Loyalty Incentives Will Be Part Of Infiniti Conversation With Dealers

The electrification revolution sweeping the global auto industry includes a tsunami coming straight at automakers’ dealer networks, and Infiniti plans to unveil more of its strategy to its dealers in June, Craig Keeys, group vice president of Infiniti Americas, told me.

The Nissan-owned luxury brand, like its rivals, has been dealing with the coming implications of an increasingly electrified fleet, which include different requirements for service than internal-combustion-powered vehicles, and different expectations for sales personnel who must understand much more personal technology than years ago as well as a growing array of other amenities that have become common to high-end brands such as Infiniti.

“We will have an intimate conversation with our dealers and share details,” Keeys told me. “We’re working toward the end of the current mid-term plan and will be talking about an evolution and iteration of another mid-term plan that will include electrification for Infiniti [vehicles], a healthy product portfolio, and deeper alignment with our dealers around the customer experience. We want to make sure dealers are looking out beyond just two or three vehicles with customers, making sure the relationship is a lifetime relationship with our consumers going forward.”

Keeys said a main thrust of the next mid-term plan with dealers will be that “we need to be more deliberate about using the data we have today to understand and prioritize where and when we apply our resources. Those are going to be differentiators for all manufacturers. Resources such as loyalty incentives, such as support in the service lane, and access to new products [that will require a] membership.”

Keeys said that Infiniti was a brand that actually benefited from the global microchip shortage of the last few years, even as many marques suffered severe crimping of their supplies of certain or all models.

“Covid was a benefit when you think about the short supply at other grands,” he said. “We were able to supply Infiniti because of our prioritization in [Nissan] manufadturing. We were able to attract some consumers who didn’t have an alternative, and now, after spending time with Infiniti and our products, they hold us in high regard.”