Rikken Aagaard Petersen is the Head of Marketing & Communications at Volvo Denmark. In this article, Rikke brings her multicultural insights and expertise in digital transformation within the automotive industry.
The Industry is Changing and Technology Evolving
The first question we asked Rikke was; can you tell us about Volvo Denmark's approach in regards to direct sales? She responded;
"We're in a transition, and I think that we're not the only industry that is – and we're very much aware of our need to be present when our consumers are present."
Rikke continued to say; "We need to create a seamless offline experience where you meet the brand and be presented with the brand, often online, and our retailers are very much a crucial element of that transition."
Considering digitalization and online sales. Do you foresee a change happening where online is going to be 80 and direct is going to be 20?
"Yes, it will change. But it's very much driven by what our consumers expect us to be. We're a premium brand and you expect, first of all, the experience to be seamless. But I must underline how important it is to have a physical presence also."
"You need to feel, touch and try the car. I mean, are you going to buy a car without ever sitting in the seat? I don't think so. I think that is not going to happen and definitely not going to happen to our brand."
“We're a traditional brand. We're nearly 100 years old”
Rikke continued to explain what it means to be a traditional brand; “Certain expectations come. You need to be able to go and feel and touch it. We're also known for our seats. You wouldn't buy a car and pay extra for the seats if you haven't tested them to see that you're actually sitting very comfortably”
Next, talking about a seamless shopping experience.
How does Volvo aim to have a seamless shopping experience online?
And what are the steps that Volvo is taking now?
“It's a really slow process. But we have of course started the journey. If you're interested in Volvo, you can go online and pretty much put your order in the basket.
"You actually don't complete the last bit of the transaction before you get to the retailer. That's the current model now, but we're very close to making the transaction. Because that is more or less a simple step in many ways. You complete the transaction and then the last thing you do is test drive or pick up your car.”
When it comes to EV cars. What does Volvo Denmark's future focus look like? What are the strategies you plan to achieve for the vision?
"In Denmark, we can see that we're adapting to the strategy much faster than other markets. The next car is going to be electric.
We already sell 50-50 in the Danish market. We see that because we were the first car brand in Denmark to say we're stopping all sales of pure combustion engines. ICE cars as we refer them to, cars without a plug. Already back in 2022, we stopped all of that in Denmark."
“We are going fully electric. We have a global strategy that in 2030, we're only going to produce fully electric vehicles.
With a market that is very open to driving electric cars, the infrastructure is ready. We're looking into around 80-85% of our sales this year of fully electric cars, and that goes then also back to having the right products so that the Danish consumers will pick a Volvo instead of another brand.
Importance of electric cars and what it does to the environment
"I have lots of data, some in my head, some not. It's less than 30% that actively make choices in their everyday life that can benefit on a sustainability level."
"But also, if you ask people, nearly 60% say OK. 58% of everyone asked in this particular study I refer to, said that we expect the companies to act on our behalf when it comes to acting sustainable or sustainably. This means and it indicates, to me at least, that people find it hard to grasp what they can do themselves when it comes to something on a bigger scale."
What is the success or the achievement of Volvo Cars Denmark in 2023? And how do you plan to surpass that?
“It's an easy and a difficult question at the same time because it's easy for me to highlight all the success stories we had in 23. And it's very much down to our launch here locally of the EX30, which kind of somehow even surprised me.
The EX30 launch surprised me because it was clear that we got new customers to the brand and of course, we love that.
We like to welcome new customers to our brand. And they were customers that had been waiting to buy a Volvo. They love the brand, but it was either too expensive, or the cars were too big."
"We experienced incredible success with this launch and the media was describing what an excellent decision it was for Volvo to launch this car, especially in Denmark because it just sort of fitted right into.
I think that's going to be difficult, but we still have to prove this launch. Now we're going to look into our stats and figures, and everyone can look at them once these cars start to get registered. So we have super high ambitions for this car. This is a car that will do well, no matter which way you look at it. Whether it will do as well as we hope, I can come back to you on that. We think so because it's a great little car, but we're launching a new electric car every single year.
We need to keep our reputation, and that goes through everything we do. We need to live our values, and I think that is no matter whether you meet people in person or whether you meet them online. This is what we have to do. "
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Press contact
Sofia Correnti, PR & Communications Manager, giosg
sofia.correnti@giosg.com. LinkedIn Profile
Rikke Aagaard Petesen, Head of Marketing & Communications,
Volvo Denmark. LinkedIn Profile