In Slow-to-Innovate Auto Industry, BMW Steps on Gas
The automotive industry hasn't quite raced toward innovation in recent years.
Manufacturers have been plagued by regulatory issues, pollution programs and profitability issues – factors that had likely been a roadblock for big technological advances. In fact, Executive Chairman Bill Ford even admitted in a 2013 press conference that the industry is guilty on being slow on this front.
Luckily for the tech-hungry public, we’re seeing signs that this trend will shift into reverse, BMW being an excellent example – both from a product and marketing standpoint. The foreign luxury car company was applauded at Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in January for the debut of BMW i Home Charging Services. In a nutshell, the first-of-its-kind product allows for plug-in hybrid BMW models to charge, at home, on solar power.
But it doesn’t stop there. BMW i Home Charging Services is a smart product, meaning a vehicle can be automatically charged at the cheapest off-peak rates. This makes BMW is the first manufacturer to offer smart-charging product of this magnitude. The charging station is just one of many new strides the company is taking to be on the forefront of technology.
Driving the innovation theme home, BMW’s Super Bowl commercial showcased how the luxury car company is not just debuting new products; it’s actually setting the benchmark today that will reshape the future.
How did it reinforce this key message? The commercial featured a vintage 1994 clip of Bryant Gumbel and Katie Couric discussing their confusion about the Internet. “What is the Internet anyway? What, do you write to it like mail?” asked Gumbel in the 20-year old video.
Can you imagine a world today where no one knew what the Internet was? Probably not. BMW hopes, 20 years from now, we won’t remember a world before some of its newest products existed.Smart technology will drive brands like BMW out of its problematic past and shape a new future, while smart marketing campaigns tell these stories to the world. By taking the driver’s seat with innovation, we may see a completely new side to the automotive world.
