{"id":202923,"date":"2021-05-28T14:59:10","date_gmt":"2021-05-28T18:59:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thedetroitbureau.com\/?p=202923"},"modified":"2021-05-28T15:04:13","modified_gmt":"2021-05-28T19:04:13","slug":"qa-kia-marketing-chief-russell-wager-going-electric","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thedetroitbureau.com\/2021\/05\/qa-kia-marketing-chief-russell-wager-going-electric\/","title":{"rendered":"Q&A: Kia Marketing Chief Russell Wager \u2014 Going Electric"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\u201cNew York, New York,\u201d goes the old song, if you can make it there you \u201ccan make it anywhere.\u201d Or so Kia seems to believe. Earlier this month, the South Korean carmaker took over Times Square<\/a><\/span><\/strong> to stage the launch of its new, all-electric EV6 SUV. In a jaw-dropping stunt, Kia took over 20 of the flashing billboards surrounding the iconic meeting place to provide a video backdrop.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
The EV6 is the vehicle leading Kia’s charge into electrification.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

The EV6 is the first of a family of dedicated battery-electric vehicles that will be based on the E-GMP, a skateboard-like platform<\/a><\/span><\/strong> Kia will share with its sibling brands Hyundai and Genesis. And it comes to market at a point many are calling the tipping point, the moment when BEVs go from being eccentric oddities to part of the mainstream.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But there are still plenty of skeptics and, even among those open to EVs, plenty of confusion about their benefits and trade-offs, says Russell Wagers. Kia\u2019s vice president of marketing, he spent time with TheDetroitBureau, along with marketing exec Michael McHale, to discuss Kia\u2019s long-range EV plans, the changing politics of electrification, and how the EV6 can help owners watch movies and make popcorn when they take it camping.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

TheDetroitBureau:<\/strong> There\u2019s a lot going on at Kia, it seems. You\u2019ve changed the company\u2019s name and you\u2019ve launched your new EV6 battery-electric vehicle. What does this all signify?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Russell Wager:<\/strong> The transformation we\u2019re going through is a shift to sustainable mobility. Electrification is a portion of it. Purpose-built vehicles make up another portion. The first proof point is the EV6. We (went to Times Square) to show people we are serious about the transformation. EV6 is the vehicle that kicks off the transformation, but it\u2019s not the end point. We\u2019ll have 11 (electrified) vehicles globally by 2026, a combination of BEVs, plug-ins and hybrids. Six of them will be specific for the U.S. This is the start of our path.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

TDB:<\/strong> And sales targets?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Michael McHale:<\/strong> We\u2019re being sensible here. Start with 10,000 (in 2021). Next year it will be 30,000 and the year after 45,000. So you see, we\u2019re growing on a curve. We\u2019re not ramming these (vehicles) down people\u2019s throats. We want to increase supply very carefully.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Longer term goals<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

TDB:<\/strong> Okay, so EV6 is the start. Longer-term, what is Kia looking at?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wager:<\/strong> By 2030, we fully expect electrified vehicles will make up 60% of our sales. Half of that will be BEVs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

TDB:<\/strong> Those numbers include other models?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wager:<\/strong> Right now it will include the (current Kia EV model, the) Niro. There\u2019s another part that will determine where sales go that\u2019s out of our control today: the administration\u2019s infrastructure plan and changes to federal (EV) incentives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

TDB: <\/strong>Talk about the distinctive design of the EV6?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wager:<\/strong> The rear of it looks like an SUV, the front like a performance vehicle. So, it\u2019s the best of what is a true crossover.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Generating faith in EVs<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

TDB:<\/strong> One of the challenges of marketing EVs is to get folks to understand just what they are. Traditionally, there\u2019ve been a lot of trade-offs. But to win consumers over, my sense is that they\u2019ll have to see more benefits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wager:<\/strong> You\u2019re hitting the nail on the head. Early on, battery costs were getting expensive. But prices are coming down as the technology gets better. In the beginning, 100-mile range scared people \u2014 even though the average person uses their vehicle only 50 miles a day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

More than 70% of EV buyers are buying one for the first time. It\u2019s an education thing to consumers. Many think they\u2019ll disrupt their lives. But EV6 smoothly fits with their lifestyle. With the EV6 we have to explain to them they won\u2019t have to worry about your normal commute and errands or having to charge more than once with a 300-mile range. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

You want to go on a camping trip? There\u2019s a front and rear trunk, plenty of space. And if you do have to charge it, say to go to Southern California to Napa, 18 minutes, get the coffee, send a couple e-mails and continue on. We don\u2019t disrupt their lives. That will help convert considerers to purchasers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

TDB:<\/strong> It\u2019s more than taking away the limitations people think of when you talk EVs. There are some real pluses to EVs, which could surprise performance fans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wager:<\/strong> Our 0-to-60 time is 3.5 seconds on the 576-horsepower GT version. \u00a0And it has all-wheel-drive. It has decent ground clearance. It won\u2019t scale Moab but it can do decent things (off-road). And we have bidirectional charging. So, go on a camping trip and you can plug in your extension cord and power a movie projector and a popcorn maker.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The fate of gas-powered engines<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

TDB:<\/strong> Some brands are looking to entirely abandon gasoline technology. GM wants to sell only BEVs starting in 2035.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wager: <\/strong>We still sell gasoline engines and we will still sell gasoline engines (going forward). We believe customers should have a choice. Let them choose. But when you look at the (Biden) administration\u2019s plan, by 2030, if they carry that to fruition, there\u2019s will be as many charging stations as there are gas stations today. Then it just becomes a customer choice versus a customer trade-off.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

TDB:<\/strong> There\u2019ve been some recent studies finding more support for EVs and for developing the infrastructure than the politics seen in Congress would suggest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wager:<\/strong> Because of that, I think Washington is seeing that this is good for America and the American people. I think that will change this so it\u2019s not to be a political discussion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

TDB:<\/strong> Doesn\u2019t it help to see a lot of new product coming to market, whatever the manufacturer?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wager:<\/strong> There are lots of new EV offerings coming from our competitors every month. The conversation (though) has changed dramatically. You have to have somewhere between 250 and 300 miles range. Now the conversation has moved to charging times.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

TDB:<\/strong> You need to take that out of the equation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wager:<\/strong> It has to be just like going to the gas pump. In five minutes you\u2019re out of there. Yeah. For those who have a home and can have a home charger, you don\u2019t even have to go to the gas station. Not everyone does, but apartments are starting to gear up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Technological wizardry<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

TDB:<\/strong> We see more new BEVs coming with over-to-air software update capabilities. Going forward, as you move into this new \u201celectrified\u201d space, how does that change things?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wager:<\/strong> We\u2019re going to make it possible for you to pay for some services, like ordering a Domino\u2019s pizza, right through the car. We\u2019re working on other agreements. The convenience for the customer is important. Everyone now does everything from their phones. The idea is to make it so you won’t have t\u2019 worry about your phone. The car will do it for you. We\u2019re dipping our toe into this with the EV6. Increasing revenues is part of it. But it\u2019s also about building up a long-term relationship with the customer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

TDB:<\/strong> Before we wrap up, can you talk about what\u2019s next, after the EV6?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wager:<\/strong> I can\u2019t. EV6 pre-sale begins on June 3 and it will be priced under $60,000 before any federal or local tax credits.\u00a0 Then we\u2019ll have a conversation about the rest of our line-up. We want to have a regular cadence (of product launches). If you\u2019re at the New York Auto Show I might be to tell you something then.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

After a jaw-dropping introduction for its new EV6, Kia officials are heading off into an electrified future. Russell Wager, Kia’s marketing chief, spoke with TheDetroitBureau about it.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":202926,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[7,8,5,10],"tags":[809,808,807,810,344],"make":[],"post-state":[335],"category_old":[],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thedetroitbureau.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/202923"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thedetroitbureau.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thedetroitbureau.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thedetroitbureau.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thedetroitbureau.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=202923"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/thedetroitbureau.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/202923\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":202932,"href":"https:\/\/thedetroitbureau.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/202923\/revisions\/202932"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thedetroitbureau.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/202926"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thedetroitbureau.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=202923"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thedetroitbureau.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=202923"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thedetroitbureau.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=202923"},{"taxonomy":"make","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thedetroitbureau.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/make?post=202923"},{"taxonomy":"post-state","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thedetroitbureau.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/post-state?post=202923"},{"taxonomy":"category_old","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thedetroitbureau.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/category_old?post=202923"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}