Author: Song Jiating
In the past year of frequent black swans, Mercedes-Benz has inevitably been affected.
"Our global sales fell by more than 4% due to chip shortages, but in China, Mercedes-Benz only slightly decreased by 2%, which shows that we have always given priority to the Chinese market in our strategic deployment." Yang Ming, president and CEO of Beijing Mercedes-Benz Sales Service Co., Ltd., sighed.
Yang Ming, President and CEO of Beijing Mercedes-Benz Sales Service Co., Ltd
In 2021, although Mercedes-Benz is still the most popular car brand, "smart women are difficult to cook without rice", and Mercedes-Benz, which is trapped by a shortage of semiconductor supply, has sold more than 2.4 million new cars in the global market and nearly 760,000 new cars in the Chinese market – both of which are down from the same period last year.
Lack of core is not a problem unique to Mercedes-Benz. In 2021, the lack of cores has brought a huge impact on the global automotive industry, and under the condition of giving priority to ensuring the supply of the Chinese auto market, the sales of car companies including Mercedes-Benz, Audi and Volkswagen have been affected to varying degrees.
Thankfully, Mercedes-Benz accomplished another big thing this year, that is, to achieve high growth in various market segments and strengthen the positioning of luxury brands. In the field of SUVs, GLE SUVs and GLS SUVs have achieved double-digit growth, and the new generation of product families represented by GLA SUVs, GLB SUVs and CLA models have achieved double-digit growth; in terms of high-end models, the Mercedes-Benz S-Class has maintained a leading position in the market, and mercedes-Maybach, Mercedes-AMG and G-Class have also achieved double-digit growth.
At the level of electric vehicles, Mercedes-Benz, which will position 2021 as the "year of Mercedes-EQ", has received positive feedback after the listing of three new pure electric models of its Mercedes-EQ brand, especially the new EQS of large pure electric luxury cars has received great attention.
"Sales still matter – but it's not our number one strategic priority." Yang Ming said that in the new strategy proposed in October 2020, Mercedes-Benz not only mentioned improving profitability, but also emphasized the positioning of luxury brands, which is the top priority of Mercedes-Benz.
The Spring and Autumn Controversy is far from reunification
So, how does Yang Ming understand the positioning of electric luxury cars to Mercedes-Benz?
In his view, pure electric vehicles have unprecedented diversity in the Chinese market, and electric luxury has three important footholds for Mercedes-Benz:
First, technical strength. Among them, the mileage and power output are the foundation of the establishment, and the intelligent interconnection and intelligent driving assistance system are the driving force of science and technology.
Second, aesthetics. In Mercedes-Benz's view, aesthetics are not only the design of the visible appearance and interior, but also the materials, craftsmanship, noise reduction and so on.
Third, sustainability, that is, being able to feel respected when enjoying the driving experience of a luxury car. For Mercedes-Benz, creating responsible and sustainable electric luxury for customers is also a reflection of respect for every customer.
Yang Ming said frankly that although the technical strength has accumulated for Mercedes-Benz, it still needs deep cultivation, but the pace of Mercedes-Benz electrification will not slow down.
"We said in our strategic upgrade in July 2021 that by 2022 we will offer electric models for all segments served. Whether it is the Maybach brand, the AMG brand, or the G-Class car, it will usher in the era of electrification, which is the electric luxury we are committed to creating. Yang Ming said.
In the view of Duan Jianjun, chief operating officer of sales and marketing of Beijing Mercedes-Benz Sales Service Co., Ltd., the current domestic luxury electric vehicle market is more like the Spring and Autumn Period, which has not yet reached the Warring States period, and it is far from the time of world unification.
It also means that everyone has a chance. Duan Jianjun takes the passenger car market of more than 200,000 yuan as an example, in which electric vehicles account for more than 13% of the total market share, and also exceed the total market share of electric vehicles of 11.2%, which shows that the development of luxury electric vehicles has led the development of the overall market from a certain perspective.
Duan Jianjun, Chief Operating Officer of Sales and Marketing of Beijing Mercedes-Benz Sales Service Co., Ltd
Therefore, Duan Jianjun believes that with more than 200,000 yuan of electric vehicles entering the market, as well as subsidies and other factors superimposed, the luxury electric vehicle market will also stage a big drama. Among them, Mercedes-Benz is both an actor, a director and an audience, and the final referee is the customer.
Duan Jianjun judged that in the future, there will definitely be more electric vehicle participants in the Chinese market entering the luxury electric vehicle track, and how to define luxury in the electric vehicle world will be the thinking question of many companies, including Mercedes-Benz.
If you must find a reference, then the Mercedes-Benz EQS may represent Mercedes-Benz's imagination of the S-Class luxury electric vehicle.
Electrification is an unstoppable trend, and the market will usher in full competition. So, how will centennial Mercedes-Benz meet new challenges?
"For Mercedes-Benz, we must continue to do a good job in the existing fuel vehicle field, and the second is to accelerate the pace of the electric vehicle market. We are confident that we will become a 136-year-old 'four youths' (with strategy, technology, products, services) and hope to continue to have a good performance on the road to electrification." Duan Jianjun said.
Heart luxury, "what it should be"
To promote luxury electric vehicles during the Warring States period, Mercedes-Benz also had a "killer skill", that is, "heart luxury" service.
"In the new era of transformation to 'full electric', on the one hand, we continue to enrich the product lineup of 'new luxury' and enhance our leading position in the field of electric drive and intelligent technology, on the other hand, we continue to optimize the service experience of 'heart luxury' to meet the needs of electrified and digital customers, so as to understand and serve customers more comprehensively." Zhang Yan, senior executive vice president of Beijing Mercedes-Benz Sales Service Co., Ltd., said.
Zhang Yan, Senior Executive Vice President of Beijing Mercedes-Benz Sales Service Co., Ltd
This is also the essence of Mercedes-Benz luxury, while providing "new luxury" products, providing matching "heart luxury" services - in customer service and strengthening user experience, Mercedes-Benz is constantly evolving at the same time, but also has its own thinking.
Taking channel innovation as an example, Zhang Yan frankly said that Mercedes-Benz is also learning, exploring and studying marketing models that adapt to the future development of the industry, but in his view, whether it is a new force or a traditional car company, the goal is to make customers satisfied, no matter what kind of marketing model, it must start from customer needs and customer experience.
As far as Mercedes-Benz is concerned, the future sales model is not simply online or offline, but an organic combination of the two. Especially for the luxury car market, rich offline experience is still an important part of its luxury services. This is also at the level of "invisible" luxury, mercedes-Benz hopes to convey the added value of temperature.
Therefore, dealers are still an important partner of Mercedes-Benz. Zhang Yan revealed that Mercedes-Benz is working with dealers to promote Mercedes-Benz's operating system to reach customers more directly through physical and digital contacts, provide more satisfactory services for customers, and establish a business model that is more suitable for Mercedes-Benz's own development in the process of practice.
In this process, Mercedes-Benz's digital construction has contributed a lot. In terms of digital services, more than 3 million car owners have activated the Mercedes me interconnection service. Mercedes-Benz has also launched a digital client including the official website, WeChat platform, mobile phone application, and the interconnection of cars and machines, while the updated Mercedes-Benz official website has achieved a total of 90 million visits, and the online showroom mini program has also brought nearly 30 million innovative interactions to customers.
This is clearly due to Mercedes-Benz's heavy investment in digitalization. Zhang Yan introduced that Mercedes-Benz has a special data and digital platform development department, mainly responsible for hardware construction, and Mercedes-Benz has corresponding personnel in each business department to optimize the online platform for application scenarios.
"The whole system is closely centered on the new direction of digital development, from infrastructure construction to business promotion, it is serving customers through digital means." Zhang Yan said that Mercedes-Benz currently serves more than 5 million customers across the country, and digital means not only improve the work efficiency of dealers, but also help Mercedes-Benz understand customers and manage customer needs in a timely and effective manner.
In Zhang Yan's view, this is the foundation for Mercedes-Benz to maintain high-quality development, and it is also the "look" of luxury car brands.
When all in the force, it is counted as the road
After the baptism of the global epidemic in the past two years, how to develop high-quality development has become a new issue in the manufacturing industry. How does the traditional automobile manufacturing industry represented by Mercedes-Benz interpret this topic?
In this regard, Zhang Yan gave his own thoughts. He believes that the high-quality development of Mercedes-Benz is a sustainable development. Specifically, it is manifested in four aspects:
First, from the brand perspective, Mercedes-Benz represents the services and products of luxury travel, and interprets the brand luxury positioning through a rich "new luxury" product lineup, including Mercedes-Maybach's "supreme luxury", Mercedes-AMG's "performance luxury", Mercedes-EQ's "pioneer luxury", and G-Class car's "top-of-the-line luxury".
Second, from the customer's point of view, on the basis of the "new luxury" product, Mercedes-Benz and dealers provide customers with the "heart luxury" service experience, enhance customer satisfaction with the brand, and implement the value consensus through measures such as "Hospitality", "StarShare Guide", and the industry's first "Customer Rights officer".
Third, from the perspective of retail channels, dealers are an important channel for Mercedes-Benz to face customers, and dealers' service quality, profitability, cost control, and business development capabilities can have sustained and long-term stable development in the future.
Fourth, the high-quality development mentioned by Mercedes-Benz also includes the fulfillment of corporate social responsibility. Relying on the Mercedes-Benz Star Wish Fund, Mercedes-Benz continues to cultivate the "Way of Nature" and the "Way of Humanity", and has been practicing the "Sustainable Way of Responsibility" in many fields such as ecological environment, humanistic inheritance, and public welfare for young people.
"Luxury, for us, is also a kind of feeling." Duan Jianjun said emotionally.
"From the 560 SEL I saw in college to the 'Tiger Head Run' in the 1990s, the S-Class has an enduring complex in the hearts of many Chinese customers. Since 2014, China has become the largest single market for S-Class cars in the world, and it should be said that Mercedes-Benz's feelings for China are also very deep. ”
As Duan Jianjun said, many times feelings are not to calculate the gains and losses of utilitarianism, not to calculate the advantages and disadvantages of products, but to understand and trust a brand, and to be satisfied from the heart or feelings.
Doing so is not an easy task.
Duan Jianjun admitted that the past 2021 was particularly difficult, and he borrowed the words of "Water Tune Song Head" to describe it - "When the chip is there, ask the number to the sky". For Mercedes-Benz at that time, it was not known when the chip would be out of supply. This results in workers having to do a lot of explaining to customers at the time of sale: either they need to wait longer or they can't deliver 100% of all configurations in a short period of time.
As a result, while market demand remained at a high level, the supply of Beijing Benz fell off a cliff.
"I've never been in the automotive industry since 1994, which is why we've seen a slight 2% year-on-year decline in sales, which we're very sorry for." He said.
One of the small things that impressed Duan Jianjun was that for a long time during the chip shortage, every employee in the sales planning department was working overtime. The reason is that in the past, it was possible to make a more important plan once a quarter, a normal plan once a month, and gradually change the plan every week, every three days or even every day to revise the plan in the second half of 2021. But no one was absent, everyone was picking up the lights and fighting at night, "some of them have babies at home, and some of them are hospitalized, but they are all under pressure."
"Our female colleagues are She's Mercedes and our male colleagues are He's Mercedes. Behind our development, everyone is insisting on doing their job well. Duan Jianjun sighed.
It is gratifying that with the efforts of Mercedes-Benz people, Mercedes-Benz has maintained the pride that luxury car brands should have. Not only that, more than a hundred years ago Mercedes-Benz invented the car, more than a hundred years today, Mercedes-Benz also to be a new trend of the rule-maker - to reconstruct the luxury car coordinate system.
Not only to maintain the luxurious posture in the field of fuel vehicles in the past, but also to create and lead the intelligent and luxurious in the field of electric vehicles, for Mercedes-Benz, this is both a responsibility and a challenge.
In his opinion, Mercedes-Benz has not yet opened the door to electric vehicles, "at best pushing this door open a small slit". For Mercedes-Benz, many of Mercedes-Benz's old customers are still an important customer group. How to do a good job of Mercedes-Benz's existing 5 million customers, while developing new electric vehicle customers, is still a lesson for Mercedes-Benz to study deeply.
We understand that in 2022, Mercedes-Benz will introduce 21 new models to China, of which 8 are new energy products. Especially with the introduction of new domestic EQE, the proportion of New Energy Sales of Mercedes-Benz will continue to expand this year.
"In the next 12 months, the competitive landscape and pattern will change very much." Yang Ming, who has always been rigorous, said so.
To some extent, when this 136-year-old "four young people" All in the force, the competition of luxury electric vehicles can really be considered on the road.