How can one man (Tesla Owner) completely redefine the automotive industry with a relatively small investment for the vehicle industry?
Elon Musk did create an exclusive product for visionaries and early adopters of 100% electric luxury vehicles back in 2008. In an industry where companies fight to rule the centre of the curve, Elon Musk understood the need to have a differentiation and marketing angle important to a small group of people.
What is the marketing strategy of Tesla?
While all vehicles of major brands seem to copy their models looking similar to each other, Tesla appealed to the innovators and, step by step, moved towards the centre while keeping its marketing angle.
Why does having a unique marketing angle matter?
If you don’t understand the relevance of your marketing angle, it can cost your business to have no sales. Focus on taking a sort of Tesla approach to promoting your product or service through a marketing angle that is clear, coherent and unique.
This is the best way to entice your potential customers to buy your products. If you bring attractive promotional angles, it will work because your unique angle will connect deeper with your target audience and, as a plus, create urgency.
A marketing angle is a story you use to get your prospects to act on your offers or products. A marketing angle is a method you use to get your audience to think about a problem for which you offer them a solution.
Promotional angles play a key role in any marketing strategy. These angles affect your audience buying decision, funnel, creative (banners, images), landing page, Facebook Ads, etc.
How to create an effective marketing angle?
Tesla’s success is not based on the amount of money invested in its marketing efforts, but on the penetration angle, Elon Musk used to get his idea into the industry.
This alone should tell you something about your needed marketing angle. Figure it out in four simple steps.
Steps to creating a marketing angle:
- Tell your target audience the story behind your idea
- Focus on the solution, not the problem
- Understand where your competitors are failing
- Make your solution different from the rest of your competitors
It’s easier to say than to do but as simple as it looks, it’s just as effective for your marketing efforts.
Take a look at the key elements Elon Musk highlights about the Tesla CyberTruck:
In the video, Elon Musk does not focus on what competitors are doing with their cars but highlights the solutions that he offers to his target audience.
Because good advertising content must be surrounded by engaging factors that your audience cannot resist.
Marketing Approach by Tesla
Tesla took an incredibly unique approach to market and advertising. This sets the company apart from its competitors in the automotive industry regarding advertising creativity and marketing budget. Tesla notoriously invests only a fraction of the automotive industry average on paid marketing advertising.
Instead, Tesla focuses on generating organic interest and a targeted customer audience through a mix of real product innovations, shocking PR stunts, and controversial statements from its famous founder Elton Musk.
Although Tesla does not disclose information about its marketing budget and advertising investment, according to a report by BrandTotal, Tesla spent zero dollars on advertising during a 30-day study period when they examined the social marketing campaigns of the leading automakers in the US.
Of course, that doesn’t mean Tesla isn’t investing in a marketing approach at all. It’s an impressive feat compared to the huge budgets spent by its major competitors.
Regardless of budget, Tesla’s marketing strategies have supported the astronomical growth that has resulted in the company becoming the most valuable U.S. automaker of all time, with an estimated market valuation of $100 billion in January 2020.
Your company’s marketing style is compared to Tesla’s.
At Tesla, everything works to fulfil the company’s mission: to “accelerate the world’s transition to sustainable energy. Ultimately, Tesla wants to be a leader in the transition to a zero-emissions future. The company is working to develop electric cars, clean energy generation, and storage products to achieve this.
What is your company working towards?
You must answer this question because you will find the strength of your marketing efforts or their weakness in the answer. Like Tesla, your company needs to follow a mission. It’s clear for Tesla, but what does it look like for your business?
It’s not about the product, and it’s about what your product can solve. Use the solution as a hook to appeal to your target audience. Your brand vision needs to match your product solutions; only then will you develop a marketing angle that is hard to beat in your industry.
Remember Elon Must? He didn’t come with the fear of the competition. On the contrary, he ignored the competitors in his industry because he was convinced that his offering was a solution for the buyers who have a basic ecological feeling.
This targeted, ambitious marketing style allows for an emotional connection between your brand and its audience. Whether they drive Tesla cars, use your products, or own clean energy products. Focus on building a strong foundation for your company’s marketing and communications efforts to ensure consistent brand awareness.
This marketing technique has proven to be immensely successful in building Tesla’s reputation and establishing its identity and all other successful brands in the world.
It is so important to focus on organic growth for your brand that even a small selection of advertising channels is enough to gain and maintain your brand position in your market.
What can we small and medium-sized entrepreneurs learn from Tesla’s marketing strategy?
- To get more effective results with lower costs, it’s important to go to the extremes of the consumption curve, find the smallest viable market, and differentiate your offering.
- You must have a product or service + a communicative message that is contagious, and worth sharing.
- Turn your communication efforts into valuable content for your audience. The better your story and the more your values resonate with your audience, the better your marketing efforts will perform.
- Expand your offering from the smallest viable market to mass consumption (middle of the consumption curve).
Tesla’s marketing strategy Summary:
The key to the success of a marketing campaign is that the target audience knows they’re getting something they’ve been looking for when they buy your product or service (usually, it’s just a feeling). Here are two keys:
The choice of buyer persona (as different groups are attracted to different sentiments), and,
The solutions you offer (If you buy our products/services, you get X).
Define these two keys and you will get closer to business growth.
What are your thoughts about Tesla’s marketing approach? Do you think your company is doing the right marketing approach? Let’s chat about it in the comments below!
