Classic, standing at the forefront of the tide in any era
Author | Shen Tianxiang
Edit | Jane
Produced by | Bangning Studio (gbngzs)
Even a hundred years after its birth, Lincoln, a car brand that never went with the flow, is still a unique existence today, repeatedly becoming a high-profile target in the luxury car market, with more and more customer fans.
In the first quarter of 2022, against the background of global chip shortages and repeated outbreaks of the epidemic, Lincoln China set a record sales volume of 19,471 units in the first quarter. After setting the best annual sales volume since the brand entered China in 2021, Lincoln China has maintained its growth momentum.
Lincoln is constantly refreshing the "Speed of China". As a latecomer to the localization of luxury brands, with the aviator, adventurer, navigator and the new Lincoln Z launched in March this year, the Lincoln brand domestic model sold 18,919 units in the first quarter, accounting for 97% of total sales.
This confirms the success of Lincoln's localization strategy in China, which has explored a rapid development path in the Chinese market and become a case for Lincoln in the global market.
On April 21, 2022, the Lincoln brand will release the world's first pure electric concept car, which will be the inspiration for the Lincoln brand's future pure electric product design. From this day on, the centennial Lincoln will begin another great change.
Every car brand known as a classic can stand at the forefront of the times in any era. In the current new era, Lincoln has locked in the hot search position.
01.
The new luxury of the century-old brand
On February 4, the Lincoln brand celebrated its 100th anniversary.
Outstanding performance and elegant shape have allowed lincoln sedans to be selected as the us presidential car since 1939. Therefore, before the localization of China, most people's understanding of the Lincoln brand still stayed in the impression of "extending Lincoln" and "presidential car" - which also made Lincoln always the car of people's dreams.
In 2014, Lincoln began the development of China's luxury car market with products with a strong American style.
2020 is the first year of Lincoln's localization. Since March, Lincoln has successively launched adventurers and aviators in a year to achieve localization of the product side. With adventurers and aviators as the main force, Lincoln's sales in China increased by 32% year-on-year to about 62,000 units.
In March 2021, a new generation of Lincoln Navigators went public, and the domestic SUV "Three Musketeers" assembled. That year, the Lincoln brand sold nearly 92,000 vehicles, an increase of 48% year-on-year.
Adventurer 246,800 ~ 345,800 yuan, regardless of body size, power parameters, digitalization, or various configurations, it has great advantages over the same level of models, making this entry-level luxury car have a more advanced experience.
It contributed the most to Lincoln's sales in China, reaching 10,915 units in the first quarter of 2022, becoming the first monthly sales champion of Lincoln's single model and winning the Lincoln brand single-month sales title for 23 consecutive months.
The new generation of Lincoln Navigator, positioned as a midsize luxury SUV, has a "balanced strength" of luxury and all aspects, with sales of 5105 units in the first quarter of 2022, which is an indispensable backbone of Lincoln's product lineup.
Lincoln Aviators also performed solidly, selling 2,216 units in the first quarter of 2022.
The fastest way for people to recognize the Lincoln brand and establish brand positioning must be the product.
Taking the actual needs of Chinese users as the starting point, the three SUVs launched by Lincoln have been effective. But the brand maintains a clear understanding of the market and achievements: only SUVs are not enough to fully meet the increasingly diverse needs of Chinese users.
As a result, Lincoln launched a new sedan that embraced a young user base, the Lincoln Z. It became lincoln's representative model for better Understanding Chinese users, and by the end of March, it had received more than 5,600 orders.
As Mao Jingbo, president of Lincoln China, said: "Lincoln's way of development, there is no other option, only to strive to launch products and experiences that truly exceed customer expectations." ”
Lincoln is accelerating the introduction of new products that are suitable for the new era of automobiles and meet the needs of the Chinese market.
Lincoln is catching up with the dark horse and has developed a unique style and tone.
02.
Keep up with the youthful forces of the times
In the eyes of young people, Lincoln is both a luxury car that can be bought and exceeds expectations, and a brand that is different from others and has a unique tone.
The Lincoln brand has always been very active, the topic is very high, and there are many young users.
This is not only reflected in the growing orders and sales, but also in the active female group and the young group. On social platforms such as Little Red Book and Station B, Lincoln is the new favorite of young people, especially the topic of Lincoln Z.
"The first car in my life", "How sassy is the girl who drives the Lincoln Z", "What car do the young people of the Z era like", "A fuel car with an electric design", "I want high-tech and high value", "If you want to be stylish, choose the Lincoln Z"...
A wide variety of topics revolve around lincoln Z. Some of these topics come from the sharing of real car owners, and some of them come from the user operation model and user ecology created by Lincoln's cross-border linkage of KOLs in various fields - through planting grass, it has triggered the topic and attracted traffic.
What makes young people pay attention to is that the product itself has the characteristics of youthfulness.
In the 1930s, Lincoln introduced a sedan named after the Zephyr. Its artistic streamlined body is world-renowned, and has been praised by the American Ward Automobile Report as a "luxury car design vane" and has brought automotive design into a new era.
The new Lincoln Z follows the Zephyr name and echoes the Gen Z customer base. This reflects the Lincoln brand's firm pace of embracing the younger generation and the comprehensive rejuvenation of the brand and products.
In addition to the more passionate and younger design language, intelligence is one of the biggest highlights of Lincoln Z - it has advantages in intelligent interconnection, human-computer interaction, intelligent digital assistant, intelligent driver assistance, customer digital experience and so on.
On this car, the 12.3-inch + 27-inch through-view panoramic screen and the new "Lincoln Nebula" human-computer interactive interface carry the Lincoln SYNC+ intelligent interconnection system that has evolved to the fourth generation. This system has richer in-vehicle interconnection functions and localization applications.
In terms of intelligent driving, Lincoln Co-Pilot 360 2.0 intelligent driving assistance system, the new Lincoln ActiveGlide active driving assistance, can be used in specific road sections, to achieve L2+ level intelligent assisted driving.
In fact, since localization, Lincoln has had a trend of rejuvenation. On the one hand, products are becoming more and more affordable for young people. On the other hand, it is the intelligent blessing. This is also an important reason why it continues to set new sales records.
As the first domestic sedan, the new Lincoln Z will become Lincoln's strategic model for sustainable and rapid growth in China, helping Lincoln to become a second-tier luxury mainstream brand faster.
Bangning Studios learned that Lincoln is actively embracing the era of electrification and accelerating the pace of electrification layouts; the new Lincoln Z will be launched in the near future.
Now, Lincoln is constantly evolving product design concepts towards intelligent connection and electrification, and will eventually launch a complete lineup of intelligently connected and electrified products on a global scale by 2030.
Keeping up with the times is the secret of a century-old Lincoln's eternal youth.
03.
Benchmark user thinking
Driving a Lincoln car is very stylish, and being a Lincoln user, the experience is also very special.
When you step into the new Lincoln Way Experience Center, the good feeling begins – a relaxing afternoon, a cup of authentic American coffee, listening to a live piano song, doing a hand treatment in the "Her Way" space, relaxing in a massage chair when tired, or hosting an event... It is a combination of leisure, office and gathering.
The new Lincoln Way Experience Center, built in accordance with the American luxury club concept, has become a trend vane for local architecture, experience and social networking.
Through the "One Day Store Manager" experience program, Lincoln truly involved car owners in brand building. The "Lincoln Moment" exclusive customized service accompanies customers all the time and becomes a witness to their progress to important moments in life, such as marriage proposals and promotions. There is also a worry-free and convenient smart pick-up and delivery service...
The Lincoln brand believes that before focusing on sales, it is necessary to pay more attention to customers and pay attention to their sense of experience. Lincoln China has become an excellent example of Lincoln exporting Its Chinese experience to the world, including the innovative marketing model " Lincoln Way". As The Lincoln Way 2.0 continues to advance, Lincoln continues to accelerate its digital transformation and win the favor of more young customers.
Taking Lincoln Z as an example, in order to allow customers to enjoy and understand the desired model anytime and anywhere, the Lincoln e-commerce platform has created a Channel Z online car shopping channel. One-click real-time connection interaction, stay at home, achieve 360-degree panoramic appreciation inside and outside, intuitively understand the configuration and functions of vehicles, and order online and down in a timely manner.
Lincoln Z has created a social platform for young users - Club Z Community, building a social tribe of young people, encouraging real-time sharing and content co-creation, and has registered more than 50,000 users so far. In addition to enjoying the intimate services brought by the "Lincoln Way", users can also linger in this social home that belongs to the young group.
Lincoln Center has a special set of characters, Z Buddy ( Z classmates ). They are young and energetic, have high looks, can talk and understand cars, and while easily playing with social platforms, they mingle with customers and build a gravitational field for young people. Channel Z manager Z team leader and Z Buddy from all over the country through fun online battle, live interaction and other ways, learn from each other, collide inspiration, and better meet the needs of young customers.
They are both staff and friends. Z Buddy invites friends who know each other in the online community to join a party, or have a drink on a leisure Friday night, listen to songs, and exchange their feelings about work and life.
Edsell Ford, the first president of Lincoln Motors, said: "My father built the most popular car, and I want to build a classic that will flow for a long time." Today, lincoln, who has gone through a hundred years, has fulfilled this wish.
Standing at the starting point of the new century, Lincoln still adheres to the brand positioning of American luxury, adheres to the customer experience of "Lincoln Way", adheres to the sales management of value marketing, and steadily walks out of its own rhythm.
The road is not yet central, and the flowers are already fragrant. Lincoln's next hundred years are more worth looking forward to.