If you are involved in the business of cars you should know what the owners think about what they drive and how in many cases it is a reflection of their lives. Every company that sells cars and car stuff should understand how cars influence our lives and how people feel about their cars. Digging deep into the minds of car owners will tell a few things about what they want.
Car life starts early on. For me, my life with cars began the minute I was born and I’ve maintained the problem through that life. I’m sure it will go forward unless the Feds or some other enitity destroys it all.
As with my food, I like all styles of cars but some people prefer a certain style but with added flavors.
Different styles, sizes, designs, accessories, trinkets and colors attract a wide variety of car lovers. Some people prefer timeless designs, while others want more aggressive futuristic looks and others want more room, more performance with better gas mileage, and there are those who just want to be noticed with something nobody else drives.
Cars stir up certain emotions in people which is a factor in how they use them and why one brand is chosen over another. Cars are little worlds where it’s just you and your ride. Your car becomes part of you and it shows in the way you live.
That’s the key; that car you drive reflects what you are and how you want to be perceived.
It’s all about them - people and their vehicles. If you are in an automotive business understandin how they feel about that car and what it represents is a key selling ppoint on your end. How can you do that?
Listen to the way people describe their lifestyles, their homes, possessions and the values they embrace. Most of them just want to be comfortable and enjoy life. Some are more practical than others and most are genuine in their choices – not trendy or artificial. That’s where the car lifestyle is target.
Car obsession runs deep. Human desire for a car is really an absurd, materialistic thought process. Cars are basically a means to an end, not something to be worshipped. Of course we know that isn’t true otherwise all cars would be basic white, with the same motors, staid interiors and look like a basket of fresh chicken eggs.
Like human personalities, the “sameness” concept doesn’t work in a society obsessed with “what’s in it for me”. Cars have personalities and are viewed as objects of beauty and desire. It has become a living thing that is a part of our lives just as pets, clothing and food choices.
As an automotive driven society we are fixated on telling the rest of the world I’m cool, I have money, I like red, I like sporty, I want a big truck, I like to burn rubber, I’m polluting the earth.
If you are a marketer of the automobile then you need to ignore those deep psychological enigmas and try to figure out why this obsession grabs us by the neck and strangles us with lusty shapes, heart pounding sounds and high speeds all the while costing us more money than we should ever spend on obnoxious behavior.
We all have an irrational desire for this product. it make us feel good about ourselves. Some people use muscles as their alter ego. for some of us we like to think our cars will enhance our personalities and the world needs to know.
People with the automotive lifestyle disorder aren’t in it for just basic transportation. They are focused on a particular lifestyle and what it means to be wrapped tightly in colorful metal all the while acting like a kid high on sugar. Whether it’s racing, mountain biking, skiing, shopping or just cruising main street, it’s all about what we want in our lives.
Marketing plays a big role in how we perceive cars so much so that it inclines us to spend hardearned money just to drive them. Maybe it’s a spiritual thing. Could be a coincidence too.
It’s all about passion. Passion for the cars. It has to be a part of everything in our lives. If the auto industry wants to survive and profit, they need to pay attention to the passion part of the marketing strategy.
Incentives and sales are okay, but in the end, the customer wants to feel they purchased more than a quickie deal. When the passion factor is missing all you have is price. That can be compared to selling basic necessities. It doesn’t have to be that way.
Whatever it is you design, make and sell, the passion quotient must be inclusive, it must ignite the buyers’ emotions and tug at the heart. This is what you call getting into the minds and hearts of car owners. The business that fully understands their customers’ craving for automotive passion will be at the forefront of the automotive driven life.
Cars are meant to move people – literally as well as figuratively. I see a person gawking at a new vehicle or someone drooling over a super fast exotic I know what they are thinking. I know how they are drawn in by the nuances, sensory details and sensuality. The emotional attachment that develops between human and car is a bond that is strong.
But emotional attachment is not without purpose. It’s about the love of metallic styling and sounds emitting from a powerful machine only car crazy humans can appreciate.
People look at their cars as a piece of clothing or jewelry, something they put on before they go out for the evening. It’s the lifestyle they want. That sort of lifestyle shows just how people feel about their cars.
Some people prefer timeless design, while others want more aggressive futuristic looks and yet the need for more room, high performance with better gas mileage, and then there are those who just want to be noticed with a car nobody else drives.
In these crazy times people simply want to be comfortable, happy and enjoy life. The right vehicle is but one way for them to live the life they desire. When they are cruising along, the sounds are streaming, the engine is purring and the country side rolls by that encasement of personal freedom and self-expression, well, that’s a happy car life. -Mikey. www.carisms.com
