Leveraging technology to stay ahead during the COVID-19 crisis

The self-drive mobility platform operates on deep-rooted technology to maintain business continuity amidst the crisis, says Markish Arun, Vice President (VP) of Engineering, Zoomcar.

In the wake of the COVID-19 outbreak across the world, businesses are reeling severe stress to ensure uninterrupted business. The pandemic has brought several businesses and livelihoods to a screeching halt due to many countries being placed under complete or partial lockdown. To contain the virus that has infected over 3 million people worldwide, people are being strongly advised to stay indoors, practice social distancing and follow proper hygiene protocols.

The outbreak and the nationwide lockdown are now urging the businesses and citizens to rely on technology for adjusting to the new state of normalcy. Sectors like mobility and supply chains certainly face challenges and hence, self-drive mobility platform Zoomcar is leveraging the potential of technology to stay ahead during these unprecedented times. Here’s how the brand has revamped its services with the help of innovative new-age tech mechanisms.

Enhanced customer services: Zoomcar’s model of working is entirely digital. From booking cars through its app to picking up and dropping it off, the brand is using a ‘Keyless entry’ concept which automates the customers’ entire trip. However, despite running on a robust technology-based business model, maintaining continuity of a B2C business in times when there is a temporary ban on commercial transportation can be a daunting challenge. To resolve this issue, Zoomcar has tied up with essential service providers such as hospitals, and grocery/food delivery brands and allocated its select fleet of over 10,000 cars to help with mobility-related woes.

The brand is ensuring that Mobility-as-a-Service is available for anyone who is in need of it by providing cars for personal emergencies on demand, thereby boosting its customer services. This additional service, which follows social distancing rules and is the need of the hour in case of medical emergencies has struck a major chord with its customers. With refurbished subscription plans, Zoomcar now offers the option of subscribing to its car rental services from a starting plan of 1 month. Customers can avail the subscription plan for up to 36 months.

Adhering to safety and hygiene norms: Zoomcar’s keyless entry system using cutting edge technology such as IoT immensely minimizes physical contact with the surfaces. The keyless feature allows users to unlock it and find a clean, sanitized key placed within the vehicle. Each car is sanitized thoroughly using a disinfectant spray and paper towels before and after each use. In addition to this, the car rental services brand is also training its employees regarding safety and hygiene protocols to offer an immaculate experience for customers while keeping themselves safe. The company also plans to show near real-time sanitization of the cars to customers at the time of booking.

Upgraded mobile app: Zoomcar has tweaked its app to offer the best-in-class services to its customers. Through the app, which uses state-of-the-art customer technology such as AI and ML, customers can reach out for any query or feedback through chatbots, emails and calls whenever required. Apart from this, the app also allows customers to reschedule their booking an unlimited number of times in the face of uncertainty or urgent commitments. Zoomcar’s digital payment gateway also offers a seamless experience and provides refunds instantly in the event of a change in their plans.

Resource optimization with reduced cost: With social distancing and remote working becoming the new norm, there is a need to restructure and reassess the IT infrastructure planning. Zoomcar is investing more in new-age technologies to help keep the team connected in a flawless manner. Considering the current scenario that the world is dealing with, this investment will prove to be useful in the longer run. With the traffic going down, cost reduction is necessary. Keeping this in mind, Zoomcar is re-evaluating its cloud services to make it a pay-per-usage model.

In its bid to cope with the unprecedented and arduous times, Zoomcar is driven by a single motive of ensuring continued services and minimize any disruption in essential services. The world’s war against coronavirus requires the private and public sector companies to join hands and offer pragmatic, comprehensive solutions that resonate with society’s current requirements,let the world bounce back to normalcy sooner.