Dongfeng Yulon: Brand development is king

On July 25th, the first car of the Dongfeng Yulonna Zhijie brand Nazhijie 5 Sedan was officially listed on the 25th. With the arrival of Na Zhijie 5 Sedan, the Nazhijie family has formed a situation that covers SUVs, MPVs, and cars. It has really entered the fierce competition in the Red Sea and has demonstrated its strength through its “differentiation strategy”. Competitiveness.

Two and a half years ago, when Dongfeng and Yulon joined hands to establish a joint venture in Hangzhou, the shareholders would not necessarily expect this "Chinese car" to develop so rapidly. The market competition is so fierce, but Dongfeng Yulon has been creating new thinking products through the “differentiation” of the entire value chain, and it has become a new force that cannot be ignored in the entire automobile market. However, in terms of brand power, it is still a young flower bud. Although there is a state of ambiguity, it cannot be overemphasized that it wants to blossom.

For Dongfeng Yulon at this stage, it is the right way to continue to invest in the brands as much as they did in 2011 and 2012. This is a very good seed with great potential, but it should not be destructive, and it is not necessary to demand sales now.

The future depends on cross-border vehicles

Since its birth, Dongfeng Yulon has insisted on high-end and differentiation, which is also its core strategic line. High-end, differentiated, so that Dongfeng Yulon can always adhere to "not two price", get rid of the drawbacks of the "price cuts and demand sales" often owned by independent brands, to prevent harm to the brand, for how much Chery and Geely have learned lessons After this year, we still have to suffer this much.

Recently, the reporter found during a visit to several Na Zhijie Living Halls in Beijing that Dongfeng Yulon is still firmly implementing the original “non-bivalent” principle. “For consumers, it is not worth the price, but also makes them feel More at ease; for distributors, it is also possible to focus more on services, to ensure the interests of distributors and to avoid unnecessary vicious competition."

From the performance of Dongfeng Yulon over the past two years, it is obvious that all aspects of the concept, product characteristics, sales system, and service system are to adhere to the full-value-chain differentiation strategy. However, it should be noted that this "differentiation" does not mean to take the "individualization" of the minority line, but to fully explore the current blue ocean and the future Red Sea.

The most obvious example is the Master CEO. The fully enclosed bezel, projection screen, and aircraft cockpit between the front and rear seats are simply shocking. It is said that the car's consumer base is low-key and rich, and they have formed a unique world. Road views, will no longer be tired of Mercedes-Benz, BMW logo. Dongfeng Yulon will also launch a "Popular 90" model in the future, instead of the 80th now widely targeted ... This is a manifestation of product differentiation.

Differentiation of the entire value chain is also reflected in the concept of vehicle building. With the development of electronic intelligence technology in Taiwan, concepts and labels such as the “Chinese Wisdom Wisdom Vehicle” are quite new and foreign; sales and service systems use “living houses”. "Instead of the traditional name of "4S shop" and "distribution shop," the name itself has already embodied the meaning of emphasizing consumer experience.

It turns out that this risky course is correct. With only 7 large SUVs, Dongfeng Yulon's sales in 2012 reached 31,106 units and the number of possessions reached 40000 units, an increase of 341% from 7058 units in 2011.

The sales target for 2013 is 55,000 units, which is about 80% more than last year. According to Dongfeng Yulon’s previous statement, by 2015, 8 models will be launched and 200,000 vehicles will be sold. Then, it needs to maintain 80% per year. With a 100% growth rate, 100,000 vehicles will be completed in 2014 and 200,000 vehicles will be completed in 2015. After launching four models of the Grand 7 SUV, MasterCEO, Grand 7 MPV, and 5 Sedan in succession, two new models will be introduced each year in the next two years, for a total of just eight models.

It can also be seen that Dongfeng Yulon's concentration on the amount of time should be in next year and the next year. According to senior officials, more Crossover-style models, including SUVs, MPVs, and hatchbacks, will be introduced in the follow-up. Visible, "cross-border" will be the main concept of future Dongfeng Yulong, and assume the task of contributing sales.

Need to continue to strengthen the brand

"Preconception, beyond expectations" is Dongfeng Yulon's brand spirit. A "prevision" actually refers to the process by which Dongfeng Yulon finds the blue sea in the sea and discovers it ahead of time. It is not easy to be a leader and a surpasser. Dongfeng Yulon also shoulders the task of nurturing the market. To remember when the 307 hatchback was just released, the Dongfeng Honda CRV took the lead in how many years.

Therefore, we should give Dongfeng Yulon more time to cultivate its brand, rather than eager to sell and profit. At the Chengdu Motor Show in August 2012, Dan Zhidong, head of the Dongfeng Yulon Marketing Headquarters, said such an impressive statement: “In the next three years, we should operate the brand as the core to make products and sales become Witness the by-products of our brand. If your brand is not well-established, then the simplest thing to do is to have a bargain price, so we should have our own brand personality."

It can be seen that Dongfeng Yulon’s market and brand investment have been significantly reduced this year, and even the new model 7 MPV and 5 Sedan have all given up the listing ceremony. I think it may be that the shareholders have more expectations of Dongfeng Yulon, which has announced its profit last year, and look forward to more profitable returns.

However, it should be noted that although Dongfeng Yulong’s brand power continues to grow, it has a relatively shallow foundation and is still relatively weak. If you look at the example of CCTV's standard king, you will understand that Dongfeng Yulon is a brand that is worth saving.

Brand power is improved, which is also the expectations of dealers. The sales manager of Na Zhijie Jinan Xinda Automobile Life Museum in an interview said: "The advantage of Na Zhijie is its high cost performance. The car with more than 200,000 yuan has a configuration equivalent to four or five million yuan, but it's The disadvantage is the lack of brand power. Dongfeng Yulon is still in its infancy."

Although Dongfeng Yulon is a self-owned brand, many talents come from joint ventures. For example, Dongfeng Nissan, one of the most successful joint venture companies in China, such as Bai Qingyuan and Shan Zhidong of the senior management team, is a delicate mind. , highly innovative marketing talents, they manage Dongfeng Yulon, quite rising potential.