Course: Commerce 101
Section: 7
Student Number: 12679149
Assignment title: SWOT Analysis
Strengths
Opportunities
First in the market – Tesla Motors have the opportunity to strengthen their position as the ‘pioneer’ of electric cars as they are one of the first firms to cater for the premium electrified vehicles market.
Foothold in China – Tesla and China Unicom has teamed up to build over 400 charging stations in 120 cities. China Unicom’s interest depicted through the corporation’s willingness to pay for all maintenance and electricity costs may be just the start of the partnership. (Sparks, 2014)
Product – The electric car concept has not been able to reach its full potential as the technology and production costs have kept it from being fully commercial. As technologies improve, the performance of the vehicles (I.e. the range) will share a similar experience.
Theft Rates – Tesla experienced less than 0.15 thefts per 1000 vehicles produced as vehicles are equipped with technology to track and disable the vehicles if stolen. (Plummer, 2014)
Association with Toyota – Tesla’s new brand is fragile, however financial backing by Toyota may create trust in the new brand. Consumers who are already familiar with Toyota will be influenced by cooperation between the two companies.
Proud owners of Tesla – Many famous personalities have a Tesla car, they include Steve Wozniak, Ben Affleck and James Cameron. (Jain, 2014)
Increasing cost of fuel – Many consumers around the world may be feeling the pressure of higher fuel costs. In the short term, the Ukrainian and Iraqi conflict may further elevate the price of petrol. (Johnson, 2014)
Weaknesses
Threats
Expansion – Tesla has an ambitious growth plan to build a 5 Billion Dollar battery plant, this may burden the company in such a way sales do not grow exponentially by the end of the decade (Randall, 2014)
Range of Vehicles – Tesla’s Model S range is still very limited compared to
Bibliography: Badkar, M. (2013, November 7). Tesla Stock Is Tanking After A Third Model S In Two Months Catches Fire. Retrieved from Business Insider: http://www.businessinsider.com/third-tesla-model-s-catches-fire-2013-11 Jain, A. (2014, August 29). Celebrities that own a Tesla Motor inc Model S. Retrieved from Opp Trends: http://www.opptrends.com/2014/08/celebrities-that-own-a-tesla-motors-inc-model-s/ Johnson, K. (2014, September 11). Exploding World, Cheap Oil. Retrieved from Foreign Policy: http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2014/09/11/exploding_world_cheap_oil_crude_prices_geopolitics_isis_opec Plummer, Q. (2014, September 1). Everyone loves Telsa motor S except thieves, Heres why. Retrieved from Tech Times: http://www.techtimes.com/articles/14537/20140901/everyone-loves-tesla-motor-s-except-thieves-heres-why.htm Randall, T. (2014, September 11). Why Musk is building batteries in a desert when no one is buying. Retrieved from Forbes: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-09-11/why-musk-is-building-batteries-in-a-desert-when-no-one-is-buying.html Robinson, M. (2014, September 11). Tesla Motors Inc: A Better Path to Profits. Retrieved from ETF News Daily: http://etfdailynews.com/2014/09/11/tesla-motors-inc-tsla-a-better-path-to-profits/ Sparks, D. (2014, September 4). Tesla Motor Inc 's charging network in China could see explosive growth. Retrieved from The Motley Fool: http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2014/09/03/tesla-motors-incs-charging-network-in-china-could.aspx