{"id":476,"date":"2020-05-10T02:44:30","date_gmt":"2020-05-10T02:44:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sureshdinakaran.com\/blog\/?p=476"},"modified":"2020-05-10T02:44:30","modified_gmt":"2020-05-10T02:44:30","slug":"the-changing-idea-of-marketing-as-a-concept","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sureshdinakaran.com\/blog\/2020\/05\/10\/the-changing-idea-of-marketing-as-a-concept\/","title":{"rendered":"The changing idea of marketing as a concept!"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>If you are one of the marketers who embraces convention, no one will point a finger at you if you were to follow the norm that has been practiced for years. <strong>Build\/produce\/manufacture, brand, market, sell.<\/strong> Justified linear thinking.With strong empirical evidence( I mean brand and business success) to boot.<\/p>\n<p>With so many years of conventional wisdom( that also is the wisdom of the crowds that drive collective bias) in the ring, it would have been a really uphill task for any <strong>brand<\/strong> to alter(let alone disrupt) the narrative. But there is something about audacity and moonshots that make them perfect partners in rhyme.<\/p>\n<p>I devote this blog post predominantly to understand <strong>marketing<\/strong> from a new lens- the one that brand <strong>Tesla<\/strong> is scripting so brilliantly. Directed by <strong>Elon Musk(Iron Man)<\/strong>. Allow me to go back a few years.<\/p>\n<p>It&#8217;s the 4th of April, 2016. The <strong>Tesla Model 3<\/strong> is being launched in the US. It sports a price tag of US$ 35,000 and bookings can be made with a U$1,000 down payment.\u00a0 Then history unfolds. A whopping 276,000 cars were booked(read pre-sold) on the day, probably a first ever in <strong>automotive marketing<\/strong> . And <strong>Tesla<\/strong> gathered <strong>US$ 276 Million<\/strong> in upfront cash. And here&#8217;s where the story gets interesting. There was not even a model car ready. All the sales happened courtesy a few photographs of the <strong>Model 3<\/strong>. That&#8217;s it. There&#8217;s more. There was not even a single car that had gone into production. The first promised schedule for delivery of the <strong>Model 3<\/strong> was late 2017, that was a good 18+ months away. <strong>Tesla<\/strong> had disrupted <strong>automotive marketing<\/strong> on it&#8217;s head and how.<\/p>\n<p>Let&#8217;s try to understand more of the phenomena that is brand <strong>Tesla<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Tesla&#8217;s $0 marketing budget<\/strong> is incredibly <strong>awesome marketing<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Tesla Motors<\/strong> has no advertising, no ad agency, no CMO, no dealer network. And that\u2019s no problem. \u2013\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/adage.com\/article\/news\/tesla-generates-small-sales-big-buzz-paid-ads\/241994\/\">AdvertisingAge<\/a><\/li>\n<li>If you drop by the <strong>Tesla<\/strong> forums, you\u2019ll see a\u00a0<a title=\"Tribes, Niches, Groups and Subreddits \u2013 30+ Examples Of Community-Focused Marketing\" href=\"https:\/\/www.referralcandy.com\/blog\/community-marketing-examples\/\">community of passionate fans<\/a>\u00a0discussing how to market <strong>Tesla<\/strong> better. There are over 55,000 people\u00a0subscribed to the\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/reddit.com\/r\/teslamotors\">\/r\/teslamotors<\/a>\u00a0subreddit.\u00a0The <strong>brand<\/strong> has clearly struck a chord with its fans.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Tesla<\/strong> fans are crazy advocates. They attach deep\u00a0<a title=\"Literally Arousing \u2013 15 Examples of Emotional Marketing\" href=\"https:\/\/www.referralcandy.com\/blog\/literally-arousing-15-examples-emotional-marketing\/\">emotional significance<\/a>\u00a0to the car. <strong>They\u2019re not just paying for a mode of transportation, they\u2019re paying for a slice of the future.<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>Prior to the <strong>Model 3<\/strong> launch, <strong>Tesla<\/strong> had introduced the <strong>P100D Ludicrous<\/strong>&#8211; a luxury model priced over US$ 80,000(base level) with upgraded versions well over US$ 100,000. The <strong>marketing masterstroke<\/strong> was in the message conveyed. &#8221; While the <strong>PD100 Ludicrous<\/strong> is an expensive vehicle, we want to emphasise that every sale helps pay for the smaller and more affordable <strong>Model 3<\/strong> which is under development. Without customers willing to buy the expensive <strong>Model S<\/strong> and <strong>X<\/strong>, we would be unable to fund the smaller, more affordable <strong>Model 3<\/strong> &#8220;. This is <strong>brand positioning<\/strong> at it&#8217;s masterful best, <strong>making a luxury purchase almost into a charitable act<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<li>Every element of the <strong>Model S<\/strong> \u2013 from the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.tesla.com\/supercharger\">recharging technology<\/a>\u00a0to the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.tesla.com\/sites\/default\/files\/blog_attachments\/the-slipperiest-car-on-the-road.pdf\">drag coefficient<\/a>\u00a0of the car \u2013 is presented as the pinnacle of research and engineering.<\/li>\n<li>By <strong>eschewing marketing<\/strong> completely, <strong>Elon Musk<\/strong> is actually communicating that <strong>Tesla<\/strong> is focused on ground breaking technology.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Tesla<\/strong> the <strong>brand<\/strong> transcended from being just another automotive player in the business to encompass economics, politics, world power to have global energy NOT driven by oil. In the process, creating the <strong>marketplace, the eco system<\/strong> where they are the <strong>game<\/strong>. As also the <strong>game changer<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>\u201c BMW has a marketing department called engineering.\u201d \u2013 Seth Godin<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>These things obviously don&#8217;t bother <strong>Musk<\/strong> too much. If one were to give him an <strong>advertising<\/strong> budget, he is sure to divert that into production. And the final result: an even more incredible car. And inspite of <strong>NO Advertising<\/strong>, he gets the world talking about his <strong>brand<\/strong>, especially the people who matter.<\/p>\n<p>How does <strong>Tesla<\/strong> manage to do all of this free of cost which other <strong>brands<\/strong> would spend millions to buy?<\/p>\n<p>First, <strong>build something that matters to people<\/strong>. Then, <strong>tell a story that resonates with people. <\/strong>Just like <strong>iPhones\/iPod<\/strong> and <strong>Steve Jobs<\/strong>, <strong>electric cars<\/strong> are a <strong>great story<\/strong>. The greatest stories are aspirational, representing the triumph of passion, conviction, persistence and diligence.<\/p>\n<p>&#8221; I know a lot of very wealthy people.\u00a0 Most of them made their money in technology.\u00a0 I don\u2019t think <strong>Bentley<\/strong> or <strong>Rolls-Royce<\/strong> is anywhere near the top of very many of these people\u2019s idea of an impressive car.\u00a0 A Tesla is more like it &#8220;. \u2013 <a href=\"http:\/\/www.quora.com\/Bentley-automobile\/Which-brand-carries-more-prestige-for-the-owner-Bentley-or-Rolls-Royce-and-why\">Jimmy Wales, on Quora<\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>This sort of advertising is earned, not bought.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>You earn this sort of <strong>attention<\/strong> by making something\u00a0<strong><em>truly<\/em> <em>newsworthy. Or saying something newsworthy.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>&#8221; The public tends to be, as they should, interested in things that are precedent and superlatives.\u201d \u2013 <strong>Elon Musk<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Musk<\/strong> is all over <strong>YouTube<\/strong>. The media is chasing him nine to the dozen. Why? Because he is always working on cool, fascinating, path breaking projects.<\/p>\n<p>Musk is a <strong>CEO<\/strong> who understands the power of showmanship(tonnes of interviews, cameo roles in films and media appearances.<\/p>\n<p>Just <strong>Google<\/strong> &#8216; <strong>Elon Musk\u00a0 says<\/strong> &#8216;and you will get the most quotable of quotes that <strong>media<\/strong> loves to lap up and carry forward.<\/p>\n<p>The <strong>Hyperloop<\/strong> is something that <strong>Musk<\/strong> is NOT planning to make but delivers great <strong>PR<\/strong> for him as a tech visionary.<\/p>\n<p><strong>At most times,Tesla has more orders than they can build \u2013 that in itself is great marketing.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Tesla<\/strong> has demonstrated that brands and organisations can move on from a <strong>Build\/produce\/manufacture, brand, market, sell model to that of a brand, market, sell, build one. Welcome to the next normal.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>As <strong>William Gibson<\/strong> would say,\u00a0<em>\u201cThe future is already here \u2013 it\u2019s just not very evenly distributed.\u201d-\u00a0<\/em> which will be nothing like what we have experienced before, we\u2019re all going to be completely re-evaluating so many aspects of our lives: education, medicine, work, social responsibility, inner calling, the list goes on. And under the aegis of the Covid 19, all of this is happening remotely right now. And the question for a lot of companies and brands is going to be: Now that this shift has happened, am I still relevant? Does what I do still make sense? Am I serving an essential function, especially in a time when everyone is being careful about their finances?<\/p>\n<p>Answering in the affirmative will separate the men from the boys. Wanted. <strong>More Musketeers!<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>ENDS<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>https:\/\/www.groupisd.com\/story<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>https:\/\/www.brandknewmag.com<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>https:\/\/www.weeklileaks.com<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>https:\/\/www.brandknew.groupisd.com<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>If you are one of the marketers who embraces convention, no one will point a finger at you if you were to follow the norm that has been practiced for years. Build\/produce\/manufacture, brand, market, sell. Justified linear thinking.With strong empirical evidence( I mean brand and business success) to boot. With so many years of conventional &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sureshdinakaran.com\/blog\/2020\/05\/10\/the-changing-idea-of-marketing-as-a-concept\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> &#8220;The changing idea of marketing as a concept!&#8221;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[26,574,572,317,178,92,515,561,176,568,326,567,63,446,562,564,563,565,286,573,571,566,569,123,272,570,29],"class_list":["post-476","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-advertising","tag-advertising-age","tag-bentley","tag-bmw","tag-brand","tag-ceo","tag-covid-19","tag-elon-musk","tag-google","tag-hyperloop","tag-iphone","tag-ipod","tag-marketing","tag-media","tag-model-3","tag-model-s","tag-model-x","tag-pd100ludicrous","tag-pr","tag-rolls-royce","tag-seth-godin","tag-steve-jobs","tag-story","tag-technology","tag-tesla","tag-william-gibson","tag-youtube"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sureshdinakaran.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/476","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sureshdinakaran.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sureshdinakaran.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sureshdinakaran.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sureshdinakaran.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=476"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.sureshdinakaran.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/476\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":477,"href":"https:\/\/www.sureshdinakaran.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/476\/revisions\/477"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sureshdinakaran.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=476"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sureshdinakaran.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=476"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sureshdinakaran.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=476"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}