Can Baisha continue to fly
Changsha Cigarette Factory was established in 1947. The famous spring "Baisha Well" in the south of the Yangtze River in Changsha City has been known as "water with white sand and sand without sand" since ancient times. Mao Zedong also said that "he only drinks Changsha water". As the leading brand of Changsha Cigarette Factory, "Baisha" is named after the ancient well. Since its launch in 1975, after more than 20 years of cultivation, the "Baisha" series of products have developed into a nationally renowned brand and a single brand with the highest sales volume in the country. Changsha Cigarette Factory's product style is unique among Chinese tobacco companies. Its mellow taste, sweetness and increasing safety are loved by more and more Chinese consumers. By the first half of 2000, a relatively complete product series had been formed. The main products include Baisha series, He series, NISE series, Changsha series, etc. With the continuous development and growth of Changsha Cigarette Factory, the core corporate philosophy and brand image of "Cranes dance on the white sand, my heart flies" are deeply rooted in the hearts of the people. In 1995, the company passed the domestic and foreign certification of 1S09002 quality system, and won the "Golden Horse Award" for national outstanding enterprises; in 1997 and 1998, it was rated as "National Quality and Efficiency Advanced Enterprise" and won the "National Quality and Efficiency Advanced Enterprise". "Special Award for Advanced Enterprises"; at the end of 2000, Baisha Group, with Changsha Cigarette Factory as the core enterprise and covering six major industries including tobacco, pharmaceuticals, logistics, printing, financial investment, and logistics services, was formally established, marking the establishment of the enterprise
The formation of a diversified and group-based development and operation pattern; in 2002, various economic indicators continued to grow steadily. The total cigarette output for the year reached 950,000 large boxes, with sales revenue of 7.8 billion yuan and profits and taxes of 5.2 billion yuan. Entering the "Tenth Five-Year Plan" period, it was listed by the State Tobacco Monopoly Administration as one of the four major tobacco companies that "tracks the world's advanced technological level and develops simultaneously with it." After 27 years of development, the "Baisha" brand has become the largest cigarette brand in the country and ranked first in the comprehensive competitiveness survey of the national cigarette product market. In 2002, it was successively recognized as a "National Well-known Trademark" and "China's Famous Brand". Brand-name products”. In 2003, the "Baisha" brand ranked first in the industry's first comprehensive survey of cigarette brands in major cities across the country; Baisha products also exceeded the "double 1 million large box" total cigarette production and sales volume and single product sales volume, and ranked first for two consecutive years. The single-brand sales volume ranks first in the country.
The growth process of Baisha has been accompanied by competition with Changde Cigarette Factory, another tobacco group in Hunan. In the mid-1990s, Changyan people took the lead in targeting the high-end market and launched Furong King, interpreting the brand culture with the slogan of "create unlimited, experience success", making the brand concept of "success" deeply rooted in the hearts of the people. Just like the PDA market back then, the brand image created by Furong King just met the needs of consumers and also posed a new challenge to its old rival Baisha. At that time, Baisha had always used packaging that was very familiar to Hunan people: the ancient well of Baisha, which represented Hunan culture, and the white crane, which represented good luck. Baisha cigarettes are regarded as the representative of mid-range cigarettes. However, with the development of the times, in the face of the ever-changing market and the upgrading of consumer groups, this image that has been used for nearly 30 years appears to be somewhat outdated. A 1999 survey showed that Baisha's main consumer group was slightly older.
For Baisha, the task is to integrate and improve based on the existing brand assets. That is, how to inject new vitality into the original brand assets while continuing to use them, and open up a sustainable development path for the brand. Through research and comparison, Baisha decided to learn from the brand ideas of "Marlboro" cigarettes and find his own "cowboy". It positions the brand's core value in "flying, the pleasure of flying". The image association (visual symbol) of white sand is a gesture of longing to fly. Baisha's brand slogan is "Crane Dances on White Sand, My Heart Flyes", and Baisha's new brand logo is an abstract expression of the graceful flying posture of the white crane.
After having a clear positioning, Baisha decided to enrich its product series. But before deciding to launch new products, whether to adopt a single brand series or adopt a multi-brand strategy has become an urgent issue in front of Baisha.
P&G and Unilever, the two international giants of daily cosmetics and detergents, both adhere to the multi-brand strategy and have achieved great market success; they are the most competitive home appliances in our country. In the industry, the most successful business model is actually the strategy of single-brand serialization. The typical example of this strategy is Haier. The related diversified extension of the Haier brand has always been considered successful and very suitable for China's national conditions. However, successful domestic cigarette brands such as Zhonghua and Hongtashan have abandoned the development model of single brand series. After careful analysis, Lu Ping, President of Baisha Group, believes that the so-called big brands in the tobacco industry are mainly monsters that grew up under the long-term planned economy era and the monopoly system. Whether they can adapt to the market environment under complete market competition may all Brands will be put under question marks. China has long implemented relatively strict restrictions on tobacco imports, adopting high import tariffs and strict non-tariff barriers. Foreign tobacco companies that are as fierce as tigers will inevitably be shut out. Now domestic companies are about to emerge from their mother's swaddling clothes. In the face of international competition, brand is particularly important. To this end, Baisha decided to adhere to the sub-brand route in brand extension, focus on and strengthen the core connotation of the brand, and highlight Baisha's brand characteristics. Therefore, Baisha began to expand its product line with the theme of promoting the brand's rejuvenation, forming the Baisha series, and officially started the battle for the high-end cigarette market: in May 2000, Baisha Silver World was launched; in October 2000, Baisha Treasure Silver World was launched (Special-shaped packaging); in December 2000, White Sand Golden Century was launched. Through efforts in product quality, market positioning, market access, and strong overall brand support, several sub-brand new products have achieved good results in the early stages of their launch.
The listing planning of White Sands Golden Century is particularly eye-catching.
Golden Century is a high-end cigarette launched by Baisha Group. It is of the same grade as Furong King and has higher quality. Golden Century is carefully formulated by the chief formulator and chief perfumer; it selects the world's top tobacco leaves, 100 pieces of which are hand-selected; it uses international advanced equipment and first-class tobacco-making technology, and is made in a fully enclosed state; strictly in accordance with ISO9000 international Quality control and assurance system ensures classic quality throughout the entire process.
Before launching the product, Baisha first conducted in-depth research on the changes in consumption patterns under the new economic background and the life characteristics of high-consumption groups. Research results show that a specific group of people is leading the mainstream of consumption in today's market, and their consumption concepts are gradually changing: in the past, they mainly pursued material quality of life, but today, their consumption choices begin to focus on culture and taste. "Talk about culture, talk about taste, talk about ideas", the platform for communicating with the target group of Baisha Golden Century gradually became clear. As Baisha people themselves said: "Cigarettes are just a symbol that cloud people's thoughts. Without smoke, people are still the same people."
Baisha Golden Century adopted an integrated listing Promotion method: The gifts that come with the cigarettes include uniquely designed special-shaped matches, exquisite and personalized bookmarks, antique cigarette boxes, etc.; and the valuable gift for heavyweights is a cultural manual specially designed for the White Sands Golden Century. ——"Behind the Burning", the book uses exquisite paper, hardcover format, readable content, and has full collection value. The book "Behind the Burning" talks about cigarettes in the past and present. It also selects a number of precious historical photos about celebrities and cigarettes, with a clear intention and full of interest. Such as:
The history of cigarettes - Columbus's contribution was not only the discovery of the New World of America. Cigarettes and politics - one cigarette, a world. Cigarettes and art - cigarettes are the source of the creator's ideas. Cigarettes and military - - Cigarettes are the general's staff officer Cigarettes and the senses - a subtle, profound sensory experience Cigarettes and society - Cigarettes reflect various phenomena at various stages of social development Culture and brands - Culture is the temperament of a brand Baisha Golden Century's point-of-sale selection and construction also show new ideas: in star hotels, airport terminals and high-end entertainment venues, the sign of the point of sale is a three-fold wooden antique screen, which is simple, natural and heavy.
On the front of the screen are written the contents of the Baisha Cultural Manual - about the historical origins of cigarettes, the culture behind cigarettes, great people related to cigarettes, interesting things...; in the middle of the screen is a small glass box with a simple texture, a golden cigarette case, A picture album framed with linen cloth and tasteful craft smoking sets are placed among them. This kind of selling point is very popular because of its unique features. At the same time, advertising and activities such as outdoor advertising, high-end magazines, and sponsorship of New Year concerts are also fully launched.
Among the several new product series, Baisha Silver World and Golden Century are both based on the core brand concept of "flying". The former shows fashion and typical flying, while the latter interprets transcendent flying. The launch of two new products not only improves the product structure of Baisha series, but also further enriches and strengthens Baisha's cultural connotation.
Of course, it remains to be verified whether the implementation of Baisha's sub-brand strategy can really withstand the test of the market. However, judging from the unsatisfactory market situation of Baisha Golden Century, it seems that the two sub-brands of Baisha Silver World and Baisha Golden Century have not yet been fully successful, and the brand growth rate is not fast enough. Although Golden Century's design, packaging, marketing strategies, etc. are all perfect and its knife skills are first-class, it has not become a hot spot in the market as expected.
In the minds of consumers, there is already a stable leading brand. A consumer survey of the tobacco industry by an organization showed that when choosing the first tobacco brand, 34% of people chose Marlboro, 23% of people chose Sanwu, 19% of people chose Hongtashan You, and others chose "Zhonghua" and " Yuxi" etc. It seems that it is not that easy for Baisha to reverse the impression it has formed in the minds of consumers through the promotion and publicity of Golden Century. The intense advertising campaign did not change consumers' perception that Baisha is a mid-range cigarette. What is the concept of "My Heart is Flying"? Can it bear the feeling of men smoking? Can it communicate spiritually with men and make them reminisce about the white sand? White Sands Golden Century has similar prices and the same positioning as the leading brands that are firmly established in consumers' minds. Will such positioning conflict? Baisha cigarettes have always been the image of mid-range cigarettes in the minds of consumers and are “tool” cigarettes that meet the physiological needs of cigarette consumers. However, "White Sands Golden Century" is positioned in the high-end cigarette market, and the consumer groups it faces are precisely people who pay attention to consumption experience and inner feelings. What they need are "prop cigarettes" that express their identity and satisfy their psychological needs. As a sub-brand of Baisha, since it faces different consumer groups, can Golden Century still enter the market with the same brand concept? Will it be accepted by consumers? Can a brand embrace the two different concepts of props and tools? Judging from the current situation of Baisha promotion, these issues still need to be studied, and Baisha's strategy is thought-provoking.
The brand building of domestic tobacco companies has just started. Faced with the market situation of foreign cigarette invasion, local blockade, and increasingly fierce brand competition, how to carry out brand building and communication in the market development and promotion of new products? Resolving the confusion about brand extension has become the most urgent concern of Chinese tobacco companies.
The Failure of New Coke
Since Atlanta pharmacist John Pemberton invented the magical Coca-Cola formula in 1886, Coca-Cola has been unstoppable in developing markets around the world. On April 23, 1985, in order to compete with Pepsi-Cola, Coca-Cola announced in New York that it would change the formula of its 99-year-old beverage. This was called one of the most significant mistakes in the American business community in the past 100 years by the New York Times.
In the 1980s, Coca-Cola's leadership in the beverage market was challenged, and its growth rate in the market dropped from 13 per year to only 2.
While the giants were hesitating, Pepsi-Cola was creating remarkable miracles. It first proposed the slogan "Pepsi-Cola New Generation". This advertising campaign captured the psyche of the fantasy-rich youth. This energetic and energetic advertisement greatly improved Pepsi's image and firmly established its relationship with consumers, the largest segment of the soft drink market.
After the great success of the first round of advertising campaign, Pepsi-Cola still closely focused on young people, continued to emphasize Pepsi-Cola's "youthful image", and launched a second round of advertising campaign known as "Pepsi Challenge". In this round During the offensive, PepsiCo boldly conducted a live broadcast of a customer taste test, that is, without telling the participants that they were filming an advertisement, they asked them to taste various drinks without brand logos and then tell which one tasted the best. All test procedures are broadcast live. PepsiCo's venture was successful. After almost every test, tasters thought Pepsi-Cola tasted better. The "Pepsi Challenge" series of advertisements helped Pepsi-Cola's beverage market share in the United States soar from 6 to 14.
The Coca-Cola Company did not believe this fact and immediately organized a taste test. The results were the same as in the "Pepsi Challenge": people preferred the taste of Pepsi-Cola. Research from the Market Research Department also shows that Coca-Cola's dominance of the beverage market is changing to one where Coca-Cola and Pepsi-Cola are competing. In the 1970s, 18 beverage consumers recognized only Coca-Cola as a brand, and only 4 recognized Pepsi-Cola. By the 1980s, only 12 consumers were loyal to Coca-Cola, while the number of consumers who only drank Pepsi-Cola rose to 11, the same level as Coca-Cola. During this period, Coca-Cola's spending on advertising and website sales was much higher than that of PepsiCo. It has twice as many vending machines as Pepsi, premium mineral water, more shelf space and more competitive prices, but why is it still losing market share?
Faced with the challenge from Pepsi-Cola, in May 1980, the Coca-Cola board of directors accepted the recommendation of Austin and Woodruff and appointed Goizueta as general manager. After Goizueta became chairman of the company in March 1981, Donald Keogh took over as general manager.
Soon, Goizueta held a meeting of all managers. He announced that nothing was sacrosanct for the company, that reform was urgent, and people had to accept it. As a result, the company began to turn its attention to investigating the problems of the product itself. The evidence became increasingly clear that taste was the only important factor leading to the decline of Coca-Cola. The formula that had been used for 99 years seemed no longer suitable for today's consumers. The taste requested. In this case, the company began to implement the Kansas Plan-to change the taste of Coca-Cola.
Before developing New Coca-Cola, Coca-Cola secretly conducted a market research operation code-named "Project Kansas". It dispatched 2,000 market researchers in 10 major cities to investigate whether customers would accept a new Coca-Cola. , questions include: A new ingredient will be added to Coca-Cola's formula to make it softer, would you like it? Would you be upset if Coca-Cola tasted similar to Pepsi? Do you want to try a new drink? The survey results show that only 10-12 customers are uneasy about the new flavor of Coca-Cola, and half of them said they will adapt to the new Coca-Cola, which shows that customers are willing to try new flavors of Coca-Cola. But other tests provide the opposite picture, with consumer groups of varying sizes expressing strong approval and disapproval sentiments.
In September 1984, the Coca-Cola Company's technical department decided to develop a new, more pleasant Coca-Cola, and finally produced a sample. This "New Coke" was sweeter and more bubbly than Coca-Cola. Less, because it uses cereal syrup with more sugar than sucrose, and is a new drink with a soft and exciting taste. The company immediately conducted an unlabeled taste test on it. The test results excited Coca-Cola. Customer satisfaction with New Coke exceeded that of Pepsi. Market researchers believe that this new formula of Coke can at least increase Coca-Cola's market share. 1-2 higher, which means an additional 200-400 million sales.
To ensure nothing goes wrong, Coca-Cola invested US$4 million in an unprecedented large-scale taste test before adopting new flavors. Some 191,000 people in 13 cities were invited to take part in an unlabeled comparison of different Coca-Cola recipes.
55% of the participants preferred New Coke, indicating that Coca-Cola beat out Pepsi. The results of the research seem to support the new formula beyond doubt.
Before New Coke is put into production, a series of supporting decisions must be implemented accordingly. For example, one must consider whether to add a new Coke flavor to the product category or to replace an old Coke with it. After much deliberation, the company's senior managers unanimously agreed to change the taste of Coca-Cola and withdraw the old Coke from the market.
On April 23, 1985, Coca-Cola Company Chairman Goizueta announced that after 99 years of development, Coca-Cola Company decided to abandon its unchanging traditional formula because consumers prefer sweeter flavors. Soft drinks, in order to cater to this need, Coca-Cola Company decided to change the formula and adjust the taste, launching a new generation of Coca-Cola. To introduce New Coke, Goizueta and Keogh held a press conference at Lincoln Center in New York City. Invitations were sent to news media organizations across the country. About 200 reporters from newspapers, magazines and television stations attended the press conference, but most of them were not convinced of the merits of New Coca-Cola, and their reports were generally negative. . This skepticism of the news media intensified the public's refusal to accept the new Coca-Cola in the days to come.
The news spread quickly.
Eighty-one Americans learned about this transformation within 24 hours, a number that exceeded the number of people who knew Neil Armstrong walked on the moon in July 1969.
150 million people have tried New Coca-Cola, which is more than any previous trial record for a new product. Most reviews are favorable, and bottler demand has reached a five-year high. The correctness of the decision seemed beyond doubt, but it was all short-lived.
Within four hours of New Coke being launched, 650 calls were received protesting the change in Coke flavor; by mid-May, there were as many as 5,000 calls criticizing each day; in June this number rose to more than 8,000 . Fanned by the propaganda media, outrage quickly spread across the country. What might have been a minor change to a 99-year-old drink's recipe has become an affront to people's patriotism. "Some people felt that a sacred symbol had been trampled upon," writes University of Kansas sociologist Robert Antonio. Even Goizueta's father opposed the change from the start. He warned his son that such a change was a precursor to failure and jokingly threatened to disown him. Company leaders became concerned that consumers would band together and boycott their products.
What they saw was a disastrous launch effect: "I feel very sad because I know that not only will I no longer be able to enjoy Coca-Cola, but my children and grandchildren will not be able to drink it either... I think they just You can hear that from me." People accused Coca-Cola of suddenly betraying them as a symbol of America and an old friend. Some people threaten to stop drinking Coca-Cola and replace it with tea or plain water. Here are a few examples of these reactions: "It just sucks! You should be ashamed to put a Coca-Cola label on it...this new thing tastes worse than Pepsi." "Nice to meet you, You've been my friend for 33 years, and yesterday I drank New Coke for the first time, and to be honest, if I wanted to drink Coke, I would order Pepsi instead of Coca-Cola."
At that. During the spring and summer, Coca-Cola received more than 40,000 such letters. In Seattle, some radical loyalists (who called themselves American Coca-Cola Drinkers) formed the group "American Old Coca-Cola Drinkers" to threaten Coca-Cola with lawsuits if it did not follow the old recipe. Across the United States, people have begun hoarding old Coca-Cola, which has been discontinued, causing the price of this "in-demand drink" to rise again and again. When July sales didn't rise as the company expected, bottlers asked for Old Coke.
Company surveys also confirm the existence of a growing negative sentiment. Three months after New Coke was launched, sales were still stagnant, while public outcry intensified.
Eventually Coca-Cola decided to resume production of the traditional formula. This news immediately caused excitement throughout the United States. On that day, 18,000 grateful calls came into the company's toll-free hotline. That month, Coca-Cola's sales increased by 8% year-on-year, and its stock price climbed to a 12-year high of $2.37 per share. But Coca-Cola has already suffered huge losses in this action.