Photo: Catalin Garmacea
Tesla is a strange company - from its CEO to the way it conducts business, it seems to do everything in its power to set itself apart from the rest of the pack. Its products have clearly managed to do that, but another thing that drove Tesla's success forward was its marketing strategy.
As you may have probably noticed, Tesla isn't really advertising in the traditional way. Most of the commercial spots on the web are fan-made and have no official backing from Elon Musk's company. Tesla didn't need advertising since being in control of the distribution chain meant that it knew exactly where the demand stood in regards to production, and the latter struggled to meet the former.
However, Musk did maintain a strong presence on the Web, being an active Twitter user and not shying away from an interview or a public presentation whenever possible. Tesla Motors has a communications manager of some sort, but it's really Musk who's doing all the hard work when it comes to promotion. But that may not necessarily be a good thing.
His strategy appears to have worked up to this point. In his mind, his company could do no wrong, so whenever somebody came out and said anything different, Elon Musk would immediately dismiss those accusations as unfounded. He doesn't take critique well, but that doesn't mean he ignores it. It's just a defense mechanism that launches instinctively and tells him to deny any problems with his vehicles. Later, when the storm has passed, Tesla will see to address them, but what the public has to remember is that the cars are perfect.
Musk had the opportunity of using his method yesterday, and after an official position from the company, he took to Twitter to tell everybody what he felt: "Of greater concern: 37 of 40 suspension complaints to NHTSA were fraudulent, i.e. false location or vehicle identification numbers were used. Would seem to indicate that one or more people sought to create the false impression of a safety issue where none existed. Q[estion] is why?"
The NHTSA - who is investigating the case - did not comment on the false VINs complaints, but it acknowledged the fact that it has Tesla's full cooperation and that it hasn't identified any safety issue with the suspension system up to this point. Later that day, Musk made another tweet: "NHTSA confirmed today that they found no safety concern with the Model S suspension. And [they] have no further need for data from us on this matter."
This seems to conclude the incident, but it's not over until the fat lady sings. And, in this situation, the fat lady is the NHTSA. Until an official statement from the government agency doesn't exonerate the Model S of any blame, the case is still pending.
However, Musk did maintain a strong presence on the Web, being an active Twitter user and not shying away from an interview or a public presentation whenever possible. Tesla Motors has a communications manager of some sort, but it's really Musk who's doing all the hard work when it comes to promotion. But that may not necessarily be a good thing.
His strategy appears to have worked up to this point. In his mind, his company could do no wrong, so whenever somebody came out and said anything different, Elon Musk would immediately dismiss those accusations as unfounded. He doesn't take critique well, but that doesn't mean he ignores it. It's just a defense mechanism that launches instinctively and tells him to deny any problems with his vehicles. Later, when the storm has passed, Tesla will see to address them, but what the public has to remember is that the cars are perfect.
Musk had the opportunity of using his method yesterday, and after an official position from the company, he took to Twitter to tell everybody what he felt: "Of greater concern: 37 of 40 suspension complaints to NHTSA were fraudulent, i.e. false location or vehicle identification numbers were used. Would seem to indicate that one or more people sought to create the false impression of a safety issue where none existed. Q[estion] is why?"
The NHTSA - who is investigating the case - did not comment on the false VINs complaints, but it acknowledged the fact that it has Tesla's full cooperation and that it hasn't identified any safety issue with the suspension system up to this point. Later that day, Musk made another tweet: "NHTSA confirmed today that they found no safety concern with the Model S suspension. And [they] have no further need for data from us on this matter."
This seems to conclude the incident, but it's not over until the fat lady sings. And, in this situation, the fat lady is the NHTSA. Until an official statement from the government agency doesn't exonerate the Model S of any blame, the case is still pending.
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