The-Sales Network Buiding And Management Of FAW-Volkswagen Audi Brand

With the sustained growth of national economy, China automotiveindustry has developed rapidly in the past years. The production andconsumption capacity of automobiles have increased dramatically.Automotive industry has become one of the leading industries supporting thegrowth of Chinese economy. In the coming years, due to the further increaseof national economy and gradual improvement of the consumptionenvironment, the prospect of China automotive market will be morepromising.In 1999, FAW-Volkswagen induced Audi saloon car into China market.Local produced Audi cars have integrated Audi unique leading technique withtop science and technology in the world. Under the principle of "One World,One Audi, One Quality", relying on the advantages in product, cost,brand and selling service network, Audi cars have won the favor ofcustomers in national public vehicle, commercial vehicle and private car'smarket. During the six years, Audi is ranking the leading position in nationalluxurious car market,and sales amount and market share are increasing everyyear. With a market share of 70.5% in superior saloon cars in China in Year2004,FAW-Volkswagen has sold 202,000 Audi cars up to now.Since 2003, many worldwide famous superior saloon cars have beenproduced in China, including BMW, Cardelarc, Teana, Benz, Crown,Royaum etc. With respective advantages, they are competing with Audi carsin various levels in superior saloon car market. The advantages of Audi brandand product are no longer as evident as before. Having lost the extraordinarypredominance in local superior saloon car market, Audi cars are facing theintense competition. Considering such an market environment, in order tokeep the leading position, FAW-Volkswagen put forward the theory of "Costis the first signal", namely cutting cost in all aspects, including purchasing,production etc. On the other hand, FAW-Volkswagen has applied positivemarketing and sales strategy into the continuously changing competitionsituation. Furthermore, this thesis puts forward the theory of "improving theconstruction and management of selling channel", for channel can also bringdifferent competition advantages to manufacturing plants. As one of theimportant loops in marketing, the unsteadiness of regional selling channelwill cause adverse influence to operating efficiency, competition ability andoperating safety of the manufacturing plants. FAW-Volkswagen shouldachieve maximum competition predominance through optimizing currentselling channel, improving the management and control to the channel andthereby enhancing the final selling ability.In China, Audi takes the monopolization module, which is a regionalselling channel module focused on FAW-Volkswagon sales company, basedon regional management and centered on assigned sellers. Such moduleintegrates overall sale,aftersales service,spare parts supply and informationfeedback together , facing to final customers under the control ofmanufacturing plants. This assignment monopolization module, puttinguniform pricing, standardized service and four into one policy together, isbeneficial not only for FAW-Volkswagon in protecting Audi brand reputationand stabilizing market order, but also for regional sellers in expanding profitsource through sale and service. By March,2005,FAW-Volkswagen has setup 101 assigned regional selling stores in China, and the selling network hascovered all provinces in China, except Tibet, Hong Kong, Macau andTianwan.FAW-Volkswagen is devoted to constructing perfect sales and servicenetwork of Audi brand. In order to provide the customers with the first-classsales service, different kinds of policies and measures to improve the sellingnetwork have been created and carried out. However,the market environmentis continuously changing. With more and more intense competition in superiorsaloon car market, the problems in Audi selling network have come out.â… .The unreasonable network construction has weakened the regionalseller's profit and their loyalty to Audi brand, and decreased the servicequality sequentially.â…¡.Due to weak supervision, some regional sellers broke the regulationsto meet their own short-term interest, such as selling as a low price,cross-district selling and wholesale etc., which has disordered the market andincreased the internal cost.â…¢.The run away ratio of basic sales person is high, the comprehensivequality of whom need to be improved. All the problems are deemed toinfluence the long-term healthy development of Audi brand in Chinaautomotive market.Regarding the problems mentioned above, this thesis puts forward threesuggestions. First, the rate of selling network construction should be unitedwith that of superior saloon car market growth. FAW-Volkswagon should notonly ensure the accomplishment of sales task and high-grade aftersalesservice, but take the profit level the sellers can reach in consideration. At thesame time, FAW-Volkswagon should encourage the sellers to set up morenetworks in second-class and third-class cities around. Thus, the sellingnetwork will be expanded with a low cost, and at the same time, the sellerswill obtain a higher profit. Second, Audi brand regional sales managementregulation needs to be created as soon as possible. It must be prevented thatthe behaviors infringing other members'interest in the same selling network,such as selling as a low price, cross-district selling and wholesale etc.,through which an orderly market environment can be set up. It is beneficialnot only for FAW-Volkswagen in achieving excellent sales performance, butfor the network members in improving the comprehensive ability, keepingthe sustained development. Last but not least , I suggest thatFAW-Volkswagon should cooperate with consultative companies andestablish advanced human resource management process for all Audi assignedsellers, compromising the loops of investment, training and recruitment,improving the productivities, activating the potentiality and regeneratingability of the human resource, formulating a perfect human resourceperformance evaluating system and prompting mechanism, via which thehuman resource will be made full use of. On the other hand, a yearly heldsales competition will motivate and encourage the sales persons'morale,improve sales performance of Audi cars and the passion of the sales persons tostudy product knowledge and selling skills, which will provide a platform toall Audi sales members of showing sales skills, enhancing quality andrealizing self value.In conclusion, this thesis expects to provide some advantageous...