Restarting Marketing, Aion Poised to Shatter Prejudice

Aian urgently needs a marketing transformation to break free from its past entrenched perceptions.

With the rapid development of the new energy vehicle market, the overtaking opportunities brought by industrial transformation over the years have finally allowed Chinese car companies to move beyond the initial stage of apprehension. Through frequent trial and error, they have gradually built absolute confidence.

In this period, Aion, which started with GAC New Energy, produced an enviable report card after two and a half years of practice. In 2023, Aion's total annual sales reached 480,000 vehicles, and its momentum was no less than that of the thriving Tesla.

However, amid the rapid surge in sales, Aion also faces its own challenges. With its main product lineup concentrated below 150,000 yuan, Aion has gained an early grasp of this market segment, but it has also led major ride-hailing companies to directly target Aion for their purchases, making it difficult for Aion to strike a balance between sales volume and brand image.

Starting from 2024, Aion has also become aware of this issue.

On one hand, with the launch of the HaoBo brand and the emergence of pure electric supercars like the SSR, Aion aims to achieve a qualitative transformation in its brand image; on the other hand, starting from full-stack self-developed technology, such as detaching the research and development of core components like the electric drive system from suppliers or creating exclusive tags in intelligent experience, Aion is eager to find new breakthroughs.

To this day, due to the entire industry's shift towards the 150,000 yuan-level new energy market, leading Chinese car companies such as BYD and Geely have made significant efforts, vowing to stir up the waters. As a result, the burden on Aion continues to increase.

After the launch of RT, the second-generation AION V, and UT, AION urgently needs a more energetic external packaging. As GAC Group shifts its focus from the domestic market to the global market, AION also needs to break out of its current marketing mindset.

Previously, under the leadership of Gu Huinan and Xiao Yong, Aion established its foothold in the core of the new energy industry. Now, with the opportunity of a major integration within the group, Yang Long, who once led GAC Mitsubishi and is considered a veteran in the group's marketing, has fully taken over Aion's marketing efforts. This is bound to send a signal to the outside world: Aion's next stage of development may present itself with a new look.

Leadership reshuffle, marketing transformation expected

This year, after the independent operation of the Haobo brand, Aion has had more energy to focus on its own brand concerning future development. From research and development to products, from channels to marketing, the increase in freedom always provides Aion with the opportunity to sort out new directions.

Yang Long's arrival primarily focuses on Aion's control over future marketing. Reflecting on Aion's development over the past few years, honestly, compared to many new energy vehicle companies with a strong online presence, Aion has not been very effective in managing real-time traffic.

In the new era, consumers have been influenced by companies like Weilai, Xiaopeng, and Li Auto, incorporating emotional value as a necessary factor in choosing a car. Regardless of the product's positioning, as long as the brand can engage the potential users' mindset, there is an opportunity to prompt them to make impulsive purchases.

For Aion, a new energy brand that originated from a traditional car company, such a similar approach has indeed been rare in the past few years. Moreover, with sales reaching a peak in a short period due to the huge demand in the travel market, whether it is because the market changes too much or Aion's limited resources can only focus on either marketing or sales, the result will naturally differ from expectations.

A more intuitive point is that when everyone is unwilling to classify Aion as a new force in order to increase the perceived value of their own sales, and if Aion finds it difficult to respond strongly in terms of communication, it might indeed leave the entire brand at a loss when faced with sudden changes in public opinion.

We do not deny that during Aian's rapid development over the past few years, senior brand leaders such as Gu Huinan and Xiao Yong have provided many concrete opinions and suggestions for the overall brand building.

However, as the frequency and magnitude of market fluctuations continue to increase, perhaps the group leadership is also eager for new forces to offer fresh strategies to Aion.

According to public information, Yang Long, who will take over the marketing work for Aion, started his career at GAC Honda. Speaking of GAC Honda, from introducing the 4S store business model to launching the slogan that synchronized with the world from the very beginning, which initiated the practice of premium pricing for models like the Accord, GAC Honda ranks among the top in the industry in terms of market communication and marketing.

Therefore, after Yang Long delved into the sales field during his time at GAC Honda and accumulated rich market operation experience in joint venture car companies, he was transferred to GAC Mitsubishi with an official order. He successively served as the deputy director and director of the general manager's office, focusing on strategic coordination and optimization of the internal management system. His core role was to rectify the image of the Mitsubishi brand, which had experienced multiple survival crises, in the minds of consumers.

In 2016, Yang Longsheng was promoted to Executive Vice General Manager of Mitsubishi Motors Sales (China) Co., Ltd., fully responsible for the integration and sales strategy of Mitsubishi's imported car business in China. This further demonstrated the group's recognition of his personal capabilities.

With over 10 years of experience in brand marketing management, Yang Long's appointment to Aion may seem like another internal senior management assignment within the group. However, based on Aion's development, Yang Long's insights into brand operations could become a crucial resource for advancing the GAC Aion brand. His cross-brand and multi-sector marketing background perfectly aligns with Aion's current development needs.

GAC's independent rise, Aion's mission will be accomplished.

Setting aside the AION S and AION Y, if we take a closer look at Aion’s current product lineup, starting from last year—whether it’s the industry’s first model to promote mass adoption of assisted driving, the second-generation AION V, or the UT, which targets the pure electric A0 segment with its A-class dimensions—it’s clear that ever since Aion figured out the ins and outs of the entry-level pure electric market, all its new products have demonstrated a certain degree of market aggressiveness.

If we delve deeper, including why new models with comparable product strength like the UT haven't met sales expectations upon entering the market, I believe shortcomings in marketing will inevitably be revealed to us.

In the next stage, the mission entrusted to Aion by the Group is certainly more than simply selling more cars. Under the strategic guideline of fully revitalizing GAC’s independent brands, Aion urgently needs to shoulder the responsibility of leading the Group’s efforts in new energy with its own unique approach.

Looking at GAC's current brand composition, in accelerating the transition to new energy, the historical burden of Trumpchi's fuel vehicles is heavy, and the user base of Haobo is insufficient to rapidly support the brand's forward development. Only Aion can shoulder this important responsibility.

In China, following the exposure by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, Aion's subsequent products will take the all-new range-extended hybrid SUV - i60 as a new starting point, entering a new positive cycle of updates. In the future, in line with competitors, Aion will operate both pure electric and range-extended lines in parallel.

Overseas, since establishing a complete vehicle factory in Southeast Asia last year, and with the group showcasing their presence around the world, such as at this month's Munich Auto Show, Feng Xingya is eager to bring Aion's new cars to the European market as soon as possible.

In other words, from any perspective, Aion is no longer just a business unit of GAC Group in the new energy industry. On the day when its brand power is elevated to a level comparable to top-tier independent brands, Aion will take on the heavy responsibility of the group's expansion into the global market.

In the Chinese market, marketing has always been a discipline that tests top-level thinking. Over the past year, as influencer founders have taken on the role of the brand's primary spokesperson, it can lead to an underestimation of the importance of marketing. People may think that just one passionate call from the founder can surpass the entire marketing department's efforts over a period of time.

But from beginning to end, none of this has ever been applicable to every automaker. With the group aiming to have (proprietary brands) account for over 60% of total sales by 2027 and challenging itself to reach (proprietary brand sales) of 2 million vehicles, Aion needs to be reborn.

In summary, Yang Long's arrival is definitely a good thing for Aion to initiate marketing transformation. Perhaps back in the day, when GAC Mitsubishi used the foundation of Aion AION V to create the Outlander, Yang Long had already established a connection with Aion.

From the perspective of the group's interests or considering Aion's own development, during this special period, Aion acts as the vanguard for GAC's independent brands re-entering the market core. This will also help GAC Aion integrate the group's quality resources, further enhance the brand's market competitiveness, and expand the brand's development boundaries externally.

Soon, the brand-new collaboration between GAC and Huawei will make its debut. If, by then, the group's resources are further dispersed and shifted toward the development of the new brand, it is possible that AION, which has already broken through in marketing, could leverage its first-mover advantage to fuel GAC’s diversified independent development.