The vast majority of electric vehicle (EV) automakers focus their marketing efforts towards more affluent people ages 35-55, but is this the only market interested in EVs?
The answer is clear: absolutely not.
Representatives of TurnOnGreen Technologies, a subsidiary of the Bay Area energy company TurnOnGreen Inc. (formerly Coolisys Technologies Corp.), recently conducted a third-party market research survey using resources provided by the survey company Centiment. In this process, Centiment used their extensive network to collect and process accurate, verified data from 130 anonymous participants ages 18-24.
The survey concluded that out of the participant pool, when asked "Are you interested in owning an electric vehicle in the future?" in an online survey, approximately 72% responded "Yes" and 6.15% responded "I already own one."
Data from the TurnOnGreen Technologies survey, completed Sep. 2021.
Participants were asked at the conclusion of the survey a verification question to provide their alertness, and to avoid any fraudulent answers on their behalf.
What does this mean for the future of electric vehicles and marketing?
It's simple. Big players such as Ford, Nissan, Tesla, Jeep, and Mazda in the EV and auto industries need to shift their efforts to include young people. The greatest factor preventing young people from signing the paperwork has a lot less to do with interest and a lot more to do with affordability.
Although AAUP reports that 81% of part-time young adults ages 18-24 do work while enrolled in full-time university classes (depending on course load and region), automakers seem to ignore this highly interested, high-quality market of consumer who care about environmental sustainability and climate change.
College Students Do Care About EVs, and they want them.
The problem lies not with their lack of education or consumer intelligence, but rather accessibility to charging stations in their area. However, with Congress working actively on a $7.5 Billion Dollar EV infrastructure plan, this may change very quickly when it comes to the availability of charging solutions in public places such as schools, malls, gas stations, and other high-traffic vehicle parking spaces.
Marketing efforts towards young people need to emphasize accessibility and affordability. Nissan, a prominent automaker in the EV realm, just released their own company news that they are offering leasing options for their Nissan Leaf EV for as low as $89/month.
Other companies need to follow suit and cater to younger buyers who hold a great interest in the electric vehicle market, and would most likely purchase one for their next vehicle should an affordable model be made available.