EVs yet to turn on greening generation – young consumers 24 or under
Young Australians are yet to turn on to electric vehicles. That’s one of the key trends identified in new research conducted by carsales.
Last week carsales released Moving Electric Vehicles Forward a consumer study on Australians attitude to EVs. Although the study validates overall around half of the respondents have considered the purchase of an EV – almost all of them are older. Indeed, almost 70% of survey respondents aged 24 years and under have not considered an EV.
In stark contrast, the highest consideration for EVs by age demographic (75%) are Aussies aged between 25 and 34.
Emotional considerations and concerns are at the heart of EV indifference for survey respondents aged 24 or under.
Indeed, survey respondents aged 24 or under were 2.56x more concerned about the lack of sound from an EV, than the average survey respondent in the study.
Survey respondents aged 24 and under also topped concern for EV performance and consideration for EV design.
“A deep dive at a demographic level was intended to show the huge variance that exists in many factors that need to be taken into consideration to scale EV take up in Australia,” said carsales Chief Marketing Officer, Kellie Cordner.
“The findings of the study are clear: brands and dealers must appeal to emotional considerations when marketing the next generation of EVs to those aged 24 or under.”
Somewhat surprisingly, survey respondents aged 24 or under were also 2.39x more concerned than the average survey respondent about EV safety, compared to a conventional petrol-powered vehicle.
All of the EVs currently on sale in Australia – from the most affordable MG ZS EV to the Audi e-tron, Mercedes-Benz EQC and the Tesla Model 3, Model S and Model X – have been given a top-shelf five-star safety rating.
“There’s no doubt that better education and advice is required to improve consumers’ understanding around key concerns and barriers to EV adoption, and for those 24 and under, safety is a key concern,” concludes Cordner.
