Rebirth 2010: I taught Mr. Lei how to make a mobile phone

Chapter 867 We were badly attacked by our competitors
A few days later, Chen Mo, who had returned to his normal work routine, received a notification: the "referral gift package" that had been promised would not be available until October.

It's not that the other party went back on their word, it's just that Xiaomi's promotional materials this time are too well-suited to the current public opinion climate.

However, the tangible benefits included in the package, such as accelerated approval of game licenses and industry support funds, are gradually being implemented.

Chen Mo understood. Public attention is like a container with limited capacity; forcibly cutting in line at this moment would only lead to neglecting other aspects and greatly diminish the promotional effect.

Moreover, policies like the "Strengthening the Talents Program" are less appealing to the public than Xiaomi's new product launches.

This arrangement is actually reasonable.

"Since I'm young, I'll just have to follow the example of Kong Rong sharing pears," he said with a self-deprecating laugh.

But looking at Xiaomi's current public opinion trends, Chen Mo felt a growing unease.

The hype spread like wildfire, and the comments section was filled with nothing but "positive energy," so positive it was almost sinister.

Even if the other side were to personally intervene and help, it might not achieve the same effect.

What's even stranger is that he knew the official promotion period was nearing its end, and as a "big shot" in the marketing field, he knew all too well that this level of hype was not normal.

Of course, Chen Mo would absolutely admit that it was jealousy!
Chen Mo was online. This time it was a legitimate website, browsing the latest reports about Xiaomi.

When he saw the photos in some of the self-media articles praising Xiaomi and Xuanjie, he exclaimed "Ah!" and couldn't help but open his mouth wide.

The article's title reads, "You don't have to buy Xiaomi, but you must bow when you pass by a Xiaomi store!"
The content is extremely sentimental, tightly binding keywords such as Xiaomi, Xuanjie, domestic products, and patriotism, and moral blackmail is carried out between the lines—not buying Xiaomi's new products next month is treason.

The accompanying picture is even more "appropriate": a pedestrian stops in front of the Xiaomi store and bows deeply.

Even more outrageous, someone on Bilibili started a challenge called "Please bow deeply when passing by a Xiaomi store," personally demonstrating the standard posture of a 90-degree bow.

Among those who followed suit, some bowed, some saluted, and some even knelt.

This scene felt strangely familiar to Chen Mo, except that the protagonist last time was a different company. He never expected to see an upgraded version of this "two-in-one" model. Was this really the case?
"So these competitors didn't disappear, they just changed their packaging and tactics." Chen Mo stroked his chin, and judging from their tactics, he could tell which company it was just by smelling the change.

After all, extreme fame inevitably leads to criticism, and some netizens are already finding the comments section of these articles unbearable.

"Xiaomi isn't dead yet, and you're already bowing down? What grudge do you have against Xiaomi?"

"You're so bored. Instead of wasting your time, check if your salary has increased. Stop stirring up trouble. Looks like you're living a better life and are just too well-fed."

"Is this some kind of new way to attract traffic?"

"One step is missing; where is the family's return gift?"

Chen Mo frowned, looked at it for a while, and found that many of the phrases were highly similar, with only minor differences, especially the following passage.
"You may look down on any brand, but when you pass by a Xiaomi store, please stand at attention and salute. This is the greatest respect you can show to a national brand!"

It is a patriotic sentiment that every Chinese son and daughter should possess!

He was both amused and annoyed. It seemed that if he went shopping and saw local brands pulling this stunt, he might as well just walk the whole way home.
Even more absurd things followed: a company gave its employees iPhones as prizes, which sparked a massive online backlash, forcing the boss to issue a public apology.

"I'm sorry, I didn't think that much about it at the time. I just saw that my employees' old phones were iPhones, and I thought they were used to using them, so I bought them iPhones. Now that I realize my mistake, I immediately returned them and exchanged them for Xiaomi phones to support domestic products and national enterprises."

I sincerely apologize, I'm sorry.

Even so, the comments section remained relentless:

"You buy an Apple product, are you even Chinese?"

"A few iPhones ruined our revenue; they really pulled a fast one!"

"It would be an injustice if this shop didn't shut down!"

Chen Mo frowned.

These competitors have clearly learned their lesson from past media battles—when "bashing" doesn't work, they resort to "praising" to kill.

It was something he hadn't anticipated that these competitors would evolve to such an extent.

Compared to direct criticism and smear campaigns, which are targeted and easily detected, the attacked party is more likely to react and launch a quick counterattack.

The practice of "praising to death" involves superficially praising and flattering someone, or even elevating them to a higher status through "deification."

There are three advantages to doing this:

First, it is highly concealed and difficult to defend against. Those who are praised often accept it readily at first, but by the time they realize the trap, they are already deeply mired in it. Moreover, they do not need to get involved themselves; they only need to guide public opinion to excessively glorify the image, and their opponents and public figures will naturally be unable to resist taking action.
Second, exploiting human weaknesses to induce ego inflation. This gradually leads to a loss of rational judgment, resulting in "self-perception bias" and ultimately, flawed decision-making.
Third, creating unrealistic expectations can backfire. By raising public expectations, the goal is forced to assume responsibilities far beyond its capabilities, which, if not met, will lead to a backlash from public opinion.

These two are like the difference between the Vajra Palm and the Bone-Melting Palm.

The former is powerful and heavy, each move is hard and forceful, either killing the opponent or being killed by the opponent.

The latter, on the other hand, is like boiling a frog in lukewarm water, distorting public perception over a long period. Even if the target realizes the truth, it will be difficult to reverse the already inflated expectations.

A blow to the head is like a spear in the open; it is easy to dodge but the injury is direct.
Praise can be devastating, like a hidden arrow; it's hard to guard against and can lead to endless troubles.

To deal with online trolls who launch attacks, the other side has a mature "water release" plan, which emphasizes "screening, locking, opening, and legal follow-up": platform screening, technical locking, exposing the attacks, and legal action. This combination of measures can bring peace and order. However, this approach is no longer applicable to the current version.

You can't just gag someone and send them to jail just because they praise you.

This will become a new point of attack for competitors, such as accusations that the product is not good enough or that they are feeling guilty.

Chen Mo could foresee that such a scenario would definitely occur in the future.

"This is not a good situation." Chen Mo rubbed his temples, wondering if Lei Jun was aware of the danger.

As luck would have it, Chen Mo's phone rang a short while later. It was Cao Cao. As soon as he answered, he heard the other person complaining, "Little Mo, I've been smeared by our competitors. How could they be so mean?"

A famous painting subconsciously came to Chen Mo's mind.
"Xiao Mo, are you still there?"

"I'm here! What are you planning to do?"

"First of all, I will definitely keep a low profile. Seeing how things have turned out, Xiaomi has removed many of its marketing activities, such as those related to the concepts of 'new national products' and 'national phone'."

"Canceling was the right thing to do, otherwise you would be courting death. But is that all?"

Chen Mo raised an eyebrow, a hint of exasperation in his voice. "You've been with me for years, how come you haven't improved at all? You're too weak."
"I haven't finished yet. I plan to escalate the conflict and give them a taste of their own medicine. It's just a matter of saluting, bowing, and kowtowing, right? Don't act like you can't do that."

Hearing this, Chen Mo's eyebrows lowered. "That's more like it. But do you know who our competitor is this time?"

"I don't need to know who it is specifically. As long as it's a competitor, I'll just copy their style and give them a 'jianbing guozi with sausage and egg'!"

"Wow, no wonder he's been on the news, he speaks with more confidence now than before."

"...It has nothing to do with that. The main thing is to put yourself in your shoes and think about what you would do if you were in this situation. That's how you found the answer."

After all, I'm someone who's influenced by those who remain silent.

"Damn it! Get lost!"

After hanging up the phone, Chen Mo breathed a sigh of relief.

Lei Jun knows what's going on. If the mid-month press conference doesn't meet expectations and faces a backlash from the media, it will be a serious crisis for Xiaomi, causing all the goodwill they've built up to go down the drain.

This is an outcome that neither Lei Jun nor Chen Mo wanted to see.

Then Chen Mo called Chen Tong directly to his office to consult this veteran about how to deal with being "praised to death".

The other party's answer was concise, summarizing it in one sentence: "Stay clear-headed, proactively de-escalate the situation, shift the focus, and establish a margin for error."

Lei Jun has already done the first two points, and will do the third point. As for the fourth point, Chen Tong explained it in detail, and Chen Mo nodded repeatedly.

He then sent Zhang Xiaolong a message: "Check the public opinion data on WeChat to see if there are any suspects related to the recent salute incident involving Xiaomi."

Chen Mo originally just wanted to try his luck, but he actually caught a fish that night.

Looking at the data list that Zhang Xiaolong had compiled and sent over, it was filled with various chat groups categorized into different groups.

Chen Mo looked at the contents and couldn't help but feel speechless. It seemed that the online trolls hired by the competitor weren't very bright; even using QQ was better than using WeChat.
They use names like "Shenzhen Aquaculture Base," "Pollen Loyalty Twelfth Squad," and even directly list the names of competitors, followed by a "Command Center," as if they're afraid no one will know.

The chat content included messages like "send a red envelope first, then receive the task," various suggestions and advice, and disputes over the final payment due to low task completion rates.

After reading all this, Chen Mo completely understood the identity of the mastermind behind it all.

Indeed, who else could offer such an authentic style besides that one?
That evening, Chen Mo called Lei Jun back, "Hey, stop using area-of-effect attacks across the entire map, it'll make people resentful. I've found the target."

"...It really is his house."

Chen Mo heard the sound of teeth grinding inside. "No... you hate them that much!"

"You have no idea what kind of life I've been living these past few years. I've been cultivating my mind and focusing on refining the product, but instead, my competitors think I'm easy to bully. Forget it, let's not talk about the past."

"Alternatively, I think you could do this..."

Chen Mo summarized Chen Tong's proposed solutions into concrete measures, briefly outlined his thinking, and then, feeling somewhat unsatisfied, muttered, "I think you can complain to the 'parents.' Only the squeaky wheel gets the grease!"

"Hiss... No wonder people say you're a mad dog. You're ruthless and cunning. I know what to do!"

"Damn it!" Chen Mo laughed and cursed.

That's how male friendships are sometimes; a little bit of resentment can disappear in the midst of mutual teasing.

"By the way, is the production capacity sufficient this time? They said there was pressure at the end of last year."

"After nearly a year, we have 800 million units in stock. I was originally very confident, but to my surprise, Lao Jia came over recently and offered to sell the products through live streaming. Considering the traffic on Douyin, I still feel a bit uncertain."

"I introduced Lao Jia to us. His sales skills are no less than mine. Keep it up, Xiao Lei!"

(End of this chapter)