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July 21, 2014

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Qoros: letting product do the talking

“LET the car speak for itself.” That is not only the marketing theme for Qoros’s newly launched second mass-production model, the Qoros 3 hatchback, but also the company’s branding strategy in a nutshell.

If only branding were that simple. Qoros 3, the first model from the joint venture of Chinese domestic carmaker Chery and its partner, Israel Corp, sold only about 2,000 units since its launch last November. That track record isn’t bad for a newcomer, but it certainly hasn’t matched all the pre-rollout hype about its being the first China-based auto brand to receive a maximum five-star safety rating from the authoritative crash-test group Euro NCAP.

Sharing most of its key components with the Qoros 3 sedan, the hatchback version is meant to be another top scorer in the crash test, and probably another proof that high quality doesn’t guarantee high sales.

In the past, many people had doubted whether China’s domestic carmakers could ever shake off their stigma of cheap, inferior products. Branding, which is clearly the next stage of the game, was never a big concern, said Guo Qian, chairman and CEO of Qoros.

But that challenge is now staring Qoros in the face. To compete in the mid- to high-end segment, where brand premium is comprised partly of product value, Qoros needs to give consumers a reason to buy its models, which come with higher sticker prices than most competitors.

“You get what you pay for” is one concept Qoros has been trying to implant in the consumer psyche. But how long can the company wait for the seed to germinate?

It takes 36 months for the auto industry to come up with a new product and 10 times longer to firmly establish the brand, said Stefano Villanti, head of sales and marketing at Qoros.

Last November, when Qoros 3 first hit the market, brand awareness in China was as low as 15 percent. That figure has risen to between 45 percent and 67 percent, thanks to a series of marketing campaigns, Villanti said.

Becoming memorable is a big step for a newcomer in the market. Its name needs to go viral in online networking sites, and the mere mention of the car name needs to create some “wow” effect. For Qoros, that hasn’t happened yet.

Guo said there is a huge gap between selling a car under an established brand name and selling one that few people have ever heard of.

In the first instance, consumers are often familiar with 90 percent of the product specifications because of a brand’s reputation. All a carmaker really needs to do is stress new selling points, often paying for celebrity endorsements to do that.

“But a new brand cannot be fully represented by a celebrity brand ambassador,” Guo said. “It’s like being introduced to a new friend who strikes you as attractive and interesting but tells you very little about his or her background. Love at first sight can go wrong.”

A new brand has its work cut out to make that first conversation more telling and lasting. Qoros has just started its second wave of brand marketing, with more “customer engagement programs” at local dealerships to give potential buyers first-hand knowledge about the cars. More interactive marketing online is also planned through mobile applications, Villanti said.

For those concerned about how far Qoros can go with its product-centered branding approach, the reassuring part is that when it comes to sales, Qoros’ dealerships are currently on par with those outlets newly opened by established brands.




 

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