Huayu: Starting from joining the mainstream entertainment industry in 96

Chapter 11.11: Good news, the ad is a hit (revised)
April 17, Wednesday, early morning.

The brand-new landline phone in Shengying Media's office suddenly rang, its sharp ring breaking the office's tranquility, just as Chen Yugang picked up a rag to wipe the desk.

Chen Yu picked up the microphone, took a deep breath, and followed the script template written by Wang Sheng, speaking in a sweet and professional tone: "Hello? This is Shengying Media."

"Hello? You're the wedding video company, right? The one that's on TV! It's so high-class! How much does it cost per session?" A loud voice came from the other end of the phone, filled with urgency and curiosity.

Chen Yu was overjoyed and quickly replied, "Yes, ma'am. We offer different tiers of private customized wedding film services. The basic 'Golden Jubilee Collection' package starts at 9999 yuan, which includes..."

"What? How much? Nine thousand nine?!" The other person's voice instantly rose eight octaves, almost piercing the receiver: "Nine thousand nine for a stupid video?! You're robbing me! How much did my wedding banquet cost?! Do you even know how to do business?! Bah!"

The phone was abruptly disconnected, leaving a busy tone.

Chen Yu held the microphone, her smile freezing on her face.

Immediately afterward, the phone rang again.

"Hello? Is this Shengying Media? I wanted to ask where you rented the wedding dress in that advertisement? It's really beautiful!"

"Hello, I'm a reporter from the Beijing Evening News. I'd like to interview you about your advertising creative..."

media?

Chen Yu handled the situation cautiously, asking the other party to leave their contact information.

"Hey, hey, hey? You guys are the ones filming the video, right? 9999? Isn't it 999? You printed it wrong, didn't you?"

All day long, the newly installed telephone became the focus of the office, ringing almost non-stop.

Chen Yu, Wang Sheng, and Chen Liang took turns answering the phone, their throats were practically hoarse.

The content of the phone calls varied widely:

Some simply expressed their liking for the advertisement's visuals and inquired about shooting techniques.

Some people asked whether the male and female leads in the advertisement were celebrities.

There were harassing phone calls questioning the exorbitant prices and calling people "crazy" or "money-hungry."

Some people misread the price and thought it was a few hundred yuan, but after hearing the actual price, they exclaimed in surprise and hung up.

A small number of potential customers expressed that "the price is a bit expensive but it's really high-end" and inquired about the details of the service.

A few media reporters also asked to conduct interviews, and Wang Sheng noted down their contact information as a supplement to his subsequent publicity plan.

In short, after a whole day, not a single customer explicitly expressed their willingness to schedule a meeting and accept this price range.

The team's high morale deflated visibly, like a punctured balloon.

……

The number of incoming calls remained high for the next two days.

However, the calls repeated the pattern of the first day: exclamations, questions about the protagonist, questioning of prices, swearing, disruption, and a few in-depth inquiries but no substantial progress.

Anxiety and frustration permeated the office.

Chen Liang, somewhat frustrated, vented, "Damn it! Everyone thinks it's too expensive! Don't they know what professionalism is? What cinematic quality is? They're all thinking of paying a few hundred bucks to get rid of beggars!"

The monkey sighed, looking at the gleaming camera lens, "What a waste of such good equipment and such great footage..."

Da Liu and Xiao Bing were also dejected, feeling that their future was bleak.

Chen Yu's voice when answering the phone lacked the enthusiasm of the first day and sounded tired.

Only Wang Sheng, sitting behind his old desk, flipped through the call log recorded by Chen Yu, appearing unusually calm.

"Shengzi, why haven't you reacted at all?" Chen Liang couldn't help but say, "It's been three days! Not a single person has taken out a penny! Thousands of yuan! It's just been flowing out like water, and we haven't even heard a sound!"

Wang Sheng closed the notebook, looked up, glanced at everyone, and calmly said, "What's the panic? Take a close look at these records."

He tapped the notebook and asked, "What types of people call?"

"Some complained it was too expensive, some were just there for the spectacle, some caused trouble, some inquired about the actors, and a few asked quite detailed questions but nothing came of it," the monkey muttered.

“That’s right.” Wang Sheng nodded. “Those who think it’s too expensive and those who are just watching the spectacle are not our target customers. Who are our targets? They are those who can spend tens or hundreds of thousands on wedding banquets, drink Moutai and smoke Zhonghua cigarettes, and pursue uniqueness and show off their status! Think about it, our advertisement has only been airing for three days, and the ‘Boutique Shopping Guide’ has only published one issue. Don’t these people need time to process the advertisement?”
No need to discuss with your fiancé or fiancé? No need to consult with your elders? Starting at 9999, 19999! This isn't buying a cabbage, it's a considerable expense! Can they immediately decide to schedule a meeting and pay a deposit?" He paused, tapping his fingers on several highlighted, detailed contact numbers in his notebook: "These numbers, asking such detailed questions, showing such interest in the services, what does that mean? It means they have the intention, the resources, or at least the resources to consider it..."

Their current silence likely stems from internal discussions, weighing options, or even fundraising. What we need is patience; we must wait until they've cleared all the obstacles at home and secured the budget. They will naturally come knocking on our door then. Rushing in now would only make us appear impatient and lower our standing!

Wang Sheng's analysis was reasonable and well-founded, which calmed everyone's agitated hearts a little.

Although the doubts have not been completely eliminated, at least they are no longer like headless flies.

……

The next day.

Just as the team was trying to digest Wang Sheng's "theory of patiently waiting" and preparing for another potentially quiet day, an unexpected phone call came to the office, and it was directly to "the person in charge, Wang Sheng".

The call was from Director Liu of the advertising department at Beijing Film and Television Company. His tone was filled with surprise and a hint of excitement: "Xiao Wang! What's going on with your advertising?"

Wang Sheng's heart skipped a beat: "Director Liu? Is there a problem? We've been following the instructions strictly..."

"It's not a problem, it's...it's that the effect was too unexpected!" Director Liu interrupted him: "I received a call from Beijing TV earlier. They said the station received many calls and letters, all asking about your advertisement, asking who played the kissing couple in the advertisement...oh no, who played the newlyweds? They asked which movie or TV series the kissing scene was from, and how it was filmed so sophisticatedly and cinematically."

The hotline and duty room phones were practically ringing off the hook! Even the TV station's leaders personally intervened! Your advertising investment was absolutely worthwhile; the broadcast results were outstanding!

Upon hearing this, Wang Sheng felt a weight lifted from his heart.

Although he was confident in the quality of the advertisement, he did not expect that airing it only during a time slot like "Midnight Cinema" would generate such a strong response.

"It's all thanks to Director Liu for arranging such good time slots and precise channels," Wang Sheng replied modestly, not forgetting to flatter the other party.

"Haha, you've got a way with words, kid!" Director Liu was clearly in a great mood. "But to be honest, the results have really exceeded my expectations. The TV station asked me if you have any follow-up advertising plans. Their arts and lifestyle channels have a few daytime slots, which are more expensive, but they have a wider audience. If you're interested, I can help you get a better deal."

This is undoubtedly an unexpected surprise.

But I don't have any money...

Wang Sheng could only reply, "Thank you so much, Director Liu. However, we are currently short-staffed and need to focus on serving the potential customers brought in by this wave of advertising and building a good reputation. We will definitely need to increase our promotion efforts later, and we will definitely need your help in coordinating then!"

"No problem, no problem! You all go ahead and get busy. With this result, there will be plenty of opportunities to cooperate in the future! By the way, did you know about Director Han? This is a project he approved, it really makes him proud!"

"I'll go and report to Director Han in a bit."

"Okay, then you go ahead and get busy."

"Okay, goodbye Director Liu."

hang up the phone.

Wang Sheng didn't actually go to Han Sanping to report the achievements he had made.

What's the use of a viral ad if the business isn't taking off?

……

Another day passed.

The phone on the table rang again.

The ringing sounded particularly jarring in the silence.

Chen Yu looked at Wang Sheng.

Wang Sheng nodded to her, indicating that she should answer the phone.

Chen Yu tried to keep her voice steady: "Hello, this is Shengying Media."

A gentle yet shrewd female voice came through the microphone: "Hello, I saw your advertisement and am very interested in your 'Golden Jubilee Collection' service. My son is getting married next month, and my family wants to make it a respectable occasion. We can accept the price of 9999, but I would like to know more about the specific contents included, and could you show me more sample photos for reference?"

Hear the words.

Chen Yu immediately began enthusiastically introducing the 'Golden Jubilee Collection' service to the customer on the other end of the phone, emphasizing that if they wanted to see sample films, they should come to their company, which is located inside the Beijing Film Studio!
Chen Yu emphasized the words "within the Beijing Film Studio".

The customer on the other end of the phone, perhaps intimidated by the reputation of the Beijing Film Studio, said that he happened to be free at the moment and could come over to take a look...

　I just found out that during the initial release period on Qidian, you can't update 10,000 words a day; the maximum is 6,000 words. I'm devastated! Dear readers, from now on, it will be two updates a day, updated at midnight. I'll start updating like crazy once it's officially released.
　　
　
(End of this chapter)