Swatch is such a classic case. Swatch's starting point is to start from consumer demand, not the production process. It broke the habit of buying only one watch in one's life, changed the function of watches from rational demands for timing to emotional demands, and began to regard watches as popular and fashionable accessories, completely subverting the positioning of products. Swatch's success saved the Swiss watch group that was almost acquired by Seiko.
Coping with disasters
Switzerland's watch industry has an ancient tradition. It has dominated the world market for decades, satisfying a series of consumers' needs-from precision to style, from luxury to taste, the price of watches ranges from 65,438+000 to 500,000 dollars. But for half a century, the enterprise design of Swiss watchmaking industry has not changed much. Its target is still conservative and wealthy consumers who are willing to pay a high price for a product, because the most distinctive feature of this product is that it is printed with "Made in Switzerland".
But in the 1970s and 1980s, a storm swept the Swiss watchmaking industry. The watch market with a value of $654.38+000 billion has been transferred from traditional Swiss enterprises to emerging enterprises represented by Timex, Citizen, Seiko and Casio. The usual explanation is that the cause of this disaster lies in technological progress, especially the development of digital watches. However, Nicolas G. Hayek, an entrepreneur who makes Swatch watches, doesn't think so. He believes that the reason lies not in technology, but in the thinking of Swiss managers.
Hayek's clue lies not in digital technology or low-cost manufacturing system, but in style and style. At first, he was not worried about producing cheap watches. Instead, he asked consumers what they expected from watches: fun, good-looking, stylish, or all these?
Hayek firmly believes that if he sells fun and tricks, consumers will need five or even a dozen watches, not just a slow-moving reptile. Therefore, designing a unique product conveys a unique message to consumers: "high quality, low cost, excitement and interest in life." He began to inject emotion into his watch, making it not only a high-quality product, but also a tasteful and pleasant ornament, just like earrings or ties. This will give the wearer an unconventional and unique image, and even express a humor that is difficult to express in other ways.
From economical watches to fashion accessories
Hayek's proposition was realized from 1983 to 1985. 1985, Hayek and a group of investors acquired 5 1% of the total assets of two watch companies, ASUAG and SSIH, totaling1500,000 Swiss francs (about1020,000 US dollars). After gaining control, Hayek's main action is to cross the threshold of "economical watch" and enter the fields of "accessories", "style" and "fashion".
When Hayek took office, the high-end consumer market was shrinking. Although the Swiss watch industry occupies 90% of this market, it has lost the growing mid-range market. As for the low-end market, Swiss watches below 100 Swiss francs are not produced at all. Hayek realized a huge opportunity, and he issued an almost absurd challenge: "Find a way to sell 30-dollar watches in Switzerland."
Hayek's challenge inspired his team and led to a series of breakthroughs. For example, they reduced the number of watch parts from 155 to 5 1. By reducing the number of rotating parts, the chances of damage are reduced, and the company needs far fewer people to assemble watches, and the wages of these Swiss workers are high. Results The labor cost decreased from 30% to 10%. "We try to maintain the highest quality of our watches. Our watch has never broken down. It is better than any other watch in the world-less than 1% in repair rate. The repair rate of the best watch in the world is less than 3%. " It seems that Hayek not only gave Swatch a fashionable appearance, but also made some efforts in quality control.
Of course, more importantly, it is recognized by customers. Hayek made a bold bet on choosing consumers. He studied the consumers aged 18 ~ 30, who bought Nike sneakers, Benetton jerseys, Gap clothes and blues records. He believes that to succeed in this market, we must be able to perceive the changes in consumers' tastes, which is much more important than mastering new production technologies.
Everything is going well, and now Hayek's new product is short of a name. Hayek once recalled: "At that time, we were cooperating with an American advertising company. They thought of the most exciting names in the world, but none of them were satisfactory. At the end of lunch, a lady wrote a Swiss watch and a stopwatch on the blackboard, and then wrote Swatch. Our poor English helped us. We don't know that swatch means clean towel in English. If I knew, I wouldn't let the company open under this name! Fortunately, it sounds good in any European language-including English and even Chinese. "
Seize consumers
Fortunately for Swatch, it is not only creative, but also popular. Consumers like this kind of watch, and they want more choices in color, style and style.
Swatch's brand has been successful, and Heyek has established a relationship with consumers and won their trust. Soon, Swatch began to benefit from diversity. Intelligent promotion and limited production give swatch another feature: last year's swatch watch can't replace this year's swatch watch. Constant design innovation has made consumers' interest reach its peak.
Swatch fans are not exactly the same. Hayek skillfully stimulated enthusiastic consumers and made them interested in things that spread rapidly. The company established Swatch member club, sold special watches to its members, provided a complete catalogue of Swatch products, and invited them to participate in club activities. Club members will also receive the exquisite Swatch Watch Magazine, which is a full-color quarterly magazine with comprehensive information about Swatch watches.
Manufacturers and sellers do their best to make Swatch truly a part of people's lives. Nominally, for consumers, Swatch watches are a souvenir, a period of history and a handicraft. Swatch has become an enduring fashion because its manufacturers think about problems with consumers as the center. Fashion is fashion, because no one will try to further develop its connotation. Swatch caught the consumer, and then it constantly updated the concept of fashion watches, and never stopped.
1983 has greatly increased the value of swatch. In less than 10 years, SMH (parent company of Swatch brand) achieved sales of $2 billion, profits of $280 million, and the company's market value exceeded $3.8 billion.
At the end of 1970s, the Swiss watchmaking industry fell into an unprecedented crisis. At that time, the proportion of Swiss watch production in the global market had dropped sharply from 43% to 15%. Revitalizing the Swiss watchmaking industry has become an urgent and arduous task. 1978, the world's thinnest watch was born, which once again posed a severe challenge to the Swiss watchmaking industry.
Swiss watchmaking industry is determined to overcome difficulties and build thinner timepieces.
1985, nicolas G Heyek, the father of Swatch, reorganized Asuag and SSIH for more than four years, which eventually led to the merger of two watch companies to form Swatch Group. The watchmaker of Swatch Group not only created a new ultra-thin watch record, but also invented a brand-new watchmaking process. This watchmaking process adopts an integrated case, and the bottom of the case is used as the bottom plate for installing the movement. The movement is installed from the top of the watch, and the installation of sapphire crystal glass mirror becomes the last process.
Simplifying complexity is a bold but extremely successful reversal of watchmaking technology. However, can you make a more cost-effective watch with plastic? Swatch Swatch Group leads the Swiss watchmaking industry on the journey to conquer the next challenge.
A watch made of plastic should have a movement that is easy to wind and set, and it must be able to install the movement from one side of its plastic casing. In addition, the male and female watches of plastic watches should also use the same base. After numerous improvements, the watchmakers of Swatch Group replaced at least 965,438+0 parts that usually constitute watches with 565,438+0 parts, which finally made plastic watches possible.
Swatch Swatch watches are made of Swiss timely movement and synthetic materials, which are waterproof and shockproof, accurate in timing and affordable. Watches are especially suitable for mass production with rich color choices.
Swatch Watch is a young and innovative watch, made exclusively in Switzerland, which has become a perfect symbol of passion, interest and hobby in life.
Swatch Watch: Win with "Cheap" Watch
In the early 1980s, under the impact of cheap brands such as Citizen, Seiko and Casio, Swiss watches lost their place in the middle and low-end goods market. In order to revive the glory of Swiss watches, 198 1 year, eta, a subsidiary of Switzerland's largest watch company, began to launch the famous swatch watch.
In order to promote Swatch watches, they made an amazing move and designed a huge Swatch watch, which was 500 feet long and hung in the headquarters building of Commerzbank, with the following short message written on it: "Swatch Switzerland 60 Deutsche Mark". Commerzbank is the tallest skyscraper in Frankfurt. The move immediately caused a sensation, and the German press made many advertisements for Swatch for free. In the next two weeks, every German knew about Swatch. Swatch also broke the traditional concept that "cheap goods are not good". Although the price of Swatch is only $40 to 100, it has the high quality of Swiss watches: light weight, waterproof and shock-proof, electronic simulation, and the watchband is a plastic band with many colors, all of which are bright and suitable for sports.
In order to make people wear Swatch as a kind of entertainment, Hayek, the boss of Swatch, established Swatch member club, sold special watches to member consumers and invited them to participate in club activities. Club members will also receive the exquisite Swatch Watch Magazine, which is a full-color quarterly magazine with all the information about Swatch watches.
Swatch has also become a fashion symbol and a popular symbol. "Last year's Swatch watch can't replace this year's Swatch watch." This is Swatch's goal. Swatch constantly introduces new styles of watches every year, and carefully designs creative advertisements to stimulate consumers' interest and make people anxiously look forward to the emergence of new products. Many people own more than one swatch watch, because they want to wear watches of different colors at different times and on different occasions. Swatch's strategy made many fascinated customers flock to buy the new fashion watches. A businessman owns 25 Swatch watches. Every day, he changes into a suit, tie, shirt and a swatch watch.
Swatch also broke through the watch's simple timing function-its new interpretation of the concept of time lies not only in the variety of styles and gorgeous colors, but also in the application of high-tech achievements, reflecting rich artistic imagination. For example,1April 1998, swatch 1998 held exhibitions in several famous commercial buildings in Shanghai in spring and summer, just like an exhibition of works of art. Swatch gives each new style a romantic or deep name, which contains evocative cultural connotations, such as "spectrum", "aiming time" and "fourth time", all of which are based on the theory of time dynamics; There are also Rose, Forbidden Fruit, Remind me and Old Love, which are very attractive to lovers in love. And "exploration", "periscope" and "carbon element" are undoubtedly power machines for young people who are eager to explore the mysteries of science! Swatch's special brand personality really captured the hearts of young people!
Swatch's alternative marketing is also reflected in the unique promotion skills-maintaining a high-grade and low-price brand image requires extraordinary promotion skills. Low price and high taste seem difficult to reconcile, but swatch has a different set of kung fu. All Swatch watches will stop production after five months on the market, so even the cheapest watches will have collectible value. Moreover, Swatch will launch a limited edition of fashion watches design twice a year. Swatch watch collectors have the privilege to bid for one of the design versions. The problem is that the company may only produce 40,000 watches, while the collectors' orders are 65,438+10,000 or more. The company had to hold a lucky draw to decide 40,000 lucky collectors who could buy watches. Chdsties auction house regularly auctions Swatch watches before. A collector spent $60,000 on several Swatch watches.
Swatch watches have a history of only 12 years, but they have achieved the status of "modern antiques". In the Lisbon Museum, there are a limited number of Swatch watches, which are protected by bulletproof glass. Swatch has its own multi-million dollar "Swatch Emotional Experience" exhibition, which is exhibited all over the world. Swatch has her own retail store. In Milan's famous Vimont Napoleon Fashion Street, Swatch shops attract more tourists than any other famous shops in the street. Sometimes there are too many customers, and the store will report four digits through the loudspeaker. Only when the customer's passport number contains these four digits can he enter the store to buy.
Swatch's alternative marketing quickly gained high returns, and the enterprise design implemented by 1983 greatly enhanced Swatch's value. By 1992, Swatch's sales reached $2 billion, its profit was $280 million, and its market value exceeded $3.8 billion.
As a model of Swiss famous watches, Swatch Swatch watches are also a young force in the world famous watches. Swatch Swatch watches are ticking forward with the rhythm of modern life with its fashionable and colorful colors, lively design and subversive traditional shape. Swatch watches convey unprecedented thinking about time and have been recognized and accepted all over the world. Swatch watches with unique styles have sold more than one million worldwide, and it only took a short time of 18 years-when Swatch started in the early 1980s, this market was once considered by experts as having no future. This is a world record!
Before Swatch, no popular brand made such achievements: in a very short time, it occupied the hearts of fans around the world and gained a firm foothold; In addition to maintaining the existing map, it continues to extend to other fields. On the eve of the Millennium, Swatch is still full of energy, strong, bold, creative and provocative, and its sales performance is booming. The reason for success is no secret: Swatch is more than just a watch that shows time.
Swatch's message touched everyone's heart: regardless of national culture or age. Mood-filled, exciting, inflammatory and creative ideas made Swatch win at home. "Let everyone know that every second of your life is not wasted. Be curious, dare to accept new things, make your life different, and more importantly, share this idea with others! " Heyek, president of Swatch, can best explain Swatch's philosophy.
Swatch would not have been born without a bold leader who believed in his vision. Everything related to this watch is full of innovation and provocation: from appearance to internal parts, technology, and the way it came out. No matter where she is, she focuses her eyes in a unique way. Spent a lot of money on this ticking miracle without reservation, so that she can have a suitable stage to play. Artists and designers work hard for her appearance, and pop masters cut clothes for her. The limited edition of special watches has become a must-buy collection for collectors. This plastic watch, which was born at the beginning of 1980, can develop into an internationally renowned brand with distinctive personality, thanks to traditional marketing techniques, unique taste and pioneering spirit.
/Xunzi /list.asp? id=6839 1.html
This is a public relations case I found. It seems impossible to copy it. Look at it.