2003: Starting with Foreign Trade

Chapter 1077 "Old Lei really knows how to play the game!"

"Compared to 15% last year, this year it has increased by 10 percentage points. Wei Lai is as generous as ever."

Unlike some companies that distribute large dividends after making a lot of money, Weilai does not. Some listed companies even distribute all of their profits for the year, which is extremely exaggerated.

While more dividends are always better, long-term investors prefer companies to distribute dividends in a sustainable manner rather than by exploiting the company.

Of course, if the dividend payout ratio can be increased year by year on this basis, it would be something that long-term investors would naturally welcome.

"The difficulty for major shareholders of listed companies to reduce their holdings is also one of the reasons why some companies distribute large dividends."

Take Weilai Shares as an example. No matter how much it is diluted, Tan Jincheng and ByteDance's actual shareholding can still be maintained at around 40%. Even if it is listed for the second time, their final shareholding will be more than 30%. The biggest beneficiary of the dividends is Tan Jincheng himself.

If he really wanted to cash out, Tan Jincheng could have proposed a profit sharing of over 30%, or even 50%, from this dividend, which would have given him over 10 billion yuan in dividends alone.

However, this dividend plan ultimately resulted in over 80 billion yuan in cash reaching Tan Jincheng. Apart from the funds directly received from his own shareholdings, most of the funds went to ByteDance's advertising platform.

In a sense, ByteDance's investment arm, Ocean Engine, could have lived a comfortable life today without doing anything, simply by leveraging its nearly 20 years of investment experience.

The company's holdings in companies like Weilai, Orange, Flash, Xiaomi, ByteDance, and others, along with some high-dividend A-share stocks held by its own funds, are enough to support the investment firm.

This is the gift of our times.

"This time, we should be able to make progress."

In early March, Tan Jincheng came to the capital again. This year, his proposal was the same as last year: the division of responsibilities for intelligent driving, accelerating the establishment of special laws for intelligent driving, and carrying out pilot projects for low-speed unmanned driving in limited scenarios, etc.

This time, He Xiaopeng, the chairman of Dongfeng Nissan, and others submitted the same proposal along with him, so he was no longer fighting alone. Lei Jun was also among them, having submitted a similar proposal.

"I think it's difficult. You don't even look at who proposed it."

Having arrived in the capital, Lei Jun was now in his territory. Taking advantage of his free time, he invited a few old friends to his home for a casual meal. Naturally, the topic of conversation at the dinner table was still related to his proposals for the Two Sessions.

There were actually quite a few proposals related to automobiles this year. In addition to the few proposals on intelligent driving solutions, there were also proposals on green and low-carbon development, overseas expansion strategies, core supply chains, talent development, and so on.

He Xiaopeng laughed out loud. Wei Lai and Xiaopeng are considered to be in the first tier of intelligent driving. Improved laws and regulations are certainly beneficial to companies like them, but for companies that do not have much technological accumulation, it is a disaster.

At the end of the day, it's all business.

The only thing that surprised Tan Jincheng was why Lei Jun would propose such a motion. Did he really think that their intelligent driving system could reach the level of the top tier this year or next?
He had experienced the SU7's driver assistance system, but he was too embarrassed to comment on its level.

"Bosses also have their own information cocoons."

Tan Jincheng also became somewhat wary. Such a precious opportunity to make a proposal only comes once a year, or even once in a lifetime. In previous years, he did not want to stand out and indeed did not have the right to point fingers at the industry.

Lei Jun's first proposal regarding automobiles couldn't have been made without careful consideration. Some time ago, he even stirred up controversy online, suggesting that the green license plates for new energy vehicles should be changed because they didn't look good.

This is not just about how it looks. You should know that the patents for new energy vehicle license plates are currently held jointly by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and the Ministry of Public Security. If patent fees are to be charged one day, it will be a considerable expense for the company.

If the patent rights were solely held by Wei Lai, these companies wouldn't need him at all, and Wei Lai wouldn't dare to mention collecting patent fees. However, since the patents are jointly owned with the GA department, if he were to actually collect patent fees one day, the companies really wouldn't dare to do anything about it.

Lei Jun's proposal clearly shows that he genuinely believes they have the capability to gain a share of the intelligent driving market.

This is the information cocoon built by his subordinates. Tan Jincheng now understands why Lao Wei loves cars so much. He hangs out with a bunch of car owners all day and is very knowledgeable about cars. He can indeed break through some information cocoons.

Lei Jun's confident demeanor gave Tan Jincheng some new ideas. It's only natural to be surrounded by flattering people when you've been in a high position for a long time. He wasn't unaware of the information cocoon before, but because of the bug, he knew the general direction, so he didn't feel much of a difference.

Now that the bug is gone, things can't be the same as before.

"Mr. Lei is very confident."

The capital city was still cold in early March. After leaving Lei Jun's residence, He Xiaopeng wanted to have a late-night snack and chat with Tan Jincheng, but Tan Jincheng had come with his family, so he declined.

The two stood by the roadside and chatted for a while.

"The SU7 is definitely going to be a bestseller, and Lei Jun's confidence is only natural."

He Xiaopeng clearly agrees with this point. He has also test-driven the SU7. Unlike Tan Jincheng, who only test-drove the high-end version, he has test-driven all three versions. The performance is undoubtedly excellent, and the appearance is also satisfactory. As long as the price is right, Xiaomi's first car will definitely be a success.

Furthermore, the market is now mature enough that consumers are far less resistant to new energy vehicles than when their company was founded. This is Lei Jun's brilliance: when the market matures, he will enter it and quickly seize a certain market share. This is true for mobile phones, and even more so for the home appliance industry.

"However, the drawbacks are also obvious. Given his marketing methods, I'm afraid something might go wrong. I really hope the bill can be passed soon."

They are all shrewd people, and they can spot problems at a glance. He Xiaopeng was obviously aware of these issues as well. There is a big difference between intelligent driving and intelligent assisted driving.

Xiaopeng and Weilai's user base has been cultivated over many years, and Weilai has always been very cautious. Although Xiaopeng is quite aggressive in marketing, it knows its limits, so its user base doesn't really think that it can be completely abandoned.

However, Xiaomi, which is making its first foray into car manufacturing, has a user base that is mainly composed of fervent fans, much like the fans of chrysanthemums. They really believe whatever the company says, which can easily lead to problems.

"It doesn't matter, it's not something we can control."

Competition among automakers has shifted from batteries to intelligent technology. Since the second half of last year, intelligent driver assistance capabilities have entered a frenzied phase, with discussions about which intelligent driving system is the best flooding the internet.

He Xiaopeng also predicted that intelligent driving, especially advanced intelligent driving, will reach a turning point within a year and a half. This view is not wrong. Other car companies must have realized this as well. Excessive publicity is also to seize more market share.

With subsidies gone and the battery market already established, intelligent driving is the optimal solution for differentiated competition.

"That's true, why should we worry about this? Just do our own thing. Alright, since President Tan doesn't have time for a late-night snack, I'll head back now."

He Xiaopeng laughed too. He actually wanted to talk to Tan Jincheng about Xiaopeng's new model and ask for his opinions. Xiaopeng will launch a model priced between 10 and 15 yuan this year, targeting the mass market.

Directly competing with the Exeed series; to be honest, He Xiaopeng doesn't have much confidence, but in order to expand sales, it's a last resort. Compared to Li Bing's approach, Xiaopeng's brand is lower-end, and now there's little room for upward expansion, so he can only focus on volume.

"No rush, there's still the auto show later, we can talk again then."

Tan Jincheng roughly understood what He Xiaopeng wanted to talk to him about. There were too many models on the market that could rival the Exeed series, so it wouldn't make a difference if Xiaopeng Motors sold well. At least, if Xiaopeng Motors sold well, it would benefit both him and Wei Lai.

"Alright, then I'll ask Mr. Tan for guidance when the time comes."

"Easy to say."

After the Spring Festival, the car market has become hot again. Although subsidies have been almost completely eliminated, the real consumer market still exists. As the first mini-peak season of the year, the market share in March is still quite important.

In terms of policy, with proposals made for two consecutive years and other companies following suit this year, there has been more talk in the media about legislation for intelligent driving. Although actual legislation seems to be a long way off, it has at least given Tan Jincheng a sense of hope.

"It seems there should be hope in the next year or the year after."

Tan Jincheng thought to himself, there have been briefings in previous years, but this year's briefing is different from previous years, and the media level is much higher.

However, the most anticipated event in the automotive industry in March is undoubtedly the launch of Xiaomi Auto.

That's right, the SU7 held two launch events. The first one was called a technology launch event, which mainly introduced Xiaomi's car manufacturing process and specifications, while the launch event on March 28 was to announce the price.

Deliveries are scheduled to begin in April, and if we don't announce the price soon, things will get out of hand.

"You still want to participate?"

Gu Qingqing looked at the invitation that had been delivered with a playful expression.

In March, the family spent most of their time in the capital. Besides attending the Two Sessions, they also had to handle some business here. Wei Lai's roots were in the south, but he also had his own business in the north.

The Beijing branch office handles business once a year in March, while Gu Qingqing, whose Orange Group has more business in the north, travels to Beijing multiple times a year, making March a crucial time for her to handle business as well.

"Perhaps because the last one was quite successful, we invited even more people this time."

Tan Jincheng also laughed. It's not unusual for people in the industry to support each other, but it's still a bit rare for a car to hold several launch events and invite colleagues to attend each one.

Since these new players entered the market, car launch events have become more frequent, with some companies holding multiple launches for a single model, regardless of sales figures, prioritizing generating buzz first. "Are you still going?"

"Go ahead. We went last time, so this time we're staying in the capital. It wouldn't be right if we didn't go."

However, it must be said that Lei Jun, or rather the SU7, has indeed received attention from the automotive industry. This time, the press conference was attended not only by these old friends, but also by Lao Wei, the chairman of BAIC, and others.

In addition, there are countless companies collaborating outside the venue. Recently, many car companies have been forwarding Xiaomi's posts on social media, welcoming Xiaomi to the event.

It must be said that the SU7 is indeed a product that automakers should pay attention to. Its appearance has received far more market attention than the smart selection model of the original Chrysanthemum. From this point of view alone, Lei Jun has already succeeded in his first venture.

Wei Lai and Xiaomi have always had a good working relationship, and there is no need for him to do anything that would offend anyone at this point in time.

On March 28, before the press conference, Lei Jun played some tricks by swapping new cars with Wei Jun, creating a military-style collaboration that sparked considerable discussion. Speaking of which, Wei Jun is now getting involved in the internet industry, and to be fair, his image is not bad.

Although he occasionally makes some rather paternalistic remarks, overall, Lao Wei is quite knowledgeable about the internet and knows how to cater to netizens; his comment section is always very lively.

"Selling at a loss! Free refrigerator, free stereo, free leather seats!"

At the press conference, Lei Jun's passionate speech ignited the atmosphere both in the venue and in the live broadcast room.

Sitting in the front row, Tan Jincheng, Lao Wei, Li Bing, He Xiaopeng and others exchanged glances, seemingly all seeing the unspoken message, but on the surface they still maintained their composure and clapped along with everyone else.

"Let's learn from this, and try playing like this sometime."

With Li Xiang around, there were no more inhibitions, and Tan Jincheng whispered to Li Xiang as they turned around.

Damn, when it comes to having fun, Lei Jun is the best.

"Hehe, if we brag like that, you'll have to fire me, boss."

Li Xiang is also a marketing expert. His press conferences are always the most talked-about, even more so than those hosted by Tan Jincheng himself. This is mainly because his language is more exaggerated.

However, compared to Lei Jun, Li Xiang in this life can only be considered a primary school student.

"But there's really nothing wrong with this price."

The three models have starting prices of 21.59 yuan, 24.59 yuan, and 29.99 yuan respectively. Since they are competing with the Model 3, this price, combined with their appearance and surface specifications, makes them extremely cost-effective.

The funniest thing was that Lei Jun repeatedly shouted "far ahead" on the spot, which triggered cheers from the audience and created a great atmosphere.

"Awesome, this is something we can really learn from. We can also brag about it at future product launches."

Weilai also has a lot of peripheral products, which are occasionally mentioned at press conferences, but most of them are placed in the Weilai APP for users to place orders themselves, without much promotion.

In the past, few car companies have done this. In the traditional marketing concept, car launch events focus on the price and technical specifications of the car, while peripheral products are only mentioned incidentally, since they don't have much technical content.

Lei Jun, however, devoted a large portion of the article to recommending their peripheral products, such as a 99 yuan car phone holder and a 499 yuan car karaoke microphone, with the 99 yuan phone holder being given particular emphasis.

This item isn't expensive, which can easily trigger impulse purchases, so I imagine this merchandise will sell quite well.

"That's right, this is definitely something worth learning."

Attending a competitor's press conference is both a chance to support them and a learning opportunity. We should learn from their strengths and draw lessons from their weaknesses. Li Xiang also thought this marketing approach was good, since price wars are becoming increasingly fierce, and peripheral products can be a good way to supplement profits.

Compared to complete vehicles, the gross profit margin of peripheral products is much higher, and even small amounts can improve financial data to some extent.

"I've learned something new, I've really learned something new."

He was reborn before the Xiaomi car launch event. He was familiar with Lei Jun's previous launch events, but the two car launch events, especially this price announcement, gave him a completely different feeling.

In terms of overall style, although it still follows their marketing strategy on mobile phones, there are many adjustments in the details. Whether it is the marketing rhythm or the topicality, Lei Jun has pulled it up to the max.

Orders exceeded 10,000 in 4 minutes and 50,000 in 27 minutes!
This is why the Xiaomi SU7 broke the order record for new energy vehicles as soon as pre-orders officially opened, and it went viral on social media that very night.
"It's all settled, things are stable."

With this number of orders and sufficient production capacity, this will be a blockbuster model with monthly sales of 30,000 units. Even if some inflated figures are added, it will still be a sure-fire blockbuster model.

However, initial production capacity issues are the biggest obstacle to order conversion rates for other car companies, but for Xiaomi, it is not a problem at all. When it comes to scarcity marketing, no one in China can compare with Lei Jun except Apple.

"It's definitely settled. This order will definitely deliver more than 10 vehicles this year. A new energy vehicle that delivers more than 10 vehicles in its first year is the envy of many other new energy vehicle companies."

At the beginning of the year, Xiaomi set its annual delivery target at 76,000 vehicles. Over nine months, excluding initial production capacity issues, monthly deliveries need to reach around 10,000 vehicles. Strictly speaking, this target is not low for a company making cars for the first time.

However, based on tonight's data, delivering more than 100,000 vehicles this year is a certainty, as long as production capacity can keep up.

"I'm so envious. We didn't have such a good market environment back then. But Xiaomi's fans are really crazy."

After the press conference ended, Lei Jun was very busy, but the other guests were not. So Tan Jincheng, who had been in the capital for some time, hosted a late-night snack for Lao Wei, Li Bing, He Xiaopeng and others.

Li Bing said with a touch of emotion as he drank his beer.

In the first quarter, his Wenjie brand only delivered 30,000 vehicles. Although the main models still sold well, the market space was getting smaller and smaller. Their second brand, Ledao L60, will not be launched until May.

Xiaomi's orders in just half an hour exceeded their entire quarterly delivery volume. It would be a lie to say I'm not envious.

"Every product he releases becomes a hit; Mr. Lei has really done a great job."

Old Wei is the most senior among this group. Everyone nodded in agreement as soon as he spoke. Wei Lai, who debuted with the Great Wall logo, has long forgotten the past grievances between the two companies after transitioning to the new energy sector.

"This is a formidable opponent; I think we all need to take it seriously."

Even though the first launch event sparked a huge buzz and major automakers paid close attention to the SU7, in terms of public opinion, there weren't many people optimistic about the sales of Xiaomi's car.

The main reason is the brand. In most people's minds, Xiaomi is a relatively low-end brand, and the corresponding user group has limited purchasing power. If the SU7, which is aimed at fans, is priced at more than 15 yuan, most fans will probably not be able to afford it.

However, the order data announced on the spot this time really surprised the public. No one expected that Xiaomi's fan base had such strong purchasing power.

In fact, the public's perception is not entirely wrong. Xiaomi's fan base in the traditional model may not have that much purchasing power, but the fact that it was able to create various records is still thanks to Lei Jun's precise marketing.

In reality, the SU7 isn't targeting Xiaomi fans in the traditional sense, but rather Apple and Tesla users—tech pioneers who crave novelty and innovation. These young users tend to spend money impulsively.

In addition, through various creative marketing strategies, the SU7 has become a popular product with certain social attributes. On Douyin (TikTok), topics related to SU7 often attract huge traffic, and it has become a kind of social currency and trend symbol.

"The basic attributes of a car are not actually the main reason for its hot sales. Everyone can analyze this marketing case in detail."

Tan Jincheng also started his career in marketing and can see through the phenomena to the essence. You can think of this thing as a blind box product, which is not wrong. Internet celebrities who can make it are not stupid. The SU7 can bring them huge traffic.

"It's actually similar to the marketing model used for tank series, right?"

From test driving to picking up the car, and then to the car usage experience, online celebrities can post many videos. After attracting enough traffic, they can sell the car secondhand to recover a certain percentage of the cost. They are simply mobile traffic generators.

He could tell from browsing Douyin that the product reviews posted by influencers of all sizes attract huge traffic.

"But no matter what, this is a formidable competitor; of course, it's a competitor like us new brands, not traditional companies like Mr. Tan and Mr. Wei."

After a brief moment of relaxation, He Xiaopeng felt immense pressure again. The launch of the SU7 was putting considerable pressure on their G6 and P7.

Old Wei took a sip of his drink and sighed, "No, everyone's under pressure."

Great Wall Motors has the highest profit margin among traditional automakers, but its penetration rate in the new energy vehicle market is truly appalling. In 2023, new energy vehicles accounted for more than 80% of its sales.

Great Wall Motors, on the other hand, only achieved a 21.3% penetration rate, which is ten percentage points lower than the overall penetration rate of new energy vehicles in China. Its total sales were only 5 more than Exeed Wish. This performance is indeed too poor, and Lao Wei's frequent short videos are indeed a sign of his anxiety.

(End of this chapter)