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Emotional Connection Between Car and Consumer
Vehicle
owners have strong feelings and emotional attachments to their cars and trucks. Even
during the car buying process, a consumer considers how a new vehicle will reflect
their personality, making a statement about who they are. While lifestyle requirements
and budget restrictions are also a consideration, how the new vehicle makes one
feel weighs heavily into the equation. Some will even spend over budget to ensure
that their new vehicle reflects their perceived self image, which in turn boosts
confidence and ego.
In fact, Americans love their automobiles so much that they converse with them,
name them, adorn them with trinkets, and involve them in some of life's most significant
and personal moments and decisions.
A
Road & Travel Magazine survey yielded more than 2200 responses in December 2007 uncovering that a vast majority of respondents have some sort of relationship wit their vehicles. Here
are a few other results from the survey:
• 90% Sing in their cars
• 60% Hold conversations with their cars
• 50% Have kissed or made-out in their cars
• 27% Made love in their
cars
• 27% Give their cars pet names
• 20% Hold meetings in
their cars For
others the connections goes even deeper. The survey showed that some owners included
or experienced some of life's most memorable moments in their car.
• 38% Car was part of their wedding
• 25% Told they were loved for the
first time
• 10% Got engaged in their car
• 9% Conceived a child
in their car
• 4% Had a baby in their car
• 4% Been named after
a car It
is for reasons such as these that advertisers and marketers now look more closely
at relationship marketing; making the emotional connection between owners and
vehicles when creating marketing campaigns. Consumers
identify much more closely with advertising that reflects their lifestyle and
personality, and are more likely to purchase a vehicle based on that emotional
connection.
ROAD & TRAVEL Magazine editors recognized the relationship
people have with their cars early on and subsequently launched its annual International
Car of the Year awards in 1997; a theme-oriented awards show that identifies and
communicates how consumers feel about their cars. Categories include:
•
International Car
of the Year
• International Truck
of the Year
• Most
Respected — Luxury
• Most
Sex Appeal — Sports Car
• Most
Resourceful— Sport Utility Vehicle
• Most
Athletic — Pick Up Truck
• Most
Compatible — Minivan
• Most
Versatile - Crossover
• Most
Spirited — Entry Level
• Most
Dependable — Sedan
RTM
understands the emotional connection between consumer and car, which is reflected
in its buyer's guides and road test reviews. Reviews are written from a perspective that helps in-market buyers clearly identify which vehicles
best relate to their lifestyle.
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