Consumer behavior and attitudes toward hydrogen fuel cell vehicles

Hydrogen Fuel Car

OPTION #2

HYDROGEN FUEL CELL CAR:

CUSTOMER ANALYSIS ISSUES

Hydrogen Fuel Cell Car is the new clean energy vehicle for personal transportation. The power plants of the hydrogen fuel vehicle is either to burn hydrogen in an internal combustion engine or convert hydrogen with oxygen in a fuel cell to run. This hydrogen for fueling transportation may lead a hydrogen economy. The convenience of hydrogen fueling is the issue should be solved for the future market.

This paper addresses consumer behavior issues relevant to the marketing of the Hydrogen Fuel Car. As this is a preliminary investigation some of the information in it is based on supposition and requires further inquiry. One approach to this additional inquiry might take the form of a reevaluation of market behaviors associated with other alternative/fuel cars that have been marketed over the last ten years as well as with additional independent market research. This work offers a review of possible consumer, attitudes, perceptions and behaviors and finally discusses the possible managerial implications of the market roll out of the Hydrogen Fuel Car.

LEVEL of CATEGORY INVOLVEMENT in the DECISION MAKING PROCESS

The consumer market is currently poised to accept and own alternative technology, with the understanding that this technology is effective in reducing environmental impact (in comparison to traditional means), will be supported by a usable infrastructure and will provide an equivalent lifestyle experience (Lenderman, 2007). That being said the automobile is one of the most important purchases any individual will make in a lifetime, though often purchased far more frequently the purchase is secondary only to the purchase of a home. People often finance cars on incremental basis and care very much about the terms of such loans and how they will be budgeted in the long-term as auto loans are 3-5 years in length and represent a good deal of outlays in addition to the purchase price itself, i.e. interest, maintenance expense, title and registration fees, insurance and fuel over a long period. All of these issues, primary to the purchase of a car make the obtaining of a car a high involvement level purchase. If in addition to all these expenses and factors the vehicle purchase (or in this case long-term rental/lease) demonstrates a change, and in many ways pioneer alternative to a traditional combustion engine car even more thought and involvement will be involved in the obtaining of the vehicle. The selection of a vehicle, one can assume will then be an extremely well thought out process and some consumers, after much thought will be willing to be test cases for a new and innovative, possibly cost saving alternative fuel vehicle will expect to be highly informed and involved with the purchase. This being said, I would like to reiterate that consumers at every level have been poised to respond to environmental concerns regarding the overreliance and environmental impact of fossil fuel that is impacted in a huge way by the use of personal combustion engine vehicles (Yetano Roche et. al., 2010). Conversely many people in the developed world are inextricably dependant on the convenience that personal vehicles provide, making its impact on the environment an issue that they are at least marginally aware of but feel helpless to avoid. The result is a collection of consumers who have been waiting, what seems like a long time for a usable alternative to fossil fuel burning vehicles (Strahan, 2008). They have been watching and waiting for years for technology to respond to the need for change. Ultimately, though the average consumer may not fully understand the technology and will likely rely heavily on experts to ensure that it is safe, functional and well supported. This also suggests that consumers will allow the opportunity for a great deal of expert communication at many varied points in the process.

CONSUMER PRODUCT CATEGORY KNOWLEDGE

Transportation vehicles are extremely complicated and technical, and emerging, pioneer technology is particularly so. Many consumers have a great deal of knowledge about operating a standard vehicle, most will have no experience understanding the technology, at any other level. Additionally, most experts in the traditional auto industry support systems will also have limited knowledge of the technology, how it is ultimately applied or how to make repairs if they are needed. This is in large part the reason for the lease process being applied to this technology. Ultimately, this makes it possible for the expert (dealer/manufacturer) to retain ownership of the product and provide and mandate its maintenance and support and most importantly treat the rental/lease experience as a source of information for user data as well as technical and marketing logistics data collection and review. This proxy support will also benefit the consumer as he or she embarks on the process of going live with pioneering technology, as the rental/lease will ensure that proper maintenance and even refueling is provided to the technology at the proper intervals and with appropriate care. Individuals who have more than average knowledge of the technology will likely be the first consumers serious enough about the product potential to seek out a rental/lease/purchase situation and will also be likely to be the most flexible with regard to lifestyle changes or challenges that may need to be addressed in an ongoing manner, through the life of the rental/lease and the vehicle. Yet, this does not exclude the responsibility of the experts to fully and completely support the consumer and likely spend a considerable amount of time in professional communication about the technology and its use by the consumer as well as ensuring the ease of use, through infrastructure. "The creation of hydrogen infrastructure is vital for automakers to successfully bring hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles to market," said Wade Hoyt, a Toyota spokesman," (Al-Muslim, 2011) Consumer access sources, such as interactive user websites, including troubleshooting, maintenance schedules and recommendations, user reviews and even a community access discussion board should be established and operating upon entry into the market but the system should not replace 24-hour support from live technical assistants. Again the information should be both user friendly at a consumer level and offer advanced explanations for those who have interest in greater technical information about the product, with the limitation of retaining trade secure information and technology. An advanced level of information access should also be availed to technicians and a consumer level amount of data should be availed to the press, consumer action and review groups, all appropriate legal review entities, dealers, rental/leasing agents and others appropriate for a full scale technical live trial of the technology.

CONSUMER INFORMATION SEARCH STRATEGY

The advanced nature of the technology makes it a perfect candidate for the theoretical model of consumer information search strategy, as the consumer is first made aware of the problem, something that has been happening exponentially over the last few years from hundreds of sources taking care of the problem recognition aspect. Yet, in this industry as well as common sources for information on green/alternative technology is a whole host of ideas and technologies, at every level of technical prowess and varied a great deal. To some degree the consumer's task of finding a product that meets all their needs will be complicated by conflicting information as to comparable alternative products. In other words the consumer will likely need a great deal of convincing that Hydrogen Fuel Cell Vehicle is the best alternative among many and because of the fact that a car is a very durable good the consumer must be assured, to some degree that this is the technology that will endure, rise above the many other options and be supported in the long-term. Again the lease program mitigates this issue, by ensuring that if the technology or infrastructural support proves lacking then the renter/leaser will not be in a position to take a loss by having to retain an obsolete, unsupported and expensive product. Yet, many may also be leery to make a commitment to a vehicle that might be perceived as "just as good as" other more tried and tested alternative product, e.g. other alternative fuel vehicles already on the road, including hybrids, hybrid electrics, all electric, biodiesel or biofuel consuming vehicles. The Hydrogen Fuel Cell Vehicle must then be well placed in the market and be perceived by the consumer as the ultimate and best alternative vehicle to operate and make a commitment to. The consumer will seek out information on alternatives through various sources, including word of mouth, friends, family, acquaintances but will rely heavily on expert opinion (which can be conflicting in this area) and will require clarity on the part of experts specific to the Hydrogen Fuel Cell Vehicle. The consumer will then decide to rent/lease the vehicle or make another choice, buying or supporting one of many varied alternatives. This product type will likely have a consumer information search that will include any combination of the following:

1. Reading and doing internet searches on alternative fuel vehicles and technology in trade and vehicle technology informatics. People seeking to make a fundamental change in the way they transport themselves will likely need a great deal of information, some of which may provide greater clarity while others may provide confusion and resort in them seeking out another alternative product. The consumer may then look for information that will support their inquiry into a commitment to a Hydrogen Fuel Cell Vehicle as opposed to one of many alternatives.

a. Choosing a lower cost option, or in this case an option that best fits into their personal budget;

b. Choosing an alternative with greater support and/or greater available review data, i.e. something that has already been tried and embraced by consumers;

c. Choosing a product that offers the least resistance in the way of lifestyle change, where to fuel, how to fuel, easier to drive, and/or service.

2. Consulting an expert, such as the lease agent, dealer manufacturer or an expert in the technology from a scientific perspective.

a. This may result in either additional conflicting information or resolution, depending on the source material and perspectives of both insider and outsider experts.

b. Individuals often have a certain level of distrust for anyone who seeks to gain from their decision and individuals with outside (unbiased) expertise are not likely to be easy to find at this stage.

c. At this stage the consumer may seek out a test drive of the product, as unlike many other products consumers are able to use the product for a short personal review of it. This may be difficult to achieve, and the most important part of this aspect of the marketing is making the information about where to go to try the product completely accessible to the public the press and even rental/leaser agents.

3. The individual might then look to their social network for advice.

a. The individual may seek out friends, family or acquaintances who have some knowledge and/or experience with alternative fuel vehicles, and/or the manufacturer in question with regard to support, ease of access to experts and intervention when needed and also the usability of the product in question.

b. Again because of the pioneering nature of this product there may be some difficulty finding such information specific to the Hydrogen Fuel Cell Vehicle, but consumers will seek it nonetheless. They will then likely rely again on "expert" information where it can be had.

Clearly the process is not likely to be a rapid one, and the many and varied sources of information could be lacking, possibly forcing the individual to seek an alternative that offers more experiential evidence yet plainly if the price point is acceptable and the terms of the rental/lease are developed in such a way to ensure long-term and rapid support for needs the individual may still choose the Hydrogen Fuel Cell Vehicle and may still be willing to put up with some of the working out of kinks in the process. Additionally, the above consumer information search process is not likely to offer discrete and separate activities as it will likely be a cumulative process where expert opinion is sought from multiple sources over some time again offering many points of information and communication opportunities for the marketer, and opportunities for ongoing evaluation on the part of the consumer.

Wait times for delivery

The availability of the information and the ease of its access will weigh heavily in the decision making process. Additional support research specific to this individual vehicle must also be accessible at the consumer level and go live prior to the introduction of the vehicle to the market.

ATTITUDES

Attitudes consist of beliefs, affect, and behavioral intentions. The latter category involves plans to either forego buying in this product category, buying our brand with or without a complimentary one, buying only a competing product, or pursuing further search. Affect is important here since use of this product is motivated by a desire on the part of consumers to utilize and support technology that is better for the environment than what is currently available, i.e. either a traditional combustion engine car or one of several alternatives. There are some competing brands associated with the Hydrogen Fuel Cell Vehicle and it would be fundamentally unwise to produce such a vehicle without brand recognition from one of the major auto manufacturers. This is a high involvement product as consumers will be likely to seek out as much information as possible before a decision is made. Consumer belief regarding the need to make a change is high, currently and will likely support such a venture but the conflicting information and varied ideation about alternative technology will also likely cloud the decisions making process and require mitigation on the part of stakeholders. Behavioral intentions are therefore driven by beliefs and can be supported toward the Hydrogen Fuel Cell Vehicle decision if appropriate communications and information is given to the consumer at the right intervals of the process. Managerial implications for this product are many and broad, most importantly more market research data must be collected and analyzed to determine the efficacy and cost effectiveness of this technology. Grants, rebates and other government support may need to be sought to create the infrastructure needed to support the product and support the consumer in his or her bid to use it. The offset costs may ultimately make the project a budget success, with the appropriate considerations for loss and additional research and development taken into consideration. It is a wise choice to make the Hydrogen Fuel Cell Vehicle available by rental/lease only as it mitigates and comforts the consumer on many levels yet it also leaves the manufacturer holding the bag if the technology proves ineffectual or is not supported by the market. Additionally, it is an opportunity to retain ownership as reuse and recycling can be associated with technology innovation and upgrading and the manufacturer will not then have to rely heavily on the consumer to take advantage of changes and upgrades. This in many ways is a departure from the norm in the auto industry but could serve as a sustainable model for the introduction of several other types of alternative fuel vehicles and technologies.

CONCLUSION

This work has reviewed the many aspects of the potential consumer responses and behaviors to the availability of a retail level Hydrogen Fuel Cell Vehicle, previously only available to a small customer base willing to support a great deal of the cost of distribution and support. Due in large part to the innovative and pioneering nature of the technology and its rapid evolution in the broader and narrower markets the development of this technology and its offering to the public will be a marketing test in and of itself. It remains to be seen if this technology, despite its promise will be the technology that ultimately rises above other alternative fuel vehicles but it is clearly time to offer such an option to the public and to demand the expansion of the infrastructure to support it. Decision changes on the spot can be influenced at any level of the information gathering/decision making paradigm and as the technology is new, consumer level review is scarce. It is therefore essential that all the information a consumer might seek be available from the experts and this means insiders and outsiders. Consumers must be convinced that this decision is a good one and that this technology is ultimately better than other alternatives (Strahan, 2008). Without this realization, without quality, or finally without usable infrastructure to support the product the marketing experiment will ultimately be a failure to some degree. Given the importance and emphasis on this technology as what is needed for the future this roll out must be absolutely comprehensive and well developed on every level to support a good first run of consumer level availability for the Hydrogen Fuel Cell Vehicle.

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