The number of customers increased from 76 to 205; the sales ranged from 980,000 tons to 1.73 million tons; the proportion of high-end products ranged from 11.7% to 49%; the direct supply channel orders accounted for 24.8% to 95%... A set of data clearly shows the impressive performance of North China Branch of Shougang Sales Company in several years since its establishment.

Only five years old, it has several “conspicuous” labels: the “youngest”, “the most extensive business scope” and “the largest sales volume of automobile sheet”. It is the youngest, because it is the company established at the latest time among all regional branches of the sales company; its business scope is the most extensive, because it radiates through nine provinces and two cities, responsible for Shougang automobile, pickling plate, hot rolling, cold rolling and other product sales and services, covering automobile, home appliances, welding wire, food and other industries; the performance doubled in five years, making it the largest regional branch of Shougang Group’s auto plate sales. What’s the secret to winning the market and winning customers? Through this joint interview activity of “approaching high-end customers and the front-line service and sales”, we go into North China Branch to find out the reasons.

“Extend” channels to create value for customers. 

There is a popular saying in the industry, “the steel produced in China takes the lead in the world steel, the steel produced in North China takes the lead in China, and the steel produced in Tangshan takes the lead among steel from North China.” Iron and steel enterprises in North and Northeast China are densely concentrated, including BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Ford, FAW, Great Wall Motor and many other well-known automobile companies. They are the main areas for the sale of automobile sheet throughout the country. We can imagine that here is the target of steel sales, where competition is rather fierce. The North China Branch of the sales company, situated in a particular geographical location, defends Shougang brand, EVI service, bare roll supply and spare parts supply with craftsmanship. The customized supreme service increased automobile sheet sales from 330,000 tons in 2014 to more than 700,000 tons in 2018. The doubled performance in five years is a true portrayal of the company’s continuous development of new areas of service for automotive customers, widening of new marketing channels, and enhancement of service capabilities.

“For the modern manufacturing industry, a company can’t just manufacture products, but must also manufacture value. This value comes from service. What we want to do is to listen to the voice of the customers and to the voice of the market, so as to provide all-around services for customers.” Wang Zhe, general manager of North China Branch, has done sheet material marketing service work in East China and South China, and can be said to be the “veteran” of sheet material sales. He has 10 years of experience in sheet material marketing and has a deep understanding of marketing work.

We didn’t see Wang Zhe’s position on his business card. He said he was a “salesman” and his colleagues jokingly call him a “great salesman.” He often visits key customers, personally negotiates and personally commands, getting a lot of orders. Wang Zhe’s WeChat Moments are all about the records of the work of in-factory representatives. “Inside the train carriage, the laptop is turned on—This is the picture of the in-factory representative Guo Lihui who is still checking the data on the return journey.” “The back full of sweat stains and the back view of the one who makes spot confirmation of the steel coil... This is the scene that the in-factory representative Zhang Yonghai serves the customers on the spot in summer.” “In-factory representatives are service personnel working on marketing’s front line, who provide customers with 24-hour “extremely fast” service.” “I’m back,” while the reporter was interviewing, Wang Zhitao, who was travel-stained, returned to the headquarters of North China Branch carrying his backpack, “after handling the related business, I’ll immediately return to the main engine factory of Great Wall Motor.” There are countless such stories that Wang Zhitao sets out to the marketing front line at any time carrying a backpack. It happens every day in various forms. Yet, Wang Zhe and his “backpackers” laughed and said, “It’s normal.”

If in-factory representatives exist to provide personalized service to the customer, then the establishment of the processing center is an extension of the service chain to provide superior service to high-end customers. With the increasingly fierce competition in the automobile market, the main engine factories put forward higher standards to a series of service dimensions, such as product, price and technology. The business model is more complex, and the supply chain process needs to be gradually extended. In North China, in order to meet the needs of customers, Shougang has set up five processing centers, Shenyang Shougang, Harbin Shougang Wuzhong, Shougang Penglong, Tianwu Shougang and Baogang Shourui, which have added new processing processes such as fine shears, blanking, and laser welding to cooperate to form marketing cooperation to provide customers with trade, warehousing, processing, distribution and other services to meet the needs of customers. “This batch of products has high requirements for the main engine factory. The dimension deviation is positive or negative 1 millimeter. In order to better serve the customers, we set the internal control standard as positive or negative 0.5 millimeter,” Manufacture Head Ye Shaofeng said to the reporter in the manufacturing shop of Tianwu Shougang Steel Processing and Distribution Co., Ltd. However, on the production record list next to the main operating table of NC metal plate precision flying shear, the reporter found that the actual deviation of the product length is 0, which is much higher than the internal control standard. The lean operation of production operators not only meets the strict process requirements of customers, but also lays a good foundation for the service brand of Shougang automobile sheet.

“Through the processing center, we can not only provide customers with crosscutting and longitudinal cutting products of different sizes, but also supply bare rolls and configure molds to supply parts, which are popular with customers,” said Wang Zhe. Take BMW Brilliance as an example: Shougang began to supply the automobile company in 2014, and the supply volume has increased year by year. So far, the processing center has achieved the supply of 121 parts, 17 of which are exterior sheets, covering the whole range of BMW Brilliance vehicle models. In 2018, Shougang began to certify ZM and DP980 products. BMW Brilliance has become the largest customer of 1500MPa grade thermoforming steel in Shougang. Shougang has become the largest supplier of automotive sheet to BMW Brilliance in 2018.

The supreme service is also reflected in customized services to meet the actual needs of customers. “As the pride of the national independent brand, Great Wall Motor has maintained a leading edge in the international and domestic markets. The impressive performance cannot be separated from Great Wall Motor’s demand for product quality. Great Wall Motor’s internal management is almost harsh, and we have a deep memory of Great Wall Motor’s ‘picky’ style.” Han Yingchao, assistant general manager of North China Branch, has been here since its establishment. He is familiar with the “Great Wall”. “In the early cooperation, due to quality fluctuations, Shougang experienced the suffering period of ‘several in and out’. As the core supplier of Great Wall Motor, Shougang has a profound understanding of the importance of craftsmanship to manufacturing enterprises, defends Shougang’s brand with its craftsmanship, optimizes technology, improves quality, and solves problems. Ultimately relying on stable product quality, it wins a high degree of trust from customers. Great Wall Motor is just one of the first enterprises to provide certification opportunities for Shougang. After several years of cooperation, Shougang has become the second largest supplier of Great Wall Motor, and has been named the first-class supplier of Great Wall Motor for many times in succession. “We’re not satisfied with that and we are making a little progress every day. Now we’re customizing the VAVE technology for Great Wall Motor to reduce the cost, with as many as seven detailed recommendations, such as reducing weight and improving the material utilization rate.” In order to meet the order requirements of Great Wall Motor, North China Branch has implemented a customized QCDDS service, which provides one-to-one customized services in quality, cost, delivery, R & D, service and other areas. For example, implement standard +α, fixed production line, performance internal control and other means to ensure the stable use of the customers, and carry out oil film thickness testing technology exchange with the main engine factory, give guidance on oil cleaning and spraying process work to customers to achieve cost reduction and efficiency of both sides; establish rolling material preparation mechanisms for customers to calculate the demand in advance and prepare products for rolling according to the output of the customers and vehicle model. The proposals have been fully trusted and affirmed by customers. “We have responsible persons for all business with Shougang to implement ‘one-to-one’ operation and achieve “fast” service, responding to and handling problems quickly,” the purchasing department director of Great Wall Motor evaluated Shougang’s service in this way. At present, Shougang products have covered the outer sheets, safety parts and reinforcing sheets of all Great Wall vehicle models. In 2018, Shougang’s first batch of DH steel materials were first used in Great Wall F7, C01 and other vehicle models, and they were delivered in bulk. In 2017, Shougang was the only one of the seven suppliers of Great Wall Motor to receive the “Technical Cooperation Award” of the year.

Besides, the marketing team also set up a joint laboratory with the customer R & D department, aiming at EVI, high-strength steel, silicon steel, hot rolling and other projects to carry out all-round technical cooperation; set up parts management account; according to customer production plan and inventory status, establish linkage feedback mechanism to provide JIT distribution services for customers; set up exclusive technology and business service teams, and set up regular communication mechanisms to provide professional and efficient services in 24 hours. Due to a series of professional and innovative services, Shougang automobile sheet wins the trust of more and more customers in North China, and increases supply volume year by year. Shougang has become a first-class supplier of 16 auto companies such as BMW, Volkswagen, Mercedes-Benz, Hyundai, Toyota, Great Wall Motor, FAW, BAIC and Chang’an. The customer brands include German, Japanese, Korean and other joint venture high-end brands, as well as the leading brands in domestic independent automobile industry.

 “Smart” marketing meets the individual needs of customers

Can you imagine? Only by moving your fingers to click a few buttons on the phone, you can achieve the sales process of steel products of a certain size. This is Shougang’s “smart marketing” platform, the most advanced marketing platform in China at present, a user-centered marketing network, that is, a system in which customers can quickly respond to multiple links such as online demand, production, logistics, finance and sales. Finally, offline work can be done online and online work can be done automatically.

With technological innovation, the hard power of Shougang product system has made rapid progress, and its soft power to pursue the service system has enhanced accordingly. It is not only necessary to improve the service perception of small and medium-sized customers, but also to enhance the value of supply chain service system for large customers such as Great Wall Motor. Therefore, the “smart marketing” platform based on the actual needs of Great Wall Motor came into being. The platform is a smart supply chain service based on ISP (IntelligentSupplyPlatform), which can eliminate black box, predict breakpoints, improve efficiency and reduce cost.

“Enter the order number and other related parameters here. Look, I already know which products this customer is running out of and needs to order.” An Yushu, automobile sheet sales manager of North China Branch, grasped the sales information in only a few seconds. At this point, the computer display screen clearly shows that the steel coil of 6 specifications being used by a main engine factory will have a stock breakpoint in 3 days. The system clearly marks it in red font. When you click enter, the specific parameters of the steel, the specific parts used in the automobile, and the specific requirements of the performance of tensile strength and so on are displayed.

This “smart” platform can build demand forecasting models based on parts consumption, vehicle output, supply chain inventory in different states and inventory control cycle. It can achieve dynamic calculation, automatic order generation, accurate to parts, vehicle model inventory breakpoint calendar classification warning and pull demand. Meanwhile, it can efficiently, intuitively and dynamically track steel production, logistics and sales process. It is not an alarm, but an early warning. It does not receive orders passively, but forecasts demand. From the project establishment to sample generation, Wang Weixun, head of the auto sheet department of North China Branch, and the R & D team had “closed the door” for two months, docked hundreds of times to meet the needs of customers. Finally, the system went online in March of this year. After the trial run, the market reaction was unprecedented. Customers can view sales information such as quality assurance and inventory at any time on their mobile phones or on the PC terminal. This truly realized the “online” visualization of automobile sheet sales, and increased the trust and dependence of customers in Shougang’s products. At present, the marketing platform has been popularized and applied to nearly 300 customers of Shanghai Branch, and will be covered by all customers in Shougang in the future.

Relying on the “smart marketing” platform, North China Branch continues to optimize the organizational structure and upgrade the information system. Specially-assigned persons follow orders to carry out follow-up service from order submission, uploading contract, organizing production scheduling, warehousing and shipping, bill delivery, after-sales service and other links, so as to ensure prompt delivery, timely settlement and maintain the stability of key terminal channels. At the same time, it provides the exclusive service of production and marketing research for key customers to meet the differentiated needs of customers and improve service ability in the aspects of “new products, new processes, new production lines” and so on. Regularly invite customers to the base to communicate, understand the base production line, capacity, equipment and technology, meet the personalized needs of customers and provide customers with comprehensive and thoughtful services.

“Thoughtful” service and customer “zero distance”

Service can only be better rather than best. One weekend in June 2018, a customer representative in charge of a joint venture brand of North China Branch suddenly received a call from the global purchasing manager of the brand. Due to the urgent demand from his factory, he hoped Shougang could provide materials of 6 specifications within 2 days. “The customer’s difficulty is Shougang’s difficulty, the customer’s demand is Shougang’s demand. We will provide the customers with guarantee diligently according to their request.” At the critical moment, it was a greater test for the support capacity and operational efficiency of the Shougang automobile sheet customer service system. Sales units (including North China Branch, Zhongshou International Trade Department), production units (including Jingtang Company, Cold Rolling Company) and processing and distribution units (Penglong Machining Center of Shougang) were urgently linked, closely coordinated and each performed its own duties. Within 48 hours, the communication and processing of material rights of 6 specifications, the procedures of goods out of warehouse and the business process had been completed, which met the urgent need of the customer. The director of global raw material procurement and the director of domestic raw materials sent a thank-you email to Shougang, expressing his high recognition of the emergency handling ability and efficient execution of the Shougang service team, and looking forward to further strengthening cooperation between the two sides to promote win-win cooperation.

In the middle of this year, the VAT invoice rate was changed, and North China Branch’s staff became the sole supplier of all suppliers of Great Wall Motor with excellent quality of business. “Award extra points”! That month, Great Wall Motor made a high score for the service of Shougang. As you know, Great Wall Motor is a tough supplier of raw materials, scoring suppliers every month, and the delicate and precise service of North China Branch has made Shougang a first-class supplier for 18 months in a row.

Both the “zero gap” of service time in customer crisis handling and the “zero error” of service customers can not be separated from the “thoughtful” service of the high-quality marketing team of North China Branch. Finally, the “zero distance” between the supplier and the customer is realized. How is this team built then?

“The service main engine factory needs to have perfect automobile sheet knowledge and automobile production craft. Marketers’ service ability and the service consciousness must be unceasingly enhanced to satisfy the differentiated demand of customers.” Han said half-jokingly, “The demanding requirements from customers often give me ‘a lesson’”. “Only by actively learning and narrowing the gap from advanced enterprises can we upgrade our service skills and talk to top enterprises.” As a result, in North China Branch, there are actions to improve the quality of marketing personnel, such as centralized learning, the entire process of internship and “production and marketing mutual dispatch.”

“The yellow part is trimming line and the red part is the punching position.” The reporter happened to pass by the meeting room of North China Branch during the interview. On the large screen, multi-regional technicians were displayed, who learned the image through the remote video system. A technician from Wuhan Branch of the sales company was explaining the typical stamping process, while several North China Branch employees focused on the screen and made notes from time to time in their notebooks. This is the “marketing lecture hall”, which helps all marketing personnel to promote their quality. The sales company will hire professionals from institute of technical research, Shougang product customers, industry experts and others to carry out occasional training on a certain business, such as automotive stamping knowledge, and advanced enterprise management experience. When the reporter saw the staff’s attentive expression, he seemed to have heard their confidence words when they communicated with customers. A short step, a thousand miles. Over the years, the employees’ initiative to train enables them to broaden their professional knowledge and communicate with customers more and more smoothly.

Xie Guotao, who is engaged in sales management work in North China Branch, once worked in the position of electron microscope inspection in a joint-stock company, and was transferred to North China Branch in April 2014. “During my first six months at the company, I worked as an intern in all departments, such as the financial office and marketing department. To be a qualified marketer, I must be familiar with every business.” Xie studied hard every time he went to a department, determined not to be a layman. “The ‘collective discussion’ made me grow up very quickly. There was a big discussion at any time in the department for a particular job, and everyone was involved in it and expressed their opinions. In the collision of ideas, I learned a lot from my colleagues.” Nowadays, Xie is the main force in his post.

The reporter found in the interview that there are many young people who have a transfer experience like Xie in North China Branch. Liu Tianyi of the comprehensive management department is also one of them. Due to environmental restrictions and other circumstances, every month there is a basic reminder contract. In order to guarantee the supply, Liu Tianyi and others will follow up every week. “I carry portable battery with me every day, as I’m afraid my phone will run out of power, and I won’t be able to respond to the customer’s needs in a timely manner. I’ll charge the phone at least three times a day in emergencies such as customer reminders,” Liu Tianyi said. For the imminent contract, Liu Tianyi will always contact the production base, make point-to-point phone calls and change the production plan. He also often left without an advanced schedule, travelling to the production base on business. “We will do everything we can to ensure material supply to our customers and provide ‘nanny-style’ services to them,” Liu Tianyi said. Although Liu Tianyi is now doing sales business very well, as early as three years ago, he was a “green hand” at the sales position. In 2015, Liu Tianyi chose North China Branch of the sales company. Before that, he had been engaged in finance in a foreign company for a decade. “The company gave me the chance to transfer to sales from finance, and I cherished it greatly. At that time, I often consulted my colleagues around, seizing all the time to learn sales business knowledge.” Liu Tianyi introduced that he could quickly transform, first, thanks to the company to provide the platform, second, thanks to the company’s internal training mechanism. From July to November 2017, under the company’s arrangements, Liu Tianyi and his colleagues went to Jingtang for “production and marketing mutual dispatch” of more than four months to get familiar with the whole process of iron and steel production. “It was during that time that I truly knew how steel was made. In a period of time after the learning, I could communicate with customers more freely, could quickly respond to the needs of customers, timely optimize service programs, promote two-way interaction and communication between production and marketing links with customers, and promote closer connection between production and marketing and services. Customers who had little communication before started talking and were willing to talk to me further, and I think my progress won the trust of customers.”

“As long as a young man has the ability, he must be given the opportunity to bear the burden to become a talent early. We should let everybody fully display his talents, let everybody become a versatile talent who understands customers, production and sales, and let everyone have a direction, goals and motivation. Establish and improve long-term spiritual and material reward mechanisms, adopt positive incentives, form positive energy, and achieve common progress between individuals and teams,” Wang Zhe said. Precisely due to this idea, North China Branch has a thicker study atmosphere and stronger team vigor. Whether it is marketing front line, or inside service backstage, the employees of North China Branch adhere to such a principle: strive to be an omnipotent talent, and a thoughtful person to the customers.

A fine horse can’t take ten steps by one jump. An inferior horse can catch up by its persistence. “Our service system helps Shougang grow together with customers.” To realize dreams, North China Branch studies and judges the market, carries out smart marketing and pursues excellence, which will continue to open up a new phase of Shougang auto sheet sales and write a new marketing chapter.