With automakers everywhere looking to less-than-traditional marketing methods to sell cars these days, (See Chrysler commercial and Ford’s Fiesta Movement), it may come as no surprise that Nissan is leaning towards using utility companies to help distribute marketing materials for its upcoming pure-EV Leaf.
Nissan is looking to be on the forefront of the EV market in North America, and it is aggressively working with state governments, local municipalities, utility companies and several other outlets to create the necessary infrastructure to make fully electric vehicles viable in the US.
David Crane, CEO of the major national electric company, NRG, said, “I think we can play a role in what Nissan is doing.” Crane told Automotive News, “We send monthly statements out to 1.5 million customers in the Houston area. That’s a lot of marketing potential.”
Crane suggested utilizing the electric bills of NRG’s subsidiary, Reliant Energy, to distribute marketing materials featuring the upcoming Nissan Leaf. Nissan is particularly interested in a partnership with Reliant energy as Houston happens to be one of Nissan’s largest markets in the US.
Crane has also shared several other ideas that would further blend the lines between automakers and utility companies, such as packaging Reliant charger installation packages with Nissan EVs and financing them along with the vehicle. Crane said the package would also include a service contract that could send out Reliant employees to do required work at the vehicle owner’s home.
Crane is also working on additional plans that would be modeled closely after cellular usage plans. Plans could give varying amounts of potential recharging to customers in public stations, and the plans could be catered to individual needs.
