Electric Vehicles and Automotive Brand: How has Tesla Shaped Consumer Perceptions?

Among the broad literature on consumer research for battery electric vehicles (BEVs), little emphasis is placed on the role of brand perceptions. Specifically, no studies have explored if and how Tesla may have shaped consumer perceptions of BEVs. Drawing from marketing literature, consumers might prefer the automotive brands that they are used to, due to brand loyalty. Alternatively, they might prefer Tesla for being more innovative, affording Tesla a pioneer advantage. The authors study the role of brand using survey data collected from a representative sample of 2,123 Canadian new vehicle-buyers in 2017. Respondents most frequently associate BEVs with Tesla (27%), Toyota (27%), Chevrolet (26%), and Nissan (13%). More than two-thirds of respondents are familiar with Tesla, and 40% select Tesla as a brand representing the “future of BEVs”. In contrast, when asked which brand they’d prefer to buy a BEV from, responses are more evenly spread across a variety of brands. Of the Tesla-familiar respondents, most indicate that Tesla has influenced them to perceive BEVs as more innovative, stylish, and environmentally beneficial. Further, the authors observe that respondents more strongly associate Tesla with several positive images (e.g., being stylish, high-performance, and attractive), relative to BEVs more generally, and that such perceptions are statistically associated with stated intention to purchase a BEV. These exploratory findings indicate that Tesla has contributed to shaping consumer perceptions of BEVs, where some consumers might be attracted to the company’s pioneering innovation, while others might be loyal to a conventional automaker.

• Supplemental Notes:
  • This paper was sponsored by TRB committee ADC80 Standing Committee on Alternative Transportation Fuels and Technologies.
• Corporate Authors:

  Transportation Research Board

  ,    
• Authors:
  • Long, Zoe
  • Axsen, Jonn
  • Miller, Inger
  • Kormos, Christine
• Conference:
  • Transportation Research Board 98th Annual Meeting
  • Location: Washington DC, United States
  • Date: 2019-1-13 to 2019-1-17
• Date: 2019

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: Digital/other
• Features: Figures; References; Tables;
• Pagination: 21p

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Attitudes; Automobile industry; Consumer preferences; Electric vehicles; Marketing
• Identifier Terms: Tesla automobile
• Subject Areas: Environment; Highways; Vehicles and Equipment;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01698092
• Record Type: Publication
• Report/Paper Numbers: 19-00417
• Files: TRIS, TRB, ATRI
• Created Date: Mar 1 2019 3:51PM