aldo98229
Well-Known Member
- First Name
- Aldo
- Joined
- Nov 16, 2019
- Threads
- 86
- Messages
- 11,021
- Reaction score
- 27,695
- Location
- Bellingham, WA
- Vehicle(s)
- 2023 Jeep Gladiator, 2018 Fiat 124 Spider
- Occupation
- Market Research
- Vehicle Showcase
- 3
That is a contradiction all automakers have to deal with:I hear you, but the reality though is the mall crawlers pay for jeep to keep adding features that only a very small percentage of owners actually use. A very small percentage of jeep owners use them as intended just like vast majority of Raptor owners won't be bombing down a desert lane at high speed. Every Raptor I see around these parts is owned by some contractor who wants just wants a big loud truck to have some fun between Home Depot and jobs sites to install a guest bath.
Us cosplay / poseurs are what keep the lights on at the companies so they can continue to R&D and develop the hardcore stuff even though the reality is that hardly any of it gets used to even a tenth of it's potential by 99% of buyers.
Few sports car owners track their cars. Most never even drive fast enough to justify a rear spoiler. Sports car guys complain about manuals not being offered but no one buys them. All those housewives driving Porsche Cayennes are where Porsche makes money to keep building GT2 RS that will spend far more time as some tech bro flex car in front of a night club versus ripping it up on a track.
Deep sea divers aren't depending on their Rolex Submariner to keep them alive these days. Yeah, my Panerai has a 300m water resistance but at best it gets a light dunk in the ocean every now and then. Serious divers have real computers these days. Does anyone even know how to operate a chronograph nowadays? I'd bet less than 2 out of 100 Rolex Daytona owners could operate it....
- On the one hand, you have the masses who buy your vehicle by the tens of thousands to pickup groceries and drive jr to soccer practice. These customers can't tell an all-season from an all-terrain, but they pay for the fixed costs, bring in the sales, the quarterly profits and the yearly bonuses.
- On the other you have the small group of enthusiasts who take your vehicle to the trails, put it through its paces, and is willing to spend tens of thousands of dollars in lifts, bumpers, winches, wheels and tires. More importantly, they spend time talking to others, posting on forums, and uploading photos and videos online. These customers are vocal in their advocacy of the product and help spread the brand gospel.
If Jeep decides to ignore the enthusiasts, brand image will gradually weaken until sales start to spiral downward. If Jeep ignores the mall crawlers, sales will struggle to maintain their share of market.
Not one type of customer is better than another; they are all needed and each plays a role. Most of us exist somewhere in the middle, to one side or the other.
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