Car Companies and Focus Groups

Source: https://www.everydayshouldbesaturday.com

How do car companies know what people will want, in order to start developing new features years in advance? Greenbook directory, a marketing research company, wrote in 2015 that Tesla uses focus groups for creating “amazing” cars. Overall, car companies use tactics such as focus groups, which incentivize them to create new features.

Car companies use focus groups to determine what people will want in the future. According to Hedges & Company’s, a marketing research association, article “Enthusiasts and Automotive Market Research,” they allow companies to get personal with their customers and understand their thinking. Focus groups allow follow up questions and discussions, rather that surveys which are all one sided. They allow you to question the people and ask them specific questions. Focus groups are extremely helpful because they allow companies to really get specific with their customers and learn what they want. This allows companies to design new cars based on the feedback from customers, which allows new features to be designed to satisfy their desires and will overall satisfy customers.

Tesla is one company that has used focus groups sucessfully. The Tesla Model S was designed for men who are generally tech savvy and have money. Men made up about 90% of electric vehicle sales. Then Tesla decided to make a model directed at women, the Model X. They held focus groups with moms and women of different ages, according to Greenbook Directory. Since many women drive minivans and that type of vehicle, Tesla decided to make their own. What they got out of the focus groups was that many women drive their kids or elderly people around constantly. So Tesla kept that in mind when creating it. Greenbook Directory states that Tesla’s main selling points were safety, a third row, and ability to get kids into and out of seats easily. These key features led to a major success.

Future Research Question: What are the minimum requirements companies consider when designing a new car before they can consider "wants" or nice to have features.?