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Summary of article:
Xpeng’s Mona product manager made a public apology after the design was teased with “Lao Deng” at a press conference. Although the original intention was to highlight youthfulness, the inappropriate wording created controversy over the brand image.
“Eta”, the post-2000 product manager of Xpeng Mona, a brand owned by Xpeng Motors, released a video on the social platform on the 22nd, publicly apologizing for the controversy caused by the repeated use of the word “Lao Deng” at the Mona L05 pre-sale conference a few days ago. This press conference, which was intended to reinforce the “youth” label, ended with an apology due to public complaints about the car design as “too old” and other comments devaluing the group and brand image.
The Daily Economic News reported that the dispute occurred at the Xpeng Mona L05 pre-sale conference on the 15th. He Xiaopeng, chairman of Xpeng Group, was in Paris and handed the platform to the team through a connection.
It is understood that 54% of MONA’s product team is born after 1995, and 39% is born after 2000. Eta, who was on stage to explain, immediately asked, “How can an old man know what the young want?”, complained that the boss’s favorite wood grain and chrome design was “too old”, and called for the rejection of “Deng aesthetics”. Related video clips were later widely circulated on the Internet and protests ensued.
Eta explained in the apology video that the term was a joke used within the team to complain about the fixed thinking of car design, and was not intended to target the age group. However, some users questioned whether it was trying to achieve its goals by trivializing the groups, and some commented that the relevant communication strategies actually linked the brand to “Laodeng”.
It has been reported in the report that this storm came at the time of pre-sale of new cars. MONA L05, with a starting price of 169,800 yuan, is expected to be launched on October 29. Cumulative deliveries of the MONA series have exceeded 350,000 units in the two years since its launch, with an average monthly delivery of more than 14,000 units.
Industry analysts say public communications still need to maintain basic respect for different user groups. How to strike a balance between “dare to speak” and “able to speak” will be a test of brand managers’ wisdom.
Summary FAQ
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The reason was that at the MONA L05 pre-sale conference, the product manager repeatedly used the word “Lao Deng” to criticize the boss’s favorite wood grain and chrome design. The relevant clips spread quickly and caused controversy on the Internet.
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Eta said in the apology video that it was a joke used within the team to complain about the fixed thinking of car design. The intention was not to target ages or specific groups, but the outside world nevertheless questioned the inappropriate manner of expression.
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The controversy occurred during the pre-sale phase of MONA L05. The car’s price starts at 169,800 yuan and is expected to be launched on October 29. As the brand attempts to rejuvenate and sell sales, this reversal also raises public relations risks.
