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PluginIndia Electric Vehicles

Glib talk doesn’t get Sales done! - Mahindra e2o Sales

26/2/2014

13 Comments

 
by Johnson
Glib talk doesn't get sales done - Mahindra Reva has to learn something from a small time guy like "Rocket Singh Salesman of the year" Movie.
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Mahindra & Mahindra has something to learn from Rocket Singh!
Mahindra Reva has recently introduced the new 'battery on rent' scheme, to increase the sales of the e2o electric car, which according to me is trying to fool the customer through suave marketing talk.  Why? Check out my maths below: 
If you buy an e2o it will cost around Rs 700,000. So assuming 10% interest rate for 5yrs the monthly installment on the car would be approx. Rs 12,000 per month. If you are buying the battery-leased car you will pay  (500,000 for the car) at an installment of Rs 9,200 and a  Battery lease of Rs 2,500 which equals to Rs 11,700  (Rs 9,200 + Rs 2,500). At the end of the day it amounts to the same thing. The poor customer will have to pay almost the same... but now to two different people – meaning more headache. And for this minor matter the company spent a lot of money in advertisements.
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Continuously renting batteries is WRONG APPROACH ...!!!!! Its ok for short time like a few days or few weeks, a blessing while covering longer distances like 250kms! But buying the car and not the battery is a silly option.
To me the whole thing this is very simple and clear cut - Chetan had made a very good product and Mahindra gave it a very good design and extended their service centers and showrooms across the country. But now they have to showcase the product to the people as to how the product runs… how it works… It is just like when the 1st steam engine or the Mono Rail made its maiden journey. People are excited but don’t know anything about it.
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Excited Passengers on Mumbai's First Mono Rail Ride! - Can Mahindra spin this magic?
 It was also somewhat similar when the Steam Engine made its final Journey in Mumbai starting from CSTM. I was working at Matunga station.  I remember that day vividly. People from all walks of life had gathered excitedly around each railway station that this steam engine passed through. The atmosphere was captivating and everybody wanted to have as close look as possible . People had forgotten how steam engine performed – so people who stood close to the train on the platform had some fiery sparks of coal flying at them, people who stood on the bridge to get a good,  undisturbed view got totally engulfed in smoke that  as the engine passed by underneath, etc. It was enchanting nonetheless. 

Mahindra should also cook up something similarly exciting. So that everybody gets to see the vehicle, touch it, feel it - and UNDERSTAND IT. 
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Subsidy kab hai? Diwali kab hai? Christmas kab hai? New Year kab kai?... Dobara mat puchhna!!
Govt. subsidy - the biggest excuse of EV industry in India
Till Mahindra do something people will keep talking of… waiting for the Govt. subsidy to come, for Gudi Padva to come, for Diwali to come, for Christmas to come and for New Year to come to buy a new car.  It is not the Company’s responsibility nor is it in its benefit to engage in such discussion. Even if the subsidy is given the improvement in sales will be marginal because people have not understood the Electric Car. They are afraid of the Electric car just like they are afraid of the Automatic Transmission car. People imagine the cost will be much more.

Another excellent excuse is “auto industry is in recession” Yes it is in recession BECAUSE the petrol prices are going through the roof and people find it expensive to own Petrol/Diesel Cars. So presently they rent one whenever the family trip happens. Meeru Cabs are an excellent call-taxi service so people depend upon that. Electric Car marketing team should have capitalized on this increase petrol prices and the EV industry sales could have just zoomed upwards. But right now the best selling electric car in the world (until the late 2009) is facing its worst sales record EVER. While the EV industry the world over did excellent sales. Mind you from 2009 till 2013 the whole of Reva-e2o team were completely dormant due to the switch over to Mahindra. The company lost 4 to 5 precious years of momentum and gave away the first mover advantage to other international companies.  

If the petrol prices drop THEN this  “auto industry is in recession” excuse is acceptable for the EV industry, not the other way around.  
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Who benefits from such excuses?
But who benefits most from excuses?  - The Company Marketing heads obviously benefit most. It is they  who have an excuse to show that it is because the Govt Subsidy did not come people are not buying the car, it is because Diwali has not come that people are not buying the car, it is because New year has not come that people are not buying the car. Blah Blah and more Blah… It is for such reason that a separate marketing team has to be setup for the EV Department. The future of this team should depend upon the future of the EV Marketing Team of the Company. Fair enough?

The onus is also on the company is on reaching out to the customer, in engaging them, in discussing and showcasing live to them how the car runs. This is paramount… as almost 99.99% of the population has not even seen how an e2o or an Electric Car looks in real life forget about how it performs. This is a serious disadvantage for the company which they have to overcome... SOMEHOW.   

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Right now its like "people who buy EV are playing blind" - They are also called adventurous by their friends :-)
So by that account 500 sales per year is outstanding sales! It must be the first time in History that people are buying a car almost blindly…  either trusting other e2o car users…  or trusting the words of e2o reviews made on websites like www.PlugInIndia.com. This phenomenon is unique for every single electric production car sold on the surface of the earth.

It is not every day that people put 7 Lakhs rupees on the table to play blind. It is also not a inexpensive car. Let us also accept the fact that parking the car, maintaining Solar Panels and charging is much, much easier to do in villages than in Cities. If we are willing to do a little heart searching we will also find that the villages are where people need more vehicles as the public transport is very limited. 

We would do well also to accept the fact that not all villagers are poor. And a much higher percentage of villagers (in comparison to the city dwellers) are installing Solar Panels for their lighting/Irrigation purposes. Theoretically any person in the village having more than 1 Acre land or having 5 cows should be a prospective e2o buyer.

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The Solar Panels can even act as Car Parking area. Such amenities - due to space constrain - can only be enjoyed by a Villager and not a City Person at least as of now.
No. of Solar Irrigation Pumps sold = Potential E2O Sale!
By that account itself Mahindra E2O should have sold at least 10% of number of the Solar Irrigation Pumps sold in India. If suppose 10,000 Solar Pumps were sold till date then Mahindra should have sold at least 1,000 E2O. Its as simple as that. 

Marketing Blunder or Design Error
If Mahindra could not do this then it is a very serious marketing blunder on their part. Or unless the vehicle cannot be used on village roads which again is a very serious problem that Mahindra Team are to solve.

If Mahindra were to showcase this vehicle across the country and target the small towns and villages then they would easily double their sales. But they have to explain to the small town/village folks how this thing works, the whole concept idea and how by charging it from their solar panels would liberate them from Petrol and Diesel costs just like the Solar Pumps have liberated them from the mercy of the Grid and Electricity charges. 

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Please note this set of Solar Panels are more in number than Mahindra's Sun2Car and can easily recharge the E2O car in 4 Hrs, pump water to the fields, and run the farmer's house (lights, fan, TV, PC & refrigerator) - all at the same time.
Acceptance of e2o would mean liberation from not only the Petrol but also from the Grid. TOTAL FREEDOM! So Mahindra should stop pushing the suave polished sales talk to its customers and come out with sensible talk or solutions. Some of the strange marketing ideas seem to be coming straight out of the movie's ("Rocket Singh - Salesman of the year") AYS sales team. 

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Deep Cycle Lead Acid Battery of local ISO Standard company (eg Su-Kam) can be an option for the cheaper E2O. This could lower the cost of the Car by Rs 200,000. - A Temporary measure until the price of Li-Ion battery comes down. These batteries are being used in the villages for decades in Inverters to combat power outages and are very dependable.
A step behind can also be a step ahead:
One of the solutions includes offering Lead-Acid Battery as an option which they were using in their older version called Reva. Obviously the quality of the Lead-Acid Battery and its packing have improved over the course of the last 10 yrs. So a Rs 5 Lakh E2O with a Rs 90,000 Lead Acid Battery (good for 2yrs) is a good option for a person who do not want the 3Lakh Li-Ion Battery pack or a person who wants to reduced the price of the car. 

After all everybody likes to have a choice. Don’t we?

Some people at Mahindra might not be happy with this Blog... but I prefer to call a spade a spade. I appreciate a good plan and shoot down a bad. All through my blogs I have only one thing at heart - for Mahindra to improve leaps and bounds and for it to become the biggest EV company not only in India but also in the world and let more and more people to enjoy the freedom from OIL.

I once again list the things Mahindra needs to do to improve:

1. Short term Renting out - for people going outstation or longer distances especially on weekends.

2. Show case the car to the people on the road. Have more road shows, EV events and let people actually feel and appreciate how good the car is to drive.

3. Marketing department needs a shake up. Or a completely new marketing team needs to be set up for the Electric Vehicle segment.

4. Social Network push can get better.

5. Websites, Magazines and other media that are pro EV need to be supported.

6. To think of Rural areas and small towns as bigger markets than Cities. 70 % of India is in Villages. ALL OF THEM have space to park a car, Solar panels are getting installed every day. But sadly the world EV community, Mahindra thinks the other way around. Most of them think of city People as prospective buyers.

7. EV vehicles need to be able to tackle village type uneven roads.

8. Inclusion of locally made good quality (Su-Kam) Lead Acid Batteries as an option for cheaper e2o car.

9. Publish a strategy on DC quick charging stations.  Placing of these along highways rather than residential areas will allow people to travel Inter-State especially around tourist/business spots - Prominently along Mumbai-Pune-Aurangabad / Bangalore-Chennai etc.

Placing quick charger stations will enable, existing customers of the Mahindra e2o to occasionally travel more than 100 kms and thus solve the problem of long distance driving. This would change the e2o from a commuter car into a regional car. 

10. Have townhall events, like the ones showcased by Tesla Motors where the top executives, including Mr Chetan Maini can speak to the owners and get feedback.  This should be published on YouTube and other social media to showcase and encourage other prospective customers.

13 Comments
Farah
27/2/2014 02:10:40 am

Hey, most of what you said is true.. I got a lot of information from "plug-in-India". We were fortunate to meet some enthusiastic people at Mahindra and got enough backing we needed to decide on this vehicle.

Reply
Johnson
27/2/2014 05:15:29 am

Glad to know that our information helped you. I m sure you enjoy driving the car more than any manual-transmission petrol car.

Reply
Sateesh Reddy
27/2/2014 06:24:47 am

Hi,

This is indeed a hard hitting blog.
And Mahindra needs to really look at why they could only sell 500 cars in one year whereas an inferior automatic petrol car like Maruti Celerio is selling 1000 units per month.

The big problem for Mahindra was that that 7 Lakh price barrier. That was too much for lots of people.
I myself know friends who would buy the car in an instant at Rs 5 Lakh but wont do it at Rs 7 Lakh

So Mahindra Reva has realized that and reduced the initial amount to Rs 5 Lakh + Rest in Installments. I think this will drive sales of the car and we can expect a better number than 500 this year.

I myself am looking to get one this year, if i can manage to sell my pathetic Hyundai i10 automatic that gives me 10kmpl mileage :)

I also think we could see better sales this year once we see Quick Charging stations.

The points you have raised are valid but Mahindra Reva will need to up their act and perform better, if we want to see any change n our cities.

Here's hoping the best for Mahindra.

Best,
Sateesh

Reply
Johnson
27/2/2014 11:01:17 am

Mr. Reddy the problem is when the price is 5 Lakh then there will be people to say we would have bought if it is 3 Lakh.

If the price is brought down to 3 Lakh then there will be people who say we would have bought if it is 1 Lakh.

If the price is brought down to 1 lakh... then there will be people to say we would have bought if it is 0.75 Lakh...so on and so forth...

But the question is what is the company doing are they just going to keep the vehicle in the showroom for 2-3 years and then pull it out of production if there are no sales?

THERE WILL NOT BE ANY SALE UNLESS PEOPLE BECOME FAMILIAR WITH THE VEHICLE.

Reply
Sateesh Reddy
27/2/2014 01:04:56 pm

Agreed. So what you are saying is that basically people need to feel it, touch it and experience the electric drive (which is completely different driving experience, IMO) and then Mahindra Reva can expect better sales?

I kindof subscribe to your theory.
Bcos looking at the car, lot of people think its just a Nano and expensive. People just dismiss it as a gimmick.

They absolutely don't understand or even want to bother to understand the electric driving experience, they don't know much about the smooth acceleration without vibrations, they don't know anything about Regenerative braking or even understand the efficient performance of the electric motor.
So there is only a certain section of the population that tries to see these technologies and appreciate the car for what it is.
For majority, its just a hyped up Nano that goes 100 km :)

Another point is that people dont consider the overall ownership of an EV. The total ownership will always be cheaper than a petrol based car after a period of 5-6 years.

I agree more education is needed for people to truly consider EV's.
I guess that'z where sites like PluginIndia.com comes into picture.
Keep up the good work on the site.

Best,
Sateesh

Reply
Johnson
28/2/2014 04:55:14 am

Ha HA HA... Mr Reddy you nailed it.. people think of E2O as Nano with reduced range and expensive price tag. The shape also is somewhat congruent especially the reduced boot of the E2)

For a City car the it is also very essential for the roof of the car to have the maximum space and solar cells installed for continuous maximum charging time (almost 10 hrs of charging time).

Reply
Kamlesh
28/2/2014 08:54:49 am

Nice blog.
I hope Mahindra Reva can sell more units of the e2o with that 'reduced' rate of 5 Lakh.

We need more e2o's on the road to clean up the air in our cities.
Also the Rs '5 Lakh' (+ Energy Charges in installments) e2o can only go 80km, tat is something which could again be a hinderance.

Well, in a cost/paisa vasool Society like ours, its going to be very difficult to sell EVs in mass and get great numbers.

Reply
Ramesh Krishnan
30/3/2014 07:43:00 am

If Mahindra owns the battery why people have to pay EMI for Mahindra's battery??? And we are not really gagging to become battery owners we would rather own the car and forget about what is inside it.

It would have been great if they sold the E2O for 3 lakhs, which is the approximate cost of the car minus the battery cost, and we only pay for refueling (recharging) we need not have to worry about the battery. -

THIS would have been a GREAT DEAL, not what they are currently offering.

Reply
Sateesh Reddy
30/3/2014 10:35:46 am

ok assume Mahindra sells the car at 3 Lakhs as you mentioned.

But you assume Mahindra will offer free battery to the customer?
How do you think that economics will work?

Reply
Johnson
31/3/2014 07:26:03 am

There is a point in what Ramesh says... lets work around the problem. The problem being how to earn profit on the cost of the battery. Meaning Earning profit on Rs 5 Lakh investment.

They would then earn money charging the battery with quick charging or doing manual battery swaps @ Rs 500. It the person needs daily battery swapping then he would pay back the cost of the battery in 3 yrs and he will keep paying till the car breaks down in 25 yrs time. Of course there would be others who will take 10 yrs to payback as they travel less. But then... the cheaper it becomes to travel... more the people travel.

They could even swap the battery at your home or office or hotel for extra Rs 100 which would basically be a 15min job with hydraulic trolley and right tools.

Another thing that could be great is that you could travel anywhere in India or the World. Wherever you are... you just dial a number and a local guy drives up to your doorstep... changes your battery... and drives away.

New Problems Need NEW SOLUTIONs

Shouldn't these guys at Mahindra Reva hire me?.. lol

But that doesn't mean that they will default or runaway with the battery cause they need the car and its most economical.

Once the price of the battery falls below 3Lakh this should not be a BIG problem.


Johnson
31/3/2014 07:31:43 am

If a person is paying daily Rs 500 for swamping battery...

then in 1 yr he will pay Rs 1,82,500

then in 3 yrs he will pay Rs 5,47,500

then in 10 yrs he will pay Rs 18,25,000

then in 25 yrs he will pay Rs45,62,500 (Rs 500 x 365daysx25yrs)

People living in multi-storied building having difficulty finding plug points can also benefit from it.

Imagine the number of jobs it will bring in. Imagine the profit for Mahindra.

LOTS OF PROFIT for Mahindra

Reply
Johnson
31/3/2014 07:34:18 am

While for petrol car if a person needs to travel 100 km he will have to pay Rs 72 x 100km = Rs 7,200 while a Mahindra E2O guy will pay only Rs 500.

WIN - WIN situation!

Reply
Johnson
31/3/2014 07:50:41 am

Correction to the above post

While for petrol car if a person needs to travel 100 km he will have to pay Rs 72 x 10kmperlitre= Rs 720 while a Mahindra E2O guy will pay only Rs 5 to charge from his house power supply or Rs 500 if he dials a battery swap number.... all by the time he has his coffee.

WIN - WIN situation!

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