2003: Starting with Foreign Trade

Chapter 692 Another Sales Channel for Yuechi

The promotional campaign for the three-day New Year's Day holiday will be more aggressive in the last two days than in the first two days.

Meanwhile, other manufacturers were not so slow to react. Even for brands that did not originally have promotional plans, the 4S stores would offer some discounts.

Take the 4S stores around Beicang Auto City as an example. They have had a good year so far. It's a seller's market, and they don't have to worry about selling their cars. The stores are usually very popular.

However, after Wei came to the 4S store and did that thing on New Year's Day, their popularity dropped significantly that afternoon.

Competition brings pressure, and with Wei Lai's actions, other 4S stores will have to take action as well.

Suddenly, the area around the car city became much more lively.

The same situation occurred around car malls in various cities, where car malls became the first choice for some people to go shopping during this New Year's Day holiday.

"What a pity, I didn't see Boss Tan's car today."

“It’s good enough if a billionaire can come to the store for half a day. How can he be here every day? That would be ridiculous.”

"That's true. They're much busier than us, and they found out late. If only they had come yesterday."

"Well, we're buying the car because of the discounts, so one more photo won't make a difference."

That's what I said, but deep down I still felt a little regretful. This group photo wasn't just for showing off. If the car had any problems, having this photo would be much more useful than not having one at all.

In addition, if something really happens to your family, this group photo might be of some use.

As an adult who has been in society for many years, I understand this principle very well.

However, regardless of the circumstances, the new round of promotional activities for Yuechi, spearheaded by Tan Jincheng, is in full swing, and the biggest beneficiary is naturally Weilai Beicang 4S store.

Compared to inland areas, the income level in Ningbo, a coastal open city, is much better, and the desire to buy cars is also greater. The halo of joint venture brands still exists, but as a local enterprise, Yuechi has become the first choice for Ningbo people to buy cars, apart from joint venture brands.

Tan Jincheng didn't come to the store, but he wasn't idle either.

The fake bosses spend their days indulging in pleasure, while the real bosses are busy as dogs. It's only the second day of the new year, and Zhang Yong has already come knocking on their door.

"Should we participate in the bidding? Haha, of course we should! Whether we win or not is another matter, but we can go and experience it. Besides, our car isn't bad."

Whether it's the novelty of the design, the solidity of the materials used, or the chassis tuning technology, the Yuechi A1, supported by Mitsubishi and Serin technologies, is quite good.

Compared to the legendary car from his previous life, the Yuechi A1 is actually superior in performance.

Quality control is something Tan Jincheng has always emphasized. It doesn't matter if we earn less or even lose a little, but we must not ruin our reputation. This is something that the entire FlashCheer system has always stressed.

Zhang Yong brought over a car procurement bidding contract from Zhejiang Telecom and asked his boss if he was interested in participating.

Compared to individual buyers, these large company bidding contracts are actually quite important to car manufacturers. Selling to individual buyers in the market requires going through dealers, who then make a profit.

However, selling bidding products to these large companies is equivalent to eliminating middlemen and their markups. As long as the relevant links are streamlined, it becomes a fixed income every year.

Even with contracts like those from Changfeng Motors' JUN team and local government procurement contracts, as long as they don't mess things up, they'll continue to live a comfortable life.

"Shall we give it a try?" The boss agreed, and Zhang Yong prepared to take care of it.

He used to be a sales manager at Foton, and he was very familiar with the ins and outs of the business model for most of Foton's commercial vehicles, which was based on bidding.

I can't say I can guarantee we'll definitely win the bid, but at least we can make Weilai Automobile stand out in front of government agencies and large state-owned companies.

This tender from Zhejiang Telecom is for over 100 SUVs intended for outdoor operations. The requirements are quite high, and the vehicles differ somewhat from those sold on the market, requiring some modifications.

However, if you can secure the deal, you can still make a profit.

In addition to Zhejiang Telecom, Zhang Yong also wants to open up bidding channels for other companies, so that the Yuechi series can enter the official vehicle industry of more government agencies and large state-owned companies.

In fact, after the first batch of models performed well in the market, Weilai Auto had already donated a batch of Yuechi A1 cars to various government agencies in Beicang District, such as the Transportation Bureau and the Public Security Bureau.

The Yuechi A1, painted in various colors, is often seen on the streets, except for official business trips, which is also a form of advertising for the Yuechi A1.

Government procurement is a channel that no successful car company can bypass.

That said, regardless of market changes, the Cheetah Black King Kong series sold 1.2 units this year, just like in previous years, ranking 13th after 2008.

Whether the market increases or decreases, we sell the same amount. This series is the foundation of Changfeng, while their own consumer-oriented models, the CS6 and CS7, have only sold a total of over 4000 units.

Despite low sales, the Black Diamond series has provided support, allowing Changfeng Motors to operate more comfortably after retreating to Yongzhou. With its own production base and headquarters, and having disposed of what it could, Changfeng still holds considerable sway in Yongzhou.

Li Jianxin, who is 56 years old, has finally felt relaxed after so many years of hard work.

Last year, he was still resentful about the group company being acquired by Weilai, but after the company's financial situation improved this year, the first thing Li Jianxin did was to pay back the money owed to Weilai Auto with interest.

He only has four years left before he can retire. After a lifetime of hard work, he still hasn't been able to get Changfeng Motors out of Hunan Province and into the view of ordinary consumers. To be honest, Li Jianxin feels somewhat frustrated.

However, it must be said that Tan Jincheng, the younger generation, made a valid suggestion: Changfeng's seemingly glamorous past was actually due to a lack of technological support.

Changfeng Motors, which was the first to establish a strategic partnership with Mitsubishi, has not only failed to fully understand engines over the decades, but also has not fully mastered a chassis. Looking at other domestic brands such as Chery, their development started later than Changfeng's and their initial development was more difficult.

To put it bluntly, the entire company lacks ambition, and his efforts alone are useless. If it had happened earlier, it would have been fine, but this kind of spirit has already influenced several generations.

Even if Li Jianxin, who is about to retire, is ambitious, he has no ability to change this situation unless Changfeng Motor is completely restructured and becomes his private company.

But it's clear that even a half-dead Changfeng Motors is still a piece of meat for some people in Xiangcheng, and they won't just obediently undergo restructuring.

Li Jianxin will be reaching retirement age in a few years, so he might as well honestly downsize the company and rely on the 1.2 orders for the Black King Kong series to support the entire enterprise, while also making some other investments.

The real estate market is booming right now, and some properties in Yongzhou have been transferred to Changfeng Motors. With Changfeng Motors' position in Yongzhou, it's much better to acquire some land and build some residential areas than to work hard to manufacture cars and expand the market.
"You can't deny getting old anymore."

Li Jianxin wasn't very good with computers, so he clumsily used the mouse to move and click around to look at the news on the car forum about Tan Jincheng taking photos with car owners.

This marketing tactic isn't particularly sophisticated, but it's very effective.

So why didn't anyone think of this before?

In reality, the problem lies in the lack of open-mindedness and perspective. Traditional car companies, from top to bottom, place themselves in a superior position, and even some 4S stores and dealers think they are very important.

This is especially true when there is no shortage of market demand; if you want to buy a popular model, you have to consider their preferences.

"Beating customers is prohibited."

Li Jianxin experienced that era firsthand. Although things aren't as extreme now, his business mindset hasn't really changed.

Weilai is a brand new company with a young boss and a newly formed team. They have no way out but to succeed. Therefore, including the boss and the entire dealer system, they dare to break the old rules and run the company with a completely new approach.

That is, service comes first.

Why has Xiaomi, founded by Lei Jun, been so successful? Is it just because of its low prices? Actually, that's not the case. Admittedly, their early models did open up the market with low prices, but the products they sold later on weren't actually that cheap.

The initial impression of low prices was one factor, but the better service was the main reason.

What Weilai needs to do now is to treat car manufacturing with the same attitude as service, from the boss down to every employee at the 4S store.

In fact, Chinese consumers are much more tolerant than foreigners.

If the service were even slightly better and less exploitative, they would be incredibly grateful.

Monday, April 1th.

On the first working day of 2010, at 10:00 AM, Mr. Tan, who had just arrived at the company, received the specific sales figures from Weilai Auto regarding the three-day New Year's Day promotion.

1427 vehicles!
"Haha, the effect is very obvious."

Based on the average sales volume over the past two and a half months, the sales volume during the three-day holiday should be around 1000 vehicles. However, the promotional effect during the three days of New Year's Day was very obvious, with a rapid increase.

Of course, it's not just about promotions. During the New Year's holiday, Weilai Auto added a batch of 4S stores. When it's profitable, dealers open stores at a rapid pace.

Dealers who dare to open 4S stores have strong financial resources and are truly willing to seize opportunities.

"Not bad, not bad. If you keep this up, there's still a chance that sales will break 10,000 this month."

Mr. Tan was very satisfied with the sales figures over the past three days, but with the sales data rising, he couldn't just focus on that one aspect.

"Have Wei come to the marketing department and the purchasing department to contact our suppliers. Let's organize a supplier conference before the end of the year."

With increased production, the parts procurement system needs to be changed.

(End of this chapter)