For any auto company, it's important to understand the need for grabbing traffic in a high-profile manner, but also not neglect the importance of focusing on technological research and development. For automobiles, only when the product quality is up to standard can traffic be permanently converted into sales. Otherwise, if the product is not well-made, the final result will be that the traffic backfires, ultimately leading to the loss of consumer trust.

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In 2024, the leaders of major auto companies have stepped from behind the scenes to the front, actively building their own personal IPs. First, tech leaders like Yu Chengdong and Lei Jun, followed by traditional auto company executives like Zhu Huarong, Yin Tongyue, and Wei Jianjun, even Zhou Hongyi, the chairman of 360 Group, has actively engaged in generating traffic, cheering for NIO Auto.

Driven by Zhou Hongyi, NIO Auto has indeed seen improvement. Its NIO L model, which was launched for 35 days, exceeded 30,000 orders. It is reported that 95% of users chose the top-of-the-line 310 flash charging red version, further reflecting the market value of NIO L. This achievement is indeed impressive for an auto company that has been established for less than 10 years.

Regarding the reason for NIO L's popularity, NIO Auto CEO Zhang Yong also expressed gratitude to Zhou Hongyi on social media. Zhang Yong stated that under Zhou Hongyi's help and support, NIO Auto's market attention has increased significantly, leading to an increase in product orders.

Zhang Yong's words fully illustrate the importance of traffic. In today's world where "even good wine needs no bush," high traffic can indeed bring more attention to auto companies. However, in people's perception, automobiles are also technology-intensive products, and product quality has always been a core competitive factor. This also sparked the author's thoughts on the balance between auto companies' marketing and research and development.

Helping NIO Auto rebound

The reason why major auto companies are actively engaging in traffic acquisition is not difficult to understand. The current automotive market has entered an era of contention, and the competition within auto companies is also more diverse. Under such a market background, attracting consumers' attention is an important issue for every auto company. And in this era where traffic is king, whoever controls the traffic has the hope of breaking through in the market.

Regarding traffic acquisition, internet leaders are generally more experienced than auto company leaders. For example, Li Xiang, the head of Ideal Auto, said "the best SUV under 5 million," Yu Chengdong of Huawei said "far ahead," and Lei Jun naturally generates traffic.

As a shareholder of NIO Auto, Zhou Hongyi has often criticized NIO Auto CEO Zhang Yong's marketing abilities, commenting multiple times on NIO Auto's poor marketing and Zhang Yong's low-level speeches. However, surprisingly, the story of Zhou Hongyi and Zhang Yong's love-hate relationship has brought tremendous traffic to NIO Auto.

It is undeniable that Zhou Hongyi's achievements in grabbing traffic are indeed better than Zhang Yong's. Whether it's sitting on top of a car during a car show or auctioning his Maybach for 9.9 million yuan, Zhou Hongyi has stood at the forefront of traffic. And the tremendous traffic brought by Zhou Hongyi has indeed been captured by NIO Auto, as evidenced by the over 30,000 orders for NIO L.

For NIO Auto, Zhou Hongyi has gained unprecedented attention for NIO L, just as Zhang Yong said: After the launch of NIO L, whether it's leads, attention, or orders, they have been at the highest level since the end of 2022.

In fact, auto companies do need traffic, or rather, any company needs traffic to support product sales. Because traffic represents the ability to acquire customers and the consumer's awareness of the brand. A brand with high traffic can also enjoy higher market attention.

Whether in the automotive industry or other industries, companies need overwhelming news to promote their products, all for the sake of traffic. However, each company has a different way of grabbing traffic, so for car companies, grabbing traffic is not wrong. So it can be seen that heavyweight figures in the automotive industry, including Wei Jianjun from Great Wall Motors and several executives from GAC Group, have entered social media platforms and joined the battle for traffic.

However, it is one thing for car giants to compete for traffic in the future, and whether they can capture traffic and convert it into sales data is another matter. From the current traffic situation of major car companies, the ones that can monetize traffic are mainly a few car companies such as Nezha Motors, Xiaomi Motors, and AITO Wenjie. The performance of most car companies is still in a lukewarm state.

double-edged sword

High traffic car companies often have a greater chance of converting into order volume, but traffic is also a double-edged sword for car companies, and high traffic may not necessarily be a good thing. Zhang Yong also pointed out the drawbacks of high traffic: it is not allowed for car tycoons to say the wrong thing, and there is no room for free expression when speaking. A little bit of expression may be interpreted by others, and may be subjected to online bullying.

Car company executives are prone to online bullying, mainly because the traffic carrier of the company is different from other industries, not the brand and product, but the executives themselves.

Unlike other companies that package their products and brand practices, many car companies compete for traffic by packaging the image of their executives and becoming brand spokespersons in a celebrity like manner. And celebrity executives are more likely to have conflicts with consumers.

Because companies are profit driven, car executives and consumers themselves are on the opposite side. Executives pursue the maximization of corporate interests, and consumers are also considering their own interests when purchasing cars. The essence of the relationship between the two parties is conflict and opposition, and can even be said to be "enemies". This is one of the important reasons why celebrity executives in car companies have no freedom to speak up.

Consumers and car companies stand on the opposite side of their interests, and their attitudes towards car companies and models are basically in a state of "scrutiny". They do not care about the emotional value brought by celebrity executives, but rather care about models with higher value and higher cost-effectiveness.

Product hard power is key

The ability of an enterprise to obtain traffic can to some extent determine the life and death of a product or a company, but becoming a phenomenal product still depends on its own core competitiveness.

In addition, there is a distinction between short-term and long-term traffic. When a car company releases a new product, it is not difficult to obtain short-term traffic through some exaggerated language. The challenge is how to maintain high traffic in the long term. The key factor for car companies and products to receive long-term attention is their hard power.

Returning to the hot selling event of Nezha L, although Zhou Hongyi brought tremendous traffic to Nezha Motors, Zhang Yong also stated that Zhou Hongyi was half of the credit for Nezha L's success. So the remaining half cannot be separated from Nezha L's own hard power. Because cars are different from other commodities and belong to the category of bulk consumer goods, users spend a large amount of money to purchase cars, pursuing value for money, or even value for money.

And Nezha L has an advantage of directly dragging the refrigerator, color TV, and large sofa into the 150000 yuan level. You should know that the ideal car, known for its refrigerators, color televisions, and large sofas, is priced at around 300000 yuan or more. In contrast, the Nezha L allows consumers to spend less money and enjoy a higher level of driving experience, which means achieving equal comfort and a stronger sense of value.

Similarly, Xiaomi and AITO's models are highly sought after in the market, not only due to the high traffic brought by Lei Jun and Yu Chengdong, but also due to the excellent design of their products. If you chat with users of both Xiaomi and AITO Wenjie brands, or communicate with consumers who have experienced the products of both brands, it is not difficult to find that their word-of-mouth is generally good, such as the driving quality of Xiaomi SU7 and the intelligent technology of AITO Wenjie models. This is the core competitiveness of Xiaomi and AITO.

It can be seen that in order for a product to have traffic, the key lies in whether it can create a people-centered product. If the product can indeed bring tangible value to users and truly meet their needs, then it is not difficult for the product to gain user recognition. Of course, being able to develop and manufacture products with a human centered approach requires user thinking, which is based on a profound understanding of an industry.

Traffic and quality complement each other

The automotive market is constantly changing, and the speed of technological updates and iterations of vehicle models is accelerating. To maintain market competitiveness in the long term, both traffic and technology are indispensable, and they complement each other. As Li Bin from NIO Auto said, in the end of car manufacturing, the focus is on the quality of products and services. Relying solely on user traffic cannot develop the automotive business.

Similarly, Zhu Huarong from Changan Automobile also expressed a similar view, stating that whether it is a traditional car company, a new ICT company entering this industry, or other new force car companies, they need to closely focus on creating value for customers, creating good products and services in the long term, and enhancing long-term sustainable traffic, rather than a fleeting form and state.

It can be seen that the importance of traffic and technology to car companies can be said to be evenly matched. In the automotive industry, traffic is important, but equally important is that car companies can rely on research and development technology and product quality to establish the true value of their brand, and can bring durable and safe vehicles to users.

After all, cars are different from electronic products such as mobile phones and laptops. The price of electronic products is relatively low, and many people replace them after using them for one or two years. However, cars often require tens of thousands, or even hundreds of thousands, which is usually the savings of many people over several years. The replacement cycle of cars is usually five or six years, so the quality of cars needs to be durable. Moreover, cars often drive at high speeds on the road, and safety is also very important.

Therefore, for any car company, it is necessary to understand the importance of high-profile traffic grabbing, but the importance of focusing on technology research and development cannot be ignored. For automobiles, only when the product strength is in place and there is traffic can it be converted into sales in the long run. Otherwise, if the product is not done well, the final result will be backfired by traffic, and it will eventually lose the trust of consumers.

There is an old saying that no matter what kind of reputation, it cannot compare to the good reputation of the people. With a good reputation, such car companies can live longer and go further.