Challenges
Brand building takes more than just having the right product mix. It demands companies to stay committed to their core values, satisfy consumer wants, and be seen as a trustworthy merchant. It is a taxing endeavor, but done correctly produce long-lasting effects. Ninebot, a manufacturer of personal transportation vehicles, recently acquired Segway thus expanding their product assortment. Al DiPasquale, Sales Director for Ninebot, shares that the acquisition was a step in the right direction, but finding the right audience to market to presented challenges because of the product’s niche type nature.
Partnership & Growth
Ninebot’s success began by conceptualizing and executing an effective go-to-market strategy. That meant soliciting the right partnership. When Ninebot partnered with Newegg Marketplace in 2015, its primary focus was to get their product offering and brand in front of the right audience. Ninebot’s Sales Director, Al DiPasquale, says, “Newegg is one of the most renowned online marketplaces because of their tech-centric customer base. We firmly believed they were the perfect match for us and vice versa. Once we connected, we immediately crafted a marketing and sales plan and put it into action.” Ninebot offers three types of self-balancing transportation robots.
Their Ninebot-E (Elite) is a traditional self-balancing vehicle requiring the rider to lean forward and backward to propel and stop. Its counterparts, the Ninebot-C (Comfort) and the Ninebot One unicycle, are also selfbalancing transporters, but are hands-free with the motion being controlled by the rider’s knees or feet, respectively. Each line is powered by electricity. One full battery charge allows the vehicles to travel distances up to 12 miles with speeds up to 13mph making them ideal for short distance traveling and commuting.
An item unique as a Segway isn’t typically an easy sell to the casual consumer. Both Newegg and Ninebot determined that in order for the product launch to be successful, a series of content campaigns needed to be implemented. “The strategy centered on creating engaging content with the aim of establishing a community around our products. Each blog and video demonstration informed customers about similarities and differences between each product line. All that content was well received. The results were astonishing. Engagement on social media alone generated over thousands of likes and shares with social engagement up more than 4%. All of this within the first month,” says DiPasquale. The increasing buzz generated by the content pieces primed customers to purchase.
“When we pulled the trigger on participating in marketing vehicles such as Newegg Flash and their monthly automotive email promotion, sales took off. We sold over $48,000 worth of product within the first few weeks of the launch and our sales continue to grow at a healthy rate, averaging $8,000 per month. Our customer following continues to expand as well,” says DiPasquale. Since listing their sales growth has soared over 250%. “We have a very unique relationship with Newegg. There’s a genuine sense of “family”. Newegg treats our staff and our business as if it was their own. We know we can call anytime, for any reason. They truly are a great company.
We look forward to bringing many new products to the Newegg marketplace, and working with them for many years to come,” says DiPasquale. You can check out the blogs and video series here.
