Category: United States

JD Power Launches Website Vehicle Valuation Tool for Dealers

2019-03-14

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COSTA MESA, Calif.: 15 March 2019 — JD Power today announced the launch of its new lead generation tool for dealer websites, Value My Car. The quick and easy-to-use tool with the trusted JD Power consumer brand enables website visitors to quickly understand the value of their vehicle in exchange for their email address.

This dealer-only product is offered at an introductory price of $75 per month with no contract required. Dealers place the tool on their website and consumers input their vehicle and contact information to receive an initial value of their vehicle. They are then encouraged to visit the dealer for an in-person vehicle appraisal.

“The new tool has two simple objectives:  provide dealers with qualified leads and increase their used car inventory,” said Jonathan Banks, Vice President of Vehicle Valuations at JD Power. “This will not only provide a service to a potential customer as a first touch-point but will ensure potential sales opportunities for the dealerships are being tracked.”

For more information on the Value My Car trade-in valuation tool, please visit: http://www.nada.com/valuemycar.

JD Power is a global leader in consumer insights, advisory services and data and analytics. These capabilities enable JD Power to help its clients drive customer satisfaction, growth and profitability. Established in 1968, JD Power has offices serving North America, South America, Asia Pacific and Europe.

Media Relations Contact
Geno Effler; JD Power; Costa Mesa, Calif.; 714-621-6224; [email protected]

About JD Power and Advertising/Promotional Rules www.jdpower.com/business/about-us/press-release-info

Effective Multi-Channel Communication Now Key to Telecom Service Technician Satisfaction, JD Power Finds

2019-03-19

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COSTA MESA, Calif.: 21 March 2019 — It’s not enough for a telecom service technician to simply show up on time, exchange pleasantries and fix the problem. According to the JD Power 2019 U.S. Telecom In-Home Service Technician Study,^SM telecom providers that deliver stand-out levels of customer satisfaction are executing a well-choreographed, multi-channel communications campaign that incorporates web, mobile and social media, in addition to traditional phone and in-home service call interactions.

“Service technicians are critical front-line ambassadors for their brand, but securing high customer satisfaction with the service experience requires a lot more than just a capable technician,” said Ian Greenblatt, Managing Director at JD Power. “The brands that are most effectively managing the in-home service customer experience are communicating in advance with customers across multiple communications platforms. They make it easy to request service, accurately project the technician arrival time and follow up to address outstanding issues. Doing all of this well requires an enterprise-wide commitment to service.”

Following are key findings of the 2019 study:

• Perception of punctuality increases with advance alerts: Overall satisfaction is much lower among customers whose technician arrived early or late (750 on a 1,000-point scale) than when their technician arrived on time (874). Customers who receive a notification are much more likely to say their technician arrived on time than those who did not receive a notification (92% vs. 73%, respectively). Overall satisfaction increases 86 points when customers are contacted on the day of the appointment prior to the technician arriving.

• Scheduling via phone is common, but not very satisfying: The most common means of scheduling service is via the phone (83%). However, when it comes to ease of scheduling an appointment, satisfaction is lowest among those who do so via the phone (765). Notably, scheduling an appointment through a provider’s website or mobile app results in the highest scheduling satisfaction with scores of 845 and 831, respectively.

• Use of mobile apps for service notification drives satisfaction: When it comes to receiving service notifications, customers who use their provider’s mobile app are considerably more satisfied with their scheduling experience (876) than those using e-mail (836); text message (809); phone representative (799); or automated phone system (795). Despite these high levels of customer satisfaction, just 5% of customers receive notifications via mobile app and 11% receive them via
  e-mail. The phone remains the most common means of receiving notifications (86%).

• Follow-up matters: Overall satisfaction with the service experience increases 74 points when the provider contacts the customer after the onsite technician visit to make sure everything is running smoothly. Likewise, when the onsite technician offers to schedule a follow-up visit to fix any outstanding issues, overall satisfaction increases by 90 points.

Study Rankings

DISH Network ranks highest in telecommunications in-home service technician satisfaction with a score of 889. Spectrum (867) ranks second and AT&T/DIRECTV (865) ranks third. The industry average is 859.

The 2019 U.S. Telecom In-Home Service Technician Study evaluates customer perceptions of onsite service technician visits for installation and post-install service of residential wireline products, which include high-speed data, phone and TV services. The study is based on six single-attribute factors: quality of work; timeliness of completing work; knowledge of technician; courtesy of technician; professionalism of technician; and scheduling an appointment.

The study was fielded in December 2018-January 2019, for which 4,391 responses were received. To be eligible to participate, respondents needed to have had an in-home telecom service technician visit in the past six months.

For more information about the 2019 U.S. Telecom In-Home Service Technician Study, visit https://www.jdpower.com/business/resource/us-telecom-home-service-technician-study.

JD Power is a global leader in consumer insights, advisory services and data and analytics. These capabilities enable JD Power to help its clients drive customer satisfaction, growth and profitability. Established in 1968, JD Power has offices serving North America, South America, Asia Pacific and Europe.

Media Relations Contacts
Geno Effler, JD Power; Costa Mesa, Calif.; 714-621-6224; [email protected]
John Roderick; St. James, N.Y.; 631-584-2200; [email protected]

About JD Power and Advertising/Promotional Rules: www.jdpower.com/business/about-us/press-release-info

In Direct Bank Gold Rush, Top Performers Find Different Paths to Success, JD Power Finds

2019-03-19

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COSTA MESA, Calif.: 21 March 2019 — As customers continue to flock to online banks, with many such banks posting double-digit increases over the past year,¹ branchless—or direct—banks are setting the standard for customer satisfaction in the banking sector. According to the JD Power 2019 Direct Banking Satisfaction Study,^SM direct banks continue to significantly outperform traditional retail banks in overall customer satisfaction, with the highest-ranked performers each operating different business models and taking distinct approaches to customer interaction.

“Direct banks are performing better than traditional retail banks across every comparable factor we evaluate—even areas like communication and problem resolution, where one might intuitively think a traditional retail bank would have an advantage,” said Bob Neuhaus, Vice President of Global Financial Services at JD Power. “What’s most interesting in this study, though, is the fact that the top three performers—Charles Schwab, Ally and Discover—have taken decidedly different paths to market and deliver high levels of customer satisfaction in different ways, showing that there is more than one recipe for success in this rapidly growing market.”

Following are some key findings of the 2019 study:

• Direct banks outperform traditional retail banks: The overall satisfaction score for direct banks is 860 (on a 1,000-point scale). This score is 53 points higher than the overall satisfaction score for traditional branch-based retail banks in the JD Power 2019 U.S. Retail Banking Satisfaction Study.^SM Largest performance gaps are in the areas of products and fees; communication; and problem resolution.

• No single formula for success: The study’s three highest-performing direct banks have roots in decidedly different businesses, ranging from wealth management to credit cards, yet all deliver stand-out levels of customer satisfaction, with scores ranging within 5 points of one another. Highest-ranked Charles Schwab Bank performs well in website satisfaction; second-ranked Ally Bank performs significantly higher than average on competitiveness of interest rates; and third-ranked Discover Bank has the greatest year-over-year improvement of any brand in the study, driven by gains in assisted online support; new account opening experience; and interactive voice response (IVR) banking.

• Direct bank customers skew younger: More than half (61%) of direct bank customers hail from Generations X, Y and Z,² while those age groups account for just 45% of customers of traditional retail banks. Direct bank customers are also considerably more likely to use mobile payment apps (66%) than their traditional retail bank customer peers (49%).

• Need to get past the honeymoon period: Long-term direct bank customers are less satisfied than new customers. Existing direct bank customers who have had their account open for more than one year are notably less satisfied (862) with their bank than are new customers (882). Longer-term customers are also less likely to reuse their direct bank for their next banking product.

Study Rankings

Charles Schwab Bank ranks highest in overall satisfaction with a score of 865. Ally Bank (864) ranks second and Discover Bank (860) ranks third.

The U.S. Direct Banking Satisfaction Study, now in its third year, measures overall satisfaction with direct banks based on five factors (in order of importance): channel activities; products and fees; communication; new account opening; and problem resolution. The channel activities factor includes five subfactors: online banking website; mobile banking; assisted online; call center; and IVR. The study is based on responses from 2,138 direct bank customers nationwide and was fielded in January-February 2019.

To learn more about the U.S. Direct Banking Satisfaction Study, visit https://www.jdpower.com/business/resource/us-direct-banking-satisfaction-study.

JD Power is a global leader in consumer insights, advisory services and data and analytics. These capabilities enable JD Power to help its clients drive customer satisfaction, growth and profitability. Established in 1968, JD Power has offices serving North America, South America, Asia Pacific and Europe.

Media Relations Contacts
Geno Effler, JD Power; Costa Mesa, Calif.; 714-621-6224; [email protected]
John Roderick; St. James, N.Y.; 631-584-2200; [email protected]

About JD Power and Advertising/Promotional Rules:www.jdpower.com/business/about-us/press-release-info

Satisfaction with Original Equipment Tires Helps Automakers Keep Owners Loyal, JD Power Finds

2019-03-20

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COSTA MESA, Calif.: 21 March 2019 — Overall customer satisfaction with original equipment tires affects tire brand loyalty, but also vehicle brand loyalty, according to the JD Power 2019 U.S. Original Equipment Tire Customer Satisfaction Study.^SM

The annual study measures tire owner satisfaction in four key areas (in order of importance): tire wear; tire ride; tire appearance; and tire traction/handling. Rankings are included for four vehicle segments: luxury; passenger car; performance sport; and truck/utility.

Michelin ranks highest in three vehicle segments, scoring 772 in luxury; 756 in passenger car and 730 in truck/utility (out of 1,000). Goodyear ranks highest in performance sport with a score of 753.

“There is a big disconnect between consumers’ expectation for the life of their OE tires and their actual experience, which we find not only influences how likely owners are to repurchase the same brand of tire, but also how likely they are to repurchase the same brand of vehicle,” said Brent Gruber, Senior Director, Automotive Quality Practice at JD Power. “Wear is the biggest influence on tire satisfaction and, when unhappy owners need to replace their tires due to rapid wear, they place blame on the tire manufacturer but also on the vehicle manufacturer. Although it is a challenge balancing performance with long tread life, owners expect more from their tires.”

The study finds that owners report replacing full sets of original equipment tires at just over 26,000 miles on average yet expected more than 40,000 miles on average. “Based on typical driving habits, that could result in costly purchases a full year earlier than expected, or worse yet, an unexpected replacement just before turning in a leased vehicle,” Gruber said. “That type of experience can make it very challenging to maintain owner loyalty.” According to the study, 74% of owners who are extremely satisfied with both their vehicle and original equipment tires indicate that they ‘definitely would’ repurchase their vehicle brand. However, when satisfaction with the vehicle remains extremely high yet tire satisfaction is less than ideal, only 62% indicate they would definitely repurchase their vehicle brand. “While the tire experience alone may not completely deter someone from remaining loyal to their vehicle brand, a bad tire experience can certainly erode future owner loyalty,” added Gruber.

The 2019 U.S. Original Equipment Tire Customer Satisfaction Study is based on responses from 27,777 owners of 2017 and 2018 model-year vehicles and was fielded from October through December 2018.

Media Relations Contacts
Geno Effler; Costa Mesa, Calif.; 714-621-6224; [email protected]
Shane Smith; East Coast; 424-903-3665; [email protected]

About JD Power and Advertising/Promotional Rules www.jdpower.com/about-us/press-release-info

Improvements with Automated Phone Systems Boost Online Flower Satisfaction, JD Power Finds

2019-03-20

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COSTA MESA, Calif.: 21 March 2019 — Overall satisfaction with online flower retailers increases across all factors, according to the JD Power 2019 Online Flower Satisfaction Report. Specifically, the largest customer satisfaction improvement is with the overall experience with retailers’ automated phone systems.

Satisfaction is at 833 (on a 1,000-point scale) in 2019, up from 823 in 2018. As online flower retailers rely solely on websites and apps, it is imperative those customer service touchpoints perform flawlessly to keep customers satisfied. With continued focus on easing these touchpoints such as phone menu prompt navigation, customer satisfaction will continue to climb. 

Study Results

FromYouFlowers.com ranks highest in customer satisfaction with an overall score of 840, performing particularly well in variety of merchandise; online store services and delivery; competitiveness of pricing; and customer service. 1-800-Flowers.com (836) ranks second. 

The 2019 Online Flower Retailer Satisfaction Report is based on responses from 970 customers who made an online purchase from an online flower retailer in the past 12 months. The report was fielded in February 2019.

For more information about JD Power solutions for the retail industry, visit http://www.jdpower.com/business/ratings/industry/retail.

JD Power is a global leader in consumer insights, advisory services and data and analytics. These capabilities enable JD Power to help its clients drive customer satisfaction, growth and profitability. Established in 1968, JD Power has offices serving North America, South America, Asia Pacific and Europe.

Media Relations Contacts
Geno Effler; Costa Mesa, Calif.; 714-621-6224; [email protected]

About JD Power and Advertising/Promotional Rules: http://www.jdpower.com/business/about-us/press-release-info 

Alternative Lenders Satisfying Customers with Digital Platforms and Quick Approvals, But Still Not Viewed As Customer Driven, JD Power Finds

2019-03-25

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COSTA MESA, Calif.: 25 March 2019 — Record levels of credit card debt, rising interest rates and a proliferation of alternative lenders are making personal loans the fastest-growing category of consumer debt products. According to the JD Power 2019 Personal Loan Satisfaction Study,^SM released today, many of these alternative lenders are upping the ante on customer satisfaction by outperforming lenders that provide more traditional loan types, such as home equity lines of credit (HELOC), through superior digital experiences and lightning-fast approval times.

“Given that half of all personal loans are used for debt consolidation or to pay off a credit card, it’s crucial that lenders get the customer interaction formula right with easy-to-navigate digital applications and rapid approval processes,” said John Cabell, Wealth & Lending Intelligence Practice Lead at JD Power. “From a digital perspective, traditional banks need to work hard to meet evolving customer expectations. Non-traditional alternative lenders have their own communications gaps to overcome when it comes to customer perception of pricing and being profit driven. As this business matures and new players continue to enter the market, understanding competitor tactics and clear articulation of the value proposition to customers will become increasingly critical areas of focus.”

This inaugural study evaluates customer satisfaction with personal loan providers and explores the key variables that influence customer choice, satisfaction and loyalty based on four factors (in order of importance): interaction; billing and payment; loan offerings and terms; and application and approval process.

Following are key findings of the 2019 study:

• Alternative lenders pose threat to HELOC market: Overall customer satisfaction with personal loan providers is 853 (on a 1,000-point scale). By contrast, the average customer satisfaction score among HELOC customers in the recent JD Power 2019 Home Equity Line of Credit Satisfaction Study^SM is 834, with lower satisfaction correlating to fewer customer referrals.

• Customers perceive lenders as profit driven: When rating brand image, customers have clear perceptions that all lenders are relatively profit driven, with significantly deeper concern among customers of alternative lenders. Similarly lacking across the board are positive customer perceptions of reasonableness of fees and competitiveness of rates. Alternative lenders also rate significantly below their bank competitors in these two areas.

• Digital applications lead to better understanding and higher satisfaction: Digital is the most common channel used for a personal loan application, with 40% of personal loan customers applying entirely online. Overall satisfaction is highest among personal loan customers in the digital-only segment (886), which also has the highest percentage of applicants who indicate that they completely understood the application (91%). A complete understanding of the application is associated with a 137-point increase in customer satisfaction.

• Fast and efficient funding is critical: Receiving loan approval within two days is associated with a 55-point jump in customer satisfaction, and receiving funds within two days of approval is associated with a 50-point jump in customer satisfaction.  By contrast, customers report the total average time for HELOC funding to be approximately 26 days from the time of application.

• Customers will consider alternate products: Despite the reported benefits, customers choosing personal loans are still not locked in to the product when shopping for their loan. Nearly half (47%) of such customers also considered competing products; 28% considered credit cards; 17% considered personal lines of credit; and 13% considered HELOCs.

The JD Power Personal Loan Satisfaction Study is based on responses from 3,413 personal loan customers and was fielded in December 2018-January 2019.

Study Rankings

Marcus by Goldman Sachs ranks highest in overall customer satisfaction with a score of 899, followed by Lightstream (SunTrust) (887) and Upstart (873).

For more information about the JD Power Personal Loan Satisfaction Study, visit https://www.jdpower.com/business/resource/2019-us-personal-loan-satisfaction-study.

JD Power is a global leader in consumer insights, advisory services and data and analytics. These capabilities enable JD Power to help its clients drive customer satisfaction, growth and profitability. Established in 1968, JD Power has offices serving North America, South America, Asia Pacific and Europe.

Media Relations Contacts
Geno Effler, JD Power; Costa Mesa, Calif.; 714-621-6224; [email protected]
John Roderick; St. James, N.Y.; 631-584-2200; [email protected]

About JD Power and Advertising/Promotional Rules: www.jdpower.com/business/about-us/press-release-info

Auto Retail Sales Off to Slowest Q1 Start Since 2013, But Demand for Higher-Priced Vehicles Remains Strong

2019-03-25

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The Retail Sales Forecast

New-vehicle retail sales in March are expected to fall from a year ago, declining to 1,195,000 units, a 3.4% decrease compared with March 2018. The seasonally adjusted annualized rate (SAAR) for retail sales is expected to be 13.0 million units, down 400,000 from a year ago.

New-vehicle retail sales in Q1 are projected to reach 2,944,200 units, a 4.9% decrease from Q1 2018.

The Total Sales Forecast

Total sales in March are projected to reach 1,562,800 units, a 2.1% decrease compared with March 2018.  The seasonally adjusted annualized rate (SAAR) for total sales is expected to be 16.9 million units, down 400,000 from a year ago.

New vehicle total sales in Q1 are projected to reach 3,952,100 units, a 2.5% decrease compared to the first quarter of last year.

The Takeaway

Thomas King, Senior Vice President of the Data and Analytics Division at JD Power:

“This is the first time in six years that Q1 sales will fall short of 3 million units. While the volume story could be better, there is remarkable growth in transaction prices, with records being set monthly. New-vehicle prices are on pace to reach $33,319 in Q1—the highest ever for the first quarter—and it’s more than $1,000 higher than last year.”

—–

The combination of lower volumes and higher prices means that consumer expenditures on new vehicles will be down only 3%. The rise in transaction prices reflects a combination of factors and is being accelerated by the severe contraction of industry sales at lower price points. For example, retail sales of vehicles under $25,000 are expected to be down 12% in Q1 compared with 5% overall.  Also assisting higher prices is continued incentive discipline. Spending-to-date in Q1 is $3,821 per unit, down $119 from the same time last year. Spending on cars is down $333 to $3,627, while spending on trucks/SUVs is down $27 to $3,903.

—–

“As manufacturers look towards the rest of the year, the direction from the U.S. Federal Reserve to keep rates stable in 2019 will help alleviate concerns over vehicle affordability,” King said. “While the first quarter has exhibited more weakness than expected, there is still enough time to recover some of the lost volume.” Last year, sales during the first quarter were down nearly 3%, while sales during the reminder of the year were down only 2%. Recovery of that volume is key, because the slow start to the year has resulted in increased inventory levels. Without a recovery, the industry will be faced with the tough choice of either increasing incentive levels or cutting production.

Sales & SAAR Comparison

JD Power and LMC Automotive U.S. Sales and SAAR Comparisons

¹Figures cited for March 2019 are forecasted based on the first 14 selling days of the month.
²March 2019 has 27 selling days, one less day than March 2018.

The Details

• The average new-vehicle retail transaction price to date in March is on pace to reach $33,306. The previous high for the month of March—$32,269—was set last year.
• The record prices reflect higher prices trending for both cars (up 2% to $27,089) and trucks/SUVs (up 3% to $36,042)
• Average incentive spending per unit to date in March is $3,689, down from $3,903 during the same period last year.
• Consumers are on pace to spend $39.8 billion on new vehicles in March, down $1.6 billion from last year’s level.
• Truck/SUVs account for 68.7% of new-vehicle retail sales through March 17, the highest level ever for the month of March.
• Days to turn, the average number of days a new vehicle sits on a dealer lot before being sold to a retail customer, is 74 days through March 17, up 5 days from last year.
• Fleet sales are expected to total 367,800 units in March, up 2.4% from March 2018.  Fleet volume is expected to account for 24% of total light-vehicle sales, up from 23% last year.

Outlook for the Year

Jeff Schuster, President, Americas Operations and Global Vehicle Forecasts, LMC Automotive:

“U.S. auto sales are off to a weaker-than-expected start as weather, mixed economic data and lower tax refunds affect Q1 performance. In addition, both domestic and import brands face mounting pressure from the Trump administration to manufacture in America. This pressure has accelerated some planned investment announcements and is already affecting trade negotiations with the EU and Japan, resulting in tariff and brand performance turbulence as the spring selling season begins.”

Given the current weakness and uncertain future, LMC’s forecast for 2019 total light-vehicle sales has been trimmed by 75,000 units to 16.9 million units, a decline of 2.2% from 2018. The forecast for retail light-vehicle sales remains at 13.6 million.

Media Relations Contacts
Geno Effler; JD Power; Costa Mesa, Calif.; 714-621-6224; [email protected]
Emmie Littlejohn; LMC Automotive; Troy, Mich.; 248-817-2100; [email protected]

About JD Power and Advertising/Promotional Rules www.jdpower.com/business/about-us/press-release-info

About LMC Automotive www.lmc-auto.com

2019 Automotive Website Evaluation Study Cross-Device

2019-03-26

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COSTA MESA, Calif.: 28 March 2019 — The JD Power 2019 Automotive Website Evaluation Study Cross-Device^SM evaluates third-party automotive websites from two perspectives across platforms (desktop/smartphone): overall site function and the importance of various site features to online shoppers. This study examines which current site functions and designs are most effective in helping shoppers narrow their consideration set and increasing their likelihood to recommend and return to the website.

This year’s study finds that smartphones satisfaction dramatically increases while desktop satisfaction declines. This indicates that many companies are going all-in with enhancing the mobile experience, to the detriment of the desktop experience.

The 2019 Automotive Website Evaluation Study Cross-Device^SM is based on responses from 4,085 evaluations of third-party automotive websites by new- and used-vehicle shoppers who indicate they will be in the market for a vehicle within the next 24 months. The study was fielded in January 2019. JD Power offers its own consumer automotive websites that compete with the websites studied in the Automotive Website Evaluation Study Cross-Device (AWESxD). However, JD Power websites are not included in the AWESxD study.

For more information about the Automotive Website Evaluation Study Cross-Device,^SM visit https://www.jdpower.com/business/resource/us-automotive-website-evaluation-study-cross-device.

JD Power is a global leader in consumer insights, advisory services and data and analytics. These capabilities enable JD Power to help its clients drive customer satisfaction, growth and profitability. Established in 1968, JD Power has offices serving North America, South America, Asia Pacific and Europe.

Travel Industry Apps Lag Substantially Behind Credit Card and Banking Apps, JD Power Finds

2019-03-26

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COSTA MESA, Calif.: 28 March 2019 — A traveler hits unexpected traffic on the way to the airport and isn’t quite sure where to return the rental car. In the terminal, there’s a huge line at check-in and uncertainty about the departure gate number because the mobile app on the traveler’s smartphone won’t load. Sound familiar?

This is the modern-day proving ground for traveler satisfaction. As travel apps rapidly replace everything from boarding passes to car rental and hotel room keys, many such apps are falling short of user expectations, according to the JD Power Inaugural U.S. Travel App Satisfaction Study,^SM released today.

The study evaluates satisfaction with travel apps across four segments: airline; hotel; online travel agency (OTA); and rental car. It explores the key variables that influence customer choice, satisfaction and loyalty based on four factors: clarity of information provided; ease of navigation; overall appearance, speed of screens loading; and range of services/activities.

“Travel apps have come a long way,” said Michael Taylor, Travel Intelligence Lead at JD Power. “While some travel apps are delivering on their promise, others are missing the mark at critical moments of truth that can significantly influence traveler perception of brands and services. We see big swings in scores among travel apps when users evaluate searching and booking functions.”

Following are key findings of the study:

• Travel apps lag far behind customer financial apps in overall satisfaction: The average overall satisfaction score for Hotel, OTA and Rental Car apps is 849 (on a 1,000-point scale). Airline apps score lower (840). By contrast, overall user satisfaction scores for credit card apps (874) and retail banking apps (867) are substantially higher. Both credit card and banking apps also have considerably higher levels of utilization.
• Day-of-travel performance is critical to travel app satisfaction: Across all segments of travel apps, the key performance indicator (KPI) with the most influence on overall satisfaction is ease of use during travel. Hotel apps that users cite as “easy to use” score 130 points higher in overall satisfaction compared with apps that are perceived as more difficult to use. Among airline apps, that gap is 125 points. However, just 58% of hotel apps and 62% of airline apps currently achieve these levels.
• Rental car apps have lowest rate of adoption in travel industry: Among app users that indicated they have a travel app already downloaded on their smartphone,airline apps lead the industry in customer adoption rate at 90%. They are followed by hotel apps (84%); OTA apps (78%); and rental car apps (59%).
• Weak point for airline apps: Airline apps have the highest levels of customer utilization of critical features during the day of travel, but the lowest performance in the industry when it comes to speed of screens loading during travel. OTAs perform best on this metric, with an average page load speed satisfaction score of 856. The average score for airline apps is 824.

The JD Power Inaugural U.S. Travel App Satisfaction Study is based on more than 12,000 evaluations from users of airline, hotel, OTA and rental car apps, and was fielded from December 2018 through January 2019. Following this preview study, the annual U.S. Travel App Satisfaction Study will commence publication in November 2019.

Study Rankings

JetBlue ranks highest in overall customer satisfaction among airline apps with a score of 864, followed by Southwest (861) and Alaska Airlines (849).

World of Hyatt ranks highest in overall customer satisfaction among hotel apps with a score of 867, followed by IHG (855) and Hilton Honors (853).

Orbitz ranks highest in overall customer satisfaction among OTA apps with a score of 866, followed by Priceline (859) and Expedia (847).

National ranks highest in overall customer satisfaction among rental car apps with a score of 860, followed by Enterprise Car Rental (854) and Hertz (844).

For more information about the Inaugural U.S. Travel App Satisfaction Study, visit https://www.jdpower.com/business/resource/jd-power-2019-us-travel-app-satisfaction-study.

JD Power is a global leader in consumer insights, advisory services and data and analytics. These capabilities enable JD Power to help its clients drive customer satisfaction, growth and profitability. Established in 1968, JD Power has offices serving North America, South America, Asia Pacific and Europe.

Media Relations Contacts
Geno Effler, JD Power; Costa Mesa, Calif.; 714-621-6224; [email protected]
John Roderick; St. James, N.Y.; 631-584-2200; [email protected]

About JD Power and Advertising/Promotional Rules: www.jdpower.com/business/about-us/press-release-info

JD Power Teams with Centric Digital to Expand Digital Customer Experience Intelligence Solutions

2019-03-29

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COSTA MESA, Calif.: 2 April 2019— JD Power, the global leader in data analytics and consumer intelligence, today announced it has formed an alliance with Centric Digital, a leader in digital intelligence, to jointly develop a range of new customer experience measurement and digital intelligence solutions.

The collaboration was formed to address the growing challenges businesses face addressing digital transformation. Together, JD Power and Centric Digital will harness deep customer experience data to fine tune digital offerings on everything from website and mobile app user interface to the biggest digital stumbling blocks. The focus will be on industries that include automotive, financial services, insurance, travel and hospitality, utilities, technology, telecommunications and healthcare.

Drawing on the respective areas of expertise of each organization, the alliance will leverage JD Power data and analytics solutions and deep industry expertise and Centric Digital automated data collection technology, machine learning and natural language processing to unstructured data across a brand’s digital footprint including web, mobile and social media. The combination delivers a unique solution for generating the digital experience insights companies need to improve operations, raise Net Promoter Score®¹, raise Customer Satisfaction and compete more effectively against an increasingly disrupted market.

“Every company serving customers in every industry today is a digital company,” said Bernardo Rodriguez, Chief Digital Officer at JD Power. “For some, that transition to larger segments of their customer populations interacting solely through digital channels has been smooth. For others it has been life-threatening. Increasingly over the past several years, we’ve observed a trend we call the ‘digital dilemma,’ whereby companies make huge investments in digital technology only to find those investments impede their ability to connect with customers in a meaningful way. Our work with Centric Digital, enables us to bring forth best practices and behavioral insights that are making it much easier for businesses to manage this challenging transition.”

“JD Power data and consumer insights provide a critical customer perspective on a brand’s digital experience,” said Jason Albanese, Chief Executive Officer at Centric Digital. “When combined with Centric Digital’s measurement of hundreds of digital standards across thousands of brands, it creates an unmatched solution that will benefit enterprises around the world.”

JD Power is a global leader in consumer intelligence, advisory services and data and analytics. These capabilities enable JD Power to help its clients drive customer satisfaction, growth and profitability. Established in 1968, JD Power has offices serving North America, South America, Asia Pacific and Europe.

Centric Digital’s intelligence platform, DIMENSIONS™, measures capabilities across an enterprise’s core digital footprint—web, mobile, social, etc.—and compares them to industry standards and market leaders. Insights from Centric Digital IQ data powers partner solutions, informs investors and guides C-suite executives through frontline managers to optimize business performance. Over 15,000 brands worldwide and across industries are tracked including the S&P 500. To learn more or schedule a demo, please visit centricdigital.com.

Media Relations Contacts
Geno Effler, JD Power; Costa Mesa, Calif.; 714-621-6224; [email protected]
John Roderick; St. James, N.Y.; 631-584-2200; [email protected]
Brian Manning, Centric Digital; New York, N.Y.; 646-875-8751; [email protected]

About JD Power and Advertising/Promotional Rules www.jdpower.com/business/about-us/press-release-info