What does AUX mean?
AUX is the short form for anticipatory experiences, which are the actions, interactions and experiences that take place before the use of a product or service.
Sound complicated? Let us explain. Normally when we talk about a user experience, it is the momentary experience that is implied - that is the experience that takes place in the moment you use are using a product or a service. Before this however, we have the anticipatory experience - which can be summarized as the customer imagining and looking forward to the experience that is to come.
In this phase, customer gain awareness, find information, explore available product offers and generally build up their expectations on what owning and using a product will be like - before it has happened. The importance of this experience cannot be understated as it is within this phase that the customers form their opinion of a product or brand and decide whether they are going to commit to a purchase.
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But how does this relate to automotive showrooms?
Well, when it comes to the retail of cars, people often visit showrooms as part of their anticipatory experience in order to view the products and talk to experts. This has been the case for decades, but as the world we live in is becoming more and more connected and many brands move their business online, the showroom experiences are likely to change accordingly. As does the anticipatory experiences.
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When looking for information today, there are more ways than seeking out sales representatives to ask, and shopping on the web is thus becoming increasingly popular. However, there is one thing that an online automotive market is lacking to provide today, and that is seeing the product in real life, touching it and test driving it – and these are all crucial parts of the anticipatory experience. Therefore, great interest lies in exploring how the showroom environments of the future may help linking the physical and digital world through novel technology while accommodating the anticipatory experiences of tomorrow.