Rebirth in Hong Kong: From Dessert Shop to Industrial Empire

Chapter 86 Promotion (Seeking monthly votes and recommendations to continue reading!)

However, after the excitement comes the cold reality.

To participate in this feast, you need to have enough resources.

Chen Bingwen considered it in his mind.

He currently has only HK$171 million in his Sugar Heart Capital account and HK$101 million in his personal savings, totaling less than HK$300 million.

This amount of money may seem substantial, but it pales in comparison to the hundreds of millions of Hong Kong dollars that Pao Yue-kong frequently mobilized, as well as Jardine Matheson's anti-takeover funds.

With that little money, he wouldn't even make a decent splash.

“Capital… is still too weak.” Chen Bingwen took a deep breath, suppressing the surging desire in his heart.

Fortunately, this acquisition battle was protracted, lasting nearly two years from the moment Bao Yugang made his move to the final outcome.

This gave him a precious window of time to catch his breath and accumulate experience!
He doesn't need to buy at the absolute bottom, nor does he need to precisely capture the absolute top to sell at the absolute top.

What he needed was to use his accurate grasp of the general trend of Wharf Holdings' stock price to gradually expand his limited initial capital like a snowball through multiple high-sell-low-buy swing trading operations during the two-year period of dramatic stock price fluctuations!

Every major fluctuation at a critical juncture presents him with an opportunity to accumulate capital.

These key moments from his past life memories are the ladder he uses to extract profits.

"The most urgent task is to accumulate initial capital as quickly as possible!"

He forced himself to look away from the newspaper and picked up the "Jingba Functional Beverage Launch and Production Plan" that Ling Peiyi had given him.

The plan was very detailed, from the progress of the Sha Tin plant's production line renovation, raw material procurement plan, packaging design finalization, to an ambitious comprehensive distribution strategy.

The initial target for the first month is to cover 80% of Wellcome and ParknShop supermarkets and convenience stores in key areas of Hong Kong Island, while simultaneously launching the first batch of 100,000 bottles in the Singapore market.

Chen Bingwen flipped through the pages, but his brows gradually furrowed.

The plan itself was fine, and Ling Peiyi's execution was as excellent as ever. But the problem was that it was too "conventional".

What is Jinba?
It's a completely new product category that has never appeared on the market before!

It's an energy drink that provides instant icy coolness and long-lasting energization!

Consumers have no knowledge of it, let alone any sense of trust in it.

Direct product placement?

What makes consumers pick up this unfamiliar blue liquid from the dazzling array of products on the shelves?

How can you convince a convenience store owner to allocate valuable freezer space to an unknown product?
Should we rely on exorbitant entry fees, display fees, and sales staff costs to aggressively compete?
This is too costly, too risky, and the results may not be good.

More importantly, there's the pricing of Jinba!
Chen Bingwen's gaze fell on the pricing section of the proposal: HK$3.5 per bottle.

This price is on par with Chen Ji Mango Pomelo Sago, or even slightly higher than mainstream soft drinks on the market, making it definitely a high-end beverage.

When a consumer sees a completely unfamiliar product on a shelf, what is their first reaction?
They will instinctively compare the price with familiar drinks.

"A bottle of soda only costs 1.5 yuan, but this blue water costs 3.5 yuan? Why?"

"How dare you sell it at such a high price when you don't know the taste or the effects?"

This direct value measurement based on price will become the biggest obstacle to purchasing Jinba in the early stages of its launch!

Chen Bingwen put down the documents and picked up the internal phone: "Director Ling, please come to my office."

A moment later, Ling Peiyi knocked on the door and came in: "Mr. Chen, you wanted to see me?"

"Sit down." Chen Bingwen gestured for her to sit down and pushed the proposal in front of her. "I've read the proposal. It's very detailed. I can tell you've put a lot of thought into it."

"Thank you, Mr. Chen," Ling Peiyi replied with a smile.

“However,” Chen Bingwen changed the subject, tapping the cover of the proposal lightly with his finger, “Jinba is neither mango pomelo sago nor coconut sago pudding.”

Consumers can get a general idea of ​​a product's characteristics just by looking at its name.

Jinba is something completely new.

Consumers know nothing about it.

Direct, large-scale distribution may not yield ideal results, and the return on investment may not be high.

Ling Peiyi was slightly taken aback, then asked, "What does Mr. Chen mean?"

"We need a more ingenious, lower-cost, and more market-driving way to go public."

Chen Bingwen got straight to the point, saying, "My idea is to adjust our strategy."

The first batch of Jinba was limited to 50,000 bottles.

"Fifty thousand bottles?" Ling Peiyi was somewhat surprised; this number was far lower than her plan.

“Yes, 50,000 bottles,” Chen Bingwen confirmed. “Moreover, these 50,000 bottles will not be directly distributed for sale.”

"Not for sale?" Ling Peiyi was even more puzzled.

“Yes, we don’t sell them.” Chen Bingwen smiled. “We give them away!”

"Give it away?" Ling Peiyi was completely stunned.

“That’s right, it’s a gift!” Chen Bingwen explained, “but it’s not free.”

We're having a buy-one-get-one-free bundled promotion!

Buy one bottle of Chen Ji Mango Pomelo Sago and get a free bottle of Jinba energy drink!

He paused, looked into Ling Peiyi's eyes, and said clearly, "Mango pomelo sago is our star product, with a stable consumer base and a good reputation."

Using this to drive the Jinba brand will greatly increase consumer acceptance.

Consumers feel they're getting two things for the price of one, which greatly increases their willingness to try Jinba. At the same time, this quickly establishes initial brand awareness and positive word-of-mouth for Jinba.

“The most crucial point,” Chen Bingwen pointed out the core reason for doing this, “is that it perfectly avoids the initial obstacles caused by the high price of Jinba!”

Consumers can get a free bottle of Jinba (a popular Chinese herbal tea brand) when they purchase familiar and clearly valued mango pomelo sago dessert.

They won't immediately judge whether Jinba is worth 3.5 yuan; instead, they'll be curious and try it!
Once they experience the instant cooling and long-lasting energizing effects of Jinba, their sense of value will naturally be established!

This is what we call 'experience first, price later'!
Bundled sales are the best way to allow consumers to skip price concerns and go straight to the product experience stage!
Listening to Chen Bingwen's plan, especially his analysis of pricing obstacles, Ling Peiyi quickly grasped its intricacies:

Firstly, by using a buy-one-get-one-free strategy, the price barrier is bypassed, and consumers do not need to pay separately for unknown products, thus completely avoiding the initial resistance caused by price.

Secondly, by leveraging the mature value and good reputation of Mango Pomelo Sago, we can provide implicit endorsement for Jinba and increase its initial acceptance.

Products offered for free are more likely to encourage consumers to try them, allowing them to experience the product's value first, rather than seeing the price tag.

Compared to the huge promotional costs of large-scale product distribution, the costs of bundled promotions are more concentrated and controllable.

"Mr. Chen, your analysis is so insightful!" Ling Peiyi exclaimed sincerely, "That's absolutely right!"
At 3.5 yuan, for a completely new product category, if it's launched to the market rashly, consumers' first reaction will definitely be, "Why is it so expensive?"

Bundling products together and letting consumers experience them for free lets the product's strength speak for itself—this is more effective than any advertising!

I completely agree!
I immediately revised the plan, focusing on implementing the "buy one get one free" bundled promotion!

“Good!” Chen Bingwen nodded in satisfaction. “In addition, the Singapore market should also be developed simultaneously.”

The first batch of Jinba will also consist of 50,000 bottles, all of which will be offered as a "buy one get one free" deal, paired with our bottled sugar water, and delivered to consumers in Singapore!
Have Lin Wenxiong's team cooperate in the promotion, emphasizing that this is a brand new energy-boosting product from Hong Kong Island!

Singaporean consumers are more accepting of high-priced products, but they still need to experience them to build trust.

Bundling strategies also apply!

Ling Peiyi nodded in agreement: "Understood! The same strategy applies to the Singapore market as it does to Singapore!"

I immediately went to discuss the details with Lin Wenxiong and adjusted the production plan.

She picked up the documents and was about to leave.

"Wait, Director Ling." Chen Bingwen waved and stopped her, smiling, "There's one more thing that needs your immediate attention."

"Please speak, Mr. Chen." Ling Peiyi stopped in her tracks.

“Contact Cheng Long,” Chen Bingwen said. “Ask him to arrange a time as soon as possible to film the TV commercials and promotional posters for Jinba.”

Ling Peiyi was somewhat surprised: "Filming now? Jinba hasn't even officially launched sales yet! And then there's the advertising cost..."

The HK$50,000 paid by Chen Bingwen to Cheng Long under the name of Sugar Heart Capital was merely for the use of Cheng Long's image and the cost of attending events.

Costs for shooting commercials, making posters, etc., need to be calculated separately.

This is also a common practice for celebrity endorsements.

Therefore, Chen Ji had to pay an additional fee to have Cheng Long shoot the advertisements and posters.

"The advertising fee will be paid at market price, not a penny less." Chen Bingwen waved his hand. "Shoot now, but don't use it yet after it's done."

"Don't use it yet?" Ling Peiyi was even more confused. "Then when should we use it?"

Chen Bingwen smiled slightly and said meaningfully, "We'll use it after 'Drunken Master' is released."

Ling Peiyi was taken aback, then a look of understanding appeared on her face. She teased, "Mr. Chen, you have an extraordinary amount of confidence in Wu Siyuan's 'Drunken Fist'!"

"This movie hasn't even been released yet, and you're already thinking of using it to promote Jinba?"

Chen Bingwen did not answer directly, but his smile deepened, and he said confidently, "I have confidence in Jackie Chan, and even more confidence in 'Drunken Master'."

This movie is going to be a hit. A huge hit!
After the fire, Jackie Chan's image and appeal will be completely different.

Launching an ad campaign for Jinba at that time would be much more effective.

He paused, then added, "I already have some initial ideas for the advertising concept."

The theme is 'After a hard day's work, a sudden snap back to reality!'

It aligns with Jackie Chan's image as a kung fu kid and Jinba's core selling point.

Have the advertising agency design a script around this theme, with exciting action scenes that highlight Jackie Chan's refreshed and energetic state after drinking Jinba.

The poster should also emphasize dynamism and power; the background could be designed as a training ground or a scene of urban struggle.

"After a hard day's work, I instantly snapped back to reality," Ling Peiyi murmured to herself, her eyes lighting up. "This is a great theme!"

It highlights the product's efficacy, aligns with Jackie Chan's image, and is full of positive energy! Mr. Chen, your idea is brilliant!

She couldn't help but laugh and exclaim, "But Mr. Chen, your confidence is truly inspiring!"

It's as if you've already envisioned a box office smash for "Drunken Master" and Jackie Chan becoming a superstar.

Chen Bingwen smiled but offered no explanation.

He can't very well say that he actually "saw" it.

"Go ahead and contact Cheng Long and the advertising company as soon as possible."

The filming costs and Jackie Chan's advertising fees were paid from Sugar Heart Capital's account.

Remember, the final product of commercials and posters must be of high quality!

This is a powerful weapon we will deploy in the future.

"Understood!" Ling Peiyi's smile faded, and she nodded solemnly. "I'll personally oversee it! I guarantee we'll produce the most spectacular commercials and posters!"

(End of this chapter)