You didn't read what the poll says. You read what you wanted to read, which is your own delusion. The study is not about interactions with positive of negative news stories, it is about total interactions related to the company. Meaning that while you, a non-owner, generally only interacts with the brand through news stories and your own preconceptions of the product, the owner has interactions that includes conversations with friends, family, co-workers and strangers and if they have a positive relationship with the product their interactions are more likely to sway positively.
That does not mean that non-owners have a misperception of whether the product would work for them, it is a self selected subset of the population that looked at the benefits and drawbacks of it and said "I want that." and when the product matches their understanding they come away with the impression of "I like that."
Control does not mean rational or knowledgeable, it means the broader perception of the company, which can be (and almost always is) a low information consumer of media.
Ask the average person about anything and they probably don't know dick about it. It is about "buzz" not knowledge. The average person is generally stupid about all things.
I don't own an EV.
Quote:
The market research firm's BrandIndex survey tracks how Americans feel about popular brands, measuring their results as "buzz." YouGov's researchers ask whether respondents have heard more positive or negative things about a brand over a few weeks. That includes mentions from media sources and discussions with friends and family.
