Photo: Tesla Asia | Edited
Over the weekend, Tesla Asia's Twitter account shared a testimonial video highlighting Tesla's unique selling points. Coming shortly after the 2023 Shareholder Meeting, where Elon Musk promised to try a little advertising, this video can be considered Tesla's first attempt.
Tesla differs significantly from other companies because it doesn't pay to advertise its products. Traditional carmakers such as Ford, Toyota, and General Motors spend $3-4 billion annually. Still, Tesla relied on its devoted follower base to spread the word and advertise for the company free of charge. This put it in an interesting position, as many news outlets criticized Tesla without worrying about retaliation by cutting the advertising budgets. It also had to contend with rival companies' tech being hyped for no other reason than to make them spend more on advertising.
Still, in the past months, demand has been waning, and more people have asked Tesla to consider advertising instead of price cuts as the preferred method to boost sales. While cutting prices can be a powerful incentive, it can also undermine Tesla's status as a luxury carmaker and hurt current owners who saw their cars depreciating abruptly. Advertising, on the other hand, can expose more people outside the Tesla bubble to the company's strong proposition in the car market.
During the 2023 Shareholder Meeting, Elon Musk agreed to "try a little advertising and see how it goes." The change surprised everyone, including the investor who asked Musk if he'd consider such a possibility. It was an on-the-spot decision, so it's too early to know how much money Tesla would spend on advertising. Still, Musk offered some clues about what the ads should look like in an interview with CNBC's David Faber after the shareholder meeting. The ads should be aesthetically pleasing and have some artistic elements so people don't regret watching them, Musk explained.
Over the weekend, Tesla Asia's Twitter account published a video many call the brand's first commercial, showing what Musk had in mind. In the video titled Drive to Believe, a Tesla owner explains what convinced her to buy a Tesla and what makes it so important to her and her family. Unsurprisingly, the video highlights Tesla's key advantages, with safety being the most important. The video also emphasizes the technology and infotainment in Tesla vehicles, without forgetting that a Tesla is a clean vehicle, good for people's health and the environment.
While this can be considered a good commercial, it doesn't change that it was still shared on a Tesla Twitter account. This means it's unlikely to reach people outside the Tesla community, which is like "preaching to the choir," as Elon Musk admitted during the shareholder meeting. Tesla will have to promote videos like this on other media if it wants to convince people that don't know many things about its cars or even electric vehicles in general.
Still, in the past months, demand has been waning, and more people have asked Tesla to consider advertising instead of price cuts as the preferred method to boost sales. While cutting prices can be a powerful incentive, it can also undermine Tesla's status as a luxury carmaker and hurt current owners who saw their cars depreciating abruptly. Advertising, on the other hand, can expose more people outside the Tesla bubble to the company's strong proposition in the car market.
During the 2023 Shareholder Meeting, Elon Musk agreed to "try a little advertising and see how it goes." The change surprised everyone, including the investor who asked Musk if he'd consider such a possibility. It was an on-the-spot decision, so it's too early to know how much money Tesla would spend on advertising. Still, Musk offered some clues about what the ads should look like in an interview with CNBC's David Faber after the shareholder meeting. The ads should be aesthetically pleasing and have some artistic elements so people don't regret watching them, Musk explained.
Over the weekend, Tesla Asia's Twitter account published a video many call the brand's first commercial, showing what Musk had in mind. In the video titled Drive to Believe, a Tesla owner explains what convinced her to buy a Tesla and what makes it so important to her and her family. Unsurprisingly, the video highlights Tesla's key advantages, with safety being the most important. The video also emphasizes the technology and infotainment in Tesla vehicles, without forgetting that a Tesla is a clean vehicle, good for people's health and the environment.
While this can be considered a good commercial, it doesn't change that it was still shared on a Tesla Twitter account. This means it's unlikely to reach people outside the Tesla community, which is like "preaching to the choir," as Elon Musk admitted during the shareholder meeting. Tesla will have to promote videos like this on other media if it wants to convince people that don't know many things about its cars or even electric vehicles in general.
Drive to believe——why she chose Tesla? ?? pic.twitter.com/LXtGl15QUy
— Tesla Asia (@Tesla_Asia) May 19, 2023
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