Page 254 - The Apple Experience

Reinventing the Car-Buying Experience the Apple Way

Former Apple Store executives like Tesla vice president George Blankenship

are well aware of the power of multisensory emotional experiences. In

developing Tesla’s concept stores, Blankenship didn’t just apply some of the
Apple Store principles to the car-buying experience, he copied them exactly.

The only difference is that Tesla sells cars and Apple sells computers. Among

the similarities:

 Upscale Location. Tesla stores are located in upscale shopping malls in

places like Fashion Island in Newport Beach and Santana Row, San Jose, or
the Oakbrook Center in Illinois. Just as Steve Jobs didn’t think that people

would gamble with twenty minutes of their time to try out new Apple
computers in 2001, Tesla’s cars are so different that the store would rather

be seen in places where people are spending their time anyway.

 Open Space. Tesla dealerships are sparkling clean, uncluttered, brightly lit,

and white.

 Interactive Displays. Large interactive digital displays invite people to create
their own cars, choosing colors, interiors, and other accessories. Then with a

swipe of their finger, they can “throw” it to a wall-size display on the back
wall where an image of the car they built fills the entire screen.

Multisensory, hands-on displays and exhibits give the casual shopper a

feeling of what it’s like to own a Tesla.

 Friendly Associates. They do not work on commission. They are trained not

to “sell cars” but instead to make sure that everyone walks out the door with
a smile. The goal is to inform, engage, and excite people who enter the

store. Tesla hires people who are enthusiastic about the technology and its
opportunity to change the world. When people learn something new in a