While few people will ever own a Rolls-Royce, the automobile maker has moved aggressively to develop digital resources enabling everyone to experience a luxury car, if only in their imaginations. In addition to their website, Rolls-Royce has a YouTube channel (www.youtube.com/rollsroycemotorcars),  a Fan Page (www.facebook.com/rollsroycemotorcars) and a film site (www.21stcenturylegends.com). Last year the Rolls-Royce Ghost App for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch was introduced and now there's the new Rolls-Royce Phantom App.
According to Marc Mielau, GM, Global Marketing, Rolls-Royce Motor Cars Ltd., the Phantom App showcases the "pinnacle" of the automotive industry and has even more features than those in the Ghost App which he referred to as "Phantom's younger brother." The Rolls-Royce Phantom App offers 360-degree exterior views and three interior angles from the front, side and rear seat. It can be used to configure the Phantom, Phantom Coupé and Phantom Drophead Coupé.
"We want to make the brand approachable," said Mielau. "With the new Phantom App you can configure your absolute dream car. Eighty percent of our cars are specially commissioned and bespoke. They are tailor-made for our customers."
The Rolls-Royce Phantom App allows clients and Rolls-Royce enthusiasts to create highly bespoke virtual models, through the ability to apply unique color and interior trim combinations. One very popular element of the new Phantom App is the Bespoke Color Match feature. Using an iPad, iPhone or iPod touch camera, users can capture any color they see and then apply it directly to the exterior of their virtual Phantom. A color in the design of a favorite scarf, the hue of a perfect sky, the shade of a colt's coat, all can be captured and applied to the exterior of the virtual Phantom. Rolls-Royce prides itself on making available to customers a palette of 44,000 colors for the Phantom.
"There's also section in the app where you can see many different pictures, just as inspiration, showing what other customers or dealers have done to make very extraordinary, very individual cars," explained Mielau. "This section highlights all the craftsmanship which is found at the home of our brand in Goodwood. At the leather shop here they can sew the most exceptional embroidery you could ever imagine. From Abu Dhabi we had a car that was ordered with a falcon theme so there's falcon embroidery in the headrest of the car. This is a marvelous aspect  about the woodshop and the leather shop — that we can make things which are really individual. These of course are in addition to the paint shop, which offers endless possibilities."
The image gallery mentioned by Mielau showcases bespoke features such as seat piping, veneer inserts, humidor and picnic sets. There's also the popular starlight headliner, a feature where hundreds of illuminated optical fibers are woven into the roof lining of the chosen Phantom model. Users can experience this interior ambiance interactively, thanks to the app’s ability to turn up or down the degree of illumination.
Rolls-Royce is also using digital resources to enable participation in a research project that the company launched more than a year ago. The Phantom Experimental Electric Car was recently unveiled at this year's Geneva Motor Show.
"We want to open our world to customers, prospects and enthusiasts so they can participate a bit in our brand. That's one of the reasons that we have developed the 02EX, also called the Phantom Experimental Electric Car," said Mielau. "It is the world’s first electric vehicle for the ultra-luxury segment. While we have no intention to build a production version of this car, we are very interested to share ideas about the 02EX with enthusiasts, either Rolls-Royce enthusiasts or individuals interested in electric cars. We have created a special online presence at www.electricluxury.com where people can interact with us and converse on the topic. This is one way to open our brand to a broader audience."
Digital initiatives are important to Rolls-Royce due to the interactivity of the online world. But that doesn't mean that the car maker is abandoning a broader marketing plan. The company holds numerous customer drive events where current and potential customers can be hands on with the latest models. Mielau commented that it's important for Rolls-Royce to be as personal a possible in reaching out to its target market, since there are so few individuals who will ever be customers.
How personal does it get? Every customer who purchases a Rolls-Royce receives a welcome letter written by the CEO. It seems there still are times when an e-mail isn't good enough.