Putting the Human Back in the Driving Seat
Why marketing is essential to the success of automotive technology – and why engineers should care.
During my time in the automotive industry, I’ve seen incredible technological advances; autonomous driving, connected vehicles, electrification of powertrains, AI, SDV. Automotive engineering has gone through a renaissance, and I have to say – it’s exciting.
It’s a privilege to be at the cutting edge when new tech hits the market and new vehicles are launched. That’s something my team and I do really well: introducing new IP, technologies, vehicles and brands. We’ve got a strong track record.
But with all this experience working with some of the brightest minds, I’ve come to a personal conclusion about engineers… But first, two disclaimers:
- Yes, I’m generalising – but based on years of real world experience.
- And no, I don’t fully understand what you all do.
I mean, I kind of do. You’re the super-smart people who make this world move. You’re the miracle workers and technicians who bring the digital into the physical. You build ‘stuff’ out of what, to me, looks like thin air. I’m in awe of what you do. You should be proud.
The tech? It’s incredible. You’re killing it. I love being part of it.
BUT (there’s always a but)… you really do struggle to communicate. You’re not natural sellers. You don’t grasp the value of brand or why it matters. And trust me – You. Need. Brands.
I’ve worked with world leading engineers for over 18 years, and sometimes, I’ll admit, I feel like the dumbest person in he room. I don’t speak binary. I don’t see how those 1s and 0s make a vehicle move. But that’s okay. I trust you’ve got it covered.
So, why is it still so hard to get people to adopt your tech? Why aren’t customers queuing up like it’s the latest smartphone from a company named after a fruit?
But, thanks to your communication challenges, I have a job. If you nailed marketing, I’d be working in construction or selling insurance. So, cheers for that.
Even when you’re selling to other engineers, manufacturers, or supply chain partners, the struggle remains. Why?
Those brilliant engineers I’ve worked with, they all had one thing in common: they couldn’t explain why their technology mattered. They couldn’t connect the dots between what they built and the emotional triggers that drive human decision making.
I get it. Marketing feels uncomfortable. It’s fuzzy. It lives in the grey areas, not the clean world of right/wrong, the black and white. But maybe that’s why I love it. Because at its core, good marketing is rooted in human psychology, not digital tools or shiny trends.
Email blasts, cool websites, social media campaigns – these are just the tools. Tactics. They come at the end of a strategy, not the beginning. But we default to them because they’re easy. They feel productive.
Truth is, that kind of marketing is lazy. It’s Spray-and-pray. If I send 1,000 emails, maybe one will work? Meh. That’s not strategy and not how I work.
This is where my generalisation kicks in again. Engineers are often so in love with the brilliance of their own creations that they forget the most important part: humans.
I’ve sat in meetings where engineers explained their tech in exhausting detail. And at the end, I ask: So what?
It sounds harsh. It pisses people off. I’ve had people walk out. Once, someone even threw something at me. I get it – this is your life’s work, and here I am, asking a dumb question.
But it’s not dumb. It’s a reframe.
So what? forces a shift from features and functions to outcomes and benefits. What does this mean for the person using it? How does it improve their life? Why should they care? That’s where emotion lives. That’s where connection starts.
This is what we marketers call the “benefits ladder.” You move from features to advantages to emotional benefits. It’s how we connect on a human level.
Call it branding or marketing (honestly, what’s the difference?), but at its core, it’s about perception. And perception is powerful.
Your brand is the space you occupy in your customer’s mind. It’s how people feel about your business. It shapes their expectations of you. And, because you can shape perception, you can shape buyer behaviour. That’s the psychological magic and the strategic power of a strong brand.
When I explain branding like this, I often see the lightbulb turn on. Suddenly, their marketing team doesn’t seem so full of sh*t. (To be fair, some marketing teams are, but that’s another rant.)
The problem is also on us marketers. We’ve become too obsessed with digital tools and trends. We chase the new shiny things instead of focusing on the fundamentals – understanding our market, shaping perception, and then activating through channels.
Most marketing is bland because it skips the hard part: building a strong brand and a strong strategy before diving into tactics. But if we focused more on changing perception, not just chasing leads, we’d see more home runs and fewer strikeouts.
So here’s my message: Engineers, your tech is amazing – but if you want the world to care (and buy), you need to connect with people. That’s where we marketers come in. Not to dilute your brilliance, but to translate it.
Together, we make magic – but only if we remember who we’re building it for. Let’s not forget the human in the machine.
