Study Of DPCA's Brand Strategy

DongFeng Peugeot Citroen Automobile Company, LTD (DPCA) is a joint venture car enterprise, which was constructed by DongFeng Automobile Company Of China and PSA Peugeot Citroen Group Of France and some other stockholders. Early, DPCA manufactured the brand saloon car-"ShenLong FuKang" by introducing into the technology of Citroen's production.In the face of drastic market competition, DPCA's market occupancy percentage has been declining continually. In 2002, DongFeng Automobile Company and PSA Peugeot Citroen Group together upgraded the cooperative administrative levels and expanded the cooperative scope. DPCA has adjusted the brand to "DongFeng Citroen" and "DongFeng Peugeot" and in addition established the strategy of setting up "the first brand saloon car for home in China". "FuKang" has become an accessorial brand of "DongFeng Citroen".The dissertation applies external audit method of strategy management, investigates market circumstances of DPCA and selects ten pivotal external factors to analyse the brand strategy of DPCA. The educible conclusion is:the actual brand strategy of DPCA can't make excellent response to the opportunity and threat of internal car market; therefore, DPCA is in all probability incapable of keeping within limits the continual downtrend of the market occupancy percentage in recent years. Basing upon the above facts, the dissertation brings forward a new conception on the brand strategy of DPCA, that divorce the brand "FuKang" from the brand system of "DongFeng Citroen", assimilate the technology of Citroen and Peugeot's production, extend the length and width of the products line,and set up the brand "DongFeng FuKang". There will be some benefits: First, it can make use of the well-known brand "FuKang" to occupy the economical saloon car market of below one hundred thousand Yuan fleetly. Secondly, it will be benefit to fractionize the market; accordingly DPCA will retain the secondary and slap-up brand figure of "DongFeng Citroen" and "DongFeng Peugeot". Thirdly, it will be in favor of fetching in and drawing on technology, consequently DPCA will form independent exploitive ability and be capable of aiming at car market of China to develop appropriate products.Brand naming has important significance in brand strategy. From the point of view of Chinese linguistics and psychology, the dissertation puts forward the principles of brand naming of car product in China and analyses the brand naming of DPCA, pointing out that the brand naming of "DongFeng Citroen" and "DongFeng Peugeot" should be inosculated with the culture of China.The dissertation synthesizes the knowledge of brand management, strategy management and principles of marketing to do theoretic research and demonstrable research about the brand strategy of DPCA. Hope that the dissertation will be somewhat helpful in the development of DPCA and also offer more or less useful reference to internal car enterprises.