bookmarkrole Chapter 110 Deng Chao invited me to dinner, but what was the purpose?
Chapter 110 Deng Chao invited me to dinner, but what was the purpose?
"V-Between us, it shouldn't be like firecrackers exploding on the same day, but rather like a fuse that has been laid in advance."
Chen Yang stood up and paced back and forth in front of the table.
"We launched Weibo two weeks ahead of schedule. In the first two weeks, we had celebrities join, release behind-the-scenes footage, and engage in interactive activities to build up our user base and ensure the platform ran smoothly. Any technical issues were exposed and fixed in advance. By the time our program aired on August 8th, Weibo would already be a stable discussion platform with a user base."
"After watching the show, the first thing viewers do is open Weibo to chat, rather than facing a newly launched platform that takes forever to register."
Zhang Lei's eyes lit up.
"Nurture users during the pre-broadcast period, ignite discussion on the premiere day..."
"right."
Chen Yang tapped the table. "Launching on the same day is gambling; launching ahead of time is strategic planning. I don't gamble."
Zhang Lei gasped.
"How do we do that? Get Sina to release it earlier?"
"Let V-Bo start its closed beta test in late July."
Chen Yang stood up, walked to the window, and turned his back to Zhang Lei.
"Let V-Bo be put into closed beta two weeks in advance. Ideally, it should be launched in late July."
"in advance?"
Zhang Lei was a little confused, "Our show hasn't even aired yet, what's the point of posting it on Weibo beforehand?"
Chen Yang turned around, his eyes gleaming with calculation.
"Warm-up".
"We will have the seven members of the Running Man cast, Hu Ge and Yang Mi from the Legend of Sword and Fairy drama, and Liu Xiang from the first episode all join as the first batch of users."
"More than a dozen celebrities opened Weibo accounts at the same time, posting behind-the-scenes footage, recording routines, and interactive jokes. This surge in traffic directly boosted the popularity of Weibo during its beta testing phase."
"By the time our show premiered on August 8th, it had been running on Weibo for two weeks, and the users had settled in. Once our show aired, all the topics, all the discussions, and all the secondary dissemination exploded on Weibo."
"We Weibo provides us with a platform for pre-launch promotion, and we provide Weibo with a content engine. It's a win-win situation."
After listening, Zhang Lei remained silent for a long time.
Then he gave a thumbs up.
"Director Chen, your brain is something most people don't have."
Stop flattering me.
Chen Yang had already taken out his phone. "You saved President Cao's number, right?"
"I've saved it. Want me to type it for you?"
"No need, I can do it myself."
Chen Yang flipped through the number and pressed the dial button.
After three rings, the other end answered.
"Hello, who is this?"
"Mr. Cao, I am Chen Yang from CCTV's variety channel, the chief director of 'Run, China'. We chatted in your office last time."
"Oh, Director Chen! I remember you, I remember you. How's the preparation for your program going?"
Cao Guowei's voice was very polite, with the warmth typical of a businessman.
Chen Yang leaned against his desk, his tone relaxed.
"Mr. Cao, I'm calling today to discuss something with you."
"Please speak."
Regarding V-Blog's public beta launch scheduled for August 8th, I would like to suggest that you move it forward.
There was a two-second silence on the other end of the phone.
"Ahead of schedule? By how early?"
"Late July. At the latest, July 25th."
"This..." Cao Guowei hesitated clearly. "Director Chen, the technical schedule was set for early August. Moving it forward by half a month will put a lot of pressure on us."
Chen Yang chuckled.
"Mr. Cao, let me do the math for you."
"On August 8th, the public beta test of Weibo and the premiere of our program will coincide. What do you think will happen?"
"Millions of viewers were thrilled after watching the show, and their first reaction was to discuss it on Weibo... But what if the page wouldn't open? What should they do?"
"On the first day of the new platform's launch, millions of people flooded in simultaneously. You know better than I whether the servers can handle it. If there's even a half-hour downtime, this wave of enthusiasm will completely evaporate. Viewers only have a few seconds of patience; if they can't load the page, they'll just go to Tieba or forums."
"Voiceover's first impression is ruined. The discussion surrounding our show's premiere is also wasted."
There was no sound on the other end of the phone, but the breathing became noticeably heavier.
Chen Yang continued.
"But what if Weibo launches a few weeks earlier?"
"We'll start internal testing in late July. Any technical issues will be exposed and fixed in advance. We'll test server load capacity, functional bugs, and user experience ahead of time."
"Once the platform stabilizes, users settle in, and the content ecosystem is established."
"When our program premieres on August 8th, the first place on the internet where viewers will discuss it will be Weibo. It's not a brand new platform that's been launched and registration is so slow, but a mature and popular community that's already running smoothly."
"At that time, our program will be promoted across the entire internet, and all the buzz, all the topics, and all the secondary dissemination will be poured into Weibo. The explosive power on that day is the result of two weeks of preparation."
"Launching on the same day is gambling, while launching ahead of time is strategic planning. Mr. Cao, you understand this difference better than I do."
There was a full five seconds of silence on the other end of the phone.
Then Cao Guowei laughed.
"Director Chen, your mouth is more eloquent than ten people from our Ministry of Commerce combined."
"Mr. Cao, you flatter me."
"July 25th... I'll have the tech team assess it. If it can be completed in time, I'll make the decision."
"But there's a condition."
"Please speak."
"Artists must exclusively debut on Weibo. They cannot simultaneously launch on other platforms."
"No problem. Mr. Cao, we've signed contracts, what are you worried about!"
"Okay, I'll have the tech team work overtime to schedule it today. I'll give you a definite answer by tomorrow at the latest."
"We await your good news, Mr. Cao."
After hanging up the phone, Chen Yang tossed his phone onto the table.
Zhang Lei listened to the whole thing from the side, his mouth agape.
"Did it work?"
"pretty close."
Chen Yang sat back in his chair and crossed his legs.
"Cao Guowei is a businessman; he can do the math. If he had launched two weeks earlier, he wouldn't have lost out in this deal."
Zhang Lei nodded vigorously.
"Then I'll contact Ma Li immediately and get the artist's onboarding sorted out."
"Okay, have Ma Li contact each artist's team and make sure everyone's Weibo account is registered by July 25th."
"clear."
Zhang Lei rushed out the door with the materials in his arms.
The office quieted down.
Chen Yang leaned back in his chair, staring at the ceiling.
Weibo pre-release hype, artist lineup, and explosive premiere.
The three moves are interconnected.
On August 8th, "Run, China!" was not just an ordinary new program premiere.
It will be a nationwide event.
Just as he was thinking this, his phone vibrated again in his pocket.
He took it out and was taken aback by the name displayed on the screen.
Deng Chao.
Should I make a call at this time?
Chen Yang pressed the answer button.
"Brother Chao?"
"Hey, Director Chen!"
Deng Chao's voice came through the receiver, his tone completely different from when he was recording, a little relaxed, and a little... mysterious.
Are you busy?
"I'm fine, just finished taking care of some things. What's up?"
"So, are you free tonight? I'd like to treat you to dinner."
Chen Yang raised an eyebrow.
In all this time, Deng Chao has never asked him out alone outside of work.
"Just the two of us?"
"almost."
Deng Chao chuckled, "Don't worry, we won't talk about work, it's purely personal."
"Okay."
Chen Yang didn't hesitate. "What time? Where?"
"There's a private restaurant near Chaoyangmen at 7:30. I'll send you the address via SMS."
"Okay, see you then."
After hanging up the phone, Chen Yang stared at his phone screen for two seconds.
Deng Chao is a person with high emotional intelligence and knows how to act appropriately.
Being able to invite someone to dinner alone means they have something to say, something that's inconvenient to say in a work setting.
interesting.
Chen Yang put his phone back in his pocket and stood up to tidy up the things on the table.