2024-08-09
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[ “Four Rings” or “Audi”?]
Last July, SAIC and Audi signed a memorandum of understanding on deepening strategic cooperation, deciding to leverage their respective strengths to accelerate the development of SAIC Audi's new electric models. Within SAIC, this is a project codenamed "Purple".
On May 20 this year, SAIC and Audi officially held a press conference and announced that they would jointly develop an intelligent digital platform (ADP) focused on the Chinese market. The first batch of models will be three pure electric models covering the B-class and C-class car segments, and the first model will be launched in 2025.
It is rumored that the first concept car of this series will be unveiled in November this year, when Audi will also explain the "brand story" of the series.
After the above cooperation information was released, there were rumors in the market.The new electric car model jointly developed by the two parties will not use Audi's four-ring logo, but will use the former "Audi" logo.。
There are various opinions about the use of a separate LOGO.
Some people say that Audi made this decision "out of consideration for its brand image", after all, in this series, most of the technologies from the three electrics to intelligence come from SAIC. On the other hand, some people also pointed out that not using the four-ring logo was not Audi's idea, but pressure from FAW Group, another partner of Audi in China.
Putting aside the "intrigues" in business games, from the perspective of brand development alone, adopting a new LOGO in a new new energy series is nothing new.
In the new energy era, in order to create a new brand image, many car companies have launched new logos for their new energy vehicles to better distinguish them from fuel vehicles.For exampleGeely Galaxy、Changan Qiyuanwait.
This is also a common practice among joint venture brands.JACThis is true for the joint venture Sihao and the later Jetta in cooperation with FAW; even the Volkswagen Anhui, which was recently launched on the market, has adopted the unprecedented golden Volkswagen logo.
In the familiar Audi four-ring logo, each circle represents a company. Originally, the four circles were the four German car manufacturers Audi, Horch, DKW and Wanderer that formed the "Auto Union" in the 1930s and 1940s.
In March 2022, Audi announced that it wouldBentleyThe four circles represent the four companies: Audi,Lamborghini, Bentley, Ducati.
From this perspective, as a new series of cooperation between Audi and SAIC, it would be natural for the new model to really adopt the "Audi" logo.And if "Audi"is enabled,There is nothing wrong with Jia Jianxu’s response at the beginning. After all, this logo still belongs to the Audi brand.
[ SAIC Audi, resolving the problem]
In fact, no matter which logo is adopted, SAIC Audi still needs to tell a brand story that consumers can recognize on the new models. It is the key to SAIC Audi's future sales growth and an opportunity for SAIC Audi to re-explain who it is.
Today, if you walk into a SAIC Audi 4S store or live studio, you will definitely meet several consumers who come to inquire about A4L or Q5L. In other words, even though the brand has been released for more than three years, many people still can't figure out the difference between it and FAW Audi.
The reason behind this may be lack of time to settle, but the more important factor may be "being born at the wrong time".
When SAIC Audi was launched in 2021, new force brands and new energy vehicle models had already replaced traditional luxury brands and became the focus of the market.
An intuitive example is that luxury brand 4S stores used to be the most profitable, but now according to a dealer, SAIC Audi has started to attract investment, but no one in the industry is paying attention.
How to regain attention and differentiate from FAW Audi? Jia Jianxu also shared some of his thoughts at the previous press conference.
In SAIC Audi's plan, the biggest difference between their new energy models and FAW Audi's PPE platform is that they can better meet the consumer needs of the Chinese market while meeting global standards. The users they want to attract are "the group of high-end customers who are early adopters of new technologies."
At the channel level, the shortcomings that were previously difficult to resolve have also seen new opportunities.
Due to the opposition of FAW Audi dealers, SAIC Audi could only choose investors from the former when it first built its channels, and eventually embarked on the agency direct sales model. Under this model, the OEM's control over the terminal has certainly increased, but due to the lack of wholesale pressure,，It is not easy to mobilize the initiative of dealers.Dealers prefer to sell fuel-powered vehicles that are in stock.
In the past three years, the sales of SAIC Audi have not been prosperous, and the problem of channels is one of the important reasons. Fortunately, by the end of this year, the agreement signed by Audi, FAW and SAIC will expire. It is understood that SAIC Audi is not only recruiting new dealers, but also promoting the construction of direct sales channels.
Everything is a new beginning.
[ Final Thoughts ]
Just after SAIC and Audi officially announced the details of their cooperation in May, on June 19, JaguarLand RoverIt was also announced that the "Freelander" would be licensed toCheryJaguar Land Rover uses Chery's technology to launch a new electric vehicle brand.
This is a project that adopts almost the same model as SAIC Audi New Energy - even similar to the rumored SAIC Audi LOGO, Chery Jaguar Land Rover's new electric series is also intended to restart a former brand.
It can be said that using Chinese technology to develop new models is becoming a common choice for traditional luxury brands. As for whether SAIC Audi, the first to take the plunge, can set an example for everyone, we look forward to the release of the new car in November.
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