Reported by pulsestacks on April 29
During the 2024 Beijing International Auto Show, pulsestacks invited industry leaders, corporate executives, and expert scholars to step into the "AI Real-time Virtual Studio" to explore the breakthroughs and innovations of the new era and new cars in the immersive experiences of Peak Speed, Netaland, and Content Players.
Exclusive Interview with Zhou Qian of Dongfeng Nissan at the 2024 Beijing Auto Show (Source: pulsestacks)
On April 25, Zhou Qian, Deputy Minister of User Operations Center of Dongfeng Nissan Motor Sales Co., Ltd., visited the Netaland "AI Real-time Virtual Studio." He stated that Dongfeng Nissan has made progress in intelligent and electrification transformation, aiming to meet increasingly diverse market demands. He also introduced the new brand proposition "Enjoyment by NI" and its innovative goals behind it, which aims to enhance consumer experience. Additionally, he specifically mentioned the "GLOCAL New Model," which combines global technological advantages with local market insights, aiming to promote the expansion of Chinese innovation to the global market.
Zhou Qian, Deputy Minister of User Operations Center at Dongfeng Nissan Automobile Sales Co., Ltd.
pulsestacks: Carefully selected cars, creating peak speed together. Welcome to the pulsestacks Netaland live broadcast room at the Beijing Auto Show. This is a virtual space that combines racing speed and trendy culture. Our guest in the interview today is Mr. Zhou Qian, Deputy Minister of Operations Center at Dongfeng Nissan Automobile Sales Co., Ltd.
Zhou Qian: Hello. Good host, dear friends from Netease, good afternoon everyone. This time, we have brought Dongfeng Nissan's thoughts on the future and electrification product matrix to Dongfeng Nissan's booth. So, if our dear audience has noticed Dongfeng's booth, you can see what we have in store for the new energy track, including electric, plug-in hybrid sedans, SUVs, and outstanding electric Formula E race cars. We welcome all viewers to come to Dongfeng Nissan's booth to visit and experience it firsthand.
pulsestacks: Can you elaborate on the new energy strategy unveiled at this auto show?
Zhou Qian: Our dear friends are well aware that China's current automotive consumer market is the world's largest. Chinese automotive consumers are among the happiest globally. Why do I say this? Because China's automotive industry, especially in new energy, is leading globally. In this context and trend, every automaker is considering how to impress and meet the needs of consumers with better products, services, and experiences. It is in this context that Dongfeng Nissan has put forward the brand proposition of "Innovation for Excitement," focusing on meeting consumer demands for car products, services, and experiences. Under this theme, we have conducted comprehensive discussions on technology, services, and product lineups, all of which are showcased at this auto show.
pulsestacks: Dongfeng Nissan also announced the slogan "Excitement Comes from NI" at this event. How should we interpret this slogan?
Zhou Qian: "Excitement Comes from NI" is essentially the same as what I mentioned earlier, "Innovation for Excitement." NI stands for "you" in Chinese, referring to consumers. In other words, Dongfeng Nissan aims to sincerely create products that better satisfy consumers' interests and needs.
Firstly, comfort is a well-known and proud aspect of Dongfeng Nissan's products. Over the past 21 years, the comfort of Dongfeng Nissan products has been widely recognized and trusted by consumers. Therefore, this year, we continue to advocate for intelligent new comfort.
Secondly, intelligence. Those who visited Dongfeng Nissan's booth this morning may have noticed a hint that Dongfeng Nissan will have a larger and stronger circle of friends in the overall layout of intelligence to upgrade product services. We also look forward to bringing more exciting news to consumers at our upcoming technical press conference.
Thirdly, the diverse demands for various products. The Chinese market is large enough for our pure electric products, fuel vehicles, plug-in hybrids, and even new energy products to find their place and share. Dongfeng Nissan is one of the very few companies that possess the ability to transform all these technologies into mature product lineups and a full product matrix. Based on these three aspects, we hope that Dongfeng Nissan can stay ahead in anticipating and planning for future consumer needs, even those that consumers have not yet thought of. This is the profound meaning behind our brand proposition of "Excitement Comes from NI."
pulsestacks: At this Beijing Auto Show, we mainly showcased some concept cars, including Dongfeng Nissan's brand philosophy.
Zhou Qian: Yes, especially in our forward-looking considerations on the new energy track for the future, we have also made systematic releases at this auto show.
Dongfeng Nissan Automobile Sales Co., Ltd. Deputy Minister of User Operations Zhou Qian and Pulsestacks Editor-in-Chief Liu Chang
Pulsestacks: GLOCAL model, what are the characteristics and differentiated advantages of this model?
Zhou Qian: Well, this word is quite interesting. We call it GLOCAL internally. If we break it down, it combines Global and Local states. Why do we say this? First is Global. As we all know, Nissan started developing electric products before 1977, so Nissan has a 77-year history of developing and manufacturing new energy products, with rich experience in all aspects of automobile manufacturing. This is its strength and advantage as a Global player, which is the first part. The second part is what is Local? In today's Chinese consumer market, the demand for localization is strong enough, the development speed of new energy is rapid enough, and the overall market leadership is gradually moving towards the status of being a leading automotive market powerhouse globally. So we have integrated the advantages of both aspects, each playing to its strengths, to create a better base for creating products and services for Chinese consumers. Therefore, we call this process and model GLOCAL.
Pulsestacks: Based on this model, what are our future product plans?
Zhou Qian: Returning to today's Beijing Auto Show, we unveiled 4 concept cars. Why did we choose to unveil concept cars this time instead of showcasing more real car scenarios? It's because in the future, these products will have even more powerful and prominent intelligent experiences gradually unfolding. We have a rhythm like this, including our pure electric sedans, plug-in hybrid products, and SUV series matrix, etc. These 4 products will be gradually introduced to the market to meet consumer needs and the overall pace. We are steadily advancing according to the most rapid and mainstream product development steps in the current Chinese market.
Pulsestacks: Between this year and 2024, what new products will be launched one after another?
Zhou Qian: This year, we will have a special product technology conference, where more exciting news will be released to the public. So today, please allow me to keep a little suspense.
Pulsestacks: In the context of electrification, why does Dongfeng Nissan still value fuel vehicles and launch plans like Oil-Electric Intelligence?
Zhou Qian: This question may need to be addressed from two perspectives. The first aspect is whether there is still a market for fuel vehicles. As I mentioned earlier, the Chinese market is large enough that both our fuel products and new energy products can find their value and position in the vast Chinese market. So we absolutely cannot abandon the broad user base of fuel vehicles.
The second question is, why do we propose Oil-Electric Intelligence on this basis? Because whether it's a fuel vehicle owner or a new energy vehicle owner, the lineages of these two products are not mutually exclusive or opposed. They must have common consumer demands, which are for a more intelligent, richer, and more comfortable product experience. Therefore, why do we propose Oil-Electric Intelligence this year? We hope that with our strong product system, we can bring a more enriching and intelligent comfortable experience to both fuel vehicle owners and new energy vehicle owners. So we hope that Oil-Electric Intelligence will be adhered to in various actions and initiatives in our company in the future.
Pulsestacks: Faced with the increasingly vibrant Chinese automotive market, what follow-up measures will Dongfeng Nissan take to layout its products in the Local Chinese market?
Zhou Qian: This question is quite broad and macroscopic because it involves the deep cooperation and integration between our shareholders, Dongfeng Group and Nissan, as well as the specific implementation of the integration system at Dongfeng Nissan. In fact, this morning, Nissan CEO Makoto Uchida specifically introduced the closer cooperation and integration between Nissan and Dongfeng Group at the product level, including our products, our research and development, our new energy strategy, and various specific implementation measures.
I'll give a few simple examples. First, what is Local? Currently, we have combined the strongest and most cutting-edge technological strength and research and development capabilities of Dongfeng and Nissan in Dongfeng Nissan, our joint venture. This is the first aspect. The second aspect is the advantageous resources of both parties, especially Nissan's solid-state battery, a globally leading technology, which we are currently actively incorporating into the entire value chain of Dongfeng Nissan. The third aspect is in the overall product development rhythm, we are firmly rooted in Local, that is, the speed of localized development, and we are going all out to move forward. It is based on these three aspects of actions and initiatives that we have the confidence to propose the action guideline of "In China, For China, Towards the World."
Pulsestacks: What marketing initiatives are planned for 2024?
Zhou Qian: In terms of marketing, the essence remains unchanged, which is to focus on the changes in the entire consumer consumption scene, changes in consumer habits, and changes in how we reach users. So on the one hand, we are putting all our efforts into new media marketing. On the other hand, based on the marketing needs of consumer scenarios, we have adopted a decentralized marketing approach, spreading out to various dimensions of fragmented user touchpoints. This is what we have been trying and have achieved some small successes this year, which is our current situation. pulsestacks: Is there anything else you would like to share with our online friends?
Zhou Qian: I just want to share a little: I am especially grateful to our online friends, consumers, for supporting, caring, and encouraging Dongfeng Nissan, a company that has been providing car products and services through 21 years of research and development. Over the past 21 years, Dongfeng Nissan has gained the trust of 16 million customers. In the future, we hope that our online friends and car owners can continue to support Dongfeng Nissan. Dongfeng Nissan will definitely use more practical measures and a more sincere attitude to bring consumers a better product experience and service.
