Part I: INTERVIEWS
Before interview:
In my findings I found that out of the people I interviewed 80%
preferred the Tesla over the 20% that preferred the McLaren originally before
any other questions, pictures or videos. I found that this was because the San
Francisco based Tesla company was a much more well known company then the UK
based McLaren. My experiential interview where I physically interviewed
participants was primarily constructed in the Santa Clara University library
(US), with the exception of two interviews done over the phone to an uncle who
owns a Tesla and a colleague who also is capable to own one of these high-class
machines. Since my interview consisted of pictures and videos and how they
affected their decision making process my interview was not constricted to just
a verbal communication. I picked 10 people at random, some I approached as they
first walked into the library, some I approached as they were sitting down at a
computer making it more convenient to watch videos and look at pictures since already
posted at a computer, and some through telephone communication while they were
sitting in front of a computer. I did not confine my research to those at a
computer screen though, I had my laptop in my hand making it easy for
interviewees to watch these videos and answer my questions. Getting the results
for my interview was much harder then I had ever anticipated because I was not
able to get one person to agree to my interview the first hour I was there.
Being a little gloomy I started off my research with a phone call to a relative
then with a familiar face. Things eventually got rolling and I reached the
number of participants I was hoping for. The majority of my interviews were
constructed individually, but I was able to kill two birds with one stone more
then once. Meaning, I was able to interview two people at once, twice.
Interviewing two at once:
What I found is quit interesting. While interviewing two
persons at once, it seemed that the presence of the other influenced each
other’s decisions. Both times the teams of two agreed on just about every
question. They were able to compare and contrast each other’s decisions, coming
up with a unified concurrence.
Choosing Interviewees:
My criteria for choosing people to interview was actually
quit simple, all I needed was for you to be interested. I was choosing students
and faculty at random trying to mix up my samples as much as possible so my
outcomes are not biased in any way. In total I interviewed 2 female students, 2
female faculty, 2 male students, and 2 male faculty, one relative, and one old
colleague. Recruitment of interviewees was easy since I choose people at random
in my socially confined area of campus, but getting them to agree to the survey
was much more difficult. My strategy to approach samples quickly changed from, “hey,
are willing to answer a few questions for my business class” to “hello, I know
you have been studying for finals for way to long, so how about you take a
break and answer a few questions on the most lavish cars in the world.” The strategy
of a “break” from work lured in much more participants.
Figure 1:
Number of preferences under fixed
situations
Figure 2:
Results:
The results I found were very
contradicting. More people preferred the pure electric vehicles before knowing
anything about either of the two cars.
After picture
administered: A soon as only the
pictures of each classy car was revealed, preferences instantly flip-flopped,
and now 70% of the participants preferred the better looking car (gas) over the
pure electric Tesla despite all the advantages of owning a pure electric car.
The main responses I received after seeing the images in favor of the McLaren
was, “the McLaren looks cooler,” “it looks more professional and more
technological even though its not,” “it better resembles the fantasies
Americans have for luxury sports cars.” The positive and negative responses I
received about the Tesla were, “it look nice just not extravagant” “it is not
as diverse as the McLaren,” “it looks like a little red rocket, I love it.” Overall
I found that the looks of the McLaren better resembles Americans preference of
luxury sports cars.
After video Administered: People became particularly fond of the McLaren after
seeing a picture, but how would they react after seeing each of their
commercials? My results now showed an increase by 10% and now 80% of participants
preferred the McLaren after watching the videos for reasons such as, “Tesla
relies to heavily upon its words about what other people did that didn’t work,
and not enough about what they did to make their car work.” The main response I
got was that the McLaren clip gave way more attention to their cars performance
and looks. Letting the car do the talking for them rather then doing the
talking. While the Tesla commercial was so caught up trying to prove its worth
and how their system is so much better then others, rather than letting the car
do it’s talking for them. These results do make sense though as the Tesla
commercial is trying to promote its worth through the innovation of pure
electricity, and without words telling you this, then no one would actually
know of this innovation. The McLaren commercial has the ability to just let the
car do the speaking for them because they are not trying to prove any point
rather then, look at this beautiful fast car we just built. Some might feel as
if the electric brand would have the advantage while promoting because of the
importance and outbreak of electric vehicles, but in this case of advertising
high-end luxury sport cars the first impression or looks of the car has a huge
impact on the decisions of public America.
Differences within Data: One difference I found in my data is the differences
between fans or bystanders and buyers. I found that enthusiast’s opinions on
vehicles are much different then consumers, in the aspect of importance of
every part of the vehicle. As consumers deeply construct everything about it
speed, MPG, durability etc. the fan only cares about what he/she looks like
while riding down the street. With the case of these luxury sports cars, in our
economy the population of consumers is greatly outnumbered by the population of
people who will never be able to own one of these cars and only able to admire
from afar. This raises a great gap in my research because preferences of
products change when they have significance to you or not. This is why I
interviewed two people who are capable of affording these cars, and four adults
who have owned many cars in their life, giving every vehicle they own or wish
to own more sentimental value. I found that the look of the cars was the least
of their worries. Each was in favor of different cars by the end of the
interview. However, before the interview all preferred electric vehicles
because “they are so much more efficient.” The pictures changed nothing, and
not till seeing the advertisements did preferences change. This was based on
the fact that these are “Sunday cars” said who I will call Joe. Joe meant,
though electric vehicles are ever so important to society it is not enough to
persuade him to purchase an electric vehicle that he would only be driving on
Sundays as a vacation car, or car you only take out of the garage on Sunday
strolls down to the beach because it is so valuable, “it is not a car you drive
everyday, so I don’t see the value of purchasing an electric Sunday car when
the miles will already be limited on any luxury sports car I purchase.” The
other who changed their preference to the McLaren simply because “it is more
badass, and faster…come on it’s a street legal race car.” I found that our
societies image of a “dream car” has nothing to do with electricity. The reason
is unknown but I hypothesize that maybe we grew up in a different era where we
constructed the image of our dream car when electric vehicles weren’t present,
or maybe because more expensive cars are seen as superior. The McLaren is
almost twice as much as the Tesla. My results show that the non-electric
McLaren is seen as more desirable by the pubic overall, which corresponds with
my original findings.
Part II: YOUTUBE VIDEOS
COMPARISON:
What I really
seek to understand is how media and marketing can affect the preference of
users. So I analyzed the most viewed YouTube videos of each and analyzed the
responses. What specifically sparked my interest was the pure electric 2010
Tesla roadster that I experienced first hand going from 0 to 60 in 3.7 seconds,
and lasting 250 miles on one charge. This being a fuel-efficient luxury car,
that is considered sexy by the ladies, fulfills the adrenaline junkies fix by
maxing at a speed of nearly 150 miles per hour, what is better? Which leads me
to my comparison. For those who are able to afford the hefty price of the Tesla
roadster motor sport then the McLaren MP4 wouldn’t be too far off of their
radar either. This formula one dragster was created by highly skilled British
team working in the United Kingdom creating one of the most highly admired
street legal cars on the road. For my research question I searched to
understand the differences in preferences between the two according to the
public fans, professional racers, car companies etc, and most importantly
consumers.
Analysis
of Tesla video: Analyzing
the first 100 archival posts on each of the links I found that for the Tesla,
surprisingly the data reported showed an even distribution of preference for
the vehicle, though the “likes” out numbered the “dislikes” by nearly 10 to 1,
the comments were about even. I found that everyone fond of the Tesla was
pleased with the new technologies that have allowed for this luxury ELECTRIC
vehicle. They were supportive of the inventor Nikola Tesla and were ecstatic on
what this innovation can bring to our society. On the other side though, the
people who scrutinized this vehicle almost all were already in support of a
different high-end luxury cars, and this vehicle “didn’t measure up to the
standards.” They also gave no credit to Nikola Tesla saying, “He only invented
the electricity part,” and had no input on any manufacturing of the vehicle.
Almost all not in favor nit picked saying “no emersions my a$$, what about all
the coal and other emersions given off to produce the battery,” and the most
popular inquiry is that it is “over priced” or “not worth that much,” referring
to the near 150,000 that it costs.
Analysis
of the McLaren: For
the McLaren archival reviews, there are significantly more positive reviews
then negative. The “likes” out numbered the “dislikes: by nearly 30 to 1. Most
everyone gives a sign of respect for the vehicle and the innovators behind it.
Again the people who scrutinize the McLaren already have a predetermined
preference of a different luxury car that they just compare this formula one
dragster to, “I’d rather have a Porsche,” “I’d rather have a Ferrari.” Even
though there are not many greater cars than this one, being named the number
one luxury sports car by the Wall Street Journal, there will always be scrutiny
over anything and everything no matter what. I find much more positive reviews
with this gas immersed street legal racecar saying, “MP4-12C=beautiful,” “love
the car love the track doesn’t make a better combination.” I found the causes
for this is because it is a much more globally known car, it is one of the
highest performing cars in the world, and is in the top five for speed alone.
It competes with top brand vehicles in all aspects, speed, performance,
technology, and pure beauty. People appreciate this car more even though it is
a gas vehicle. Our society has been centered around gas cars since the
emergence of motor vehicles by Henry Ford in 1908. We have not yet grown to
appreciate the significance of pure electric vehicles and their importance to
our society, economy and atmosphere. The Tesla is one of the most innovated and
highly advanced technological gadget ever produced, that our society still
hasn’t rapped its head around.
No comments:
Post a Comment