After a Mercedes-Benz electric vehicle fire in Incheon, South Korea on August 1st, car manufacturers have begun disclosing the makers of the batteries used in their EVs, highlighting the growing importance of battery brands. Up until now, battery companies were unable to market or promote their battery performance, let alone whether they had contracts in place.
However, as the significance of batteries increases, some companies are considering strategies similar to Intel's “Intel Inside” campaign, which was employed during the development of central processing units (CPUs). This strategy could involve offering rebates (sales incentives) in exchange for attaching certified stickers of the battery manufacturer on the vehicle.
For example, Chinese battery maker CATL has launched its own “CATL Inside” marketing campaign. CATL revealed in April that it had installed its batteries in electric loaders released by Chinese heavy machinery company Lonking. The vehicles now feature a certified mark labeled “(CATL Inside)” as part of the collaboration, and the two companies plan to expand joint marketing efforts. CATL may extend this certified sticker system to the passenger car sector as well.
Intel, a U.S. semiconductor manufacturer, initiated its “Intel Inside” marketing campaign in the 1990s, promoting the reliability of PCs equipped with its chips. Starting in 1991, Intel provided up to 5% of the processor cost as advertising expenses to PC manufacturers that attached a hologram sticker labeled “Intel Inside” on their products. Reportedly, PC companies received as much as 60% of their total advertising costs from this system.
The marketing strategy was a success. Since CPUs are installed inside computers and not easily visible to consumers, the sticker offered a clear way to verify the quality and performance of the product. Today, over 80% of PCs worldwide have these stickers. The campaign also successfully imprinted Intel’s image as a leading semiconductor company in consumers' minds. Since then, companies like Microsoft and Nvidia have adopted similar certified sticker strategies for PCs and laptops.
In South Korea, there has been a positive response toward electric vehicles that primarily use batteries such as those from LG Energy Solution, Samsung SDI, and SK On. Recently, a post titled “What if we attach something like this to show it’s not a CATL battery?” appeared on an EV community forum. The author uploaded a picture of a Volkswagen ID.4 with a sticker on the rear window reading “Powered by LG Energy Solution.” Unlike the above-mentioned CATL case, this does not appear to be an official campaign by LG or Volkswagen. Comments included reactions like, “This kind of sticker would make both the buyer and surrounding people feel more at ease,” and “It reminds me of Intel Inside.”
A battery industry insider said, “It seems the time is coming to consider marketing activities, such as certification stickers, that could help ease consumer concerns about electric vehicles.”
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