Tesla = #1 In Brand Loyalty In Norway & #16 In Customer Satisfaction
By Johnna Crider & Zach Shahan
A new study has found that Tesla has the highest brand loyalty in Norway.
Additionally, the Norwegian news site Dagens Naeringsliv shared that despite Tesla falling a bit in Norwegian customers’ eyes in early 2019 in terms of overall customer satisfaction (a different category from brand loyalty), the company is now becoming more appreciated again. In fact, it is the only “car dealer” in which customer satisfaction has gone up in the past year.
The Norwegian Customer Barometer, a research project at BI Norwegian Business School, measures customer satisfaction and loyalty among Norwegian consumers each year for various industries, kind of like Consumer Reports does in the US. From January through March of this year, as before, the Norwegian Customer Barometer conducted a survey created by Barcode Intelligence and Norstat Norway and asked 6,320 consumers to share their thoughts about the car companies they have bought from. Tesla was one of the 153 companies researched.
This year, Tesla was the only brand that didn’t have its customer satisfaction numbers fall. Last year, Tesla had the largest fall among car dealers — falling to 51st place overall. In 2020, it moved higher up the rankings to 16th place. The #16 ranking far below the #1 brand loyalty ranking is probably related to the same factors as a recent Danish study teased out. Tesla was #2 in brand loyalty in that (BMW was #1), but it was #22 in the service category and #23 in the dealership category, putting it tied for #5 overall with Audi. Since brand loyalty is already at the top of the charts in Norway, Tesla probably just needs to climb the rankings when it comes to the service/dealership experience.
“We have been through a period of growing pains, and this has not been a desirable situation. We will not allow this progress to become a resting cushion, but will continue to work on the coming cars as well,” Even Sandvold Roland, Information Manager at Tesla Norway, said.
“The fact that our customers are satisfied with our products and services is what drives our sales, so we are happy with this progress.” Recall that Tesla does not advertise, meaning sales come almost entirely from word of mouth.
In terms of loyalty, Tesla passed Toyota to gain the highest car brand loyalty in Norway. Nissan now has the least loyal customers. It once had the best selling EV in Norway, with over 60,000 Leaf vehicles sold there. It appears many of those owners were not happy with Nissan’s direction (and many probably jumped over to Tesla).
Nissan Norway was not keen to accept its low ranking, though. “We do not recognize that we have such poor loyalty. On the contrary, we were first out in mass production of electric cars in the world, and are now on the second generation of Leaf,” said Knut-Arne Marcussen of Nissan Norway. “It’s been ten years since its launch in the fall. I think we are counting on the future, electrification is part of our business strategy, and more models are coming from us.”
Our 2.5 Kroner
I think it’s great that Tesla has such a large number of customers who love their vehicles in Norway, and all over the world.
Elon Musk is always on Twitter asking advice. It’s how the company came up with some aspects of the Cybertruck. Elon Musk often says “yes” or “sure” when a fan asks for a new feature or submits an idea. Perhaps other automakers can learn from Tesla in this respect: listen to your customers if you want them to love you. Not need you, but love you. There’s a difference. I need food. I love chocolate.
Tesla’s mission is also clear, and very morally based. This matters to customers. It makes them more loyal to the brand than a company that will sell you anything without any moral sense behind it.
Lastly, Teslas are unique. There are no other cars like them on the market. If that doesn’t appeal to you, you buy from a traditional brand. If it does pull you in, though, chances are good that you love what Tesla offers and are very enthusiastic about it. Without anyone offering something similar, brand loyalty is bound to be high.
All photos by Jesper Berggreen/CleanTechnica
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