Marketing in the News: Tesla's Wild "Cyber Rodeo"

   While browsing the internet for current event articles, I went to Bloomberg.com, and almost immediately the title "Tesla's 'Cyber Rodeo' Was a Recruiting Event in a Party Hat" caught my eye. Upon reading the article, I soon realized that I had stumbled upon marketing gold. 

      Tesla's 'Cyber Rodeo' was a "We are Hiring" advertisement wearing the clothes of a full-blown carnival. Their goal for this event was to market their need to hire 20,000 employees in in Austin Texas for their new factory, which is triple the size of the Pentagon. This task could be quite the challenge, as the city of Austin has a sub 3% unemployment rate. Because of this, Tesla knew they had to stand out, and what better way to do so than to throw a massive party. 

     There was live music, a petting zoo, art installations, a large variety of food trucks, beer and wine stands, mechanical riding bulls, and even Bevo, a live bull that serves as the mascot for the University of Texas. Additionally, they showed off their new 4680 battery cells, a cutaway of the Model Y, and most importantly, the Giga Press, which is the world's largest die-casting machine, which can create an entire SUV frame in just two parts. 

   However, despite the festive atmosphere surrounding the new factory, Tesla doesn't  exactly have the best track records regarding their factories. They have had trouble dealing with racism and harassment claims in the past, as they were hit with a 137 million dollar discrimination lawsuit back in October of last year. Nonetheless, Tesla keeps moving forward, as Elon Musk believes the factory could produce 1 million cars a year.

     Tesla's Value Proposition is to produce luxurious electric cars that aim to compete with the price and utility of their gas and diesel powered rivals. Because of that, Tesla is willing to market themselves in unique ways that no other company would ever dare to. This "Cyber Rodeo" is a perfect example of their brilliant marketing strategy, which definitely sets them apart from all other competition. What other company would have a petting zoo, or alcoholic drinks at a hiring event? Given the cowboy theme and the various cowboy attractions, it is clear that this whole event was heavily marketed towards your average Texan, especially those in the Austin area. Additionally, this was also marketed towards tech fans, especially those who are fans of Tesla and Elon Musk. 

     If I were their product manager, and someone pitched me the idea of the "Cyber Rodeo", I would have absolutely turned it down, because as a concept it sounds insane. But when you bring the idea to life it is absolutely genius. There was definitely some risk to this event, as having a live bull and alcoholic beverages could cause a host of problems. Regardless, I think this event serves as great example to not be afraid of ambition. 

Overall I think this event really demonstrates how innovative Tesla, and their ability to push the boundaries of marketing really shows why Elon has gotten to where he is now. 

Article link: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-04-08/tesla-s-cyber-rodeo-was-a-recruiting-event-in-a-party-hat 

Tesla: https://www.tesla.com/