Tesla Stores

[TheTalkingMule]

This is the kind of action SolarCity needed to take back in 2015. When you have a wildly popular and far superior product just gain traction, cut the sales cost to nothing, and offer lean pricing. They went the other way(or were kinda forced to).

 

[TrevTremaine]

Heh. So there are basically going to be no more stores, though they left open a window for the most-high-traffic locations to have galleries.

Makes sense for now, given the huge waitlist. Sales staff aren't a good investment when your product is selling faster than you can manufacture it.

I think it's short-sighted to close store fronts. The early adopters, the fans and such may be willing to purchase a vehicle sight unseen. Once that base is satisfied, expanding to more conservative purchasers will require tangibles - being able to sit in the car, test drives, answer questions, etc. If that weren't the case, then why were there long lines at the stores when the Model 3 finally reached the store fronts? Given cars tend to be the 2nd biggest purchase of people's lives it's hard "invest" to into something blindly.

For myself, I wasn't even interested until we had an opportunity for a test drive - Tesla wasn't even on my scope. Heck, my wife was the one who booked the test drive and initially I scoffed at it. Of course after that test drive, it took a short time to make the decision to go with a Model S. No regrets.

 

[MorrisonHiker]

I'm wondering if they are going to follow the mobile service route. Instead of having a storefront with several employees standing around, maybe they will have employees that drive around town for scheduled test drives. They will save a lot by avoiding the brick and mortar costs. They could almost instantly start offering test drives and sales consultations nationwide. We've seen various test drive events over the past few years. Now maybe they will become permanent and one-on-one.

 

[katooom]

Closing the stores seems risky. As a long time Tesla follower I am in the middle of the the used S vs new 3 mental debate. Recently visited the Atlanta Tesla store for first time. Mostly to see interior and exterior colors. Only by seeing the car could I tell the M3 white interior (which I thought I wanted) would not be right for us. I also saw all the exterior colors - unfortunately none of which were really impressive.

It is nice to be able to see what you are buying before making the $50K outlay.

 

[blackeducator]

I think it's short-sighted to close store fronts. The early adopters, the fans and such may be willing to purchase a vehicle sight unseen. Once that base is satisfied, expanding to more conservative purchasers will require tangibles - being able to sit in the car, test drives, answer questions, etc. If that weren't the case, then why were there long lines at the stores when the Model 3 finally reached the store fronts? Given cars tend to be the 2nd biggest purchase of people's lives it's hard "invest" to into something blindly.

For myself, I wasn't even interested until we had an opportunity for a test drive - Tesla wasn't even on my scope. Heck, my wife was the one who booked the test drive and initially I scoffed at it. Of course after that test drive, it took a short time to make the decision to go with a Model S. No regrets.

I understand that for an additional $1000 down, you can purchase a Model 3 for 7 days or 1000 miles. And if not satisfied, you can return the car and get a full refund (now... how long that will take is another story!). Tesla is relying on the fact that 95-99% of folk who purvhase a Tesla will not give it back once driven for 7 days or a two day 1000 mile trip.

 

[blackeducator]

Closing the stores seems risky. As a long time Tesla follower I am in the middle of the the used S vs new 3 mental debate. Recently visited the Atlanta Tesla store for first time. Mostly to see interior and exterior colors. Only by seeing the car could I tell the M3 white interior (which I thought I wanted) would not be right for us. I also saw all the exterior colors - unfortunately none of which were really impressive.

It is nice to be able to see what you are buying before making the $50K outlay.

The Atlanta store may stay open. Plus, there are two service centers within the Greater Atlanta Region. They will have cars on display and service folk to talk to for first time customers. I think this will be the same for all the major cities' Tesla service centers. Plus, Tesla must have done research to realize that a Tesla buyer will buy a Tesla online and feel comfortable about doing it because the cars are publicly proven to be very good to excellent. Word of mouth and online discussions/critique are powerful mechanisms for a 21st Century car buyer. And look at carguru.com and carvana.com (that's how USAA bought my Infinity EX37 last May).

 

[JRP3]

As more and more cars are on the road it will be easier to see one in person.

 

[TrevTremaine]

I understand that for an additional $1000 down, you can purchase a Model 3 for 7 days or 1000 miles. And if not satisfied, you can return the car and get a full refund (now... how long that will take is another story!). Tesla is relying on the fact that 95-99% of folk who purvhase a Tesla will not give it back once driven for 7 days or a two day 1000 mile trip.

And you've hit the nail on the head.

1. How long would it take to be reimbursed?
   
2. If you've financed it by somewhere other than Tesla what's your recourse?
   
3. How much hassle is it to resolve a purchase decision?

Again, there's more to it than just gathering up some pocket change. That $1000 better go back to the purchase instead of it just being pocketed by Tesla.

Now that said, if they intend to offer test drives kind of like the mobile servicing then that's a bit of a buy-in.

As more and more cars are on the road it will be easier to see one in person.

Seeing does not equate to test driving or asking questions about the vehicle with a sales person. Much of it can be found online but many buyers still rely on contacts to justify a purchase.

 

[XGeek]

I agree with what many have written that a test drive is one of the best sales tools for Tesla. Like others, I probably wouldn't have bought my Model S without having that awesome acceleration experience. Most of us want Tesla to be financially successful so reducing selling costs is understandable but limiting test drives is a big give up.

I'd be interested in your thoughts on a potential new idea. Let me call it "Tesla Test Drive Sharing (TTDS)":
- Like ride sharing, Tesla creates an online system/app which allows crowd sourcing capability for interested Tesla owners to give test drives.
- Tesla owners opt in to be a Tesla Test Driver with their own vehicles.
- Perspective buyers who are interested in test driving a Tesla login through the app to find the nearest Tesla owner
- The owner and perspective buyer communicate through the online TTDS app to arrange a convenient time and place to share the love

Why would a Tesla owner want to participate in TTDS?
- Tesla provides a reward system based on usage such as free Tesla accessories/apparel, free supercharging hours, discounts on service, extended warranty, etc. The biggest reward of course would be driven by the test drive leading to a confirmed purchase. This would be a replacement to the referral system that is now no longer.
- Like we saw in Q4 2018, Tesla owners are passionate about the brand and were willing to help free of charge with deliveries so why not test drives? I know I get a kick out of giving demos to friends, families and often strangers you meet around town. We want Tesla to continue its great success!

Why would Tesla want to create TTDS?
- With >500k Teslas sold this could be an economical way to connect a large number of enthusiasts with potential new customers... word of mouth with a test drive is the best marketing.
- With the TTDS online system a large amount of data can be collected about current and future customers while also enabling direct contact with perspective customers.

Thoughts? Builds?

 

[JRP3]

I like it.

 

[TrevTremaine]

I agree with what many have written that a test drive is one of the best sales tools for Tesla. Like others, I probably wouldn't have bought my Model S without having that awesome acceleration experience. Most of us want Tesla to be financially successful so reducing selling costs is understandable but limiting test drives is a big give up.

I'd be interested in your thoughts on a potential new idea. Let me call it "Tesla Test Drive Sharing (TTDS)":
- Like ride sharing, Tesla creates an online system/app which allows crowd sourcing capability for interested Tesla owners to give test drives.
- Tesla owners opt in to be a Tesla Test Driver with their own vehicles.
- Perspective buyers who are interested in test driving a Tesla login through the app to find the nearest Tesla owner
- The owner and perspective buyer communicate through the online TTDS app to arrange a convenient time and place to share the love

Why would a Tesla owner want to participate in TTDS?
- Tesla provides a reward system based on usage such as free Tesla accessories/apparel, free supercharging hours, discounts on service, extended warranty, etc. The biggest reward of course would be driven by the test drive leading to a confirmed purchase. This would be a replacement to the referral system that is now no longer.
- Like we saw in Q4 2018, Tesla owners are passionate about the brand and were willing to help free of charge with deliveries so why not test drives? I know I get a kick out of giving demos to friends, families and often strangers you meet around town. We want Tesla to continue its great success!

Why would Tesla want to create TTDS?
- With >500k Teslas sold this could be an economical way to connect a large number of enthusiasts with potential new customers... word of mouth with a test drive is the best marketing.
- With the TTDS online system a large amount of data can be collected about current and future customers while also enabling direct contact with perspective customers.

Thoughts? Builds?

While I understand that some owners might be willing to participate, from my own perspective why would I want to risk damage (along with voided insurance) so I can do the work that Tesla is perfectly capable of? I'm fine with showing a car and explaining details and talking about ownership but I'm not spending an inordinate amount of time that a sales department should be able to handle. I would think a waiver would have to be signed in case something said by an owner could be interpreted as inaccurate.

 

[jerry33]

While I understand that some owners might be willing to participate, from my own perspective why would I want to risk damage (along with voided insurance) so I can do the work that Tesla is perfectly capable of? I'm fine with showing a car and explaining details and talking about ownership but I'm not spending an inordinate amount of time that a sales department should be able to handle. I would think a waiver would have to be signed in case something said by an owner could be interpreted as inaccurate.

Most of the time when I have shown my car (to an estimated 3500 people so far), the person sits in the drivers seat, but doesn't drive. On a few occasions I've taken them for a ride. Everyone realizes that they can't drive the car.

 

[JRP3]

Don't most policies cover your vehicle if someone else is driving?

 

[jerry33]

Don't most policies cover your vehicle if someone else is driving?

Mine have designated drivers on them. Also because this is kind of a business, it would need different insurance. When we have drive electric week events, special insurance is purchased so that others can drive the car.

 

[JRP3]

Mine have designated drivers on them. Also because this is kind of a business, it would need different insurance. When we have drive electric week events, special insurance is purchased so that others can drive the car.

Designated drivers shouldn't prevent you from occasionally lending your car to someone.

 

[XGeek]

Designated drivers shouldn't prevent you from occasionally lending your car to someone.

From what I read online there are insurance policies and coverages that either "follow the car" or "follow the insured driver" so I guess it depends. I imagine this could be setup to either allow the 3rd party to drive or to limit the 3rd party to the passenger seat only. It would be up to the owner. Would you agree that having a passenger seat experience only + talking to an enthusiastic owner would be worthwhile?

 

[jerry33]

From what I read online there are insurance policies and coverages that either "follow the car" or "follow the insured driver" so I guess it depends. I imagine this could be setup to either allow the 3rd party to drive or to limit the 3rd party to the passenger seat only. It would be up to the owner. Would you agree that having a passenger seat experience only + talking to an enthusiastic owner would be worthwhile?

Driver's seat while parked, passenger's seat while driving. It's worthwhile, especially if they have never been in a Tesla before.

 

[Peteski]

Don't most policies cover your vehicle if someone else is driving?

This is the problem. Policies are inconsistent. Some policies cover any driver, some none, some provide only limited 3rd party cover. Many policies also don't cover business use. It would be a minefield of potential woe for both parties! Nice idea in principle though.

 

[TrevTremaine]

Don't most policies cover your vehicle if someone else is driving?

So, I'll answer in 2 fold: As others have said, it's dependent regionally as well as by insurer. I know that with mine only those named under my policy can drive my cars - and I'm not willing to extend liability to have others drive my car. The other part is even if you have that additional insurance, you know nothing about the drivers doing the test drive - are you willing to pony up extra money when your insurance rates rise because of an accident just for a test drive? Don't forget to factor in how long it can take to repair your car because it can be months to get it back.

 

[TrevTremaine]

Driver's seat while parked, passenger's seat while driving. It's worthwhile, especially if they have never been in a Tesla before.

To me that's not a test drive - that's a ride. I want to see how a car drives from the driver's seat. I've excluded vehicles on handling dynamics (too floaty for my tastes or too hard for pothole season), throttle/responsiveness, outward visibility, comfort, roominess/head room, as well as other things. For first timers driving an EV with regen it's a different experience - not to everyone's taste either. To me, that's the purpose of a test drive. As more competition comes to market, it's asking a lot of a potential customer to take a leap of faith (and hassle) to purchase a car before trying it. You might not be able to get a test drive in exactly the car you're aiming for, but you might also get a different perspective depending upon how a test car is optioned out.