At the 2022 Chengdu Auto Show, the Skoda brand participated in the exhibition with a full range of models. In addition to reporting on new cars, we also interviewed Mr. Ningbo, Executive Director of Skoda Brand Marketing Business of SAIC Volkswagen Co., Ltd. Let’s listen to Mr. Ning’s introduction about the current new car value-preserving repurchase policy and future new energy model information.
Media: What changes has Skoda made this year, or what does it want to do?
Ningbo: Market price competition has become increasingly fierce this year. Blind price competition is harmful to brands and customers, and will seriously affect the future residual value performance of brands and vehicles. Judging from the current situation of Skoda, our positioning in the Chinese market mainly needs to return to its roots. Skoda needs to be a personalized and warm brand. This is what we believe. In this process, we need dealers with higher quality.
Our core in the past year has not been to increase sales. We have canceled the policies linked to sales. Instead, we have supported customer rights and interests and focused on the management of sales and after-sales service processes. For example, in June this year, we started to launch a three-year 20% off value-preserving buyback for the entire series. This cost is very high. This is to ensure that the cost of the customer's vehicle ownership is lower during the life cycle; because buying and using a car is not just a matter of time, but the income from vehicle disposal is also important to customers.
Now is a period of change. It is not known who will become the product that consumers really favor in the future. So after three years, users can make a choice again, return the car to me, and can exchange it for an electric car or a fuel-burning one. car.
This will give consumers the most choices, and the brand must have its own value. We hope to gradually let consumers experience the value of the Skoda brand, and at the same time enjoy full life cycle guarantees when purchasing. This is what our brand pursues. Such a goal is actually a bit incompatible with the current sales game in the industry. , so our sales have been greatly affected, but we are still relatively determined to serve our dealers and customers first.
Service is an area that Skoda has always been proud of. Our services have always ranked among the top three in various satisfaction surveys. Nowadays, the repurchase rate of Skoda is very high, and many Skoda brand car owners have very high brand loyalty. We will make good use of this resource in the future, so that our car owners can continue to enjoy the brand warmth.
Moving forward, the first is to return to brand value, and the second is to continue on the path of rejuvenation, because in fact, in the past few years, brand loyalty in the automotive industry has continued to decline. As those born in the 1990s and 1995s gradually become the main car buyers, the concept of consumption, including the path of consumption, is undergoing relatively big changes. Everyone does not have to choose a certain brand. What is emphasized is the experience. One is that when I see this car, I I like it. The second thing is that I went into your showroom to experience the service and thought it was good. Skoda's rigorous craftsmanship and advanced technical support are mainly reflected in driving, control and use; the vehicle and engine systemssystem, Octavia PRO and the new Kodiak are also equipped with the latest smart car connectivity system, which can be said to be the benchmark for joint venture brands. We can basically implement all the mainstream functions on the market.
Most of the Octavia PRO chips are shared with the Volkswagen ID series and Touron, and they are all high-standard chips. The price of chips has increased, and the proportion of price increase is higher for those with higher specifications. We are now ensuring the basic quantity of Octavia PRO. Therefore, in the market, you may see that Octavia PRO has not become popular since its launch. It is indeed affected by production capacity.
The chip problem has indeed had some negative impact on our overall marketing, but our internal management of dealers is actually more in line with the current operating status. It is not just about chasing the absolute volume of sales, but more importantly The key is how the store can continue to operate customers while achieving a certain scale effect. Therefore, although we do not conduct more assessments on sales, we focus our assessment on service quality.
Affected by the epidemic in the first half of the year, dealers were also practicing their internal skills. The process of practicing their internal skills is actually a gradual process. Combined with the sales volume in the first half of the year, media teachers may have doubts about whether Skoda is in trouble. But from our own point of view, it is entirely possible to sell an additional 10,000 to 20,000 cars in the first half of the year. The money may not be invested in customer rights, but directly subsidized to the street price. This kind of marketing is not what we want.
At the end of this year and the beginning of next year, we will gradually pass on some of the brand's reform information to consumers. At this time, the sorting out of our entire internal system, including the screening of dealers and the improvement of processes, are almost in progress. Online and offline, customers can get an improved experience. At this time, customers will believe that the Skoda brand is heading in this direction.
Media: Does Skoda have any plans for new energy vehicles?
Ningbo: There will definitely be new energy in the future. We have now opened the 100 dealers in the head of Skoda to do ID STORE to accumulate experience in selling electric vehicles.
The self-operated model is also under consideration. We may now have to adjust the operating status more first. After this round of internal structure adjustment is completed, we will successively try the business model of manufacturer pricing for some models; the second step is to consider whether to conduct direct sales in some cities. Our main idea is not to compete with dealers for profits, so we may In some blank cities, our brand will be given priority to cover it ourselves, but in cities that already have networks, we will not do it.
Media: Everyone feels that Skoda is too close to the public and its image is not independent enough. Do you have any plans for this?
Ningbo: In the future, product homogeneity is inevitable, especially in the era of trams. Even though Skoda and Volkswagen are on the same platform, we must emphasize the differentiation of styling, equipment and services.
Whether it is Human Touch orSimply Clever is also good at making customers feel enough care in terms of products, giving customers a wonderful experience in terms of services, and making customers feel that the car is worth the money when replacing it. In the short term, these must be done in parallel. We first sort out the entire process within the dealer, because in order to change customers, we must first change channels.
In addition, each city has different stages of development. We provide different front-end and back-end support based on the characteristics of these differentiated dealers and the characteristics of the city. These measures not only rely on the characteristics of the city and the characteristics of the customers, but also rely on the dealers to see what stage the dealers have developed. For example, one dealer has achieved the first step of our manufacturer from the perspective of the management data link. After requesting it, the next step is to provide other support. We hope that Skoda will take different measures based on the different situations of each store in each city.
When building a brand, the most important thing is positioning, and the other is details. Management relies on the cooperation of manufacturers and dealers and the balance of supply and demand. The task of the manufacturer is to continue to build the brand so that the brand can continue to maintain a certain volume of voice in this market. Then the dealer is to create maximum value, which includes both sales volume and more importantly, customer experience.
Having core talents, maintaining core processes, and grasping core detail management are very important. What Skoda hopes to do is to do a good job in refined operation management of dealers.
Media: Will the Skoda brand have any new cars this year?
Ningbo: This year’s new Kodiaq and Kodiaq GT will be launched in June. There will be some minor facelifts in the future, and 2024 will be the stage of major facelifts. In fact, the speed of German product design is not slow, but the verification of new products means that the test cycle is long. It usually takes at least two years. It is due to sufficient verification that the basic quality of the product can be ensured. Future development depends on technology, standards and persistence in quality. Therefore, we not only hope that new products can be launched faster, but also hope that we can maintain the quality that Volkswagen Germany insists on when making cars.
Media: In 2020, Skoda's official website has launched online brand authorization. Many car friends share their car life experience or car life. In addition to sharing and communication, this platform will also What kind of functions does it have?
Ningbo: Due to some reasons, this platform was actually suspended for a period of time from the second half of last year to this year, and was recently re-launched. First, this platform is not only a home for customers, but also has some additional rights and interests. Second, it is also a platform for direct interaction with customers, insisting on what customers think is a good experience and good feelings, and improving customer complaints that focus on customers. We can respond quickly to some personalized questions. Because we are an OEM. Third, through this community, including online O2O platforms and direct customer connections, the customer service experience can be further improved and enhanced. Next updateThe new measures are expected to be implemented gradually in the fourth quarter.
Media: What marketing measures will Skoda take in the second half of the year?
Ningbo: In the second half of the year, we have done a lot of work around the rights and interests of clients, including halving the purchase tax, fully exempting SUV purchase tax, buying back the value at a 20% discount in three years, and many models are equipped with one-of-three gift packages. There are different options for different cities. Recently, we have also held meetings in various regions to unify our thinking, practice internal skills, and strive for efficiency and satisfaction in process management. In the fourth quarter of this year, we plan to deliver new brand ideas.
This year we don’t have the pressure of sales targets. The main thing is to adjust the internal positioning, return the concept of dealer management to create a better customer experience, create a more perfect process, and persist in executing it, and then we can achieve great success in the future. Better survival and development under the changing automotive landscape.
Media: What is the biggest difference between the Skoda brand and Volkswagen brand cars?
Ningbo: Skoda’s future mid- and long-term plans can still create more differentiated styling that is more in line with the aesthetics and fashion trends of Chinese consumers. For Skoda, we will be more radical in styling design in the future. Skoda’s products We want it to look beautiful at first glance. Subsequent research and development will also rely more on China's R&D team.