Overseas brands, to do or not to do?

Under the hot "Internet +" trend, the success of many emerging brands represented by Xiaomi seems to indicate that we can get rid of the long and difficult brand building process under the traditional model, and "Brand +" has become many small and medium-sized enterprises A new area where companies are eager to try.

Build a brand, or stick to a manufacturing advantage?

At present, many of China's export-oriented manufacturing enterprises are facing the dilemma of increasingly higher costs and thinner profits. With the advent of the era of personalization, new technologies and new hotspots emerge in an endless stream. Buyers have more and more requirements for functions, models, styles, etc., while the number of single product orders is gradually declining. Enterprises often try to keep up with the pace of market demand. And exhausted.

Shenzhen Dinglongsheng Industrial Co., Ltd., which started out as a mouse and keyboard and other computer peripheral products, felt the pain caused by the transfer of industry demand. "Our industry can even be said to be a 'sunset' industry, where prices are very low and profits are very thin," said Li Shibai, manager of its international business department, "Because of this, customers and factories go to open molds and develop new products and new styles. The willingness to do this is not high.”

Faced with this embarrassing situation, companies have many strategies to deal with, such as relocating to lower-cost areas, switching to higher-margin products, and building brands to gain Brand premium, etc. According to Li Shibai, Dinglongsheng also operates its own brand in China, but due to the limited internal resources of the company, it did not spend a lot of energy to build it. "Our company's transformation strategy is mainly to rely on our existing manufacturing advantages to make some emerging products that are in demand. For example, the best ones we measure now are keyboards for platform computers, and new products such as mobile gamepads that we are vigorously developing. ” Li Shibai said.

In the consumer electronics industry, products must eventually face end consumers, so why not make your own brand? Li Shibai's answer is quite realistic, "That's not our strength." In his opinion, promoting one's own brand is a complete system, which requires a series of talents such as brand planning, marketing promotion, and after-sales service. If there is no one The right team to operate, does not succeed. In particular, the promotion of overseas brands is also faced with language and culture, patent laws and other issues, which need to be considered again and again.

What "pits" should be avoided in overseas brand promotion?

Different from Li Shibai's prudence in making overseas brands, Deng Bin, manager of the foreign trade department of Shenzhen Sades Electronic Technology Co., Ltd., whose main product is gaming headsets, is very confident in promoting his overseas brands. "Our company is quite special. From the very beginning, it started as a domestic trade brand. Therefore, after I set up the foreign trade department, it is logical to launch the brand." He said.

At present, more than 20% of the annual export volume of SADES is under the name of its own brand "SADES". "At present, it is mainly offline agents. There are about ten countries in Europe and North America who have customers who are agents for our products. We attach great importance to these brand agents." Deng Bin said.

Although the brand promotion has been quite successful, Deng Bin admitted that the company's business is developing too fast, and the brand operation strategy is not clear enough, which has caused many problems. "The most troublesome problem at present is the branded products that are 'cross-listed' from domestic online merchants. This business is also developing rapidly, but brand channels are not under our control, so they may sell foreign B2C websites and other channels at very low prices. To sell, thus disrupting the price system of the brand in the overseas market."

Deng Bin believes that this situation needs to be viewed from two sides, "From a result-oriented perspective, these 'collision goods' It also brings great benefits to the company. But it destroys the price system of the brand. Now that the information is developed, offline agents | dealers can easily find that someone is selling this brand at a low price, and they will question us. At the same time, the brand Sell quickly at a low price, and market demand may be saturated very quickly. In this case, how do you reach the top of the smile curve, how do you guarantee profits, when will you get a return, and when will the investment in the brand reach a balance? So in the long run, this This situation is detrimental to the overseas promotion of the brand.”

Therefore, Deng Bin believes that in order to do a good job in overseas brands, one must do a good job in price control, and the price difference between online and offline should not be too large; the second is sales Channels must be unified in order to eliminate the risk of "colluding goods".

Deng Bin's experience in operating overseas brands in the past few years has clearly felt the difference between the requirements of customers who make brands and make OEM orders. "Agents/agents should see that your brand is advertised and recognizable in the local market, and at the same time, it must meet the needs of the local market in terms of function and appearance, and customers have higher requirements for product quality and after-sales." Deng Bin pointed out.

Many companies feel that being an overseas brand is "unattainable", but Deng Bin pointed out that with the advent of the Internet era, the channels for marketing promotion and sales have been greatly enriched, and the cost has been greatly reduced. The best of times," he thought confidently.

"Don't think that the brand has to spend a lot of money without taking the first step. In fact, if you calculate the cost of the brand's early design, registration, product positioning development, etc., you will find that it is not as expensive as you think." Deng Bin suggested, "For example, considering that making a brand requires inventory, and you are a factory and produce products directly, you can actually control the inventory very well. In addition, when making OEM orders now, many customers only pay a deposit, and there are many customers. Long payment deadline, so you are also bearing the inventory. Therefore, the cost of making a brand is not as high as imagined.”

In terms of overseas brand promotion, Deng Bin believes that there are many channels that can be used. "Looking for offline agents is mainly through exhibitions and B2B websites, such as the Hong Kong Electronics Fair and website of Global Sources, etc. At the same time, through the Internet's social networks, evaluation websites, e-commerce websites, etc., it can also greatly enhance the brand. Deng Bin shared, "Actually, the more important thing is to do a good job in product positioning and match the market demand. At the same time, the product should follow the route of quality and quality, and rhythmically launch several brands that can represent the brand's personality. In this way, agents, dealers and consumers can recognize your brand, and at the same time, your inventory and research and development pressure will not be so great.”

Whether overseas brands do or not, the key depends on these points

Deng Bin's and Li Shibai's differences in views represent different corporate strategies, both of which aim to give full play to the comparative advantages of the company to gain a place in the market. Li Shibai pointed out that whether it is a brand or an OEM, there are only two paths for the survival and development of an enterprise, one is to compete for price, and the other is to compete for product creativity.

Li Shibai also disagreed with the argument that if you don't become a brand company, you will die, "In the future, the division of labor will become more and more detailed. If you do marketing, do marketing, and no one can bind anyone." He analyzed, "and the characteristics of different products also determine whether they are suitable for brands, such as mobile phone cases with low development costs, buyers often choose to develop their own products. model, and make your own products, while the development cost is higher and the more expensive products, buyers will be more willing to represent your brand to reduce costs and risks.”

In a word, whether to make a brand or not, There is no one standard answer, but various factors such as enterprises, industries, and products need to be considered. In this process, there are several aspects that need special consideration: First of all, making a brand is not a production order, but a re-promotion of inventory, which requires consideration of risks such as inventory and capital.

Secondly, OEM channels and brand channels need to be balanced. Many buyers may not want to have brand products with similar functions in their territory.

In addition, the brand's online and offline, domestic and foreign channels need to be controlled in a unified manner, otherwise the problem of "cross-selling" may destroy the agency | dealer network that has been established with great difficulty.

In addition, the brand is not simply a logo on the product, it is more a unique cognition passed on to consumers, which requires companies to do market research and product positioning, and make products that can both Products that can be accepted by local consumers and have strong brand attributes.