Evora Sport 410

[The Pits]

OK Greg, so how are these Porsche owning city slickers going to get to see this Evora film? Currently it's only being viewed by Lotus enthusiasts, that's where you have to start.

The only way they will see this is if their friends who are more interested in cars and Lotus cars share it with them.

The point with the comparison with the 400 was to demonstrate the Lotus approach to increasing performance in a compelling and credible way. It's more to do with performance through lightweight than anything to do with the Evora 400. You could in theory race a 911 but I think that will struggle to convert anyone on the grounds of credibility (or lack thereof). Lotus also tried this with their 'secret footage' thing and I don't think that fooled anyone. It's also insecure, a product as inspiring as the Evora 410 doesn't need to reference other sports cars. There's a good reason you don't see Lotus cars or Ferraris in Porsche ads. You could show the progress in performance since the Evora S1, a sort of evolution of speed if you will, it's not about the 400 but more the constant development and progress that Lotus have made with the Evora platform.

I was only giving a pragmatic example that could be achieved with a tiny budget, hence using the Lotus test track. I would also recommend that it includes information about the car and also some more inspiring thoughts about the benefits of lightweight and what the Evora Sport 410 offers. With more money available so much more could be done but I agree that the Sport 350 film was much better. I came away feeling that I'd learned something interesting about the car and the priorities of the people who made it. There was a consistent running theme throughout and it was pretty exciting to watch. That is the very least a new film from the factory should do. The cars deserve a lot better than they're getting at the moment. Lotus clearly want a premium feel for the Sport 410, then they go and release a dogs dinner of a press ad which tries to stuff as much information in as possible including a list of all the dealers in the country!

[blindside]

@JayEmm Agreed James. The aspirational stuff, (if that is what the video is intended to be), is all well and good but getting the attention of people who are likely to buy these cars - (serious fast road & track enthusiasts I suspect) - in the simplest, most informative way possible would have been a sensible primary objective.

[JayEmm]

Also, if I was looking at this from an OUTSIDE perspective - let's just think about that for a second, it would be very easy to say "Oh they've replaced the Evora 400 already, typical Lotus, new model every five minutes, I don't fancy buying one of those it'll be out of fashion before I take delivery"

[Snoopy1969]

As I have just seen the vid is used on instagram as a 2 part vid, for that channel it works, esp if Lotus would like to bring the Evora to public, sure that is no 'petrolhead hardcore' vid and if 400 or 410 is irrelevant for that vid, but overall I like they are doin s o m e t h i n g

[blindside]

@The Pits +1. Could not agree more. They definitely would benefit from following the free advice you have provided on here.

[The Pits]

Not many Porsche owners follow Lotus on Instagram I'll wager.

To raise attention in the City Lotus need only drive a couple of Evoras around Canary Wharf etc and leave some invitations to drive the Evora at their test track under the windscreen wipers of parked up Porsches.

To convert the many Lotus and Evora skeptics out there, the No1 priority is to get more people behind the wheel. They have their own test track which makes life a whole lot easier and cheaper. They could organise road and track drives by invitation at the Brands festival every year but currently don't support the festival at all!

I think this latest video has some sort of idea about 'coming to your senses' or something in there somewhere. The 'Gladiator' style touching of the crops, smelling the sea air and so on. I think it's trying to suggest that the Evora is a sensory experience. Nothing wrong with that intention, in fact it's absolutely true of the car - something that is fast becoming more evident as the obvious alternatives become increasingly digital. But you have to work really hard to get that out of it. A good line at the end to make more sense of it all is badly needed!

[mawheele]

The Bankers don't buy a car for how it handles. Its for the most part - unfortunately - a statement of achievement and status. They don't want others asking "What is it?" They need to people to know that its a Porca and be impressed. And despite so many people deriding DB, this was something he totally understood and was trying to address. Lotus is not in a position to address this persona today and no number of Evora's wandering the streets of Canary Wharf can solve that. I would suggest Tesla is doing the best job of achieving conquest sales from Porsche. Aston can do it, Jaguar at a stretch.

An Evora is for a very different market IMOP.

[Gm77]

I must have taken a brave pill, or perhaps it's the fact I'm two beers down. I'll let you all decide.

But, your typical buyer of a Sport 410 already knows about the car, the specs, etc. In my view a video on those points will not do anything for the already educated. So is the purpose of video to educate the informed, or make people aware of the fact that there is a very smart looking, day to day sports car, that makes you look like a Hollywood a-lister? If everyone already knew of the 400 and therefore needed to understand how the 410 was different, then I understand the comments.  But my very informal survey at work suggests that this isn't the case. Ask a current 400 owner what the automatic response they give when someone even knows that it's an Evora, let alone a 400, and you'll start to understand.

In my highly uneducated opinion, every Lotus advert is about building awareness of the brand and in the Evoras case, reeducating people that the brand doesn't just include track cars.

(The bullet proof vest is still only just intact!)

[Arun_D]

That was the best advert for mens' fragrance I've seen an ages.

[The Pits]

Lotus would be transformed with 5% of the sales Porsche achieve in the UK. It's not about taking big chunks of market share, Lotus couldn't meet that sort of demand anyway, it's about nibbling away at the margins. Slow, steady in-roads would do just fine for Lotus at the moment.

TVR made serious in-roads among the City types in the 1990's. This co-incided with a rare moment of Porsche falling out of fashion in the city due to the association with the 'yuppie' image, a Porsche briefly became a rather embarassing thing to be seen in. City types flocked to TVR in droves but of course the reliability issues made them flock back to BMW and Porsche again in pretty short order but TVR sold enough Chimaeras to fund several new cars and a range of their own engines. I actually think most city dwellers consider a Porsche to be somewhat discreet compared to a Ferrari and will buy one to blend in around London rather than stand out. It's a nice, fast Golf for many. Being so ubiquitous and filling the streets with SUVs would normally have a corrosive effect on what used to be a dedicated sports car brand. Yet the believers keep believing that they still make great sports cars, compulsory EPAS, PDK or otherwise. They have to find homes for over 220,000 cars every year currently, a vast number so they are actually deeply insecure about keeping the gravy train rolling. Hence the heavy handed dealings with the media and their current approach to sales which is starting to attract some criticism online and elsewhere. Lotus is well placed to offer an alternative as Porsche have to chase the mainstream with occasional, low volume, unobtanium models to sure up interest among the car journalists and fast car enthusiasts.

One of the ways Porsche built their brand in the US was with terrific print advertising. Consistently good with clean, disciplined design and smart copy they repositioned Porsche from an 80s yuppie stereotype back to being the only choice for the serious driver. The car for real car guys. Exactly the sort of positioning that Lotus can now more credibly own, now that Porsche are now effectively an SUV maker which also makes sports cars. They didn't do it by producing work that visibly targeted the guy who worked in finance. They aimed for the well informed, the opinion leaders. The real car guys. The guys who know. The few that knew the difference!

I'll post a few old US Porsche ads up when I get the chance, don't confuse them with the nice looking dross that Porsche fill UK car mags with now. Many still stand up well today. However if this discussion keeps going much longer I think we should move the whole lot over to 'Lotus Advertising'.

 

 

[Gm77]

I would be interested in seeing the Porsche adverts. I do wonder though, are Lotus in the same position now, as Porsche were during the yuppy times? I also question whether market preferences and expectations are the same now, as they were then?

Turning this back to the 410, the only point I would really change from the advert (assuming the target was white collar workers) would be the strong promotion of carbon fibre. Most city types may not understand the Lotus brand, but they do understand carbon fibre, and their general desire to own a car that has it.

[JayEmm]

In my honest opinion, the Evora has three major problems when it comes to people not buying it. In order.

1. They just don't know it exists.

2. They think it'll break down all the time, because it's a Lotus

3. They think it's just like an Elise and must be impossible to live with etc etc....

Point no. 1 there is by far the biggest issue. I agree with the suggestion of just driving the buggers around. Wherever they go, they draw attention.

56 minutes ago, Arun_D said:

That was the best advert for mens' fragrance I've seen an ages.

Evora. Pour homme. The new fragrance from Jean Marc Gaultier

[Evo400]

I dont think its the Evora that is the problem.  Its the Elise and Exige.   Apart from on the track they look like kids toys.   The Lotus stand at the Canary Wharf Expo was cringeworthy with their exige and elise cars sitting alongside more mature 458s, Gallardos,  Vantages,  Vanquishes etc.  The Evora 400 looked good but its siblings embarassed it in my opinion.   Despite being a Lotus owner and enthusiast I could not help thinking how ugly the Exige and Elise looked in the room next to the supercars.   If Lotus want to sell the Evora they first need to make the Esprit and then then work downwards.   The Elise and Exige give Lotus a certain image that does not suit the Evora. 

[Hedgehogfromhell]

2 and 3 will be hard to shake... 2 especially... which is unfortunate 

[C8RKH]

Lotus Marketing:

Damned when they do. Damned when they don't.

Bet they're really feeling the tough love.

[RJB]

 A fascinating discussion for sure. My eyes were certainly opened when I visited the factory a few months back - met JMG albeit very briefly. You can't really compare to the volume car makers - certainly not to Porsche who's marketing budget likely exceeds Lotus' total worth. Lotus are a very small, niche car maker but their products are very good and I believe beginning to turn heads. When I look at what I could have bought for the money I paid for the 410 there are a lot of options out there. What I wanted was a focussed driver's car and that is exactly what the 410 is - and for the money there are for me few (or no) better options - but it is a lot of money! For me target the people that would buy a GT3 or similar - the USP of the 410 - or for that matter any Lotus is the rarity and that will attract a lot of people but not all. They are only looking to sell 150 per year though 

[The Pits]

1 hour ago, Gm77 said:

I would be interested in seeing the Porsche adverts. I do wonder though, are Lotus in the same position now, as Porsche were during the yuppy times? I also question whether market preferences and expectations are the same now, as they were then?

Turning this back to the 410, the only point I would really change from the advert (assuming the target was white collar workers) would be the strong promotion of carbon fibre. Most city types may not understand the Lotus brand, but they do understand carbon fibre, and their general desire to own a car that has it.

Agree the carbon didn't come across at all and the panels are beautifully finished up-close. Who knows, perhaps it was an 'idea' for the 400 that never got made?

Just wanted to add that you and anyone else is perfectly entitled to like Lotus's latest film, but like it just because you like it. It does come across, as is very common here and everywhere else, that you appear to like, or approve of, the strategy. You're not supposed to see that bit! I don't want you to feel that anyone's ganging up on you, least of all me and I thank you for contributing to an interesting discussion. But the only ad or promotion worth anything is one where you like or respect the thing a bit more afterwards. An ad that only creates admiration for the thing's marketing department has missed the mark in my opinion. The aim was always to create something original, something that got noticed and something that was true of the product in question. Rarely achieved but the aim never the less.

A good print campaign could begin to address all three of JayEmm's hurdles, in fact I think it would be one of the more effective ways of doing so. But you can't do it with one ad, you need a campaign which would involve spending some money. The sports car buyer is pretty easily accessed via the car mags, we all read them and discuss what we read on here. You're also catching someone at the time when he or she is interested in reading about cars, thinking about cars, dreaming about cars - you're not trying to push against a closed door. The standard of car ads is so low a half-decent effort would really stand out. VW famously changed some entrenched perceptions about the Beetle via good old press ads. I'm very old fashioned for thinking this, but I still believe that print can be one of the most cost effective ways of talking to potential buyers, especially for a focused sports car brand.

There are some simple yet hugely powerful facts out there that can start to change perceptions on their own. I'm sure there would be some stunning facts to do with the reliability of the Toyota engines. Remember that claim a few years ago that Honda never had a single warranty claim for their V-Tec engines? So powerful and impressive just in that one statement on its own. Well Lotus have NEVER had a single bonded chassis fail. Not many here know that I'll bet. How many sports cars for sale at any price use forged aluminium wishbones? Honda (again) made a big thing of it with the original NSX. The Evora does. Very few other cars do regardless of price.

[JayEmm]

I would be really tempted to take the Skoda approach to marketing, take the prejudices head on.

I bet the warranty data for Lotus probably is better than people expect. I know I have hadn't a lot of issues but A bit of spin on it I'd allow. 

"The new Lotus Evora.

400 horsepower

186 miles per hour

4.1 seconds to 60

0 engine failures in 12 months

Lots of Trouble? Only for our rivals. Voted best European Car, 2016, by Car and Driver"

[Ccd]

I wouldn't start with an ad campaign.  I would start with developing an email list of potential buyers and bringing a car for them to see.  I would NOT rely on my dealer network.  I'm in a major USA car market and there is no dealer within 3 hours of me.  Lotus could do two things for me: 1) keep a list of everyone interested in the car and bring a car in for potential buyers; and 2) have a local garage qualified to make Lotus warranty repairs and maintenance.  The second point is key: I might buy a car from a dealer 3 hours away, but I'm not going to drive 3 hours every time the car needs servicing.

The ad campaign doesn't matter if people cannot see the car in the flesh and take test drives  

[JayEmm]

@Ccd anyone can service your Lotus, provided they use the correct parts and do it the correct way. It does not void the warranty.

Lotus don't make enough people aware of this.

[Ccd]

I understand, but this is a $100,000 plus car.  I will travel to buy a car, but won't travel for servicing.  I'm not going to go thru the hassle of submitting receipts for reimbursement for warranty repairs.  I'm not going to try to figure out who can work on the car.  Not when I there are a half dozen Porsche dealers in my area and any number of independent garages that specialize in Porsches.

[JayEmm]

I just told you anyone can work on the car - there must be a half decent garage near you that you trust?

I think perhaps you are giving Lotus' warranty department a hard time. Trust me when I tell you it is probably EASIER to deal with Lotus for warranty claims than it is BMW. Got a problem with your BMW? You've got to hope your dealer is helpful, or you're going to fight the corporate machine, problem with your Lotus? Phone Neil.

Believe it or not, it isn't Lotus' job to put a dealer on everyone's doorstep. Ferrari don't. Lamborghini dont. Bentley dont. Aston Martin dont. Those are the brands you need to compare with, not Porsche. 

I hate to sound like @C8RKH but it sounds to me like you're making reasons to not like Lotus. If you think a $100,000 price tag entitles you to a dealer in every state, imagine what it would be like if you buy a Koenigsegg, or a Pagani. Or a Bugatti.

If your priority is ease of servicing above driving involvement, the Germans will always win.

[Ccd]

OK, let's compare Lotus to Ferrari, Lambo, Bently and AM; they all have a dealer in my area.  And my priority is actually seeing the car in the flesh.

[C8RKH]

6 hours ago, Ccd said:

I understand, but this is a $100,000 plus car.  I will travel to buy a car, but won't travel for servicing.  I'm not going to go thru the hassle of submitting receipts for reimbursement for warranty repairs.  I'm not going to try to figure out who can work on the car.  Not when I there are a half dozen Porsche dealers in my area and any number of independent garages that specialize in Porsches.

I understand this and do not know the situation in the US. But here in the UK Porsche dealers can be flakey at best and the after sales experience can be as brutal as the sales experience.

My dealer is 120 mile round trip, so I know the pain. Still would not put me off. However my Evora is also 6 years old and she has been bang on the button for reliability so never needed the dealer for anything more than routine servicing.

I could buy an Audi TT, or a BMW M3, or even a Jag F Type. I'm  surrounded by their dealers. But then I don't want to be dull and ordinary. That's why I have a Lotus. Went to the supermarket yesterday and 3 Audi TTs parked next to each other. Two Evoques (both the same red and one a 64 and one a 65).

If I wanted a poor Pork Pie and to bleet like a sheep, their dealers are 130 miles, 160 and 180 mile round trips away. No better off than the Lotus for me and I don't have to smile as people shake coffee beans as I drive through those respectice cities to get to the dealers.

There's several good themes above as to why Lotus appeals to me. It would not be hard, but would take a little spend, and therein lies the challenge, for Lotus to build a campaign around these.

In my lifetime, probably the most iconic car adds were those from the 80's was it for the VW Golf. The guy who lost his fortune at the casino but still had the golf. The woman rowing with her partner but still had the golf.. Even knocking on for 20 years plus later people remember these adds. They were iconic. They were simple. But damn, did they convey a powerful message with regards to desire, want, success and reliability.

I personally doubt the talent no longer exists in that industry to make something as simple and powerful as that again. It's all spotty wee shits with Apples and crass ideas and shite execution in the most part these days. 

Lotus quality gets better every year. Not everything evolves as well as a Lotus.

[Chris J]

9 hours ago, JayEmm said:

@Ccd anyone can service your Lotus, provided they use the correct parts and do it the correct way. It does not void the warranty.

 

While this is true in the EU, is it the case in the USA?