Yesterday, the 35th Foshan Ceramics Expo arrived as scheduled. As I walked on the road, I saw groups of people wearing vests and holding signs "parading the streets to solicit customers." At this time, someone nearby said, "There are more and more people speculating and selling bricks at special prices every year." What's more, someone said with emotion, "Making ceramics has reached the end of the road."
In fact, if there is a Buddha in your heart, everything you see is a Buddha. If the flowers are really fragrant, how can butterflies not come?
Ceramic dealers and other groups from all over the country flocked here, just to see the new products and fashion trends of Foshan ceramic brands. Especially in the absence of the Bologna Ceramics Show in Italy this year, the Foshan Ceramics Expo is shouldering the great responsibility of leading the industry. In the past few days, we have seen that major brands that have been dormant for a long time have become active, holding new product launch conferences one after another, only to provide the best products to merchants from afar, and to attract some business.
But at this time when a hundred flowers are blooming, brands need to rack their brains and use all their strength if they want to "stand out". This seems to prove that the theory of "if flowers bloom, butterflies will come" is not convincing enough. Don’t worry, what I want to talk about today is about the issue of “how product IP becomes popular (speculated)”, which can be roughly divided into three points: originality, positioning and marketing.
1
Original products are a powerful tool to avoid low-end price competition
“Ceramic itself is made of clay. After being tempered by fire, if it can only be sold at the price of clay, then what is the future of the industry?” An old man who has been engaged in product research and development for many years once said about the industry The existing low-end mass-market products are so questionable. In other words, if the existence of ceramic tiles can add points to consumers' home environment, then the product will have value and the industry will have a future. This is also the meaning of brand existence.
If a company wants to get rid of the low-end OEM method and transform into a brand, product originality is the only way. As we all know, in the period of industry reshuffle, transformation will bring pain, but if we do not change, we will face death.
For most private recycling plants and OEMs, it is now a time of life and death, especially under the pressure of Guangdong's "coal-to-gas" transition, and there is not much time left for them. Therefore, in the past two years, many companies have begun to upgrade their brand strategies, build new exhibition halls, and vigorously attract investment. But for companies that started late, if they don’t have their own original products, how can they compete with the vast army of brands in the industry by just “imitation”? The author makes a bold guess that they will eventually go back to the old path of winning on price.
In fact, insisting on originality is adding value to the product. Based on the basic properties of low water absorption, wear resistance, high temperature resistance, and antifouling, ceramic tiles can enhance their value from many aspects such as design, craftsmanship, serialization, human culture, and branding. For example: an ordinary marble tile can only be sold for 39-49 yuan/piece in the market; those with popular colors and high stone texture restoration can be sold for 5 yuan more; digital glaze, dry granular and semi-finished tiles are added Craftsmanship such as tossing, candy, and fine carving can be sold for 5-10 yuan more; expand and form a series of products in terms of size, matte and shiny surfaces, etc., and can be sold for 5 yuan more; inject ideas and ideas into the products. The connotation or feelings, depending on the story behind it, can be sold for 10 yuan more... If it is a brand with a certain height, it can completely push the price of marble tiles to 100+ yuan/piece or even higher.
Original products are a powerful tool to avoid low-end price competition. This principle also applies to the currently popular slate category. He Gan, chairman of Jinyitao Group, made a statement a few days ago, "Please cherish the slate", which aroused the reflection of many people in the industry. At present, consumers are still in a state of expecting but not understanding about slate. The delivery of customized products and processing applications, while creating unique original IP, is an important way for slate manufacturers to avoid homogenization of products. the most effective method.
It is worth mentioning that Jinyitao Group's Jinyan Slate Home Furnishings continues to extend Jinyitao's texture IP and launched candy glaze 5.0 rock slabs, digital flash textured rock slabs, and digital matte slabs during the Ceramics Expo. A variety of original new products, such as smooth slate and metal glazed slate, bring more possibilities to the slate finishes on the market.
2
IP is not just about positioning products;It is also the DNA of the brand
In recent years, as the consumer circle has become younger and more high-end, the popularity of the concept of original IP has only increased, and it has also emerged in this trend. A large number of successful brands. Take Jinyitao as an example. From modern antique bricks to using texture as IP to define the brand, it is undoubtedly successful. Another example is Jianyi marble tiles, which first positioned itself with subdivided categories of marble tiles, and then focused on creating a product IP with "close seams and continuous patterns". Today, its annual sales have far exceeded that of most full-category marble tiles in the same period. Self-proclaimed brand.
Jack Trout, the father of positioning, once said: There are only two ways for an enterprise to exist, either to position itself or to die. This also shows that IP is part of the brand's DNA. So, don’t be afraid of positioning, and don’t be afraid of labels. You know, IP is a good thing to help brands seize the minds of customers.
Filona cement tiles is the brand that actively puts labels on itself. From the clear cement Filona V series, which is inspired by water stains and uses multiple techniques such as mold surface, rough glaze and dry-grained semi-polished surface, it abandons the past gray-to-gray style and appears in 12 contemporary popular colors. From the Fiona U series to the Filona U4 series x "Mulan: Born from the Sky" co-branded ceramic tiles launched during the Ceramics Expo, an original IP of cement + design products belonging to Fiona has been deeply rooted in the hearts of the people.
There is also a very successful case of creating an original product IP. I believe everyone is familiar with it. It is the Big Horn Deer super wear-resistant marble tile. Dajiulu's original "super wear-resistant diamond glaze" technology has obtained a national patent. The glaze used comes from Carobbia, Italy, making the wear resistance of its products more than level 4 (3 times higher than ordinary marble tiles). With such technology and glaze, Bighorn Deer reminds everyone of its "super wear-resistant, long-lasting new" qualities.
The formation of this kind of product original IP is exactly the process of building brand DNA.
3
It is not enough for the original IP of the product to be "trendy", it must be "speculated"
Facing the increasingly severe product homogeneity in the industry, adhering to originality and optimizing and iterating products through continuous innovation are the keys for brands to maintain a competitive advantage in the market. To achieve the ultimate in product research and development and create original IP that is trendy enough is an in-depth development of each brand. However, it is not enough to cultivate deeply internally. The product is still one step away from standing out in the market competition, and this step is to promote itself externally and continuously expand its visibility, reputation and influence through word-of-mouth marketing.
At this point, the author saw the answer again from the brand of Dajiulu super wear-resistant marble tiles. Most people in the industry know that Big Horn Deer Super Wear-Resistant Marble Tiles were officially renamed in 2018. In just two years, even a child in the terminal store knows: "Big Horn Deer Super Wear Resistant". What they rely on is nothing else but the "masochistic spirit" of polishing bricks with a steel brush.
At the 2019 Foshan Spring Ceramics Expo, the Big Horn Deer super wear-resistant marble tiles became famous immediately after being polished. Subsequently, it continued to grind with the same formula. The key point is that not only in the Foshan headquarters, this concept of "you will know whether the tiles are good or not" has been simultaneously copied to all Dajiulu terminal stores across the country. As Nan Shunzhi, chairman of Dajiulu Ceramics, often says: "Do simple things over and over again." As for the effect, I believe everyone has seen it.
In addition, other brands that understand the need to combine products with marketing include Gold Medal Asian Tiles. Some time ago, Gold Medal Asia launched a new series of gold velvet products. In order to promote Golden Velvet, Gold Medal Asia spared no expense in advertising on high-speed railways, anti-aircraft guns, and major media platforms. From September 28th to October 31st, Gold Medal Asia held the "Gold Medal Asia Golden Velvet Series Douyin Challenge" with the help of the "topic" + "co-production" function of the Douyin platform, uniting dealers and consumers across the country Interact, promote products and attract countless followers for the brand.
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Compared with the past, the marketing actions of "holding a press conference, making some materials, and shouting a few slogans" during the Ceramics Expo have become increasingly ineffective. The era of reckless brand manipulation has long since come to an end. Consumer groups and brands have become younger at the same time, and product research and development and marketing also need to be refined simultaneously. Companies that do not follow this trend may not be able to survive even if there are three ceramic expos a year.
Author: Hong Xiaochun
