ELON MUSK: FROM ZERO TO HERO The story behind SEER UeLN NE VOT Le 9 TAOUFIK HAMMADIintroduction Elon Musk is changing the world, one invention at a time. His groundbreaking ideas and projects, ranging from space travel to saving the planet, make him one of the 21st century's greatest minds. The Tesla creator and founder is a key inspiration for our team, so much so that we actually have a “What Would Elon Do?” sign on the wall of our room! In this presentation, we explore what makes the South African entrepreneur and engineer such an extraordinary individual.Born in Pretoria, South Africa, in 1971, Elon Musk is the son of a Canadian model and dietician (his mother) and a South African elactromechanical engineer, pilot and sailor (his father). Musk demonstrated his impressive capacity to learn as early as ten years old, when he mastered how to code and program computers. His knack for entrepreneurial gifts were also present from a young age, with Musk creating and selling his own video game, Blastar, to a magazine for $500 when he was 12. Despite these outstanding achievements, Musk’s childhood was not easy. He was often singled out and bullied by other children; a common occurrence that escalated so badly that a group of his peers once threw him down the stairs and beat him unconscious. However, this did nothing to discourage the now-billionaire from taking the leap to further his education by moving to Canada and attending ‘Queen's University, defying his father’s insistence that he stay in Pretoria, Three years later, he left to study (and la University of Pennsylvania. Musk later sold his share in Zip2, using the millions ralsed to co-found a new company, X.com, in 1999 - which later merged and became PayPal F graduate in) business and physics at theae ace) (racy T rey ly See Deere) eee eee electrical engineer Nikola Testa Poet Noes SolarCit SPACEX BORING COMPANY HYPERLOOP SOLARCITY Founded in 2002 with the mission The Boring Company's mission Fees eee Se ee ee ey eer a Nr ee te manufactures and launches or tunnels. Unlke flying cars tunnels, ‘advanced rockets and ee een! eres cern ee cg Ce em ae en ree et ee eee ad eros nent snes Ne eee et pees ee ae ag ad ern Nenane MEE Ce Cet nt) Bre aces SSTesla MotorsDesign and Development of the vehiclesDesign and Development Claas) Tesla set out to be a luxury car company from its founding, as this allowed for the price point necessary to make high-quality electric-powered cars, retain margin and not worry about mass production (yet). Though they Limited their initial customer pool, Tesla banked a hefty sum on each car initially sold, which ultimately allowed them to do more research and development, and create cheaper electric cars.Tesla Rangers, and Tesla servicingTesla servicing: Cee Rede Caen ge a Re ere) Neen etme ute cea Ie the relationship continues for as long as that customer has a car from that, ae Tesla knew, by being the frst purely electric car on the market, they ‘would be forcing people to use their service stations for an extended Pee ee Eee et tea ar De een re ee eC eae eae ene eoSales centersSales centers: Inan effort to correct what the company calls a “conflict of interest,” Tesla does not have dealerships. Instead, it has sales centers, which are sometimes combined with Teslaservice stations, and online sales. The “conflict of interest” refers to salespeople at franchise dealerships who are Incentivized, via commission structures, to upsell customers, rather then just get them the vehicle they need,Marketing through Media/Social Media Attention: Press test rides Marketing througha Mission: Marketing sustainabilityMarketing through Media/Social Media Attention : Press test rides A clever way Tesla got the word out initially about the Model $ wasbinviting members of the press to test ride the vehicle, and then write about it. Considering that test-driving a Tesla vehicle from a sale center requires a $5,000 deposit, this was a solid offer, and it et the media put Tesla’s claims about the car to the test. Following the same Dees Re ee CeCe tee ee ue eed eee cee) spread good word of mouth about the car to a variety of potential customers. It was a marketing move that came very low cost to Tesla. All they had to do was provide a vehicle, On the other hand, as in the case with the Fox review, they Cee Cn ere a CR ae Cee ee eee Ete dee uence Marketing through a Mission: Marketing sustainability {As Tesla puts it on their website, its mission as a company “is to accelerate the world's transition to sustainable energy.” In edaition to being the basis for their technology development, this lofty mission aligns extremely well with their target market. Tesla is looking to sel to consumers that care about the environment, and environmental ec Res a ee cen ee os Tesla’s website is full of content about sustainable energy, and recently it put outits frst sustainability report, Ce ea ee eee a age ead Cee ee ees =Lessons to learn from Tesla’s Marketing Strategy1. Create the Best Possible Customer Experience One of the biggest drivers of Tesla’s success is ts focus on providing the best possible customer experience. Ordinarily, when you goto a car dealership, you have to deal with a sleazy salesman trying to earn as much commission as possible from your purchase. You haggle about the price, take the car for a test drive, and talk some numbers - overall itis time- consuming and not a very pleasant experience 2. Build a Strong Referral Program People trust recommendations from friends and family more than they could ever trust ads of a brand promoting itself That is, word of mouth is one of the most effective forms of marketing and Tesla knows this well. 3. Don’t Rely on Paid Advertising Whether you are scrolling through social media or cruising along the highway, ads are a nuisance you cannot escape. Apart from people in the marketing and advertising industry, there may only be @ handful of people on the planet who actually enjoy ads. || 4, Leverage Your CEO's Social Media Influence ‘As neediess to say as itis, Tesla Motors won't be where its today without the influence of its charismatic and rather audacious CEO, Elon Musk. Usually, CEOs are somewhat hesitant when it comes to going all out on social media In addition, that is quite understandable they have to be extremely cautious about what they're posting as they're the face of the company, so to speak. (One wrong post can seriously damage the brand's reputation, or even invite lawsuits. 6. Be as Authentic (and Fun) as You Can Continuing along the same lines of authenticity, Tesla as a company are blatantly themselves. They add features like “fart noises" to thelr cars, while the CEO shares memes on Twitter. At the same time, they have the most talented engineers bullding vehicles that help tackle the fossil fuel crisis. 6. Be Transparent Being completely honest and transparent with your customers is extremely important. If there's an issue that you're working to fix, one that’s going to cause customer disappointment, it's crucial to be transparent about it instead of hiding it - and your, customers would appreciate it.7. Keep Your Audience in the know Tesla and Elon share just about everything with their followers - mostly Via Twitter or the company’s blog. In this, way, their audience knows where to turn to forthe latest updates. In fact, ‘most of the company’s announcements are made casually in response to Twitter fans. 8. Focus Your Efforts Online ‘The modern customer starts their buyer journey online. So, the internet provides potential customers with their first impressions of the brand. Tesla distinguishes itself with a strong online presence, with countless press mentions and millions of followers across the social web. This social proof is pivotal to creating a brand that's head and shoulders above the competition 9. Allow Self-Service Options Modern customers are an impatient bunch. They don't want to wait to get in touch with brands. They want the ability to get instant answers to any doubts they may have,CONCLUSION fame ea Pa ect Te ool Pee eet MeL ro em ACTION AND STOP THE HARMFUL THINGS THAT WERE DOING RRC eC ea ay ate Ered ea eC om bate e eeeTL ad OF BUSINESSMEN CHANGE THEIR WAYS OR REFOCUS THEIR Ne Roe rere Se eee eter BE MADE FOR THE FUTURE WHERE WE WONT HAVE TO oT Sart Toco YI Co RM ole Reger tne as Tee eT a Tee Ten oT En Gee enol ott eee Pa gee eae ee aaa ee EESThanks for your attention