2003: Starting with Foreign Trade

Chapter 130 Lack of Money and Brand Promotion

Friday, December 1, 2005.

The ten-day procurement trip, which spanned two provinces and four cities, has officially come to an end. Tan Jincheng and his group of four embarked on their journey back to Ningbo, with Wu Zhenping driving today.

Along the way, Tan Jincheng, Sun Yuming, Lin Yumin and Wu Zhenping took turns driving, so the driving experience wasn't too tiring.

"Thank you all for your hard work this time, but we'll have to work hard for a while longer. We need to try to get the products into the market as soon as possible, starting with the terminals around the Beicang factory."

Tan Jincheng, who was sitting next to Lin Yumin in the back seat, rubbed his forehead and said.

Although the supplier from last night had his company located in southern Jiangsu, the boss was from northern Jiangsu and could really drink. Tan Jincheng still had a headache from drinking. If he hadn't been clever enough to do something, he would probably still be lying in his hotel room right now.

"It's a bit tough, but it's also very enjoyable. I haven't worked with this much passion in a long time," Lin Yumin said with a smile.

After traveling together for 10 days, Lin Yumin gained a better understanding of Tan Jincheng's personality. He was a young man who clearly distinguished between public and private matters, and he had a strong presence at work. You could offer your opinions, but whether he listened or not was up to him.

Moreover, the main direction and major decisions must be made by him. People like himself are just playing a supporting role. Lin Yumin can understand this. After all, it involves purchase orders worth millions. Controlling the finances is something every boss has to do.

In his personal life, this small business owner is a very easy-going person. As long as work is not discussed, he is just like a junior, treating people with gentleness, politeness, and great care.

After 10 days, whether at work or in life, Tan Jinhe gave Lin Yumin the feeling of "someone else's child".

"I wonder how Old Tan and his wife raised their children. I'll have to ask them for advice sometime," Lin Yumin thought to himself.

After a long and tiring journey, upon returning to Ningbo, Tan Jincheng told Lin Yumin and Wu Zhenping to rest first, while Sun Yuming stayed behind.

"Brother Sun, you'll be in charge of keeping an eye on the purchasing side from now on. If there are any problems or signatures needed, come to me. We already have a standard for the pricing system, and we'll try to reduce costs even further next year."

"Also, you can arrange for some small parts, such as screws and such. Just come and get my signature later."

It's like giving a stick and then a treat. The bulk of the procurement department controls the price and quality, and it doesn't matter if the smaller part is shared with the lower-level staff. It's just a little bit going out of their hands anyway, so they have to have something to look forward to.

As long as it's not too excessive, for example, if a screw has a market price of 20 cents, and you purchase it for 25 cents, and the purchase quantity is 10% to 20% more than expected, Tan Jincheng can accept it.

However, if you quote 40 or 50 cents, or greatly increase the purchase volume and increase the company's inventory, that is definitely not acceptable.

Sun Yuming was stunned when he heard this. The boss was just saying that you can take a little bit of the small parts with small order volume. How am I supposed to respond to that?
"Okay, boss, don't worry, I'll handle it well." Sun Yuming didn't know how to respond for a moment, so he could only nod in response mechanically.

"Yes, we really need to control it. The quality must be up to standard. Our first batch of products must establish a good reputation for cost-effectiveness."

"clear."

"Alright, you should go and get some rest too. We all have to work this weekend. It'll be tough, but things will get easier after these two busy months."

The words have been spoken, the line has been drawn, and the opportunity has been given. Whether you can do it well or not is up to you.

If he can't handle the situation, Tan Jincheng won't do anything to Sun Yuming. He'll just have him come back to run errands for him and act as his driver.

Whether Sun Yuming will eventually lead the core purchasing department of a large factory or remain a junior employee is up to him. Life may offer many opportunities, but whether you can seize them depends on your own abilities.

If Flash Motors can successfully make a profit in September, and Sun Yuming can seize this opportunity, then Tan Jincheng can definitely be considered a benefactor in his life.

His subordinates went to rest, but Tan Jincheng had neither the mood nor the time. Just as he had written in his space log, it was like rowing against the current; if you don't advance, you fall behind. Tan Jincheng had no way out.

If he were to give up at this point, the penalty for breach of contract from the buyers alone would be enough to give Tan Jincheng a hard time. The reason why buyers agree to this "goods first, payment later" method is not only because of the large orders, but also because of the penalty system for breach of contract.

If the procurement is interrupted, Flash Automotive will have to pay a penalty of 5% to 10% of the total amount to all parties.

"Old Zhang, how much money does Jinpeng Trading have in its accounts right now?" Tan Jincheng dialed Zhang Xupeng's number.

We need to raise money, at least another 500 million yuan. Jinyi Industrial is just starting out, and its cash flow is not much at the moment, but it is already in a state of self-sufficiency. We can get some money by using Jinyi Industrial as collateral for a loan.

Alternatively, you can try to get some loan discounts from Flash Auto. If all else fails, you can use your connections to plead poverty and hopefully get some funds from the bank.

Secondly, they borrowed money from Jinpeng Trading. May and June are over, the second quarter is finished, and Jinpeng Trading should have a considerable amount of cash on hand. Although April's orders weren't many, they still totaled $20, and May and June saw a surge in orders. After deducting payments to contract manufacturers and other suppliers, as well as operating costs, they should have a substantial amount of cash on hand.

"You're back from your business trip? There should be over 600 million, but I'm not sure of the exact amount. What's up?" Zhang Xupeng's voice came from the other end of the phone.

"Borrowing money? What else could it be? Calculate how many ways you can get by and see how much you can lend me," Tan Jincheng said with a smile.

"Cross the bridge? What do you mean?" Zhang Xupeng asked, puzzled.

“Bridge loans are a type of short-term loan, with terms ranging from a few months to half a year. As for the interest rate between Jinpeng Trading and Shanchi Auto Industry, we can discuss it.”

"Oh, why make it so complicated? Isn't Sister Liu in charge of Jinpeng Trading's finances? Why don't you just ask her how much money she can lend out at most?"

"Of course I should ask you this, you're the boss. And how's the children's clothing business going?"

"It's hard to explain over the phone. Let's talk about it when you get back tonight. I'll discuss the loan with Sister Liu later. Don't worry, we'll give you the maximum loan amount while ensuring your operations are up to standard."

"Okay, thank you, Mr. Zhang. I'll treat you to dinner tonight."

"Screw you."

After hanging up the phone, Tan Jincheng breathed a long sigh of relief. It was really good to have such a good childhood friend. Others wouldn't be so easy to talk to. Besides, it was his content nature. He always had millions of dollars in cash in his account, but he didn't think about doing anything with it.

It's worth noting that since Zhang Xupeng took over, banks have been eyeing the funds on the books for a long time. Salespeople from large banks often approach Zhang Xupeng, either trying to persuade him to invest in wealth management products or to borrow money to expand his business.
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On Saturday morning, Tan Jincheng arrived at Shanchi Auto Sales feeling refreshed.

After a good night's rest and a good night's sleep, Tan Jincheng returned to his previous gentle and refined appearance, except that his skin was a bit darker, especially the part of his short-sleeved shirt that was showing.

"Come to my office, I have something to tell you," Tan Jincheng said with a smile to Gu Qingqing.

The reason they arrived so early was because Gu Qingqing and the others were coming today. Ever since Gu Qingqing sparked Tan Jincheng's idea to promote the Flash and Windspeed series on QQ Space, Tan Jincheng felt that the plan was very feasible.

Isn't this the same approach used by later public accounts, influential figures, and self-media? This kind of strategy is still perfectly viable today; what we lack now are advertorial writers.

"What is it?" Gu Qingqing took the water from Tan Jincheng and asked curiously.

Tan Jincheng looked at Gu Qingqing with a smile and said, "First of all, thank you. The other day you mentioned QQ Space, which gave me an idea for promoting a brand."

"Huh? Thank you? Why are you thanking me?"

"Let me tell you."

As Tan Jincheng explained, Gu Qingqing roughly understood his thinking and couldn't help but brighten up. This was indeed a good idea, with a clear approach and low cost. In addition, it could be extended to the entire Internet, such as Sina Blog, Baidu Tieba, and so on.

Gu Qingqing looked at Tan Jincheng with sparkling eyes: "So, you really do have to thank me. Is this what you were talking about?"

"Do you dare to take this job? Help me write a proposal, and then find a group of copywriters from your classmates. If you dare, I'll give this job to you," Tan Jincheng said with a smile.

"But I don't understand this. I'm not a professional in this field either."

"I'm still a high school student, what do I not understand? The internet is the future trend. If I start getting involved now, there will be great business opportunities in the future."

One plan is to use advertorials for promotion. On the other hand, Tan Jincheng didn't mention that after QQ copied the "Happy Farm" game, there would be other games like QQ Speed. QQ Speed ​​was very popular back then. He suggested that, given his status as a QQ shareholder, he could get in touch with them and get them to promote the game ahead of time.

Spend some money on advertising and put on a special FlashCar event, isn't that reasonable?

Advertising and marketing are essential for every brand. While QQ is still relatively new, it can afford to lower advertising costs, which is a unique way to get freebies. You can't just focus on getting freebies from Taobao, right?

"Then I'll give it a try. Let me use your computer for a bit. I'll register a few QQ accounts first, and then I'll write a proposal for you to see." Gu Qingqing didn't hesitate. She had been looking forward to getting to know Boss Tan better, and this was a great opportunity.

Creating a project proposal or a PowerPoint presentation, while not being a professional and not necessarily able to do it perfectly, is still no problem for Gu Qingqing. In fact, she has to thank Boss Tan for the translation work he provided earlier, which allowed Gu Qingqing to brush up on her computer skills.

"Okay, come on over. The demo image of eMule is in the FlashCar folder on my computer desktop. You can retrieve it yourself if needed."

(End of this chapter)