Skyworth, one of the top three television manufacturers in China, has developed a new customer-to-business sales model that allows consumers to order customized televisions through the web at relatively low prices.
In early June 2012, Skyworth in the flagship store on the Lynx Home a occupied banbishan page advertising: LED TV’s Industrial Revolution – the world’s first the DIY TV “. This is a new Skyworth a can by the consumer to choose the decorative tone LED TV. In addition to the Lynx, Skyworth in the new seven-day electrical network also launch similar operations. Allow consumers to online Do-It-Yourself (DIY) custom TV, TV hardware, software configuration, and TV appearance of the trim to make their own individual needs to be customized according to demand, time of 1-2 weeks to complete the production and distribution, which is Skyworth’s new television sales model.
DIY approach, once launched, they attracted a lot of respect for individuality lifestyle after 80 consumers. Less than two weeks, Skyworth has sold over 2000 DIY TV. As a tentative new business, these results Skyworth are satisfied.
In fact, this approach is not the Skyworth original. Creative source of almost no concern in the TV industry is comfortable semi-underground cottage workshop. A few years ago, people sporadically in the assembly of television business, starting from the mid-2010, this practice is to open in Guangzhou, Shenzhen and other places popular. Almost overnight, Guangzhou and Shenzhen, a lot can allow consumers to choose the parts and assembled appliance sales store. The reason why assembly television has suddenly become a hot business, largely due to the upstream LCD panel overcapacity. Digestive capacity, electronics companies began to adopt a more flexible way of selling excess panel TV assembly shop of the workshops began to flow.
Prior to assembly of the old TV can only get foreign garbage screen, can now directly through the manufacturer to get Taiwan’s screen, and even LG, Samsung, South Korea screen. “Done for many years to assemble the TV business, Liu Yanping said.
TV assembly process and is similar to the assembly of computers, two or three workers will be off-the-shelf parts assembled together can be. Consumers according to their needs on the TV hardware and software configuration, size, design their own requirements. Can get the authentic Taiwan screen and Korean screen display assembly television and low-end brands of TV little difference, to meet the basic consumer’s viewing requirements. Some dealers also bulk purchase of assembled television, and some imported brands TV logo printed on these TVs sold in rural areas or hotels.
In addition to a few fancy-demand to consumers, most people buy the assembled TV mainly due to its low price. It is said that one assembly television can only make about 100 yuan. LG LCD 42-inch LED assembly TV price is only 2100 yuan, if you use a cheap screen, the price will be lower. This price advantage, so that the assembled TV market expanded rapidly. It is estimated that only use Korean panel, the assembly of the Taiwan-screen TV, the year sales of more than one domestic second-tier TV brand. A more mature domestic second-tier TV brand sold about 700,000 units a year. Such a calculation, assembly television hidden market of its size is likely to far more than 700,000 units.
This rapid spread of television assembly trend, although not yet on the mainstream TV market impact, but it attracted the attention of the Skyworth. In January 2012, Skyworth market trends in this half of the underground research, research the conclusion is that the customization + cheap, these two reasons is sufficient to create a worthy to enter the market size. In order to distinguish those cottage workshop assembled TV, Skyworth own practice as a DIY.
In terms of brand positioning or operating costs, Skyworth not intend to compete for the existing cottage workshops are consumer groups, DIY TV, consumer groups targeted at the younger consumer groups to require a higher quality of life after 80, in order to impress them, Skyworth The first step is to: provide online custom sales, consumer groups, the most popular online shopping platform, so that they not only from the DIY fun shopping, but also buy the past “need to bite the bullet and they feel that the” cost “price” high-grade products.
Now, consumers can only buy in the electronic business platform on the day the cat and the new seven-day electrical network to the DIY TV, and soon after, Skyworth launched some of the important cities in the country field experience activities of the entity model, the sales channels will be extended to line. The promotion stage of the target market is mainly in large cities, and later as DIY products mature, Skyworth will eventually sales channels stretch thirty-four market. This means that the TV of Skyworth’s DIY TV with the main assembly of three or four markets, the future will inevitably direct conflict.
Compared with the assembly of television, Skyworth’s DIY TV does not have a price advantage. A 42-inch Skyworth DIY TV is currently priced at 2999 yuan, a few hundred dollars higher than the assembly of television sets in the same grade. Skyworth cooperation with the Lynx and other electronic business platform, to a certain extent the faiths, the boost of an energy-saving subsidies, but also conducive to shorten the price between the assembled TV, but the price gap still the poor.
Price is not the advantages of DIY TV, Skyworth plans to use a high grade of product positioning, brand influence and after-sales service endorsement, to attract the purchasing power of slightly higher layer of consumer groups. “DIY TV is not only a replaceable decorative TV, but lets consumers customize a new way of life.” Wang Meng, Skyworth Group’s electricity provider is responsible for that. If the product is of poor quality, functional and simple, although can be assembled, I am afraid it difficult for young consumers require a higher quality of life satisfaction. In Skyworth seems, the more high-quality after-sales service and better TV, this is the the Skyworth DIY TV’s core competitive advantage.
Of Skyworth The launch DIY television network TV, and custom projects are not rich, but that plans to launch products in the future will gradually high-end Skyworth. With the business expansion, Skyworth will be added Smart TV, 3D technology, and other elements to enhance the value-added products. In contrast, the assembly of television technology is not yet involved in the field of network television, high-end smart TV, but can only stay in the lower end of the LCD TV production technology – only a few people off-the-shelf LCD screen, the master and TV cabinet assembled together on the LCD screen can get brand manufacturers supply, but in the master part of the threshold makes them still can not provide network TV, let alone intelligent TV.
If the assembly of TV is the price threshold, then the assembly of lower mid-range TV Skyworth plans to rely on high-end products pulled mid-price to winning.
Assembly of television biggest weakness lies in the after-sales service. Do not say the home repairs, many times with regular maintenance points are difficult to maintain. A lot of shops can provide 3 months warranty, but if consumers want the extended warranty to 1 year, it is necessary to add 100 yuan, and can not provide on-site services. “If the South Korean screen or screen product quality can be guaranteed, even with cheap screen foreign garbage screen that product quality can imagine.” Said Liu Yanping.
The Skyworth DIY products, you can enjoy the same as its brand TV after-sales service system.
As HP’s production line can not be overnight into Dell’s production, for Skyworth own, to do DIY TV, on the basis of the limited resources, rapid and cost to complete the design, production and marketing for supply chain management demanding. Skyworth do DIY TV not just to digest the inventory, but is intended to cultivate a new business model, then the supply chain system to continue to optimize and improve the speed of response of the supply chain, has become particularly important. Skyworth executives had repeatedly claimed in public, this may be one of the reasons Skyworth ahead of other home appliance manufacturers do DIY TV Skyworth proud to zero inventory.
In the development of the DIY TV, Skyworth positive outside help, a lot of TV hardware, software configuration and decorative appearance of the TV program are provided by the users on their own, then Skyworth good statistics classified, users program market an acceptable level of investigation, the final selection of several groups of options for consumers to choose.
The Skyworth face another challenge, it needs to coordinate each stroke of the “right hand”. Wang Meng said sales of DIY TV is the number of impacted traditional TV. Household electrical appliance enterprises as a group, Skyworth need to consider the rational distribution of the product line, how to balance the distribution of benefits of the product line, which will test the DIY custom long-term implementation.
In addition to making use of its low-price strategy, Skyworth plans to upgrade its products and improve its brand influence and after-sales services to spur future growth.
