Pei Qian turned off the live-stream and finally relaxed on the other side.
He was no longer in the office. Instead, he came to Fish-Catching Internet Cafe and used his cell phone to watch the last segment of the food competition.
That was because the company had already knocked off before the competition was over.
Pei Qian had repeatedly ordered his employees not to work overtime. Of course, he could not break the rules himself. Thus, he chased them out of work on time and left with his employees.
When he arrived at Fish-Catching Internet Cafe, he ordered dinner and watched the end of the Street Food Contest while eating.
The end result of the Street Food Contest was in line with Pei Qian’s expectations.
This event cost a lot of money. They hired famous food vendors from all over the country, booked the entire restaurant in luxurious hotels, and spent money on food and photography.
The event itself did not bring Tengda any popularity. The Cold-Faced Lady might have appeared but it was harshly criticized by the judges until it was worthless. It had achieved a negative advertising effect.
It was obvious that the Cold-Faced Lady brand would only get worse.
The most important thing in the food and beverage industry was returning customers. The key to retaining them was their taste and reputation.
The taste that had been praised to the skies had been beaten back to its original state now that the Cold-Faced Lady’s reputation had collapsed. Not many people would go to the Cold-Faced Lady’s shop to eat. Thus, the money needed to maintain the normal operations of the shop would be wasted.
Pei Qian had an even bolder imagination.
If the Cold-Faced Lady continued to be in such a dead state and did not make any profit, Pei Qian could try to advertise and spend more money.
Advertisements cost much more than normal operations!
Of course, the prerequisite was that the Cold-Faced Lady was completely dead so that they could not save it no matter how much they advertised.
He could not rush things now. He had to wait and see.
Pei Qian was in a good mood at that thought. Even the food in Fish-Catching Internet Cafe tasted better.
…
Qi Yan received a message from her colleagues not long after she returned home from her work at night.
“The video for today’s competition has been edited and uploaded.”
Qi Yan replied immediately. “Yes, you’ve worked hard. Have a good rest.”
This video had to be edited properly according to Meng Chang’s original plan. It had to be done according to the standards of a variety show and with various special effects. It had to ensure the effect of the show.
However, Meng Chang’s plan no longer counted.
Qi Yan called He Desheng to ask for instructions. He Desheng said that they did not have to take the video too seriously. They could just edit it and post it online.
Thus, Qi Yan’s colleagues started editing after the event ended. They did not add any special effects and uploaded it directly onto the internet.
The video was just approved when Qi Yan arrived home.
She took a look. This video was just as she had expected. There were not many viewers.
Qi Yan could not be bothered with these things anymore. After all, the Street Food Contest would end here in her opinion. There would not be any follow-up.
This video would most likely be buried in the ocean of the Internet like most videos online.
Of course,they could spend as much money as they wanted on the home page, but that did not seem necessary.
Even though the competition today was considered successful, Qi Yan could not understand the meaning of this method at all. She could not help but doubt her future career path in the Cold-Faced Lady.
At that moment, she received another message from another colleague.
“Sister Qi, there seem to be many people discussing this competition online. There are even people analyzing the deeper meaning behind this competition!”
Qi Yan looked confused as she read the message. A question mark floated above her head.
It was understandable to discuss this competition, but what was the deeper meaning behind this competition?
This food stall competition was originally just to promote Cold-Faced Lady’s marketing activities. What deeper meaning could there be?
Qi Yan searched online and quickly found the contents of the netizens’ discussions with these doubts.
The Cold-Faced Lady brand might be no longer popular but there were still many discussions online.
After all, Cold-Faced Lady had advertised on the entire internet when she was the most popular as the representative of the internet celebrity food and beverage brand. All sorts of strange marketing activities had left a deep impression on netizens.
Subsequently, netizens began to discuss whether ‘Cold-Faced Lady’ was a new business model or a scam. It was only until the Cold-Faced Lady closed down that this discussion gradually came to an end.
Therefore, many netizens would still participate in the discussion once news related to the Cold-Faced Lady appeared online.
This time, netizens were discussing the problem of “where would the cold-faced lady from Meng Chang’s era go”. The Street Food Contest was a fuse.
The article that had been forwarded and discussed the most was an article titled ‘The Breaking and Rebuilding of the Cold-Faced Lady’s Reputation Through The Street Food Contest”.
This article had only been published for less than an hour, but it already had tens of thousands of views and hundreds of comments. What’s more, it was still rapidly increasing.
Qi Yan took a look and felt that this author’s name was very familiar. She flipped through his previous article and realized that this was actually the author who wrote “Cold-Faced Lady’s so-called internet thinking is nothing but an act”!
The previous article was written before the Cold-Faced Lady closed down. It was a perfect last hit.
The words “Meng Chang is like a child sitting in the passenger seat of a car, posing as if he was driving, thinking that he was in control of the direction of the car and collecting money from the passengers as the driver. However, in fact, whether it was the car or the road, they were not in his control.” It could be said to be a killing blow to the cold-faced lady’s heart at that time.
At that time, Qi Yan had read the article and was very impressed by the author.
At that time, Cold-Faced Lady looked like she was doing well, but there was already an undercurrent.
It definitely had many problems, but not everyone could see them clearly.
Not only could the author of this article see the root of the Cold-Faced Lady’s problem, but he could also use such easy-to-understand terms and apt analogy to convey these contents to others. He was definitely an expert.
This time, he actually wrote another article about the Cold-Faced Lady.
What would the article say this time?
The cold-faced lady was already dead. If this author was only announcing his foresight and adding insult to injury, there was no need for this article.
Confused, Qi Yan clicked on the article.
“The Cold-Faced Lady went bankrupt just like the author predicted. It’s said that Meng Chang became an executioner with millions of debt on his back. His whereabouts are still unknown. All of this proves the foresight of the author. It also proves that Meng Chang’s emphasis on ‘Internet thinking’ and ‘following the trend of the times’ are just beautiful words. They can deceive investors but they can’t deceive the business rules.”
“Many people say that the Cold-Faced Lady is done for. There is no possibility of her turning the tables. I thought so before today. However, after collecting some industry information and seeing today’s Street Food Contest, I changed my mind.”
“It’s said that Tengda Corporation has already acquired 70% of the Cold-Faced Lady’s shares and obtained absolute control. While I’m not sure what aspect Boss Pei has taken a liking to the Cold-Faced Lady, I’m 100% sure that Boss Pei has found a way to break out of the ‘post-Meng Chang-era Cold-Faced Lady’. This Street Food Contest is just the beginning!”
…
Qi Yan was confused and surprised.
As an insider of the Cold-Faced Lady, she knew very well what the situation was like in this Street Food Contest. This was a marketing event designed by Meng Chang to promote the Cold-Faced Lady.
Thus, the analysis of the article seemed ridiculous. Why was the Street Food Contest the solution to this situation?
However, on further thought, Qi Yan felt that it was possible.
Boss Pei had specifically asked to change the recording to live-stream. He had also asked the judges to be honest and harsh in evaluating the cold-faced lady.
Boss Pei was so busy. Was there a need to ask about such a small matter?
Could it be that these two insignificant changes were not Boss Pei’s whim, but had a deeper meaning?
Qi Yan quickly continued reading.
…
“The author has analyzed it before. Internet food and beverage brands like Cold-Faced Lady have similar problems: heavy marketing and so-so products. In layman’s terms, they are bragging too much, and their own products cannot reach the level of their marketing.”
“I once said that no one would be much more stupid than anyone in any era. Even the smartest person can only deceive consumers for a while, not for a lifetime. Everyone has an answer in their hearts whether the cold noodles cooked by Cold-Faced Lady are delicious or not. No matter how good their marketing is, if the taste of the cold noodles cannot reach their expectations, it would still be empty in the end.”
“The crux of the Cold-Faced Lady’s problem also reflects Meng Chang’s biggest flaw as a entrepreneur: He has been trying hard to look up and into the distance, but he has not been down to earth.”
“Therefore, Cold-Faced Lady’s failure is inevitable.”
“However, after the Cold-Faced Lady changed her boss, Boss Pei sent everyone a brand new business idea through the Street Food Contest. That is: Seek facts, value products, and respect talent!”
“This is a world of difference from the Cold-Faced Lady management philosophy under Meng Chang’s leadership. Or rather, it’s completely opposite.”
“In the Street Food Contest this time, we can see that the Cold-Faced Lady’s roasted cold noodles is on the same stage as the roasted cold noodles of outstanding vendors across the country. The judges are not biased towards the host, the Cold-Faced Lady. They were objective and strict, they pointed out many problems with the Cold-Faced Lady’s cold noodles.”
“That means two things:”
“First, we now have a definite answer as to what the cold-faced lady’s taste was like during Meng Chang’s time. It’s better than ordinary roadside stalls, but it’s not as good as what Meng Chang bragged.”
“This is equivalent to the official verdict. It completely negates Meng Chang’s over-exaggerated marketing methods and tells all consumers the truth about the cold-faced lady’s taste in food.”
“Second, since we have denied Meng Chang’s management concept, we are also announcing the establishment of a new management concept to everyone!”
“Meng Chang has been bragging about how delicious Lady Cold-Faced’s cold noodles are. However, his true colors were revealed in today’s Street Food Contest. No matter whether it was the heat of the cold noodles, the amount of condiments, or the timing when the water was sprayed, Lady Cold-Faced’s chefs did not do a good job. They were not even as good as some outstanding vendors.”
“This means that Meng Chang’s so-called ‘strict requirements for taste’ was only lip service. He didn’t really study and develop the taste of cold noodles.”
“What Boss Pei is conveying to everyone is actually this concept: The cold-faced lady will strictly control the details in the future and further improve the taste and texture of the cold noodles. At the same time, he will have to be realistic about the taste and stop creating any false publicity!”
“Other than that, the most important thing is the importance of talent.”
“The Street Food Contest this time has gathered all the outstanding food vendors from all over the country. Boss Pei has displayed a thirst for talents through this competition. He has dug out the experts among the people who are really good at cooking snacks and gave them a better stage to showcase themselves!”
“Therefore, this Street Food Contest might look like an ordinary marketing event but the significance behind it is very significant.”
“You can see it as a summary: It summarizes and criticizes Meng Chang’s wrong management concept previously. You can also see it as a declaration, announcing the right management concept that the cold-faced lady will adopt in the future!”
“How will the Cold-Faced Lady develop in the future? Can this brand, which has already turned cold, be brought back to life by Boss Pei? Let us wait and see!”