Car Max & the Need for Persona Work

Recently, I watched a Car Max commercial that featured their spokesman as a busy mom carting around multiple items and with children. What struck me was the difference between this commercial and previous ones targeting a more masculine audience. They featured the spokesman using a chainsaw to carve a tiger into wood.

After some quick internet stalking that being a Millenial you basically can call me the Sherlock Holmes of internet stalking, I found all sorts of commercials catered to different audiences. There was one with leather (sadly not Madonna leather), one where he was calling dibs on shotgun, and many more that were theoretically designed for parents, children, and Baby Boomers.

The personas defined by Car Max ads are as follows:

Ben Hursowitz is a 45 year-old dad. He enjoys making things with his hands and has built a tree-house from Low’s. Ben alway says, “If you can’t do it yourself, why do it at all?”

Becky Beauregard is an 18 year-old who is the youngest of three. Becky enjoys all things, especially playing games such as shotgun with her older siblings. Becky hates sitting in the backseat.

Audrey Sheffield is a 32 year-old mom who is constantly running around with her children. She finds she doesn’t have a lot of free time and wants a vehicle that is reliable.

If you asked yourself are these people real, you were right. These personas lack tension, but more so, they lack truth. No good story was ever written with a perfect journey from point A to B. That’s lame and more importantly, that’s not real life.

The problem with Ben, Becky, and Audrey.

These personas represent an aggregated collection of stereotypes and never define the tension in their lives that answers, “Why do they need a car?” “How would a used car impact their lives over a new car?”

Without asking the right questions, you cannot reach the right audience.

So, who is their actual audience?

The fine print: Not having any data around actual Car Max customers, the data synthesized here is pulled from consumers who buy used cars.

Gen X & Z Consumers:

Gen X and Zers aren’t buying cars like the previous generations. In fact, “Only about 60% of today’s 18-year-olds have a driver’s license, compared with 80% in the 1980s, according to a study from the University of Michigan.” Instead, they’re fueling Uber and Lyft’s paychecks.

In addition, there’s also a trend towards moving to more urban areas. This trend isn’t localized to Millenials. Even your grandma wants to move.

The real trend setter here though is tech. According to a “Cox Automotive report this year found that millennials are looking for cars from manufacturers that integrate seamlessly with their smartphones and sync with other technology. Among 18- to 24-year-olds, 64% said they expected their vehicle’s technology to be able to do all the things that a smartphone can do; that compared with 56% of Gen X respondents.

The report also found that whereas just 13% of respondents prioritized a vehicle with advanced information and entertainment features over advanced safety features, among millennials, the figure was roughly 33%. In contrast, 91% of respondents ages 51 to 65 prioritized the safety features.”

To verify, I spoke with a car salesman. He informed me, “Leasing cars is the way to go now. At the rate technology is increasing, your car’s technology will be outgrown in 2–4 years. Then, it’ll be time for a new car…You won’t get the money back if you purchase.”

In conclusion, the way to hook these consumers is not by calling out “Shotgun!” on your commercial. Rather, it’s to demonstrate that buying a used car from you will allow them to gain invaluable experiences, keep them up-to-date with the latest tech, and maintain the urban life where it’s cool to still Lyft rather than drive.

And really, Millenials wants to use car sharing apps so they can keep doing this:

Baby Boomers:

In a 2015 study, Uber found that roughly 1/4 of their drivers were over 50. Baby Boomers for the most part enjoy driving, which I don’t understand. I hate driving. It sends me straight to yoga.

More importantly, this generation seeks to stay young, and one of their primary means to do this is through an automobile.

I asked a Baby Boomer about this and he admitted, “I own a Jeep because I’d like to think that one day I’ll go off-roading and live this adventurous life in my Jeep. But in reality, I use it to drive my kids around and the biggest thrill is when I take off the doors and drive my kids around town.”

Car companies like Toyota are catching on and targeting this dream in their ads. For example, Toyota created an advertisement that poked fun at Millenials for believing they were the center of the universe. “We got a lot of great reaction from those ads ,” said Zeinstra, who also said he couldn’t imagine producing commercials that poke fun at boomers. “Boomers are looking for vehicles that help them stay active and young because that’s the image they want to have of themselves.”

This ad was effective because it defined the tension and created an advertisement to address that tension. It worked.

Parents:

The percentage of people who buy used cars have a lower income. More than likely, these parents can’t afford to use Lyft or Uber to send their children places or use Uber receipts to find out where their teenagers are going. (Yes, this is a thing.)

These parents want a reliable, safe, and spacious vehicle to get their family from point A to point B. Their number 1 priority is safety, not tech features.

None of which is addressed in the commercial.

Conclusions:

Next time you make anything, ask yourself: Is my persona a stereotype? What is the tension in their lives that answers, “Why do they need a car?” “How would a used car impact their lives over a new car?” “What’s their income?”

To reiterate, without asking the right questions, you cannot reach the right audience. At that point, why spend millions to target the wrong consumer?