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Mercedes-Benz is synonymous with luxury and
high quality. In Belgium, Mercedes-Benz is using NetManage's
OnWeb solution to deliver a Web-based application to its Belgian
dealer network. The application is integrated with Mercedes-Benz
Belgium's corporate systems in Germany and allows dealers across
Belgium to configure and order new cars online.
As Europe's largest industrial group, DaimlerChrysler,
parent company to Mercedes, has more than 50 production and
assembly plants as well as 6,300 service and sales support
outlets for passenger cars and commercial vehicles. Mercedes-Benz
automobiles are available in over 190 countries around the
globe. The motor vehicle business is one of the major activities
at the DaimlerChrysler Group and accounts for a significant
proportion of its revenue.
Mercedes-Benz Belgium wanted to improve their
customer service by providing a more flexible system with up-to-date
information on car specifications and availability. The answer
for Mercedes-Benz was to develop a new application that would
simplify and reduce the complexity of ordering a vehicle and
provide accurate information about the production of the vehicle.
Until now, dealers had to look up codes in big binders and
enter information into multiple systems - a process that was
both labor intensive and error prone. The new Web-based application
had to be integrated with the factory systems that handled
order processing, logistics, and factory slot-booking.
A Total Solution in Just 120 Days
OnWeb from NetManage proved an ideal solution.
With OnWeb, Mercedes-Benz Belgium created Vision, a complete
dealer extranet that integrates with the factory systems to
handle all the order processes, including configuration, pricing,
locator services, delivery times, and factory slot-booking,
leveraging the investment in the existing enterprise and ensuring
real-time information. For Mercedes-Benz Belgium, the goal
was to simplify the ordering procedures for dealers and simultaneously
improve the buying experience for customers. Now in full use
across Belgium, the Vision system has made the ordering process
more efficient and promoted customer satisfaction with more
accurate and customized service.
The Vision interface is easy to use, allowing
the customer and salesperson visually to "build" the car by
selecting models, colors, and trim. OnWeb is able to integrate
the business logic that dynamically calculates the price of
the car and the system checks the factory's systems for availability
and production dates. The dealer can then provide the customer
with an accurate date for delivery. Even after the initial
order has been placed, the flexibility that OnWeb gives the
Vision extranet allows the dealer to change the specification
of the vehicle and advise the customer of the new delivery
date.
OnWeb's component-based business logic ensured
that the Mercedes-Benz dealer extranet was completed in under
120 person days. Vision uses the Internet to provide access
to all dealers, eliminating software distribution costs. Allied
to this is the "change once - update everywhere" principle
which makes the Web such an efficient medium in terms of user
maintenance. Because of its intuitive design, Vision requires
little training and support of each end-user.
Reaping the Benefits
Mercedes-Benz Belgium is realizing a return
on investment based on increased customer goodwill and the
efficiency savings that come from a Web-based system.
The OnWeb solution makes the Vision system friendlier
to use and provides information in an integrated fashion, making
the whole experience for the dealers and their customers a
more enjoyable one.
"The Mercedes name is synonymous with high quality,
innovative vehicles - a standard that we want to extend to
our customers through the Vision system," said Pascal Cousin,
IT CIO, Mercedes-Benz Belgium. "The result is a more effective
and efficient system that increases both dealer and customer
satisfaction."
A luxury vehicle dealership in Europe. DaimlerChrysler
is the parent company of Mercedes-Benz.
As a result of its NetManage OnWeb solution,
Mercedes-Benz is:
- Improving customer satisfaction
- Leading its competitors in attracting new customers
- Improving dealer loyalty
- Streamlining order and logistics management
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