A passenger who knows just about everything

"Hello. Could you tell me which shisha bar my friend is currently in?" This is one of the more unusual requests received by Husam, who works in Berlin for the telephone Concierge Service of Bosch Service Solutions. He is a service contact for callers from the Arab region. "Requests such as this one are entertaining, but don't happen too often," explains the Jordanian native. His colleague Wika agrees: "Customers who use our service are mostly looking for hotels, restaurants or gas stations in their area. Sometimes they also want to know what the weather's like or which movies are currently shown. We also act as a backup for the Emergency Call Service from Bosch."

Bosch Service Solutions launched the Concierge Service in 2013 as part of its offering of connected mobility solutions. The Concierge Service gives vehicle manufacturers the opportunity to offer even greater convenience to their end customers. It is an extra that is gladly utilized by customers, with thousands of calls from all over the world received by service centers every day. Berlin currently covers around ten languages. With GPS tracking they can determine the caller's exact location and with the help of various tools they can quickly answer questions, book a hotel room or even plan and provide commentary for a sightseeing tour.

Wika comes from Poland, speaks English as well as Spanish and previously worked as a welder. Husam studied law in Syria and used to work as a hotel manager. The one thing that unites the team is their enthusiasm for contact with customers. "We talk to a lot of different people every day. This requires a certain degree of openness and the ability to get to the point quickly. And, of course, you have to be friendly," says Wika. The same goes for their colleagues: "We are a great team, like a second family, with an excellent team leader. We really enjoy our work. Customers notice this." Many customers use the service on a regular basis and recognize the voice of "their" concierge. Vehicle manufacturers ultimately benefit from this as well, as a friendly point of contact becomes an integral part of the brand experience.

As the use of connected services increases, so too does the number of end customers of the Concierge Service. Even if some of them have only discovered this innovative functionality by chance or first had to be convinced that they were not talking to a computer, as in the case of one elderly gentleman- – Wika, Husam and their team from Bosch Service Solutions are on hand to make their lives easier.