2003: Starting with Foreign Trade

Chapter 473 Black and Red Are Still Red (Seeking Monthly Tickets)
At what age did people born in the 1980s and 1990s own their first computer?
Tan Jincheng didn't know this, but under normal circumstances in his previous life, he and Zhang Xupeng each bought a computer in 2006.

At the time, I didn't know much about computers, and I was afraid of getting ripped off if I built one myself, so I bought a reputable brand-name computer, which cost me about seven thousand yuan.

Seven thousand yuan was a high expense at the time, and even though Tan Jincheng and Zhang Xupeng were fully capable of affording it, they still felt a pang of regret.

The result was the same as when they tried to buy their own computers at the computer market; they inevitably got ripped off. Before they had computers, they were regulars at internet cafes.

I got a job in 04 and sold boxed lunches until 05. I could afford a computer, but due to my living conditions, I didn't buy one until 06.

Back then, even getting a network cable was a huge hassle.

The situation was like that in 2006. The situation was much better in 2007, but not by much. The real breakthrough in computer penetration occurred after 2008, when the power of the four trillion yuan stimulus package was not only reflected in the real estate sector.

"Setting the website launch time at noon is also to take into account the level of computer penetration. At noon, some people are playing games at home, some are in internet cafes, and some might even be at work."

Tan Jincheng explained that the reason for going online at 11:11 was not for the sake of rhyming, but also because of the widespread availability of computers.

Additionally, considering that today is Sunday, if it were a weekday, the official launch date would have to be reconsidered.

"Oh, is that the reason? I thought you were having a fit of chuunibyou. But you're right, computer penetration still needs to be improved. So it's not so strange that the first order came from Shenzhen."

Guangdong Province has a well-developed electronics industry, and Huaqiangbei has everything. Apart from megacities like Beijing and Shanghai, the level of computer penetration is probably the highest in Jiangsu, Zhejiang, and Guangdong provinces.

"Well, it's both an accident and an accident, so this publicity opportunity is ours. You guys should also be more proactive and respond. Don't be afraid to spend money. If you want to play the internet game, you must pay attention to generating buzz."

Tan Jincheng pointed out the direction to Wang Wei over the phone.

"Is this what you often call the internet mindset? Your FlashDrive also leans towards this style, right?" Wang Wei thought for a moment and replied.

"That's about it. Information spreads faster now and will only get faster in the future. So, the phenomenon of bad money driving out good money will inevitably occur. Therefore, we need to keep up with the times. The days when good wine needs no bush are over."

In a few years, those companies that have always been aloof will have to lower their standards and start advertising; their days of showing off are numbered.

“What you said makes sense. The more we promote our brands, the higher the awareness of consumers will be. It is indeed necessary to establish brand awareness early on.”

SF Express is looking to enter the online shopping express delivery industry. While large customer resources are important, individual customer orders cannot be ignored either. Compared with other express delivery companies, SF Express's unit price is much higher. How to get individual customers to accept this price is the problem that SF Express needs to solve.

Not bad, not bad. This call was worthwhile. Although Xiao Tan took advantage of me, I gained some new insights into brand positioning: "Okay, I got it. Let's sit down and have a good chat next time. We're both busy today, so let's not talk about it for now."

Wang Wei's words were not wrong. During the internal testing of Orange Products, everyone at SF Express, including himself, was indeed very busy. Considering the differences in modern logistics systems and the level of computer penetration, Orange Products had very different stocking arrangements in different regions.

The main promotional areas remain the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, the Yangtze River Delta, the Pearl River Delta, and some coastal cities. Other central and western regions will only have some promotional activities targeting key cities.

Currently, there are not many brands online, with footwear and apparel being the main focus, and agricultural products serving as a traffic driver. These two categories have the most brands and the biggest promotional efforts. Other categories, such as cosmetics, have only a very small number of brands participating in the trial.

The promotions on shoes and clothing were extremely generous. Buying Adidas and Nike shoes for less than 200 yuan wouldn't be unusual in today's world, but it was quite a sensation in 2007.

The reason is simply that domestic brands are far inferior in terms of both design and quality. Domestic brands that have not yet grown up pose almost no threat to these top-tier sports brands.

Before the 08 Olympics, most young people, especially young men, were proud to own an Adidas or Nike item. Those big logos might not be popular in later years, but at that time they were very cool.

The types of shoes were beyond their reach. The regular prices of the two major international brands of sports shoes were simply too expensive, making them unaffordable for ordinary people. They often had to save up for a long time before they were willing to grit their teeth and buy a pair.

Although many sizes of Adidas shoes are sold out, it's better than nothing. Also, Orange Goods offers limited quantities of these super low-priced brands every day. For example, the lowest-priced Adidas sneakers are only available in 2000 pairs per day.

The Double Eleven promotion lasted for a week, with a total of 1.4 pairs of Adidas sneakers priced at 179 yuan each. That's quite a lot; even if they were all sold, the sales revenue would be 250 million yuan. As for whether Orange Products would lose money at this price, or whether they were actually losing money to promote the product and build brand awareness, as consumers believe, that's the case.
Actually, that's not the case. The first batch of Adidas and Nike footwear and apparel products were obtained from the Shenzhou OEM factory through authorization from the two major companies. This helped them clear their inventory. In addition, since they were both companies belonging to the same warehouse in Beijing, they had very large price discounts.

Shenzhou itself does not have a channel like Orange Products Club. Usually, these slightly flawed leftover goods are sold at low prices to its own employees, and no special treatment is done. They are just stored in the warehouse.

Therefore, we are very happy to cooperate with Orange Products in this way. The cash payment from clearing inventory is a minor matter; the other benefits are the most important.

Losing money? Impossible. The profit margins in the apparel industry, especially for these leftover items, are unimaginable for ordinary people during periods of significant information asymmetry.

Many export surplus clothes are sold by weight, and shoes are wholesaled by truckload, and then transferred to various rural markets to be sold to consumers at low prices by the piece or by the pair.

Those with connections and a quick mind are making a fortune these days by trading surplus export goods.

Tan Jincheng had previously mentioned to his uncles that he could provide them with some leftover export clothing, which they could then transport in a truck to various rural markets to sell. This would actually earn them more than working a regular job.

Unfortunately, these relatives living in the countryside were quite conservative and had a natural fear of doing business, so Tan Jincheng had no choice but to arrange for them to work in some positions.

In an era where buying international brand names is a source of pride, these super low-priced discounts and 1-yuan flash sales on brand-name products, backed by major brands and boasting a high level of credibility, are undoubtedly very attractive.

"Boss, the Adidas shoes priced at 179 are sold out, and the Nike shoes will be almost gone too. It's only 12 o'clock, what should we do?" The shop assistant was a little panicked.

He's seen it all on Taobao; he's witnessed how popular some shops are. But to see a single item achieve a GMV of nearly 36 yuan in less than an hour is still quite impressive.

The key issue is that if they sell out and don't restock, there are still more than 10 hours left in the day. Will this cause a backlash from consumers who will criticize them everywhere?

"If they're sold out, they're sold out. We can temporarily add some Adidas models to the flash sale, selling 10 pairs every hour without restocking. As for consumers complaining, let them complain. The more they complain, the more popular it becomes."

We have the goods, but we're going to do this limited-edition promotion. As for the fact that they'll sell out quickly, let them criticize us. Even negative publicity is still publicity.

"Also, the publicity team should keep up with the situation. GMV doesn't need to be announced in real time, but remember to post more articles and press releases about how long it takes for these items to sell out. We need to create a sense of urgency for our consumers that if they don't buy now, they'll miss out."

"Uh, boss, if you keep doing this, tomorrow's 2000 will probably be gone by midnight, and you'll get even harsher scolding then."

"You're insulting me, not me. I'm the boss of Flash, what do I have to do with your Orange Products Association? The sponsorship is from Happy Farm. You can guide those who are cursing to play Happy Farm and get them hooked on the game."

The employees in the office area were stunned by Boss Tan's remarks; they had never seen such a shameless boss before.

The shop assistant poached from Taobao, who is also the operations manager, said with a smile: "Everyone says that Mr. Ma is good at creating hot topics and attracting popularity, and he is also good at deceiving people. But if you ask me, Mr. Tan is even more capable than Mr. Ma."

"Stop bragging, or you'll get scolded. Also, you'll not only have to watch out for those who criticize you, but you'll also have to guide those people to criticize you without affecting your reputation or popularity. I'll send people from Orange Technology to help you with that."

"Oh, Mr. Tan, you're being too ruthless! Isn't that a bit much?"

The office area was filled with groans. How could the Orange Products project not know about the existence of that group of online trolls? Saying that Orange Technology would cooperate was just a euphemism for bringing out these online trolls.

This group of online trolls, who have always been shrouded in mystery within the company, are now feared throughout the entire internet industry. After more than two years of training and guidance from Boss Tan, their abilities are such that even major internet companies dare not easily provoke them.

Gu Qingqing chuckled. She wasn't upset that Tan Jincheng had taken over the command at the last minute; on the contrary, she was quite happy. Essentially, they both wanted to do a good job on the project, and she trusted her man completely when it came to creating trouble.

"You're so ruthless to your own people, you even have to use them."

"Haha, that depends on how well your project team guides it. If I don't like the results, I don't mind letting them step in and criticize you."

(End of this chapter)