????特斯拉汽車的全球招聘信息說明了一切。

????在僅有510萬人的挪威，該公司的Model S轎車是2014年最暢銷車型之一。在這里，特斯拉還要招聘約90名員工。而在中國這個人口達到13.5億的龐大經濟體，特斯拉的產品銷量低于預期，導致了高層更迭以及最近的重組。在這里，特斯拉只打算再招一個人。

????不到一年前，Model S轎車首次出現在中國消費者面前，當時的情況可不是這樣。那時特斯拉制定了很高的銷售目標，并為此大舉招兵買馬（最終組建了600人的隊伍），設立專賣店和服務中心，并開始積極建設超級充電站網絡，以便免費為用戶提供快速充電服務。

????但這些努力并未獲得回報。在進入中國市場的第一個年頭，特斯拉的表現沒有達到預期。2014年，該公司在中國的汽車銷量估計為3500輛，低于它自己設定的目標，也不如中國競爭對手比亞迪和北京汽車生產的純電動汽車以及插電式混合動力汽車。2015年初，特斯拉的汽車銷量依然落后。

????特斯拉董事長、首席執行官及最大股東埃隆?穆斯克認為，這主要是因為在中國消費者中有種誤解，以為充電是件難事。上個月，在業績電話會議上，穆斯克說特斯拉正在著手扭轉這種觀念。

????然而，特斯拉在中國遇到的問題不僅僅是溝通不暢以及未能讓中國消費者真正了解Model S轎車在充電方面的表現。

????波士頓研究咨詢機構Lux Research研究員Lilia Xie說：“并不只是觀念上的誤解，這里存在著切實的問題。在很多方面，中國的基礎設施對支持電動汽車都不理想。”

????她指出，大多數中國家庭都沒有私人車庫，而且中國的人口高度集中在城鎮地區。也就是說，中國的有車一族通常都把車停在公共停車場、路邊或者工作單位，因此很難在中國安裝私人充電設備。

????為了消除用戶的顧慮，特斯拉為他們免費提供在家充電服務。該公司已在中國設立了200多座超級充電站，而且還在建設新的充電站。它還通過和業主合作的方式在住宅樓安裝充電設施。Xie認為，中國消費者普遍對采用新技術心懷疑慮，特別是汽車領域的新技術。這讓扭轉公眾觀念的工作變得更為復雜。

????她說：“打進中國市場很難。我覺得特斯拉的預期太高了。”

????車輛估值及汽車市場研究機構Kelley Blue Book高級分析師卡爾?布勞爾指出，特斯拉的2015年全球銷售目標是5.5萬輛。為此，該公司在中國的月銷量需要超過1500輛。

????布勞爾說：“特斯拉正處在緊要關頭，不成功則成仁。它既要打開中國市場，又要推出新的Model X轎車。今年，特斯拉在這兩方面都必須成功。此外，它還要保證汽車電池工廠Gigafactory的順利建設，否則股價就可能迅速下跌。”（財富中文網）

????譯者：Charlie

????審稿：李翔

????Tesla Motors’ international job listings say it all.

????In Norway, a tiny country of 5.1 million people where the electric automaker’s Model S was one of the best-selling cars in 2014, there are about 90 job openings. In China, a massive economy of 1.35 billion people where weaker than expected sales led to executive turnover and a recent restructuring, there’s just one lone position.

????That wasn’t the story nearly a year ago when the first Model S sedans were delivered to customers in China. Tesla, aiming to meet lofty sales goals, went on a hiring spree (and eventually amassed a staff of 600 people), opened stores and service centers, and began an aggressive rollout of its network of free fast-charging stations known as superchargers.

????Those efforts fell short. Tesla’s first year in China didn’t pan out as expected. The company sold an estimated 3,500 cars in 2014, below its sales goal and behind electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles produced by Chinese rivals BYD and BAIC. Sales continued to lag in the beginning of 2015.

????Elon Musk, Tesla’s chairman, chief executive, and largest stockholder, has placed much of the blame on amisconception among Chinese consumers that charging is difficult there. During an earnings call last month, Musk said the company was working to fix that perception problem.

????However, Tesla’s China problem goes beyond a failure to communicate and educate Chinese consumers about charging the Model S.

????“This isn’t just a misconception, it’s a concrete problem,” said Lilia Xie, a research associate with Boston-based Lux Research. “China’s infrastructure, in many ways, is not ideal for supporting electric vehicles.”

????Most families don’t have private garages and the population is very concentrated in urban areas. That means car owners typically park in public garages, on the street and at work, making it difficult to install private charging infrastructure, Xie said.

????Tesla is offering free at-home charging in an effort to ease concerns and continues to add to its 200-plus network of superchargers. It’s also working with property owners of residential buildings to set up charging infrastructure.

????Changing public perceptions in China is further complicated by consumers’ general misgivings about adopting new technology, particularly with cars. Xie said.

????“China is hard to break into,” Xie said. “I think Tesla’s expectations were just too high.”

????Tesla, which has projected it will sell 55,000 vehicles globally in 2015, will need to sell upwards of 1,500 cars to Chinese consumers each month if it hopes to hit its target, said Karl Brauer, senior analyst with Kelley Blue Book.

????“Between launching in China and launching the new Model X, Tesla is reaching a critical make-or-break point,” Brauer said. “It has to accomplish both goals successfully this year, plus keep its Gigafactory on schedule, or its stock price could drop quickly.”