so my dad’s company in taiwan has chosen to sell some of their automotive parts through some online auction site, it’s doing okay, but if he were to choose to expand to the US, being a marketing major, I would not suggest doing that because it tarnishes the brand image of the company.
I was wondering, is there a different marketing style in taiwan vs the US? Is brand image and possibly price/value not as important or is the online auction thing not as “cheap” as it appears in the US?
The USA is in a major economic down turn now.
So “cheap” is the new “chic”
Online sale prices are suppose to be cheaper than full retail in the US, because consumer assume that there is no large infrastructure of distribution being maintained. Also because they want the total cost including shipping and handling to be cheaper than the total cost of going to a retail store and buying it.
Depends on what kind of automotive parts we are talking about. Performance parts, headers, pulleys, turbo, brakes, suspension.
Cosmetic parts. body kits…“No Fear” stickers
Interior trinkets. Air Condition cup holders, night light w/ cell phone holder…
Depends on who you are marketing too and the actual product.
I don’t think it would tarnish his reputation to sell it online, unless the item requires a technician to install properly.
Yeah, you’re right, selling online in Taiwan won’t really affect the branding here in the US (if he starts up here) since 1. it’s the only retail product they have because, 2. they are mainly a manufacturing company with a patent that sells to larger companies to integrate into their systems.
The item online is a replacement speedo with a patented cable (I forgot what cable it was…) for scooters. And, it’s totally DIY, all parts included.
Any gearhead that wants to DIY a speedo usually knows what they are getting into anyways. The main things people in this market are looking for are ease of installation, coolness factor, and performance. The only way the brand would be tarnished is if after a proper installation, the product breaks in less than a year or doesn’t work.
Manufacturer back guarantee are not that common in the after market parts market. But if they are that concerned about brand they could offer it to distinguish themselves from other speedo brands on the market.
My concern is the scooter (put-put) market is very small in the USA. Can the product be transfered over to the motorcycle market in the US?
[quote=“ac_dropout”]The only way the brand would be tarnished is if after a proper installation, the product breaks in less than a year or doesn’t work.[/quote]that’s exactly what I meant, i wasn’t sure how brand stood in taiwan, cuz in the US, the hardcore gearheads care about brand.
that’s a good tip! i’ll mention the manufacturer back guarantee to my dad!! I’m sure he’d back it, cuz he stands by his work.
as far the US, I know the market is very very small, but it wouldn’t hurt to try to build up the brand and do some market research. the scooter market might get stronger, but i think it depends on the economy. one thing we’re looking into, besides scooters, is the honda ruckus. it’s slowly making its way to the US.
Honda ruckus picks up on the naked bike trend which has been popular for about 10 years in the US. But naked bikes are really small niche in the bike market. Naked scooter market could be very small.
Scooters are mostly an urban transport. I rarely see them in the US. I’ve seen them used as delivery vehicles for resturants in cities on the east coast. I doubt these people are thinking about adding bling to their rides. I’ve seen a 2 or 3 college age students use them as transportation.
In the midwest I saw one 150 cc scooter my entire life.
You guys have sales figures from Honda on how many Honda Ruckus are sold in the US every year?
The thing is people in the US that are into biking like to go fast or like to cruise fast. The 50cc scooter doesn’t go fast enough. Big sport bikes and cruiser motorcycles dominate the market.
Might want to expand the product for the larger bikes as well. But then again maybe there is a whole niche of scooter enthustist in the US I have no idea about.
the Honda RUckus seems to have picked up in popularity in northern and southern CA recently, though still small, and the scooter niche is small but dedicated and picky.
we have a speedo for the harley but getting the users to think about a product from taiwan…is difficult. plus they’re just so established it’s hard to break in.
EH, we’ll see what my dad decides on. i honestly would stick to taiwan for now. until maybe the economy picks up over here; the whole green movement might help the scooter market too!
what do you mean by “naked”? haha do you mean like bikes made for modifying?
Also, keep in mind, in the USA gearheads have a much greater concern for manufacturing quality. Even among the tuners (rice rocket posse) in Socali I knew. Both in the materials used and its design. They definitely do not want a part that has not passed quality build and stress tests.
El cheapo - Taiwan standards - leads to lawsuits in the USA.
Maybe this would be a consideration in the items your Father manufacturers, maybe not. But if it does, it is a very valid point to consider.
They may be fun to ride, but you wouldn’t want your friends to see you on one!"
Old scooter joke from the states to give you an idea of your potential market.
Also, most cities/states that I know don’t allow them legally on the streets, but of course this could have, and may be, changing. My guess is that there are likely street legal mopeds, and non legal ones.
Give it go anyway. They could become quite popular as the inevitable price of fuel rises once again.
Listen to TainanCowboy though, shitty, cheaply made and badly manufactured junk does not fly with the American consumer. If you want a huge difference between the two, this is it. The Chinese/TW accept bad products and the companies that make them do very well, these same companies/products wouldn’t last long in the states. If your products are built to last, are well designed, and well made, then give it go. If they are cheap junk, then keep milking the local market.
shitty, cheaply made and badly manufactured junk does not fly with the American consumer.
eee…care to tell me why WalMart is the biggest retailer in the US with most of their stuff made everywhere except the US?? Care to tell me why GM and the other American brands are going bankrupt…
The Chinese/TW accept bad products and the companies that make them do very well, these same companies/products wouldn't last long in the states.[code]
God you got to be kidding!!! I guess you need to get your facts straight…please don’t make assumptions…
It was a European fad to strip the bike down to its most basic parts to make them lighter and fashionable. Take off the fairing, body panels, and anything else that wasn’t needed. Thus the term naked.
A subgroup was the Streetfighters bike, where superbikes were stripped down and modified.
There’s a cool factor of making the bikes look more aggressive and faster. I’ve noticed some naked scooters around in the US, but I never though they come up with a mass produced naked scooter.
Most bike enthustist keep their bikes a little longer than their cars, since they usually use them less, and their cheaper to insure. Most people keep their cars for like 5 years (there’s a huge lease market that brings the average down). Let’s assume 90% of bike owners keep their bike for 10 years.
If that was the case, I would say you would need to design the speedo to last 10 years of use before failure. I think that would give most consumers in the US a positive impression of the product in terms of quality and reliability. So you need to find the accurate number of years of ownership to set your manufacturer guarantee…to protect the brand.
As for breaking into the US manufacturered bike market (Honda did it, so it is not impossible). Okay Harley breakdown a lot too, so they’re use to fixing those hog. If you think you need to tap into middle America US nationalism for those. Setup office in the US, project a domestic image in your ads, make sure the cosmetic design appeal to the those consumers. Even if manufacturing is done overseas (the US consumers are use to that), you can do basic assembly in the US and claim assemble/made in the USA as well…
you know what, that is actually our largest roadblock in terms of getting to the US market: the stereotype of Taiwanese manufactured products.
here’s my spiel…for who knows what reason but to defend my dad’s business and my homeland!
yes, Taiwan is known for cheap products…but it still sells everyday things in the US, such as wal-mart items!
BUT in actuality, Japanese manufacturers historically have or been outsourcing their manufacturing to Taiwan and maintain strict quality control AND benefit from paying low wages and costs, then hike up the price since it’s a Japanese brand and make BANK
China is the real culprit, they actually sell crappy, shitty products and don’t intend to change that
#3 then causes the Taiwanese manufacturers that actually have quality products, struggle because to the rest of the world, China and Taiwan seem like one Asian cheap product entity!
my dad graduated in Taiwan as an engineer, moved to CA, assimilated to American culture for the past 20+ years including a hobby for german automotives, moved back to Taiwan for the business, but still has his American high standards mindset… he’s not pooping out shit items :no-no:
the business is working to integrate their patented item into larger manufacturers such as KYMCO, SYM, HONDA, YAMAHA, etc. their retail product is doing okay, but i know that in order for it to make it in the US, it needs more research.
that is EXACTLY what my plan was last summer…then the economy crashed so we cut it off for a bit. I’m going to help him restart it this summer. can’t hurt!
the scooter market is picking up slowly because of gas prices and that small niche of scooter riders who love that international look (insert european looking smiley)
great responses everyone, if anything, it got me motivated :bravo:
[quote=“speed_maniac”]shitty, cheaply made and badly manufactured junk does not fly with the American consumer.
eee…care to tell me why WalMart is the biggest retailer in the US with most of their stuff made everywhere except the US?? Care to tell me why GM and the other American brands are going bankrupt…[/quote]
Because shitty, cheaply made and badly manufactured junk does not fly with the American consumer.
Foreign made does not necessarily mean shitty; American-made does not necessarily mean good.
30 years ago Japanese stuff was considered cheap too.
It has nothing to do with perception of Japan, China, and Taiwan…well it does…but not in the way you are describing.
It has to do with cost of developement and quality control, and how much of that are you willing to pass onto consumers. At every price point manufacturers know what is the failure rate of a particular product.
Consumers in US and Japan are willing to pay more for a product, thus a common mistake is that oversea companies don’t manufacture product with failure rates that are in line with those consumer demands. Scooter ownership is probably like 3-5 years in Taiwan. So manufacturers design and price a product for 3 years before failure. Some manufacturers might be tempted to try to sell the same product for 3x the price of what they sell for in Taiwan in the US because consumers are willing to pay that much. But they forget to design the product for failure for the average length of ownership of the scooter in the US, which is much longer because people who own scooter also own cars in the US. Now a consumer in the US gets a product that fails too soon, and they percieve the product and brand as cheap…
Retail is a tough game. If your father’s company is gear towards B2B and manufacturing, does he really want the headache of doing retail? Sure owning the vertical market is more profitable, but there’s a lot of headaches. Not to mention won’t he be in conflict with some of his B2B clients, entering the retail market with similar products.
You know one strategy I’ve seen some success for Taiwan based companies is market towards China. There’s more people using scooters in China than the entire population of the US. And Taiwan product does convey higher quality than PRC to PRC consumers.
i think my dad is looking to sell retail products to last…forever, but i think he’s just boasting haha. im not really sure how long he hopes his products to last…but true, it might compete with the b2b companies he’s selling to.
china scooter market is a good idea, he’s never mentioned it but i’m sure it’s on his mind.
my eyes are blurry from forumosa and that uselss observations post…i stopped at page 15. bedtime for the US!
I totally disagreee AC. Scooters in Taiwan run forever! The engines are almost unbreakable and the maintenance is low except for 10+ years (of which mine unfortunately is). I don’t think there is a cheaper vehicle to purchase, run or maintain over the medium term than a Taiwanese made scooter.
There’s nothing wrong with the build quality of Taiwanese scooters or parts (would be superior or equivalent to many European manufacturers I am sure), just image problem due to association with China.
Take a look at Maxxis company who have had MAJOR success in marketing their tyres worldwide. For years I thought Maxxis was an American brand, turns out it’s 100% Taiwanese. They sponspored all the race meets and made typical 100% red-blooded American male ads…the image is all red-neck USA and they have done really well!
Taiwanese manufacturers reputations are improving but to get into insular markets in the likes of the US and Germany near term you are better off creating a brand that looks like it’s home grown…that’s just the way these people think (even with bankrupt Chrysler and GMs and Harleys that break down all the time!). If not marketed as a US brand you can aim for Japanese or European…I went to Europe recently, many of the people I met thought Acer was an Italian brand, is it a coincidence that Acer’s no.1 market is Europe?
I think he should focus on building his brand now to give him protection in case his major clients switch to lower cost or competitors, sounds like you know what you both are doing so go for it!
Another issue with foreign companies pushing their items in the US is the fact that the majority of companies are not willing to or have the ability to establish the infrastructure needed to ensure after-sales service or returns.
While there is no guarantee that products you purchase from Wal-Mart or from American-based companies will last longer or produce better results than a product you buy directly from overseas (internet), there is a guarantee that if you have a problem or are not satisfied with the product that you will be able to either exchange it for a new product or get your money back. In many cases even when the warranty has expired.
Try that with a company here in Taiwan… Yeah right. That is why I have a 20000NT entertainment system that is now useless. I bought it from 3C, it worked a week. I tried to return it to get my money back, but they would only send it back to be repaired. Well that happened three times until eventually the 1-year warranty ran out, hence now I am without the money and the product.
If that was to happen in the states, I would have got my cash back after it broke the first time.
Therefore that is why when a Taiwanese company ask for my assistance in marketing their product and selling it in the States (my company’s core business) the first thing I inquire about is what they are willing to do regarding returns and exchanges. The majority have never even considered this and have no intention of doing it. They only care about sales, so I would say that this is the reason I generally reject a company’s request to enter the retail market overseas.
So yes, buying American-made products or large chain store products doesn’t necessarily ensure quality, but it does ensure if you have a problem, the majority of times the problem will be corrected.
(edited for spelling mistakes, jet lag is a bitch)
headhonch and cj = thanks for the insights! seriously!
love this thread, obviously, viral marketing is best
you guys are right, the US is known for their customer service, and that’s the value of US companies. and yeah, there are quite a few companies VERY WELL KNOWN in the US that nearly nobody knows is Taiwan based!
Well pheebe_s did mention it was a mail order business for just 1 item now. I don’t think they need that large of an infrastructue in the US to offer customer service to US. Just 1 office, a phone number, an email should suffice to take care of 99% of all issues consumers may have.
If they do B2B wholesale in the USA, it would be even less complex, since they would mostly deal with retailers, instead of individual consumers. But then there would be issues of extending credit and offering guarantee returns for unsold product.
Worst case in retail is they send a replacement when customers sends back defectives. So they keep a small stockpile of the speedo in the office. This will help create a brand focused on customer service and guarantee quality.
I think it is doable. I’m just not sure about the size of the market and how much competiton already exist in the aftermarket speedo for 50cc scooters in the US.
True, but consumer taste constantly change. So constantly changing body styling is a big issue in the Taiwan scooter market. Consumers, especially the young, will change their scooters quite frequently to keep up with fashion. Especially in the cities like Taipei.
I’m not so sure people with 10+ year scooters are into the aftermarket part to add bling or performance to their rides…
Actually, Walmart now that you mention it, has some pretty darn good buyers. These guys research, test, and review products before putting them on the shelves. In contrast to K-mart (blue-light special!) who had terrible terrible buyers that would put any cheap piece of junk on the shelves. The consumers chose Walmart. When a company supports the consumer and refunds products without much hassle, then they quickly learn the importance of buying good products that will not only sell, but last.
Quality is what matters, not where something is made. American cars suck compared to many Jap models. This is part of the reason for the collapse of the industry. I remember how pissed off my dad was at me when I bought my first Japanese car, a Honda accord. 200 then almost 300,000 miles later, his view had started to change. He is now the proud owner of a Suburu that is making a run at 400,000 miles on the odometer! He will be the first to tell you that no Ford or Chevy he has owned ever came close to that and he has owned a lot of cars.
Once again, the consumers made their decision.
If you have a quality product then you will also not mind having a good return/exchange/refund policy.
The bottom line, if you want to pursue the US market, go for quality. Forget saving a few dollars on cheap materials and parts. Saving a few dollars might be an expensive mistake. Quality control is key.
haha do you mean like bikes made for modifying?
(insert european looking smiley)