General Motors, through its blue-collar automotive brand Chevrolet, seeks to advance in the electric vehicle competition with its “flooding the zone” strategy, Business Insider reported.
Chevy to offer a wide range of EVs to cater to diverse needs
Chevrolet expects to win the intensifying electric vehicle race by flooding the market with a wide range of model options, potentially enabling the brand to cater to customers’ diverse demands.
Simply put, the automaker will roll out multiple models and configurations to stimulate customer purchases while sales reportedly hit a plateau in recent months.
This kind of lean-in strategy is a popular move for a mass-market brand like Chevrolet. For years, the brand has sold numerous pickup trucks, SUVs, and crossovers to fulfill varying demands for an enormous pool of customers. Now, it plans to use this approach to boost its EV business.
Strategy targets stalled EV sales growth
GM is well-known for imposing such a strategy. Apart from deploying various models at different price points in the Chevrolet brand, it also offers similarly architected offerings across the brands under its umbrella (GMC, Buick, and Cadillac).
It enabled GM to flood the market and advance as the third leading automaker in the United States. According to Chevrolet Chief Marketing Officer Steve Majoros, the strategy “actually benefits” the brand rather than hurting its prospects.
As per the report, EV sales are now reaching a plateau” after several years of rapid growth. The sales slowdown prompted automakers to delay or cancel EV strategies, with most of them shifting to hybrids.
Can more choices sway customers?
As part of the “flooding the zone” strategy”, GM aims to offer at least nine consumer-facing electric vehicles and two commercial models.
For reference, Chevrolet has the Blazer, Equinox, and Silverado. The GMC brand consists of the Hummer EV, Hummer EV SUT, and Sierra EV. The Cadillac has the Lyriq, the Escalade IQ, and the the uber-expensive Celestiq.
Chevy is betting on the traditional wisdom in the automotive space that 50% of the challenge of persuading customers to shift to electric vehicles is getting them in front of the model.
The company executive noted that dealers and their employees are often the first to see and experience these EVs, making them Chevy’s most reliable early EV adopters.
“We’re talking to a lot of first-time EV buyers with the Blazer EV, and a lot of them are dealership employees. They get the first look at these cars, they test drive them and realize, ‘This thing’s pretty damn good.'”
Steve Majoros, Chevrolet Chief Marketing Officer (via Business Insider)
CMO Majoros contended that the Blazer EV is now recovering from a rocky start with remarkable monthly sales without disclosing the specific figures.
The brand executive believes that its new mass-market EV portfolio will encourage many customers to join the shift to clean mobility. For instance, the Equinox competes with a $43,295 base price and a 319-mile estimated driving range.
While the brand waits for this demand click to happen, CMO Majoros asserted that Chevy still has a wide range of gas-powered cars to keep dealer lots busy. He also disclosed GM’s plans to introduce hybrids into the US market without indicating the launch timelines.
