Well the latest iPad (number three) just launched, and once again Apple has moved the bar.
Not only do they have the best finger pulse on the market, they are creating it. Brand, ecosystem and hardware working hand in hand to create the ultimate user experience each and every time. With such a complete approach to the market, any company will thrive as they do.
Perhaps therein lies the lesson that Coda Automotive seems to have learned in the Electric Vehicle space that other more stodgy car makers have yet to embrace. With sales of the Chevrolet Volt stagnating (we can notice they have ramped up the advertising), what I believe is their missing link is the dealer side makeover. Its one thing to put up solar charging canopies and wind generators, its another to help former gasoline car salespeople turn into true green marketers. For some its possible, for others not even necessary. Yet I always hope that people look the possible and not the necessary.
I believe that people like Coda and Tesla are changing the face of automotive retail. I do think that BMW i gets it in their “Active E center” approach. What I’m hoping is that someone in the marketing departments of the American car makers pays heed and makes the decision to help their brands continue to move towards greater ecosystem approaches and brand elevation.
The changes to the marketplace are not the question. Its the reaction to those changes by the big three that will truly determine their success in this new reality.
Sass