2003: Starting with Foreign Trade

Chapter 193 Wind Chaser Publicity Plan
December 1, 2005, Thursday, the first day of the eleventh lunar month.

Yadi officially announced SHE as its brand ambassadors, without disclosing their specific endorsement fee, but industry insiders estimate it to be between 200 million and 300 million yuan per year.

This is the second electric vehicle company this year to announce that it will hire a celebrity to endorse its products. At this time, Yadi was not very powerful and its reputation was similar to that of Shanchi.

However, in terms of strength, it is much stronger than Flash, and coincidentally, its founder is also from Anhui Province.

Within a year, the two electric vehicle companies hired celebrities to endorse their products, and since their founders are both from Anhui Province, comparisons were inevitable. The 15-year age gap between the two companies was also a topic of much discussion in the media.

"Technological and fashionable power, free Chinese people."

"Stars shine brightly, spring breezes whiz by; electric cars speed along!"

"Lightweight and flexible, making travel more convenient, Fengchi Electric Vehicle!"

The two companies and their three advertising slogans have sparked considerable discussion online. These days, internet resources are scarce, and even a single advertisement can be used by netizens to make fun of for a long time.

"What is the slogan 'YaDi' trying to convey? What kind of technological capabilities can a little electric scooter have? And are their promotional posters made with PowerPoint?"

"Haha, that's true. The quality of their ads can't compare to those made by Chris Lee, although Flash's tagline is pretty cringeworthy too."

"When it comes to beautifully shot commercials, I have to say it's Ling'er. Her advertising slogans are also simple and easy to understand."

"They spent a lot of money. I heard the boss is only 20 years old. Could he be a fan of Ling'er? He's really willing to spend money. How many cars do they have to sell to break even?"

"They spent more money because they signed a long-term contract, and the publicity was definitely exaggerated. They might not even be as expensive as S.H.E., after all, they are three people."

"That makes sense. I'm really looking forward to the release of Fengchi's commercial. This company makes really good commercials; they have a forward-thinking feel to them. Even though Chun Ge is a non-mainstream person, you can't tell from his commercial at all."

Amidst the online uproar, Fengchi's commercial is being filmed in full swing.

Competitors have already started to exert their efforts. It is said that the advertising endorsement deal with Brother Cheng from Xinri is almost finalized. With government support, Tan Jincheng's information channels are much more sensitive than before.

Hiring celebrity endorsements is not only standard practice in the electric vehicle industry, but also in the entire industry. It seems that a manufacturer is not considered legitimate without a spokesperson. Companies with some resources hire big-name celebrities, while small factories or even contract manufacturers also hire minor celebrities.

Many companies don't even consider whether a celebrity matches their brand image or message; they just need a spokesperson who is reasonably priced and has some fame.

Tan Jincheng, who has had two celebrity endorsements, said the most outrageous thing he's heard of is that the agent directly provides photos of the celebrity, without needing to take any additional photos. If they could hold a signing ceremony, the boss could shake hands with the celebrity and take a photo, that would be ideal.

It has to be said that this money is really easy to make. Some celebrities are unwilling to take on commercials like Tan Jincheng, who go to great lengths to find an advertising company, develop an advertising plan, and seriously shoot commercials, unless the money is high enough.

"President Tan, your requirements are really strict. I feel like our Yifei is being taken advantage of," Liu Xiaoli said thoughtfully, looking at Tan Jincheng who was directing her from the side.

This time, the guy didn't bring his girlfriend, but he did bring a little kid, and the kid's dad came too. What an amazing combination.

Recently, Yadi's advertising campaign featuring S.H.E. has appeared in major cities. In addition, many electric vehicle companies are also looking for spokespeople everywhere. Liu Xiaoli always feels that the price of 2700 million for 10 years is a bit of a loss. If it had been delayed for another month or two, she might have been able to get a higher price.

"Don't think like that, Ms. Liu. Can the first company be the same as the second? Besides, we signed a 10-year contract. The risk is still very high. Very few companies would have such courage. If my girlfriend and I weren't fans of your daughter, I wouldn't have done this," Tan Jincheng replied with a smile.

"Come on, when you signed Chun Ge's autograph last time, you also said you were her fan. I've already checked that out," Liu Xiaoli said, pursing her lips.

She would only make a few complaints; she didn't dare to do anything extra. Even with financial backing, her daughter had only been famous for two years, and she didn't dare to do anything in front of clients.

Besides, the penalty for breach of contract is as high as three times the amount. Although she has been famous for two years, she has not actually earned much money. She doesn't have the courage or the ability to pay such a large penalty.

"I didn't say I could only like one celebrity. I like listening to Chris Lee sing and watching your daughter act."

Standing to the side, Zhang Mingcan couldn't help but twitch his lips as he watched Tan Jincheng spout nonsense.

He had previously said he wasn't interested in following celebrities and even warned his daughter to do less of it, saying it wasn't good for her. I don't know which of those statements were true and which were false.

"Alright, you're the boss, whatever you say goes; by the way, where will these commercials be broadcast?" Liu Xiaoli asked helplessly, changing the subject.

"Don't worry, this time we're going to broadcast it on CCTV and other national satellite TV channels, which will definitely boost your daughter's popularity. But we can't reveal this to anyone, you know what I mean."

"Yes, I know the rules," Liu Xiaoli nodded.

Fengchi's brand is separate from the company, and with a significant increase in production next year, the advertising campaign will be extensive. In addition to commercials airing on CCTV and major satellite TV channels, there will be advertisements at bus stops, subway stations, and elevators in residential areas. This will be a nationwide advertising campaign. Of course, the offline advertising focus, including on satellite TV, will be differentiated; there will be no advertising plans for areas where business hasn't been promoted.

In fact, the production line at the new factory is already being assembled, and some of the trained employees have already started working.

The Fengchi Feiyi series is FlashTech's flagship product for next year, accounting for 50% of the production capacity of the three models, with an estimated production capacity of 10 to 25 vehicles, which can be seen as a layout for first- and second-tier cities.

In December, production capacity and manpower were insufficient, so the new factory mainly produced the Fengchi series to pave the way for the marketing department's promotion.

The future Fengchi series will focus on first- and second-tier cities and provincial capitals, while the Shanchi series will be the main offering in third-tier cities and even county towns, where the cost-effectiveness advantage will be more popular in smaller cities.

Zhang Mingcan watched for a while and then got bored. His daughter had taken half a day off to come over, and now that they had taken a photo together and gotten an autograph, he was in a hurry to go back because he had to go to school tomorrow.

"I'm leaving now. I'll treat you to dinner when I get back," Zhang Mingcan said softly, tugging at Tan Jincheng.

This guy is such a doting father; he actually agreed to take time off from school to chase after his idol, which is absolutely outrageous.

“Okay, let’s have a good talk when we get back,” Tan Jincheng nodded.

Zhang Mingcan glanced at Tan Jincheng and nodded. The two had a brief exchange on the way here, and Zhang Mingcan was somewhat interested in Tan Jincheng's proposal to jointly establish a new factory.

"Goodbye, Uncle Tan. Thank you for bringing me here today," said Zhang Mingcan's daughter, the chubby little girl Zhang Huining, sweetly.

He's not so well-behaved at home, but he became a bit timid when he got to the scene.

"Don't call me uncle, call me brother; also, study hard when you get back, and don't do too badly on your final exams."

“No, I won’t call you that. You call my dad ‘brother,’ but my dad says I have to call you ‘uncle,’” Zhang Huining pouted.

"You're not going to shout, huh? Then I'll go back and buy you 10 sets of practice test sets as a New Year's gift, and I'll have your mom supervise you as you finish them."

"Ah, Uncle Tan, you're so mean! Dad, let's go!" Zhang Huining shuddered and quickly grabbed her father's hand and ran away.

Zhang Mingcan smiled wryly. Tan Jincheng waved for him to go back quickly. The little girl wasn't afraid of her father, but she was very afraid of her mother. She had taken leave to come here without telling her mother.

If you get back too late and get caught, you're bound to get a beating.

After Zhang Mingcan left, Tan Jincheng asked the advertising team and was told that they didn't need him for the time being. He then said goodbye to Liu Xiaoli and went back to the hotel first, as he still had many things to take care of.

We need to buy employee dormitories, keep up with the offline expansion, and negotiate advertising contracts with TV stations.

Learning from his previous experience, Tan Jincheng brought a driver with him this time, while Zhang Xuhui stayed at the company to handle some business and coordinate operations.

The first issue to be addressed is employee housing. Tan Jincheng has already finalized a plan for 100 units, and the approximate area has been drawn up. Although these places seem relatively remote now, they will become the central area of ​​Beicang District in the future.

Currently, houses in these areas are still relatively cheap, and not many people are buying them. With a budget of 30 yuan per house, each house would be over 90 square meters. In fact, Tan Jincheng would like to buy a house under 89 square meters.

Because of future housing purchase policies, there will be preferential tax rates for individuals purchasing ordinary residential properties under 90 square meters for the first time. This policy also applies to second-hand homes, so it is relatively easier to make a purchase of properties under 90 square meters.

The average price of residential properties currently for sale in the areas designated by Tan Jincheng is between 3200 and 3500. In the future, these areas will all be worth more than 25,000, so the appreciation potential is still very considerable.

The reason it hasn't been finalized yet is that several real estate companies are interested in cooperating with Tan Jincheng. Tan Jincheng also wants to see which company offers the best preferential policies. Obviously, there's no need to haggle with ordinary sales staff in a sales hall when selling 100 units at once.

You can just contact the branch manager directly.

After buying the house, the renovation can be done one set at a time, but basic furniture still needs to be added. As for the employees currently being recruited, they are temporarily housed in the employee dormitory area of ​​the old factory.

When he rented the rooms, Tan Jincheng had already considered the issue of increasing staff numbers, so he rented more rooms. In addition, if there was no room available now, the original four-person rooms could be converted into six-person rooms.

Since they don't have to stay for long, even if the employees have opinions, they won't say much.

"That's great. We can sell a portion of these 100 sets at a discount to the company's outstanding employees as a kind of reward."

(End of this chapter)