Service has always been an important means for NIO to maintain its customers, as well as the core advantage of brand value.
The most common evaluation of NIO owners about their cars is not intelligence or battery life, but praise for NIO's service performance. Admittedly, for NIO car owners, a large part of the reason for choosing this brand is to be able to enjoy a comprehensive service experience that other brands do not have.
For NIO, behind this "Haidilao" service level is the high investment and operation and maintenance costs. NIO, which focuses on reducing costs and increasing efficiency, may sooner or later move the idea of "optimization" in the face of worry-free services, which accounts for a large proportion of expenditure. The 2024 version of the worry-free service product just announced by NIO has made significant adjustments to the charging model and benefits.
Compared with the 2023 version, the 2024 version of the worry-free service has cancelled the fully self-operated worry-free service products and fully shifted to the insurance + service fee model in cooperation with insurance companies.
The three modes of light enjoyment, enjoyment and premium version launched this time have indeed lowered the payment threshold for some users. Among them, the Happy Edition corresponds to the previous 2023 Insurance Worry-Free Project, while the Premium Edition corresponds to the 2023 Worry-Free Service Project, and the lowest Light Edition is a newly opened project, with the aim of attracting more NIO users to join this service system.
For a service-based car company like NIO, the change of worry-free service is undoubtedly the most perceptive to customers. For users who previously paid for worry-free services, the general feeling is that the service content has shrunk. In terms of paint maintenance, value-added service coupons and points gifts, etc., there is a decrease in the sense of value of products. This may have an impact on the word-of-mouth communication of the brand and the repurchase rate of users for such products.
Li Bin, CEO of NIO, also said that this iteration can satisfy 90% of users, and 10% of users may feel unfair. NIO has reduced the scope of use of some high-frequency car owners who use worry-free services, so as to strive to turn worry-free services, a loss-making project, into a breakeven project.
However, cost management does not mean that the service is downgraded, and NIO's service is certainly worth the price. Li Bin has this evaluation of the worry-free service change in 2024.
As for achieving the 90% satisfaction rate mentioned by Li Bin, I think users will vote with actual choices, and it remains to be seen whether such a change will affect NIO's brand value.
For NIO itself, reducing corporate losses and reducing costs and increasing efficiency in various projects is a continuous approach for NIO to implement. Only by maintaining a healthy financial position can we continue to serve our customers.