Chapter 534: Too Bewitching

From online to offline, from headlines to forums, my self-endorsement started spreading like a virus.

Especially in the Linchuan University cafeteria, from noon this ad would intermittently appear, always capturing everyone’s full attention in silence.

At this point, a dazzling young master began to lose his appetite.

He had never seen the full ad before and had no idea he was playing a defeated rich second generation.

Comparing it with Jiang Qin’s dragon-like character and his full mouth of flirty words endorsing himself, is this even reasonable?

The young master felt although everyone was brothers, you might as well just go bankrupt now.

“Brother Cao, don’t be sad. You really do resemble a rich second generation.”

“What the hell are you talking about? I am a rich second generation.”

“That means your acting is even more sublime! So sublime that I forgot you were a rich second generation and only remembered you as a defeated dog!”

“?????”

Then there was this angelic girl glued to the cafeteria chair, her clear eyes filled with the image of a giant bear punching and then hands in pockets, unaware of who her opponent was.

If all ads were like this, she’d stop watching regular shows and just watch ads every day.

“Feng Nanshu, let’s go. Time for a nap back home!”

“No way. I’ll watch it a billion more times.”

Gao Wenhui and Wang Haini exchange looks: “What do we do?”

Wang Haini takes a deep breath: “Let’s just sit for a bit longer. I understand because if I had such a handsome husband, I’d live in the cafeteria too.”

“Haini is a good person.” Feng Nanshu squints her eyes, showing cat-like pleasure.

“However, it seems Jiang Qin is really being targeted. I just saw a title cautioning about being enticed into bigger traps by small favors, and then it disappeared in a blink.”

“Exactly. Clear your thoughts and it’s obvious. The running away was blamed on Tuanbao Net, but suddenly the hatred shifts to group buying. If it’s not manipulated, then there’s something fishy.”

“Those damned capitalists! They want to take the good for themselves and crush those who don’t give in.”

Jiang Qin’s unconventional ad is straightforward and clear, somewhat like motivational speak, and very easy to understand.

But the world’s matters don’t withstand senseless pondering.

Terms like “rules,” “rejection,” “question,” “mockery,” “youth” embedded in this ad and combined with group buying’s recent ordeal suggest some underlying messages.

These insinuations are easy to understand: group buying is being targeted.

By those mature capitalists who make the rules.

Especially the phrase “you can underestimate our youth” coupled with Jiang Qin’s refusal of those lecherous middle-aged men’s investment, quickly detected by netizens smelling something else.

Because initially when the public discourse started, many media influencers focused on Jiang Qin being a college student, young and impulsive, causing group buying’s credit to plummet rapidly.

The crucial element is, some netizens without real estate live on the internet!

They soon realize that just after group buying returned the money, several accounts uniformly released videos cautioning against group buying, suggesting small losses over big ones.

This sort of concentrated, repetitive targeting is clear: it’s smearing for the sake of smearing.

Hence, the highest liked comment in popular reviews emerged: Is group buying being targeted by capitalists just because they want to return our money?

So when Meng Yansheng saw group buying’s ad, his scalp went numb and he immediately had the previous videos deleted and even canceled more than a dozen troll accounts.

Because if you attack him head-on at this time, no matter how hard you try, it will bounce back.

Why?

Because his image is young yet striving, upward-moving, not afraid of authority, breaking the supposed industry norms, and returning money to consumers, yet targeted by capitalists.

This image is naturally immune to public sway.

Because no matter how much you try to smear him in the future, netizens will think the capitalists are targeting him again.

Even more so, the more you try to smear him, the more consumers will want to protect this company because they’ll forever remember that group buying stood by their side.

Public opinion has no effect on him anymore; group buying’s only weakness since its inception seems to have been armored with steel by a single refund and one ad, becoming invulnerable.

“Ads…can also be done like this.”

Inside Light Years Marketing’s Kyoto office, Dai Fei holding a coffee cup finished the whole film and then fell into deep thought.

In fact, after being rejected by group buying, she had been quite resentful.

The crisis PR plan she pulled an all-nighter to create was nearly the optimal solution group buying could get, and yet here they were, picking and choosing, almost laughable.

But only after watching Jiang Qin’s self-endorsement did she realize, so ads can be done like this.

The whole ad doesn’t mention group buying by name; only a few scattered frames displayed the group buying logo, but the effect was surprisingly explosive.

Especially the last statement; Dai Fei hadn’t finished watching when she thought he might say, “I am Jiang Qin, I endorse group buying,” but instead, he said, “I am Jiang Qin, I endorse myself.”

Jiang Qin used his presence to amplify the persona of group buying.

But the most astonishing thing isn’t the ad itself but its timing and the marketing before the ad.

They do more than just ads and PR in Light Years Marketing; sometimes they market images and prelude events, so Dai Fei knows, that refund for expired coupons was a masterstroke.

All in all, Dai Fei feels from the moment group buying began responding until the persona was established, every step felt fatal and precise.

There are still some things, some connections, Dai Fei can’t yet decode, but she thinks this case might give her lessons for many years.

“Dai Fei, you got a minute?”

Just as Dai Fei was rewatching Jiang Qin’s commercial, the office door was pushed open, and the boss Zhong Hua walked in softly speaking.

Dai Fei hit the pause button, looking up, “Boss, I’m watching that group buying commercial. There’s so much to learn… feels like a checkmate, especially when I’m the pro here.”

“You mean group buying’s Mr. Jiang?”

“Yes, him.”

Zhong Hua couldn’t help but laugh, “It’s not surprising if it’s him.”

Dai Fei blinked, “Why?”

“I was away on business and wasn’t focused on partnering issues. If I were here, I wouldn’t dare take this job because this Mr. Jiang is a master of advertising marketing.”

“?”

“You know the catchphrase that earned Nongfu Spring a few hundred billion? ‘We don’t produce water; we’re merely nature’s movers.’ That was Mr. Jiang’s work.”

Dai Fei paused, her mouth slowly agape.

Zhong Hua lowered his voice, “There’s also a rumor that the Burger King’s owner couldn’t afford KFC so he turned around and established Burger King with a marketing persona created by Jiang Qin. Those group-buying guys wanting to play public opinion with him really wish death upon themselves too early.”

“Really?” Dai Fei’s voice trembled.

“The first is for sure true. The latter, unsure. But every industry has its unreachable geniuses. Don’t pressure yourself too much.”

Zhong Hua patted her shoulder then furrowed his brows murmuring to himself, “How come he seems like a genius in every field? Too freaking bewitching.”

Meanwhile, at Hua Ying Entertainment, Yu Yue just returned from Linchuan and was resting in her apartment when she suddenly got a call from the director asking her to come over.

“There’s a famous singer who’s asking if you’re interested in acting in a music video.”

“Ah?”

Director Hu lowered his voice, “It’s still under review because we’re still at the audition stage. If you’re interested, I’ll take you to Studios 5 for a tryout shoot now.”

Yu Yue paused, “Why me? I’m washed-up.”

“Nonsense; where are you washed-up? You’re trending! The group buying ad is going viral. That singer saw it and thinks you performed really well.”

“I’d love to shoot. Thank you, Director Hu.”

Director Hu nodded then led her to Studio 5, but just as they entered, she ran into Chu Yanyan.

“Director Hu, what’s Yu Yue doing here?” Chu Yanyan was a bit stunned.

Director Hu touched his nose, “Trying out for the female lead’s shot.”

“Wasn’t it decided I would play the lead?”

“Just trying, if it doesn’t work out, no worries. Yanyan, don’t be so tense.”

“What if it does work?”

“Well…”

Online storms surged, public peaks didn’t stop, and within a single day, the influence gradually penetrated every corner.

Meanwhile, Dianping still under pressure, continued organizing the forthcoming seminar.

The battle for public opinion hadn’t achieved the expected results, but this didn’t mean they lost.

A single refund, one ad, indeed placed group buying in an almost colossal standing in consumers’ eyes, but ultimately, they hadn’t settled payments with partnered merchants, nor dispelled the rumors of an impending cash flow cut.

Merchants, genuinely doing business, aren’t as easily fooled as consumers, not swayed by a few inspirational talks.

Especially those national chain brands, they’re capital themselves, how could they empathize with group buying.

Simultaneously, Jiang Qin had arrived at the venue, dressed sharply in a suit, walking down the red carpet, reaching the backdrop to sign.

Dianping prepared a large signing board, ample for about a dozen people, but as Jiang Qin approached, they still involuntarily made room, opening up the middle spot for him.

(Happy birthday to Daidai, and to myself as well.)