Chinese Brands going global.

When I ask you what Chinese brands you know, what is your answer?

I did this to several classmates. Most Americans could not say one. Few can say Lenovo or Haier.

Isn't it sad to Chinese companies? China exports more than 60% of World total yearly consumption of shoes, microwave ovens, home aircons, PCs......When you go to Walmart, Macy's or Bestbuys, "Made in China" products should be much more than products made in any other single country. No doubt that China is the world factory. But, none of Chinese brands are well known. Isn't it weird?

It is a very serious problem for Chinese companies. Since most of their business are under OEM for big brands right now, they make really limited margin in the whole supply chain. Without enough profit, they have very limited resource for innovation, quality improvement, production process upgrade and worker's welfare ect. What they can do are endless cost reduction driven by outsourcing, knockoff caused by lack of innovation, poor worker's welfare and price war. This is a very unhealthy, vicious cycle.

Most Chinese Companies realized the problem. They are trying to make some changes. Beside OEM business, some big Chinese companies license foreign existing brands like Admiral, Polaroid or even Whirlpool for some particular brands. The difference from OEM is Chinese companies have absolute control in pricing, choosing sales channels, making marketing campaign, providing service and so on. 

The next stage is to build up their own brands. At this stage, there are still several challenges stopping that move.

1, Globalization for most Chinese companies is still at early stage-OEM. It haven't developed to stage of overseas production, the stage of overseas merchandise management and stage of real multinational operation. At this stage, it is not that urgent to develop own brands.

2, no systematic supporting for marketing. Brands building are not only based on megabucks invested in marketing campaign but also based on the whole package companies can offer to consumers including quality products, excellent after sale service, fast logistic and so on.

3, Lack of professional markers and global leaders, which cause lack of clear global marketing strategy. 

Anyway, there is still a long way for Chinese to build their brands globally.

Five websites for marketing imagination

http://www.brandingstrategyinsider.com/

http://www.brandchannel.com/home/

http://adage.com/ 

http://www.facebook.com/InternationalMarketing?v=wall

http://adsoftheworld.com/

Chinese Cultural Codes

After reading the book of Culture Code, I was thinking to make a list of Chinese Cultural Codes. I knew how hard it is without enough raw data like interviews and observation. 

However, I still want to make one with my limited knowledge about my own culture. 

A interesting thing popping up when I made the list is that China is experiencing pretty dramatic cultural changes  along with the 3 decade economy boom. Everything changes too fast to adapt for Chinese. 

Again, all these are just my personal view of points. 

  

Chinese wedding fleet. Try to show off to others. 

The relation among "Culture, Consumption and Marketing"

The three things has a interesting relation among them. 

•    great Marketing should be able to create Culture and fantasies like what Harley-Division did.  
•    The other way around, Culture guides Marketing  

Harley-Division created an iconic American culture-freedom, individualism, rebel and liberation. It became one of the most iconic symbols of American lifestyle. Its cool design and loud noise give riders unlimited amount of fun and enjoyment. 


However, the changing culture (consumer behavior) reversely affect the brand and guides its way. As reported, 
Negative news stories regarding motorcycle noise have increased 400 percent over the past 10 years. In the last year, communities across the United States have upped their efforts to curb motorcycle noise-one element of HD soul. Some communities have instituted outright bans on motorcycles. Even traditional motorcycle rally locations like Laconia, Daytona, and Myrtle Beach have had controversies regarding noise at their events this past year.

Worldwide, motorcycle noise is becoming more heavily restricted. Europe and Japan now require lower than U.S. dB(A) levels for new motorcycles right out of the box. In Australia, for example, a permanent label must be affixed and remain on to signify legal pipes. Annual inspections are also required. 


In a message posted on the Harley-Davidson website, CEO Jim McCaslin asks riders to recognize and consider the consequences of loud exhaust pipes. With this step, Harley returns to the forefront in addressing the issue of motorcycle noise by persuading riders to change for lower noise pipes



COO of HD

American Cultural Traits VS Chinese Cultural Traits

America is like an adolescent-grandson

China is like an old man-grandpa

A: America


C: China

A:Intense focus on the “now”

C:Focus more on "future"-High saving rate, Always work hard 

for future fantasy.  However, global cultural flow is changing 

the Gen-X and Y to focus both on the "now" and " future". 

A:Dramatic mood swings

C: Pursuit the stable mood. Chinese philosophy is " if you are 

too happy now, you will be definitely sad in next second, and 

vice versa. " It is like a stock index charts. The peak means 

drop in next second. The bottom means rise in next second. So 

you need to keep your mood as the a horizontal line.  

A:Constant need for exploration & challenge to authority

C: Lack of exploration spirit because of the big country with 

plenty resources. Fear to challenge authority due to present 

political system and nature of people-care more about their

 own lives. 

A:Fascination with extremes

C: Avoid extremes by any mean. The extremes always lead to 

the opposite backlash. So always stay moderate！For example, 

eating too much cause much more problems than eating right 


amount. 

A:Openness to change & reinvention

C: Ok but uncomfortable with changes. 

A:Strong belief that mistakes warrant second chances

C: Same 

The interesting thing is that from my obeservation,  points but

the first one have not been much influenced by global spillage . 

I guess the reasons are

1, Chinese agree with its deep-rooted culture

2, It takes time for culture communication at a deep level. If I 

did not study in the US, all American culture I know might be 

just KFC and Hollywood. 

Image of " Made in China"

 
Made in China is the most recognized label in the world since China has become the biggest exporter globally.  How to maintain the label image has been a huge challenge to China government. 

A series of highly publicized quality scandals in exports from China in the late 2000s has harmed the "Made in China" brand abroad, during which time 40% of product recall in the United States were of imports from China. We all heard the toxic pet food, milk formula, kid toy. All these scandals really damaged the image of "Made in China"  and aroused anti Chinese product mood. 

How did China cope with the challenge? 


1,  Launching a marketing campaign. - "Made in China, Made with the World", 
a 30-second advertisement promoting Chinese-made products has been shown on CNN and other media agencies since Nov. 23, 2009. It tried to delivery a message that  "made in China," are actually " made in China but Designed by world famous companies".  for example, apple choose to label their products with "Designed by Apple in California, Assembled in China" to indicate that even though the products are made in China, the original design was from the US.

2, As more and more Chinese companies emphasize innovation and own their own IP, China is signal the shift of soft power from "made in China" to "created in China". 


3, China is trying to build a national image in the world arena-a modern, peacekeeping and responsible nation. During President Hu's visit in the USA this year, a series of China promotional video were constantly broadcasting in Time Square. 

China is too big to set up a uniform " made in China" image or quality standard. As the economy develops, the image will change positively as that of Made in Japan did. 

Old Spice success story resonates with Gobe's points

No doubt, old spice is the one of the most successful marketing campaign today. In 2010, Old spice became the No 1 all-time most viewed branded channel on youtube. 

Most people attributed it success to sophisticated use of social media. I agree. However, If I used Gobe's rules to analyse the success, I felt even deeper success factors were hidden under the surface.

1, Female focus

Marketing Research tells woman makes purchase of +50% body wash. At the beginning when Old Spice re positioned the brand, it switched its target customer groups from men to women for the first time. All commercials and marketing campaigns questioned woman “ does your man smell like a man?" or " do you want to your man smell like me?". The brand is trying to persuade women not just buy female body wash for men to use. The charming and sexy Old Spice Guy should be very powerful to influence women's purchase decision.

2, Postmodern moment disrupts dogma

One reason that Old Spice ads became so popular, I think, is that they are really different from common or traditional ads. They are full of imaginative scenes beyond people's imagination.

3, Marketing and (popular) culture are coterminous

Its marketing really incorporate with popular culture like social media culture. Old spice use tweeter, youtube, facebook to boost the brand. the Old Spice Guy answered his fans through these channels in a timely fashion.

Super Bowl Ads

Emotional connection 

among Chysler-Eminem-Detroit-Patriotism

I personally really like the ad, its emotional connection set up by it. It set up a perfect connection among Chrysler-Eminem-Detroit. At the same time, the brand is trying to set another connection between consumers and the brand through patriotism and " never give up" spirit.    

Re the connection among Chrysler-Eminem-Detroit.

 American auto makers had been deemed as losers, especially at the beginning of the financial crisis. However, after the crisis, Detroit auto makers are really getting a comeback. GM and Ford really are really doing good jobs in sales and profits.  Chrysler were trying express " A Comeback". The city and the auto makers in Detroit, that all experienced hard time and suffered, never give up, instead, come back with dignity, pride and strength. The reason they use Eminem is he (like Chrysler) is a Detroit native who has experienced huge success, suffered setbacks and returned stronger than ever. The lyrics to “Lose Yourself” are about that very story. So the pairing of Chrysler and Eminem seemed natural.

Re the second connection between consumers and the brand. 

People, especially Americans, identify themselves with the spirit like " Never Give Up!" and " Fight for your pride and dignity" . Besides, Americans, as the citizens of the NO1 super power, tend to buy the Patriotism.    

Thinking from the science of lust

Today I watched a TV program called the science of lust in Discovery Channel. The researcher did an interesting experiment. He asked a street sunglass vendor to sell only two Sunglass designs on Hollywood Avenue-one is traditional whole black design, the other is bold golden design. When He asked the vendor to put his glass stand in front of a conservative clothing store, the traditional black sunglass were sold much better. When he asked the vendor to move the strand in front of a Victoria's Secret store, the bold golden sunglass design were sold remarkably better. Why? 


The researcher said the naked and sexy female models and posters in Victory's Secret store windows and store flirtatious decoration really heighten up male 's  hormones - especially testosterone and estrogen - and hormones, driving their lust. The  lust, sometimes 
unconscious, trigger men's natural bio reactions. Eg. they want to 
stand out, or they are more aggressive, etc. Thus, they bought more 
the bold aggressive sunglass. 




Marketers really need to understand these Connections. 




In class we also talked about how to stimulate  the five senses  to 
advocate consumption. the bottom line of the approach is to find the
 connections between outside stimulus and consumer's inside system, whether nerve system, mental system or other systems.  

My Playa Adventure - Burning Man 2009

WE LOVE YOU: A Rainbow Gathering Documentary Trailer

Big 5 personality traits

Each time when I analyze customers or the normal people I meet, I try to use Big Five personality traits to evaluate people. Big Five personality traits are relatively easy to use to me.  

The Big Five factors and their constituent traits can be summarized as follows:

• Openness – (inventive/curious vs. consistent/cautious). Appreciation for art, emotion, adventure, unusual ideas, curiosity, and variety of experience.
• Conscientiousness – (efficient/organized vs. easy-going/careless). A tendency to show self-discipline, act dutifully, and aim for achievement; planned rather than spontaneous behavior.
• Extraversion – (outgoing/energetic vs. solitary/reserved). Energy, positive emotions, surgency, and the tendency to seek stimulation in the company of others.
• Agreeableness – (friendly/compassionate vs. cold/unkind). A tendency to be compassionate and cooperative rather than suspicious and antagonistic towards others.
• Neuroticism – (sensitive/nervous vs. secure/confident). A tendency to experience unpleasant emotions easily, such as anger, anxiety, depression, or vulnerability. 

3 levels of a brand! by Forrest Jiang

As a complete person should be composed with 3 levels-body, soul and spirit, a super brand should be composed of these 3 levels. But most brands can only reach to level one or level two. 


Level one-body:
These brands means nothing to consumers but the functions. Bargain brands fall in this category. 


Level two-soul:
These brands provide more intangible things, like feeling, experience and connection, besides tangible functions. E.g. Apple products stands for innovation, uniqueness, taste and so on. Buyers feel this products can present their values and identity. Apple's overall products and service provide brand-new experience which other brands can not offer. At last, users feel strong emotional bond with the brand and are proud of being part of the community.


Level three-spirit
These brands can reach to your soul. They have power to change your life style and even your belief and spirit accordingly. These brands do not only serve you like level one and two, but also "control or manipulate" you and your mind. Let me use bibles to make my point. Bible are not only books or peace of mind therapy, but also life-changing soul savior. Of course, very few brands have this power. I personally think Harley-Division can be seen as a brand in this category. This brand changed HD bikes' life styles.  These fans don't deem the bike as a toy for their Holidays, but as a important partner of their daily lives. They live a HD-style lives.