right” over flashy experiences. This tension, between innovation and fundamentals, led to more authentic, sustainable recommendations.
Shifting from transactional touchpoints to lasting relationships
The research delivered a comprehensive playbook for moments that matter across all three models, but more importantly, it shifted how the client approached customer experience strategy more broadly.
Critically, all recommendations carried a clear caveat: foundational customer service must improve first. This became an organisational rallying point, acknowledging that experience innovation without operational excellence would fail.
The client has since begun piloting these concepts, with early adoption focused on handover experiences. The Community-centred methodology has been embedded as an ongoing capability, allowing continuous customer feedback loops.
The real impact? A shift from transactional thinking to relational strategy. And a brand that now understands its customers aren’t seeking more experiences, they’re seeking to feel genuinely valued, on their own terms.
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