AMD explains its 'fusion' strategy for growing sales in China

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By Vanoy Wong (China Daily)
Updated: 2009-09-14 15:58

AMD explains its 'fusion' strategy for growing sales in China

Due to its sustained economic growth in recent years, many multinational companies are turning their attention to the China market for potential sales expansion efforts.

China is unique in its culture and business environment. To enjoy sales growth here, and to tap into this market for long-term development, I believe one of the keys to success is for a company to have a truly differentiated marketing strategy.

Our recent corporate brand campaign, called "The Future is Fusion", focuses on how the unique combination of technologies at Advanced Micro Devices Inc (AMD), coupled with close relationships with computer manufacturers and a deep understanding of customer needs, results in exciting next-generation capabilities and experiences.

During my tenure with AMD, I've witnessed our rapid sales growth in China and come to the conclusion that an extension of AMD's global "fusion" strategy is what has helped make AMD so well positioned for sales success as a multinational company operating in China.

What I mean by a fusion strategy as it relates to this region in particular is a fusion of corporate sales and marketing initiatives with national strategies to promote not only AMD sales growth, but also national economic growth.

Winning hearts

To win sales, it's often said that you must first win the hearts of customers. But to do that is always easier said than done.

One key sales consideration for AMD in China has been to focus on the user, the market and national interests to provide solutions that best suit local conditions.

We believe that's the best way for a company to win user and partner recognition, as well as sales and marketing support on all levels.

Only with that in mind can a business hope to win the hearts of Chinese consumers when it comes to their final sales choices.

Our long-term marketing strategy - "taking root in China and winning the future together" - has developed out of these considerations and has been the product of our sales experiences in China.

With this philosophy, we have worked closely with customers such as Dawning in providing technology essential for building supercomputers in China.

Last year, AMD joined with Lenovo to provide comprehensive technical and product support, which contributed to the remarkable success of the Beijing Olympics.

There are other examples of AMD "taking root" in China. Back in 2004, also in partnership with Lenovo, we launched the Economy PC for 2,999 yuan.

For a number of years since then, AMD has worked closely with many other OEM partners in seeking sales success in China's smaller-tier markets.

These earlier sales and marketing initiatives align well with the more recent "Computer into Countryside" program, which the Chinese government instituted this year.

Because of our long-term commitment to this market, at AMD we are able to draw on our earlier sales and marketing experiences to more effectively support this latest government-backed initiative.

With our partners, we are well on our way to offering mainstream products with an outstanding price performance ratio for customers throughout rural China as part of this program.

Ultimately, aligning our sales and marketing goals with this national initiative is a significant, positive step to help rejuvenate the Chinese IT industry and help reduce the Digital Divide.

Joining forces

If winning the hearts of customers is the foundation of our marketing efforts, "joining forces" is the framework we use to build on.

It's rare that one company can operate alone in any market. In China, that's particularly true.

Given the vast territory and complexity of market competition here, mutual help and support from business partners are indispensable for any company to get firmly established and thrive.

For that reason, AMD has chosen a key sales strategy of joining forces with our stakeholders and keeping a win-win framework in mind for all of our business dealings.

We also recognize that only through continual efforts to innovate can a business hope to survive in the long run amid ever-rising competition.

So we take into account both of these key considerations in formulating a customer-centric sales and marketing strategy. I believe this customer-centric focus is a major reason for our sales success in China to date.

Our definition of customer-centric is relatively straightforward. We believe customers are not just to whom we sell; instead, we are partners. AMD is willing to work hand in hand with our customers for our mutual benefit.

We sincerely believe that if our customers don't win, AMD can't hope to win. Such sincerity has been a consistent hallmark of our customer interactions and has helped fuel substantial growth for AMD China within a few years' time.

For example, in Shandong province earlier this year, we built a joint design center with the local Hisense Group. This design center's mission is to create advanced solutions using the AMD X86 embedded platform, which Hisense can use to develop proprietary products and technologies for the global market. This close collaborative approach capitalizes on each partner's strengths and market advantages to provide a win-win product pipeline for the embedded market.

Most recently, AMD developed a strategic alliance with HP and QQ Game and together launched a trend-setting product - a laptop computer with tailor-made features for video gamers.

Such a creative cross-sector alliance between a computer chip manufacturer, an OEM and a gaming provider allows for a truly differentiated marketing approach that provided significant added value to the consumer.

It's a good example of the kind of "out of the box" thinking that can come from a true customer-centric approach and cross-collaboration in this highly competitive marketplace.

With so much of the world's business community focused on the China market right now, there is no shortage of so-called "experts" offering sales and marketing advice to companies interested in doing business here. But there are no shortcuts to success, here or anywhere else in the world.

The author is AMD corporate vice president and general manager of AMD Greater China. The views expressed here are his own.

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