July 16, 2005, Saturday.
Chun Ge and her agent, Man Yang, who had just finished the 10-to-9 competition yesterday, flew tirelessly to Yongcheng early in the morning.
They had a one-week break in the competition, during which they had to finish filming the commercials and promotional videos for Shanchi electric vehicles as quickly as possible, and then return to the summer camp for the elimination round next Friday.
Mango TV was quite extravagant, starting from the 15-to-10 day, eliminating one contestant live every Friday thereafter, maximizing the tension of the competition.
The day before Tan Jincheng officially signed with Chun Ge happened to be the live broadcast day for the 15-to-10 round.
This was also one of the reasons Zhou Biyu feared their team would temporarily raise prices; Chun Ge had officially become a top 10 contestant and was already qualified to debut.
Fortunately, everything went smoothly on the day of the signing.
Agent Man Yang appeared to be less than 30 years old, probably quite inexperienced, and didn't cause any trouble.
Moreover, Tan Jincheng offered her many benefits; not only would there be an extra bonus if they won the championship, but he also had her introduce the advertising company.
This was an immediate benefit, not a mere promise for after winning the championship.
Introducing business to the other party and collecting a reasonable referral fee were all legitimate incomes.
Lishe Airport.
Chun Ge and her two companions were very low-key, but fortunately, there weren't large-scale fan receptions like in later years, and celebrity itineraries were kept quite confidential.
Although they were recognized by some people, it wasn't a major issue.
After the start of the national finals, Chun Ge truly experienced what it felt like to be a star, coupled with the tension brought by live broadcasts, her taut nerves felt immense pressure.
In Sister Man's words, taking this opportunity to film a commercial during the competition break was also a way to relax and relieve stress.
Upon arriving at the pick-up area, they saw a young man leaning against the window of a BMW 3 Series car in the distance, looking towards the exit.
Man Yang smiled at Chun Ge:
"Let's go, Mr. Tan personally came to pick us up, he really values us."
Little did she know, this BMW was currently the only vehicle available for Shanchi Motors to pick up people, and it was almost Tan Jincheng's private car, driven wherever he went.
If he didn't come to pick them up, there would really be no other way.
The three walked towards Tan Jincheng.
As they got closer, Tan Jincheng also recognized them:
"It's been hard on you three sisters. The schedule is so tight, yet you had to rush like this."
Man Yang looked at the boss, who was a year younger than Chun Chun, and smiled:
"Mr. Tan, long time no see. Aren't you going to congratulate our Chun Chun on making it into the top nine?"
"What's there to congratulate about the top nine? I'll congratulate you when you win the championship. Get in the car,"
Tan Jincheng said with a smile.
This amused Man Yang:
"Mr. Tan certainly knows how to talk."
Chun Ge smiled at the side, pursing her lips.
It was their second meeting, and Tan Jincheng found her to be quite normal offstage, with ordinary clothes and makeup.
Besides her hair, which was a bit much, she also seemed not very talkative.
The three didn't delay.
After all, they were popular contestants now, and staying too long in a public place might attract attention and cause trouble.
"We don't need to go to the factory. We can just shoot on location in the city. Also, I've booked your hotel."
"Thank you, Mr. Tan. Let's go then."
The Shanchi series commercials were relatively simple, primarily targeting the internet, city TV stations, and provincial satellite TV.
The TV commercials would be cut into three versions: 5 seconds, 10 seconds, and 15 seconds.
Tan Jincheng had referenced the promotional videos of E-bike electric vehicles from his previous life.
For online platforms, the ad time could be longer, up to 30 seconds.
The main target regions for distribution were Anhui Province and Henan Province, especially Henan Province, which was Xinri's stronghold, a populous province, and also a major consumer of small electric scooters.
Due to limited production capacity, Tan Jincheng planned to open up marketing channels by focusing on specific points, concentrating the production of electric vehicles in Anhui and Henan, going straight for Xinri's stronghold, and engaging them in a price war!
As the saying goes, if I sell one more, you sell one less.
For the same range, I'm cheaper than you.
For a higher range, I'm still cheaper than you!
The main concept was exceptional value for money.
He didn't believe his basic version couldn't beat their luxury version.
In the past half month, since the formal endorsement contract was signed last week, Tan Jincheng had already arranged for Lin Yumin and Wu Zhenping to lead teams to the two provinces respectively, starting low-key promotions.
At the same time, as components gradually arrived at the factory, the workshop had been operating at full capacity since last Sunday, implementing a 24-hour day and night shift system; to date, over 1100 qualified complete vehicles have been produced.
Rows of electric vehicles displayed in the factory area were quite a spectacle.
There was still half a month left in this month.
Based on the current daily production capacity of around 150 units, an estimated 3500 more units could be produced, meaning July's production capacity would reach 3600 units.
By the end of August, over 8000 units were expected to be shipped.
The production capacity wasn't large, but according to the lowest pricing standard, if all were sold, it would generate at least 12 million yuan in sales.
Production capacity still needed to be increased.
The current capacity was insufficient.
After things stabilized in September, it seemed more production lines would need to be added using sales revenue.
For the current 8000 units, Tan Jincheng did not plan to set up tiered distributors.
Instead, he adopted a manufacturer-to-retail terminal model, having Lin Yumin and Wu Zhenping's two teams find some relatively well-sized terminal retailers, negotiate directly with them, and then adopt a unified shipping model.
He recalled that when small electric scooters sold well, a shop of about 200 square meters, selling a single brand, could sell 100 units a month during the off-season, and over 1000 units a year.
So, the minimum order quantity for the first batch of Shanchi series was set by Tan Jincheng at 10 units, capped at 100 units.
Official stocking would begin in August, allowing for distribution to approximately over 100 shops, and at least 80 stores, thus basically opening up the market a bit.
As for market promotion methods, in addition to offering discounts to dealers, Tan Jincheng also developed a preferential scheme, which included authorizing relevant stores to conduct lucky draws for orders of 100 units or more.
The first prize was a Hong Kong and Macau tour valued at 5888 yuan, with a total of 648 slots.
The second prize was a leisure chair valued at 238 yuan, with a total of 6480 slots.
The third prize was a deluxe gift package worth 138 yuan (helmet, lock, raincoat, pump, tote bag), with unlimited slots.
In addition, there was a certain chance to get Chun Ge's autograph; haha, this item was an impromptu addition by Tan Jincheng after the endorsement contract was signed.
That day, Tan Jincheng shamelessly asked Chun Ge to sign hundreds of photos, really taking advantage of her.
People who buy electric vehicles might not necessarily like Chun Ge, but their sons, daughters, grandsons, and granddaughters might.
Using this gimmick could boost sales a bit.
The lucky draw period ended on December 31, 2005.
This draw was designed based on the full year's production capacity.
Of course, it was impossible to release all prizes in August, otherwise there would be nothing left to play with later.
However, the third prize was essentially a direct giveaway, so the winning rate could be said to be 100%.
As for how much these things were actually worth, those who know, know.
Furthermore, to stimulate the enthusiasm of Lin Yumin and Wu Zhenping's teams, Tan Jincheng also set up an incentive scheme.
The Shanchi Deluxe Edition had a terminal price of 2299 yuan, and the lower-spec version had a terminal price of 1999 yuan.
Initially, he thought the high-spec version would only cover the cost of the battery, priced at 2199 yuan.
But then he wondered why batteries shouldn't make money; it's quite reasonable to earn 100 yuan selling a 60V battery to someone who doesn't know much about it, right?
Since the terminal price was raised, the factory price naturally had to be raised too.
So, the factory price for the deluxe version was set at 1800 yuan, while the lower-spec version remained at the baseline of 1500 yuan.
The incentive for the market promotion department was based on this baseline price.
For every 10 yuan increase in sales price, the promotion department would receive a certain commission, but the price increase for terminal retailers could not exceed 100 yuan.
This was to prevent the marketing department from arbitrarily raising prices for the sake of bonuses, disregarding the interests of terminal retailers, and consequently failing to sell, which would be disastrous.
---
The commercial shoot went smoothly, with no diva-like behavior.
The style designed in consultation with the advertising director, based on the Shanchi Black series, was also approved by the advertising director and Chun Ge's team.
Even Tan Jincheng's suggestion of wearing a black wig was accepted.
"You know, it actually suits her well,"
Gu Qingqing said softly, standing beside Tan Jincheng.
After their last trip to Shanghai together, their relationship had progressed further.
Knowing that the commercial was being filmed in the city today, Gu Qingqing actively suggested to Tan Jincheng that she wanted to come and see.
Tan Jincheng readily agreed.
Man Yang, observing the two whispering, pouted.
This Mr. Tan didn't seem like a good person; he was full of lies.
Judging from the attire and intimacy of the girl next to him, he couldn't possibly be Chun Ge's fan.
She had never seen any fan shamelessly ask their idol to sign hundreds of photos for them at once!
As for why he signed Chun Ge as an endorser and only her, that remained unknown.
Also, when she asked at the airport why he didn't congratulate Chun Ge on making it to the 10-to-9 round, his answer, though clever, most likely meant he hadn't watched the competition at all.
What kind of fan doesn't watch their idol's live competition?
However, regardless of the reasons, it was beneficial for their side.
The publicity over the past week since signing had indeed improved Chun Ge's commercial value, in addition to her inherent popularity.
In the past few days, the company had received tentative offers from other brands, but there was no rush to pursue them; they would wait until after a few more competitions.
As she pondered, Man Yang's eyes darted, and she walked straight up to Tan Jincheng, patting him on the back.
"What's up, Sister Man?"
Tan Jincheng asked with a smile.
"Mr. Tan, how many people are in your company?"
"Not many, less than 200. Why do you ask? Do you want to visit?"
Man Yang said cheerfully:
"No, we have limited time and have to go back immediately after filming. I was wondering if, should our Chun Chun make it to the finals, Mr. Tan could mobilize all your company employees to vote for our Chun Chun?"
If you only get to fleece us, I'll have to fleece you too!
"No problem, I have a few friends too. I'll ask them to help, and each mobile phone will vote the maximum for you,"
Tan Jincheng replied with a smile.
One yuan per text message, 15 messages per phone, which is 15 yuan.
Based on the combined staff of his own factory, Zhang Haiping's, and Zhang Mingcan's factories, which is about 400 people, 6000 yuan is just small change.
"Really? Then it's a deal!"
"It's a deal, Sister Man, rest assured, I keep my word!"
(End of Chapter)
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