Debunking The Myth of the “Middle-Aged Male” Car Buyer
How brands & marketers should navigate the shifting auto market
When we envision the usual kind of customer in the market for a new vehicle, what do we imagine? Well, just as it’s become conventional wisdom to assume that the mother in a traditional family holds the purse strings when it comes to the weekly shop of groceries and household goods, we tend to assume that the typical buyer of a car is a middle-aged man (perhaps around the age of 55).
And while it’s true that these stereotypes are often based on some kernel of truth, we run into problems when we take them at face value. These are twofold.
Firstly, we limit ourselves as marketers (both brand and agency side): the kind of strategy and creative we produce might take its lead from outmoded assumptions, rather than proactively identifying underserved consumers who don’t necessarily fit that mould.
And secondly, these generalisations are often unexamined — that is, they may not even be true. And whether or not they are true historically, should not be the principal driver of who a brand can — or ought to be — appealing to.
A piece in The Times (admittedly a few years old, but probably still salient), the author observed that “the average age of a new car buyer in the UK is 54” and “the majority of new cars are bought by people in their fifties, sixties and seventies.” More specifically, the average Ford customer was 56; for Volkswagen it was 54; 63 for Toyota; and a sprightly 49 for a Fiat — a brand that emphatically (and often cheekily) targets a much more youthful consumer.
And yet, it continues, “if these ages seem high, it’s because we have been conditioned to believe that it’s the young who buy new cars, thanks to those jolly TV commercials featuring carefree twentysomethings heading to the beach together in a gleaming convertible”.
Does this represent a genuine disconnect between creatives’ assumptions about the car buying demographic; or a more considered tactic: to emphasise the connotations that cars and driving have with freedom, fun and youth — in an effort to tap into the nostalgic instincts of the actual end-consumer?
A recent campaign by Auto-Trader conveys this message really well: uncovering — and celebrating! — the diversity of customers in this category, as well as considering their differing requirements, tastes and habits.
Add to this the ubiquitous focus that auto brands (both heritage and burgeoning disruptors) now have on EV technology, environmental credibility, and the cachet of being regarded as innovators — and it becomes clear that a wholesale reassessment of who the customer really is in the early 2020’s is necessary and overdue.
How old are they? Who is most likely to buy into EV? What are the key life events that coincide with the purchase of a car — a commodity that is likely less important than buying a home, but more carefully considered than almost any other kind of purchase, as well as seldomly made at all?
Moreover, the entire notion of the average consumer profile in this category is — and therefore who we are trying to communicate with and advertise to — is suspect; the market varies across the country, both for very obvious reasons (those who live rurally vs more urban demographics) and less obvious ones, too.
At the risk of sounding crass, is there, for example, a gender divide that needs to be acknowledged? Do men prioritise the status associated with a car, while women are more interested in its functionality? We know that there’s a whole journey from consideration and research to acquisition before any money is exchanged; at which point in that process would a brand ideally like to make its biggest impression?
After all, we’re not talking about POS strategy for chewing gum, but an expensive, often symbolic and perhaps emotionally-charged purchase which — in the consumer’s mind at least — is very considered, calibrated.
This is where the need for proper data — rather than half-baked assumptions — comes in.
We’re fascinated by what makes people tick. And one particular area we’ve been homing in on recently is how that differs from region to region, across the UK.
Our proprietary tools help us map out these variances and furnishes decision makers and budget holders with the knowledge they need to work out how best to plan and roll out campaigns; where the best expansion opportunities lie; and where their messaging might be missing the mark due to a lack of understanding about how people are responding to the cost-of-living crisis, the emergence of new technology in the auto space and their preference for new or second-hand vehicles.
Just last month Kia’s UK Chief Executive recently remarked that a mass market in electric vehicles was currently “not viable”, due to how expensive they are to manufacture, as well as charge.
Meanwhile, ONS statistics from less than 2 years ago signalled that younger buyers were substantially more prepared to switch from fossil-fuel reliant vehicles to hybrid — or all-electric cars.
But while concerns around the environment may be a stronger driver of behaviour among the younger population, if the cost of switching becomes prohibitive, then it’s unclear what this group will choose to do — will there be an overall dip in car-ownership?
The greener, cleaner connotations that electric vehicles — and therefore the brands that market them most effectively — enjoy, won’t be the only consideration here. Another recent report in The Times led with: “the government should give middle-class drivers incentives to buy a second-hand electric car if climate targets are to be met, experts say” amid rising electricity costs.
In that same article, Marc Palmer, Auto Trader’s Brand Director added: “what we really need is more mainstream demand. We need middle-income households to be able to access electric cars and to be reassured electricity is OK… and also get the government to meet its zero-emission targets.”
It’s clear, we think, that the stereotype around the quintessential new car buyer needs an overhaul, and that detailed, segmented data samples will help us to test its durability and veracity.
But, just as important we need to — as an industry — remind ourselves that part of our job (and to some extent, the measure of our success) is to augment a brand’s pool of prospective consumers.
A particular kind of model may have traditionally been bought by a suburban dwelling, middle-aged man, but that shouldn’t mean that the brand that produces it should be seeking merely to obtain an ever-larger portion of that demographic; targeted advertising in specific localities, NPD and messaging around the environment and green credentials can all help to diversify demand and interest, resulting in a significant increase in the number of potential buyers.