Executive View: We need to talk about EV advocacy

I’m not an eco-warrior, by any means but I’d like to think I do my bit for the planet where possible.

With only 1.4 million fully electric cars in the UK, that’s only just over 4% of current cars on the road (according to Zapmap) it’s high time we started talking more about electrification. In particular, it feels that we need to open a wider conversation on how we can support consumers in making greener, more sustainable choices that could be lighter on their wallet.

It’s no secret in our industry that there’s a barrage of misinformation in the media, with naysayers and negative stories about EVs. That means that in recent years, the growth of the EV market hasn’t been quite what we anticipated.

But now, with new entrants to the market and the ZEV mandate, retailers must embrace electrification, advocate, and educate on the perks of driving an electric or hybrid vehicle.

Enhancing the EV experience

As we know, with customer experience, the devil is in the detail.

I recently bought a hybrid and was so excited to drive it out of the showroom on battery power for the first time. While the dealer drove with me to fill it up with fuel after the big ‘tadaaaa’-style reveal (top marks there), I soon found upon driving it away, that they hadn’t plugged it in, so the battery had no charge.

Obviously, I won’t name and shame, and generally, the experience was good, but in terms of drumming up the justified excitement about electrification, through a very low-effort detail, it fell sadly short as a consumer journey.

It feels that there could be so many quick wins to help us reverse the key objections that consumers have around EV adoption.