The Nissan Leaf, Chevy Bolt, and other electric vehicles have gained traction in recent years, but none have managed to take a sizable share of the market away from leading brand Tesla. Elon Musk’s electric car company saw its first significant challenge in February, however, thanks to Ford’s new Mustang Mach-E SUV. According to Morgan Stanley, Tesla’s monthly share of the EV market dropped from 81% to 69%, and the research suggests that almost all of Tesla’s decline was attributed to sales of Ford’s new EV. Volvo is also poised to offer a competing electric SUV, the E40, which may further challenge Tesla in coming months.

While Tesla has been a phenomenal growth story, traditional auto makers have been slow to follow Tesla, failing to introduce sporty electric cars with high consumer appeal. This is changing, however, as more and more automakers – including luxury brands such as Mercedes Benz, BMW, and Audi – have announced plans for new all-electric sports cars. Moreover, once Apple gets involved, the market could see rapid upheaval.

Interpret’s New Media Measure® shows that a majority of car intenders consider themselves to be environmentally conscious while over half also fall into the early adopter crowd when it comes to new technologies.

“The key for marketing teams at these automakers will be to convey the right messaging about climate change while also playing up the ‘cool new tech’ factor of these vehicles. The time to ramp up marketing spend is right around the corner as well, as many expect post-pandemic household spending to surge,” said Stuart Sikes, Senior Vice President at Interpret.

Expect car makers to begin to battle for share across multiple media channels, in contrast to Tesla that has instead relied on strong word of mouth and viral marketing. As global auto makers pursue their initiatives to be all electric within one to two decades, media spending for EVs will help drive this pursuit.’