Tesla Motors may not advertise through the traditional media, but today I received an offer through email to test drive a Model S this weekend in Chicagoland. Tesla emailed to me similar ads on July 31 and October 9. I assume I’m on their mailing list as a shareholder without a Tesla car. So as Gene wonders about international expansion, I might wonder about this type of domestic advertising. The implication is that either demand is slowing, or that supply constraints are expected to alleviate.
I really wouldn’t worry about demand, since the company could implement a wider form of advertising. It may be hard for TMC members or Californians to believe, but a great many Americans are still unaware of Tesla Motors and its cars. I was unaware until receiving a tip in January and performing research which resulted in my share purchase. Monday I received a photo from a high school 1963 classmate and car enthusiast in Delaware seated in a replica 1927 Ford Roadster he had made (see image below.) I mentioned Tesla, and he responded, “I’ve seen some info on them, but not much.”
During the eighties I lived in Palo Alto and friends tell me there is a Model S on nearly every block. That certainly is not the case in the rest of the country. Not even close. Word of mouth can take a while to traverse a continent. I see much untapped demand. If Tesla is sending email ads to people like me, my suspicion is that supply constraints are expected to alleviate, but that Elon did not have sufficient proof to give analysts during yesterday’s conference call.
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