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Nachrichten, Termine, Experten
Nachrichten, Termine, Experten
The German car-sharing market continues to gain momentum. The Rüsselsheim company Opel has announced it will enter the market with a new concept for car manufacturers: CarUnity, a private car-sharing scheme. In an interview-based study EBS Universität für Wirtschaft und Recht explored what impact this new concept would have on the private car-sharing market and what consumers need to be aware of.
Renting out one's own car offers great potential for German motorists, after all the average car stands still for 23 hours a day. So why not rent it out to other drivers? "There are reservations among consumers towards the idea of sharing their car with strangers, in particular with regard to less freedom and flexibility, the invasion of privacy and damage settlement", reported Professor Sven Henkel, Head of the Chair of Customer Behaviour and Sales at EBS Universität. Opel's announced market entry could bring the breakthrough for the industry. Opel is a traditional brand name and able to inspire trust among consumers for the peer2peer car-sharing concept. Furthermore, with around 16,000 employees the car manufacturer offers a promising car-sharing database. The exciting thing about CarUnity is that Opel is creating a mobility platform that is open to owners of all car brands."
According to the EBS study there are a variety of reasons for private car-sharing. "Our findings show that for owners renting out their cars in addition to the financial incentive the chance to offer mobility to others is important. The sustainability aspect also seems to play a role since private car-sharing promotes more efficient use of cars", explained Mark-Philipp Wilhelms, co-author of the recent study and research assistant at the Chair of Customer Behaviour and Sales. Car owners driven by financial incentives to rent out their car can be divided into two groups: the savers who want to cut the costs of running a car and those who want to earn money in order, for example, to be able to install more extras. In particular, some savers indicated that renting out their car allowed them to keep the vehicle which they would otherwise have sold.
Available on the car-sharing platform are cars that are not too old and cars with not too many kilometres on the clock. Renters look for the best value for money as well as for cars for special occasions such as convertibles, SUVs and cars with special features – be it a more powerful motor or a white car with red leather seats for a wedding. "This shows that users on peer2peer portals are not just looking for mobility but also for a bit of adventure – whether it's a car for a special occasion or because they want to thoroughly test drive a car without a salesman looking over their shoulder before buying one", explained Mark-Philipp Wilhelms.
Once motorists have decided to use private car-sharing, they are impressed by the concept. "We were surprised that owners renting out their cars reported almost exclusively positive experiences, all the more surprising since rental cars are traditionally given second-rate treatment", added Wilhelms.
According to Professor Henkel, entering the private car-sharing market presents car manufacturers with a further opportunity to develop into mobility service providers. "With CarUnity Opel has the potential to expand its customer database, build up a community and, more importantly, gain private persons as brand ambassadors and get drivers of other brands to sit behind an Opel steering wheel", analysed the expert. "To bring peer2peer car-sharing from the niche into the mainstream it is important to clearly communicate the benefits for the different types of providers, since the different types of providers are offering very different types of cars and in doing so are creating a wide range of mobility experiences for users." Target market positioning is therefore crucial for the success of such a platform. This is the only way to address specific provider groups and provide a clear differentiation from other portals.
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