Zhou Hongyi's car show "outshines" Lei Jun: Why don't Zhiji and Nezha have the fate of Xiaomi?

Zhou Hongyi demonstrated how to become a top influencer, playing with traffic in such a lively manner. Of course, this is only limited to personal IP marketing. In terms of business marketing, Zhou Hongyi's 360 invested 1.9 billion yuan in the new energy brand Nezha Auto. However, in terms of marketing, Nezha is obviously not as good as Xiaomi, and there are even brands like Zhiji Auto that compete with Xiaomi. So the question is, how can new energy vehicles win? Is it black or red?

If we talk about the most popular person at this year's Beijing Auto Show, Zhou Hongyi would be second, and Lei Jun wouldn't dare to say he's first.

On April 26, 2024, the Beijing Auto Show opened. In addition to the grand scene of the crowd, the most popular figure was Zhou Hongyi, who was sitting on the roof of a car in a red robe, and was jokingly referred to as the "only car model on the first day of the 2024 Beijing Auto Show" and "the oldest car model in the history of the Beijing Auto Show."

Shortly afterwards, Zhou Hongyi responded, saying that he had been practicing rock climbing all along, wanting to prove that he is not just a figurehead.

But no matter what, Zhou Hongyi has caught the wave of fortune and fame. Prior to this, he was prepared to sell his Maybach and purchase a new energy vehicle, which led to suspicions that he was promoting his own new energy brand, Nezha Auto. However, he claimed that he was singing praises for China's new energy networked vehicles. Unfortunately, Nezha Auto did not catch this wave of attention. In fact, Zhou Hongyi has had Nezha Auto's leader, Zhang Yong, learn from Lei Jun's marketing strategy not just once or twice. However, not all new energy brands have the fate of Xiaomi's Su7, which became popular from the start, and there are even cases of new energy brands riding the wave and suffering from online backlash.

In mid-April 2024, Zhi Ji's official Weibo account published a report, stating that they had apologized to Xiaomi on April 9th, but they were met with organized online violence and traffic bullying, affecting the normal operation of the company.

It is reported that when Zhi Ji released the L6 on April 8th, the product almost completely targeted Xiaomi's Su7, attempting to divert the influence of Xiaomi's cars. However, when comparing the motor configurations, Zhi Ji mistakenly wrote the SiC silicon carbide configuration of the front IGBT and the rear SiC as "front IGBT rear SiC" for the Xiaomi Su7 Max. Xiaomi subsequently countered Zhi Ji's claims three times, and Zhi Ji apologized three times.

However, Xiaomi's fans did not buy it, and they criticized Zhi Ji's cars in the official live broadcast room, official account comment section, and even the dealers' live broadcast rooms.

Indeed, some of Xiaomi's fans' insults and defamation of Zhi Ji's cars are indeed inappropriate, but to some extent, Zhi Ji's cars have brought this upon themselves.

In order to gain attention, Zhi Ji's cars not only deliberately compared themselves to the "top players" in the automotive industry, but also started a "self-pity mode," boasting about their "996" work schedule. This has made it difficult for netizens to focus on the product competition and instead question the values of Zhi Ji's cars.

Considering that the "black and red" strategy did not lead to high sales for Zhi Ji's L6, with the intensifying competition in the new energy market, Zhi Ji's cars may face even more severe challenges in the future.

With products but no sales, Zhi Ji is unusually anxious.

The reason why Zhi Ji's L6 deliberately compared itself to Xiaomi's cars is largely because in the previous few years, Zhi Ji's cars lacked attention and their product sales continued to decline.

Official data shows that Zhi Ji's cars was established in December 2020 and is SAIC Group's "Number One Project," focusing on the high-end new energy vehicle market. In May 2022, Zhi Ji's cars launched its first product, the "Electric Drive Control New King" Zhi Ji L7, targeting the BMW 5 Series, Mercedes-Benz E-Class, and Audi A6, with a price range of 368,800 to 408,800 yuan.

In comparison, the Zhi Ji L7 does indeed have certain core competitiveness when compared horizontally with the same level of products from the BBA series. For example, the Zhi Ji L7 is equipped with the world's highest power density direct waterfall oil-cooled motor at the time, with power output more than twice that of the same level of luxury fuel cars, and it also features the unique four-wheel steering + hybrid tire width at the same level, making it first-class in both power and handling.

Subsequently, Zhi Ji successively launched models such as Zhi Ji LS7 and Zhi Ji LS6, all of which continued the high-performance and futuristic product strategy of Zhi Ji L7.

Although the product is impressive, Zhiji Motors has not been able to gain a foothold in the new energy market as it had hoped.

Official data shows that in 2022, Zhiji Motors only sold 5,000 vehicles for the whole year. In early 2023, Zhiji Motors' co-CEO Liu Tao revealed that the annual sales target for Zhiji was 45,000 vehicles. Ultimately, in 2023, Zhiji Motors only sold 38,000 vehicles. Although there was some year-on-year growth, compared to new forces in the industry like "We Xiaoli" with annual sales in the hundreds of thousands, it still seems too little.

As of 2024, with the intensifying competition in the new energy vehicle market, Zhiji Motors' sales continue to decline. Official data shows that from January to March 2024, Zhiji's sales were 5,305, 2,000, and 2,696 vehicles respectively, with a total of only 10,000 vehicles sold in the first quarter, falling short of the monthly sales in December 2023.

It is reported that in 2024, Zhiji Motors' sales target is 120,000 to 130,000 vehicles. If Zhiji wants to achieve this goal, the monthly sales need to reach 10,000 to 10,800 vehicles. It is obvious that based on the current performance, whether Zhiji Motors can achieve its sales target this year, or even surpass last year's sales, is still unknown.

Zhiji is keen on riding the wave of popularity, but ultimately suffers from it.

The sales of a car model are usually influenced by various factors such as the market, channels, and marketing. However, in the eyes of Zhiji Motors' senior management, the lackluster sales of Zhiji Motors are largely due to insufficient market attention, leading them to constantly ride the popularity of other models. However, in this process, Zhiji Motors has also been frequently "slapped in the face."

In November 2022, there was a Tesla car accident in Chaozhou, resulting in a tragic incident with 2 deaths and 3 injuries. In response, Liu Tao commented on social media, "Technology and data should not be accomplices to sophistry! Arrogance and cruelty will not create a great brand. Poor quality control, the gentle and humble Chinese users have endured, but sacrificing lives! Do you still want to endure?"

However, a car blogger with the ID "Liu Jiaoni" pointed out that earlier, Liu Tao was involved in speeding violations, changing lanes without signaling, and crossing solid lines while driving the Zhiji L7 on the highway. In the end, Liu Tao claimed that she had voluntarily cooperated with the traffic police investigation, accepted punishment, and apologized to the public.

However, Liu Tao only "deeply reflected" on her driving behavior and did not completely abandon Zhiji's marketing strategy of riding on the wave of public attention.

On June 14, 2023, Li Xiang, the CEO of Ideal Auto, posted on social media, "What are our competitors doing? Our Sky Eye system can monitor everything." The accompanying image was the public opinion report from June 12, which showed that since February 11, there have been 34,400 articles discussing the launch of the Zhiji LS7 compared to the Ideal L7, mainly focusing on the shortcomings of the Ideal L7.

However, despite the "roaring waves" of the navy, Zhiji LS7 did not surpass the Ideal L7 in sales. Official data shows that in May 2023, Ideal L7 sold 11,119 units. In contrast, during the same period, Zhiji LS7 sold only 1,922 units.

Perhaps due to the indirect comparison of product marketing strategies not being obvious, recently, Xiaomi's car has remained popular, and Zhiji L6 is about to be launched. Zhiji Automobile's official directly rode on the popularity of Xiaomi SU7. At the Zhiji L6 launch event, Zhiji Automobile repeatedly compared the parameters of the two products to demonstrate the advantages of Zhiji L6.

However, Zhiji Automobile underestimated the enthusiasm of Xiaomi fans on one hand, and on the other hand, was too eager for quick success. Not only did they reveal the parameters, but they also played the emotional card, trying to influence the consumer market with the passion of the work team disregarding family and working overtime.

In the end, the lack of proper values became the point of criticism for Zhiji Automobile by netizens, and Zhiji Automobile was finally overwhelmed by the massive traffic.

It can be said that recently, Zhiji Automobile's attempt to ride on Xiaomi's traffic failed and instead, it was exposed on the internet. This actually has a strong inevitability, revealing Zhiji Automobile's excessive pursuit of traffic and anxiety.

"Self" defeated Zhiji

Undeniably, the low topicality and limited market popularity have affected the sales of Zhiji Automobile. But looking at the specific products, Zhiji Automobile's difficulty in entering the market may be due to its own product planning issues.

As mentioned earlier, when Zhiji Automobile entered the new energy vehicle industry, it focused on the high-end market, benchmarking "56E." However, Zhiji Automobile overlooked the unique brand premium of century-old fuel vehicle companies and the trend of high-end technology popularization caused by the internal competition in the new energy vehicle industry.

It is well known that "56E" can occupy a place in the high-end market not only relying on its extreme product power but also directly related to the high-end brand style of "BBA." In contrast, as a new force, Zhiji Automobile is unable to provide consumers with emotional value comparable to high-end prices.

On the other hand, although at the beginning of its launch, Zhiji L7 had outstanding technological advantages, as the technology of the upstream industry chain continues to mature and the internal competition in the new energy vehicle industry continues, the comparative advantage of Zhiji L7 is gradually eroding.

For example, in February 2024, Jike launched the all-new Jike 001, equipped with flagship configurations such as laser radar, 8295 chip, and 800V high voltage, with a starting price of only 269,000 yuan. In comparison, the 2024 model of Zhiji L7, with a selling price ranging from 299,900 to 419,900 yuan, even lacks the 800V high-voltage fast charging. In contrast, consumers find it difficult to choose the "higher-end" Zhiji L7 based solely on its selling price.

In fact, Zhiji's high-end transformation has encountered setbacks, similar to the problems encountered by Gaohe.

In August 2020, Gaohe launched the HiPhi X, with a selling price ranging from 570,000 to 800,000 yuan. Due to Gaohe's limited brand premium ability, it has been difficult for them to open up the market. From 2021 to 2023, Gaohe's sales volume was 4,237 units, 4,349 units, and 7,884 units respectively. Due to the stagnant sales volume, Gaohe is currently on the verge of bankruptcy.

Because Zhiji L7 has been unable to establish itself in the high-end market, subsequent products from Zhiji are no longer focused on the high-end market, but instead are shifting towards trading price for volume, focusing on the mid-to-high-end market.

In October 2023, Zhiji launched the Zhiji LS6, which has advantages such as the future smart cabin and a quasi-900V ultra-strong performance platform, with a price range of 214,900 to 276,900 yuan. In early April 2024, Zhiji launched the Zhiji L6, which is equipped with the Lingxi digital chassis and the first-generation light-year solid-state battery technology, with a pre-sale price of 230,000 to 330,000 yuan.

The fact proves that the high cost-performance strategy does help to increase the sales of Zhiji cars. Official data shows that from October to December 2023, the sales of Zhiji LS6 were 3,627 units, 8,158 units, and 9,878 units, and the sales continued to rise.

However, it is regrettable that in 2024, the sales of Zhiji LS6 began to decline. From January to March 2024, the sales of Zhiji LS6 were 4,766 units, 1,491 units, and 2,630 units.

This is largely due to the fact that Zhiji LS6 excessively pursued low prices and neglected product quality. At the end of 2023, it was reported that there were widespread "car system failures" in the Zhiji LS6, with many owners' instrument screens, vehicle speed, and gear information not displayed, and no radar reminders. Although Zhiji officially apologized and actively resolved the issue afterwards, such a serious safety issue made it difficult for consumers to not be cautious about Zhiji LS6.

The safety issues of the Zhiji LS6 serve as a warning, and the Zhiji L6, which also emphasizes cost-effectiveness and rides on the popularity of Xiaomi cars, has not successfully won the market.

Official data shows that the pre-sale of Zhiji L6 broke through 10,000 orders in 23 hours. In comparison, Xiaomi's car broke through 10,000 orders in 4 minutes and 89,000 orders in 24 hours. In April 2024, Zhiji Motors was attacked by "Mi Fans" on the internet. It seems accidental, but in fact, it has a strong inevitability.

In the past few years, due to stagnant product sales, Zhiji's senior management frequently rode on the popularity of other products, ultimately suffering from a backlash in traffic. Considering the product planning and quality issues of Zhiji Motors, after losing its reputation, it may become even more difficult to win the market.