Chapter 201: The Oracle of HW Motors
by xennovelPresident Jo Dae-ho, who occupied the largest office in the HW Group headquarters, looked a decade older overnight.
The flood of incoming calls was so overwhelming that he had to block them.
Opening the door to the president’s office, I found President Jo letting out a long sigh.
“Whether it pans out or not, it’s a massive success. Absolutely insane.”
“It might seem crazy, but we’re winning today. Rest assured.”
“I don’t know much about soccer, but I know Poland is a European nation. We’re beating a European team in the World Cup?”
“Based on pure strength, we’re definitely winning.”
President Jo waved his hand dismissively, as if he didn’t want to hear any more.
“Alright, today is fine. Even if we lose, we can say our company sincerely wished for victory. But what about next time? What are we going to do about the US game? The PR team is a warzone right now. They can’t handle the calls from reporters asking if we predicted this.”
“Isn’t that proof of the immense advertising effect? So what if it’s a warzone? It’s been a while since the PR team had some real work to do. Heh.”
“This isn’t a laughing matter. You’ve raised expectations too high; the next game’s ad needs to be really carefully considered.”
I smiled at President Jo, whose face was frozen in a stiff expression.
“President, we aren’t gamblers. Some people might curse us for getting it wrong, but the important thing is maximizing the advertising effect. Today, nobody could take their eyes off our cars. Billions are being poured in, but nobody is paying any attention to the others, are they?”
But President Jo didn’t seem to be listening anymore. He kept voicing his worries.
“There’s no turning back now, you know that? We have to predict the next ad, too. Of course, if today’s prediction is wrong, we’ll just get a load of flak.”
“I’ve already decided on the next ad copy.”
“What is it? Are we winning? Losing?”
Even amidst his frustration, he couldn’t hide his curiosity.
“We send our unwavering applause to the national team for their magnificent performance.”
“What? Are you backing off now? That feels weak.”
“Predicting it is a problem, backing off is a problem… is that what you’re saying? Haha.”
“Hmm….”
President Jo blinked a few times, considering, before speaking.
“Are you thinking it’ll be a draw?”
I had to choose my words carefully. I wasn’t playing the fortune teller.
“Win, lose, or draw, isn’t that a fitting phrase for all outcomes?”
“True, but it would be a very apt expression if it’s a draw.”
The answer would come on June 10th.
“Anyway, at 8:30 tonight, everyone in our company will be watching the game. We’ll review the game’s result and then decide on the next ad copy. Sounds good?”
“Yes. If we lose today, we definitely have to change the next copy.”
But that didn’t happen.
That evening, when Korea secured its first-ever World Cup victory, two heroes emerged: Hwang Seon-hong and Yoo Sang-cheol.
Though not a hero, a hot topic also emerged: the morning’s advertisement that had predicted the victory.
The overwhelming consensus was that the prediction was accurate, although some said it was just dumb luck.
However, others jokingly pointed out how difficult it is to achieve something by chance, suggesting it was skill.
And as we’d hoped, there was a surge of interest in the car shown only in silhouette. Judging by the roofline, the prevailing opinion was that it was a sleek sports car.
This also meant people were eager for a unique car to appear, not just another ordinary sedan.
Truthfully, it was hard to tell what kind of car it was from just a blurry silhouette. But people tend to imagine what they desire. Accepting an ordinary silhouette as a sports car meant they were tired of ordinary sedans.
Now, what prediction HW Motors would make for the next game became an even bigger point of interest than the World Cup itself.
* * *
“We send our unwavering applause to the national team for their magnificent performance.”
“HW Motors will once again share in the joy today.”
“Through a raffle today, we will give away 100 units of HW Motors’ new model, the
This was the advertisement for Monday, June 10th, when Korea played the United States.
This time, instead of just a silhouette, a blurry but clearly recognizable image of a two-door coupe appeared in the newspaper.
Quite a few people were thrilled that the new car being released was a sports coupe, but the ambiguous wording of the advertisement amplified people’s curiosity.
Since most interpreted it as an admission of defeat, there was public criticism for ‘pouring cold water’ on their hopes before the match.
However, when the game ended in a 1-1 draw, public opinion flipped 180 degrees.
The phrase, ‘We send our unwavering applause to the national team for their magnificent performance,’ was perfectly fitting for the result.
Now, the PR team was on the verge of a breakdown due to inquiry calls wanting to know who the fortune teller was sitting at HW Motors, and the website servers were still down for repairs.
Anticipated foreign press outlets also began to show interest.
They started introducing our advertisements, comparing them to the ‘Curse of Pelé.’ And they didn’t forget to mention their anticipation for the prediction in the third game’s advertisement.
The advertisement for the final group stage match against Portugal on Friday, June 14th, truly set Korea abuzz.
“Congratulations! The Korean national team has advanced to the round of 16!”
“HW Motors is giving away 100
The PR team’s best option was to unplug all the phone lines and sit there blankly. The previous night, President Jo had left a message: “If we win tomorrow, I’m going to the Incheon stadium for the raffle event. If we lose, you go and draw the names. I don’t know anymore.”, and then he was unreachable.
Everyone desperately wanted a victory, but no one except for Coach Guus Hiddink and I thought we would beat Portugal.
The foreseen future unfolded without a hitch.
Just the first World Cup victory alone created a festive atmosphere, let alone advancing to the round of 16!
The streets were overflowing with people wearing red shirts, and pubs were breaking sales records, making their owners’ hearts swell.
They resented FIFA for holding the World Cup only once every four years.
They started briefly showing the raffle drawing live, something they hadn’t even done for the first two games.
President Jo, wearing a benevolent smile, waved to the stands, and reporters swarmed him with microphones.
“Just a word, please. How exactly are you so accurately predicting the outcomes?”
“Did you mobilize expert analysts? Or is there a famous fortune teller, as the rumors suggest?”
President Jo kept his smile and waved his hand.
“Oh, no, our company is simply putting the nation’s hopes into our advertisements. We desperately wanted the first victory, we wanted to see a great game, and we dreamed of advancing to the round of 16 with the people. That’s all. There’s no fortune teller or anything like that. Haha.”
Knowing it was being broadcast live on TV, he gave the most appropriate answers to the reporters’ questions and then disappeared.
“Old man, you’re still sharp…. Heh.”
There was no need to watch any further. The true winner of this Korea-Japan World Cup was HW Motors.
Daewoo Motors, as the official sponsor of this World Cup, spent about a hundred billion won on sponsorship fees alone. And they boasted about reaping publicity effects worth trillions of won, as they always do.
But even though we couldn’t use the World Cup logo, we enjoyed more publicity than Daewoo Motors.
Since even foreign news outlets were constantly reporting on our accurate predictions, we were definitely enjoying the benefits of promoting our new car to the world.
* * *
“What’s it going to be this time? Another congratulation for reaching the quarterfinals?”
“More importantly, do you think we’ll win? It’s Italy.”
President Jo Dae-ho, CEO Oh Se-hyun, and the PR team staff all stared at my lips.
I tilted my head, stalling for time. I shouldn’t act like a fortune teller. I had to come up with the most appropriate ad copy.
“AGAIN 1966. We are confident.”
“What?”
“What?”
The PR team staff, who were holding notebooks and waiting for my words, just stared blankly, not understanding what I meant.
“In the 1966 World Cup, North Korea and Italy played against each other. North Korea won 1-0. We’re saying let’s recreate that moment.”
“What? North Korea?”
The elderly President Jo immediately showed resistance at the mention of North Korea.
“Please don’t be too surprised. I hear this is the slogan that the Red Devils, the official supporters, will be using.”
“Really?”
“Yes. They will be preparing a huge banner.”
“How did you know? I thought the Red Devils kept their slogans secret for every match?”
Oh Se-hyun looked at me suspiciously, but I had plenty of excuses.
“Are you underestimating the Soonyang Group’s intelligence network? Finding out something like this takes less than an hour.”
“Ah, I forgot about that.”
I spoke to the displeased President Jo.
“Either way, ‘AGAIN 1966’ will fill the stadium. We’re just using it a little early, which is a great effect. It’ll look like the supporters are advertising for us again.”
His expression softened at the mention of a good effect.
“But… are we going to win? Or lose?”
One of the PR team staff, holding a notebook, carefully asked. Now even the staff were curious about whether the predictions were accurate or not.
“Look at the ad copy. ‘We are confident of victory.’ That’s it.”
“Hey! Don’t be ambiguous, what do you think will happen?”
“We didn’t start this to predict wins and losses. Fortunately, so far, the ads and the results have roughly matched up. That’s what’s important. Didn’t President Jo say that in the interview? That’s what matters.”
Pretending not to hear Oh Se-hyun’s curiosity, I spoke to the PR team again.
“Let’s increase it to 500 cars this time. Let’s show our confidence in victory with money.”
“Honestly, I wouldn’t object even if you offered a thousand cars. I’ve been working with cars my whole life, but this is the most exciting thing I’ve ever done. You have to go big at times like this. That’s how you keep the fire burning.”
President Jo didn’t object to the 500-car giveaway at all.
“Oh, and apply for permission to use Seoul Plaza on June 29th. We’ll be showcasing our new car, the
Nobody expects our national team to reach the semifinals.
June 29th is the date for the third-place play-off match. Since everyone assumes our World Cup journey will end before then, the application to use Seoul Plaza should be approved.
“Lastly, PR team.”
The PR team staff, who met my gaze, began staring at my lips with eager eyes.
“Notify all the newspaper companies. If they don’t discount their advertising costs to a level we deem acceptable, we’re pulling our ads.”
“Yes? What does that mean…?”
Everyone is trying to ride the World Cup wave, so advertising costs have skyrocketed to record highs. And we’re going to ask for a discount?
Everyone’s eyes widened in disbelief.
“Our predictive ads are no longer just ads; they’re scoops. Did you see the newspaper stands in the subway? They display our ads prominently. From their perspective, they’re providing a scoop but also charging us for advertising. I guarantee you, the free newspapers will run our ads for free if we threaten to pull them. The major dailies will definitely give us a discount. Show me what the PR team can do.”
The PR team staff realized I wasn’t just talking. This was a work order, and they had to deliver.
“Yes, understood.”
With their energetic response, the meeting concluded.
And….
On June 18th, the match against Italy in Daejeon ended with Ahn Jung-hwan’s golden goal.
Now, people were only interested in two things.
How long will the national team keep winning? And how long will the predictions HW Motors announces through its advertisements continue to be accurate?