2003: Starting with Foreign Trade

Chapter 120 Controlling Company Autonomy

Don't persuade others to be kind to others without suffering.

Tan Jincheng had no intention of being a pushover, nor did he want to take advantage of others' misfortunes; this wasn't a business matter.

These days, people aren't as open-minded. If you're wearing slightly revealing clothes, it's really hard to find a suitable person for 200 yuan a day. It's normal to want to charge a little more.

As for taking advantage of someone's financial difficulties to trick them into taking photos of their QQ underwear, that's rather despicable.

If all else fails, hire a few graphic designers to Photoshop the image; if all else fails, download a few pictures from a very hot website and fool the perverts. I doubt they'll care too much.

As long as there's something to watch, that's enough, right? What more could you ask for?

"Thank you, Boss Tan. Qingqing is right. You're a very good person and you'll agree to reasonable requests," Qin Siyu said happily.

"So you think it's reasonable to charge extra for tomorrow's shoot?"

"Well, that should be reasonable, right? After all, it's a bit more revealing than today's, don't you think, Boss Tan?"

"Let's assume you're right. But if you really have any concerns, you can bring them up. It's fine for college students to do part-time jobs to earn some pocket money, but you also need to remember the bottom line: your future isn't just about these two or three hundred yuan."

Qin Siyu was taken aback, not expecting Tan Jincheng to say such a thing. However, after thinking about it, she realized that what he said made sense, so she solemnly said, "I understand, thank you, Boss Tan."

"Yes, as you can see, I'm quite busy with work, and I won't have time to pick you up later. You'll have to coordinate your own filming schedules and take a car here. I'll subsidize your transportation costs at 50 yuan per day, and the same goes for Zhao Xianbo. Is that alright?"

These days, there's no subway. The 783 bus from Beicang to Ningbo costs 5 yuan per trip, plus transfers. Just taking the bus round trip would cost about 15 yuan. Giving a subsidy of 50 yuan isn't much of a favor.

However, the subway is about the same price, 7 yuan for a one-way trip. Apart from being faster and more convenient, it's not much cheaper.

"No problem, I can do it. I believe Zhao Xianbo can do it too. I guarantee it won't delay Boss Tan's business." Qin Siyu's eyes lit up as she said happily.

It's not just possible, it's absolutely amazing! This way, you can earn an extra 30 yuan a day, which is equivalent to handing out flyers for a whole day.

If you can work part-time for four weekends a month, you can earn a minimum of 1800 yuan and a maximum of 2600 yuan, plus a meal. It's much more comfortable than doing other part-time jobs.

Unfortunately, Mr. Tan doesn't have that many shooting assignments. I really hope he releases more new models.

Tan Jincheng found it both amusing and frustrating; what an innocent yet foolish college student!

It seems that college students of every generation, if they take part-time jobs to make a living, will face all sorts of pitfalls. This also applies to some young people with low education levels who have just entered society.

They earn extremely meager wages, do jobs that are not commensurate with their education or physical abilities, and in some special circumstances, they may not even receive their pay.

After finishing his business, Tan Jincheng beckoned to Gu Qingqing, who came over. Tan Jincheng then repeated what he had just told Qin Siyu and instructed them to tell Zhao Xianbo as well.

"Does Zhao Xianbo want a raise?" Gu Qingqing asked.

"What do you think?" Tan Jincheng pursed his lips and said, "You're a grown man, you should be secretly happy to have a female photographer taking pictures of you. You might not even have this opportunity when you get married in the future."

Seeing Tan Jincheng's expression, Gu Qingqing stuck out her tongue, looking quite playful.

The contrast between Tan Jincheng and her today was too great. In the morning, he was a powerful and authoritative boss, but by noon, he was a eloquent and tactful junior. I wonder what kind of person he was in the afternoon since we weren't together.

But now, whether it's a raise or a subsidy for travel expenses, it all reflects his thoughtful side.

"He's actually quite an interesting person."

It was already so late, so naturally they had to have dinner together. Afterwards, Tan Jincheng took the three of them back, and the rest of the communication was naturally left to Gu Qingqing.

On one hand, she's her classmate, so it's easier to contact her through an intermediary. On the other hand, the operation of these three shops will be temporarily handed over to her. As for why Gu Qingqing hasn't agreed yet? Well, she hasn't explicitly refused either.

In the eyes of business people, there is still a chance if there is no explicit rejection.

"After I get back, I'll look up some information on Taobao operations. Summer vacation lasts for several months, so this will be my formal social practice, hehe."

"What kind of social practice is a Taobao store? Besides, it doesn't fit my major." "Hehe, don't underestimate Taobao stores. The internet is already a trend. Maybe some Taobao stores will even go public in the future. Just wait and see. It's a very promising industry."

"Is it really that exaggerated? A Taobao store going public, how big would that be?" Gu Qingqing said with some surprise.

"Who knows? I'm just saying. But it is indeed a very profitable industry. You'll know once you officially take over the operation. If you really want your parents to support you in opening a Taobao store, this is also a way to persuade them."

"Hmm, I'll go back and take a look. I checked online this afternoon, but there isn't much information on this yet."

"In the early stages of the industry, everyone is still figuring things out. But operations are all about attracting customers to the store, which is not much different from the methods used by physical stores."

Whether you open a physical store or an online store, the core principle remains the same: how to attract customers to make purchases. Once you grasp this core idea, the rest depends on the operator's capabilities.

"Then I'll give it a try."

Tan Jincheng nodded and said, "Okay, then I'll head back now. If you're planning to come over during the summer vacation, let me know in advance and I'll arrange accommodation for you."

"Okay, goodbye Mr. Tan, drive carefully tonight."
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Lin Yumin and Wu Zhenping returned the next day. Before leaving, the two had basically finalized their work intentions. This trip back was just to pack their things. Salespeople travel frequently for work and didn't seem to be too resistant to working in other places.

However, the two of them won't be coming so soon. According to them, it will take at least a week, and they will start working no later than mid-June, as they have a lot of things to take care of at home and at work.

Tan Jincheng could accept this completely, and he took advantage of the time before they arrived to rent them an apartment. In addition, he also needed to start preparing for the staff dormitory.

"Xiao Tan, whether I can live a different life in my later years depends on how well our Flashcars sell," Lin Yumin said to Tan Jincheng with a smile before getting into the car.

"I believe that before long, Uncle Lin and Uncle Wu, neither of you will regret the decision you made today," Tan Jincheng said confidently.

When dealing with these seasoned veterans of state-owned enterprises, you can't show any fear. They have rich social experience and their own network of contacts, which are their advantages, but they also have quite a few minor flaws.

For example, it might be a large, slick, or overly sophisticated device.

However, these issues are easily resolved. Currently, they are working together. Once they officially join the company, Tan Jincheng will divide them into two groups, each with the same number of staff, and send them to different regions to develop the market. This will create competition between them and motivate them to work more actively.

In addition, Tan Jincheng will not completely relinquish control of the sales network for them to build. These days, offline sales channels are too important. When Lei Jun took a different approach and focused on online sales, it was not necessarily because he had no advantage in offline channels.

At that time, offline channels, such as some large mobile phone stores and contract phones, were almost entirely controlled by the four major brands, namely Huawei, ZTE, Coolpad, and Lenovo, except for a few major foreign brands. It would be very difficult for Xiaomi to break through and rebuild its sales channels.

With a brand new brand like yours and such a low profit margin, you only make 100 yuan per unit, while other brands can make hundreds or even thousands of yuan per unit. Would distributors be willing to sell yours or other brands?

However, the sales channels for electric scooters were severely restricted. In an era where people were worried about buying anything online for more than 500 yuan, even mobile phones didn't sell much online, let alone products like electric scooters.

Sales channels need a strong leader, but they must not be delegated to others. Otherwise, no matter how large the market becomes in the future, Tan Jincheng, as the boss, will have little say in the sales team.

There are quite a few top sales performers who frequently threaten to resign, give the finance department the cold shoulder, and arbitrarily and improperly claim expenses.

From an employee's perspective, if you have the ability to generate revenue for the company, you should be entitled to corresponding say and even certain privileges.

From a boss's perspective, no boss likes employees who constantly challenge their authority, even if the employee is exceptionally capable.

The best approach is to learn from the experience of Zhang Yiming's short video platform in his previous life. Almost all other platforms have a trend of one top streamer dominating the market. If a top streamer gets into trouble or leaves, it can even affect the company's overall valuation.

However, their short video platform is different. Top streamers are equally important, but also not so important. Their unique algorithm and traffic distribution method allow them to easily mitigate the impact of top streamers getting into trouble or leaving.

Tan Jincheng envisions a sales team where everyone has the potential to become a top salesperson, and where a new top salesperson can take over when one leaves.

In short, your departure will cause some losses to the company, but it will not be to the point that the company cannot function without you. If there is one person who cannot function without Flash Auto, it is Tan Jincheng.

The founder must maintain firm control over the company, even if new partners emerge in the future.

This is actually quite difficult. Many times, these things cannot be achieved simply by having money. But if Tan Jincheng wants to realize his dream, he must do this, otherwise it is impossible to even talk about it.

(End of this chapter)