Consumer Visions in the Luxury Auto Space

Challenge:  A European luxury automaker had entered into the electric car market but was struggling to gain market share, particularly in the U.S. With Tesla having established a commanding lead in this highly dynamic market, our client wanted to understand how to demonstrate to customers that their brand could successfully pivot towards electric technologies, not just with hybrids (PHEVs) but also with fully-electric vehicles (BEVs) – and, therefore, take on Tesla head-to-head. Even more important, our client wanted to “future-proof” their decision-making by understanding how consumers’ visions of the future will impact their emotions and behaviors around the purchase/use of the next generation of e-driving.

Approach:  To understand both the functional and emotional benefits of electric cars among this specialized segment of car purchasers, SPI used a qualitative methodology that included individual phone interviews in car-centric markets. We conducted in-depth conversations with owners of the brand’s e-cars, drivers of competitive brands, considerers of fully electric cars, and environmentally friendly buyers to better understand their evaluative criteria for purchase, underlying brand perceptions, and the purchase journey. We also conducted focus groups in high-income urban markets where the emotional benefits of luxury cars in general – and electric cars, in particular – can be even more important than functional benefits. Using projective exercises, we prompted target consumers to reveal the functional (e.g., range and battery charging, cost, features, etc.) and emotional (status, self-image, lifestyle, etc.) benefits of e-cars. Through the use of differently-themed creative springboards, we elicited consumers’ reactions to several “future worlds” scenarios and stretched their imaginings on the category and what could drive interest in the future.

Result: SPI’s research provided our client with a road map for short-term communications and technology, as well as long-term “future-proofing” for the brand’s venture into e-cars. They gained the understanding needed to prove to consumers that they have the engineering know-how to be a fully-qualified contender in the electric car space, leveraging their historic position as an innovator while at the same time creating appeal for current and future purchasers of alternative technology vehicles.