Rebirth: My dad is too obedient

Chapter 564 Research my ass!

The headquarters of Taobao.com in the West Lake International Science and Technology Building, Hangzhou.

Wang Shuai, the "Chief Marketing Officer of Taobao," has not hesitated to express his approval of Dongchen Advertising's proposal.

Zhang Yong, the Chief Operating Officer of Taobao, stroked his chin, but still looked thoughtful.

Seeing that "Xiaoyaozi" Zhang Yong had not expressed his opinion, Wang Shuai rolled his large eyes and said:
"Since Xiaoyaozi just said that I should be in charge of the marketing department, then I will be in charge!"
Tmall is great! It's better than Taobao Mall!

'Tmall' is great! It's much better than the long and tedious 'Taobaomall'!

The one with the 'Tmall' logo on the 100-yuan bill is even better!
We've used this 'Tmall' platform, and that's the momentum for wealth to flow in!

Taobao has already taken down eBay, and next Tmall will take down Amazon and JD.com...

"Black cats and white cats, none of them compare to our 'Tmall'!"

……

Wang Shuai talked nonstop with a cheerful smile, clearly possessing excellent eloquence and being very talkative.

These catchy rhymes made Xu Chen laugh.

Is this someone preparing for the postgraduate entrance exam?

Zhang Yong, nicknamed "Xiaoyaozi," remained silent, and it was unclear whether he still had reservations.

However, his seniority and status within the Alibaba system were ultimately not as high as Wang Shuai's, especially since this was a project handled by the marketing department.

Since Wang Shuai had already happily made the decision, even if "Xiaoyaozi" still had objections, it seemed that he couldn't say anything.

Wang Shuai lit another cigarette, his face crinkling with wrinkles when he smiled, revealing a mouthful of large teeth.

He turned to look at his subordinate, Qian Yue, beside him:

"Yueling, let's move things forward! No need to drag it out, let's get started right away!"

Qian Yue quickly responded:
"Okay, I'll start coordinating with Teacher Xinxin as soon as the meeting ends."

Wang Shuai paused:
"What was the budget for this project again?"

Qian Yue: "A service fee of 1.1 million..."

Wang Shuai smoked his cigarette, thought for a moment, then looked at Xu Chen and put on a smile again:
"One million one hundred thousand, that's not a high cost!"

"It simply can't match the ingenuity of Tmall's solution."

He paused:

"However, I also have a few projects here, including 'Taobao' and '1688'."

I actually think our group and 'Dongchen Advertising' can achieve a long-term cooperation!

He then looked at Qian Yue:

"Aren't we building a database of excellent suppliers? Let's quickly bring 'Dongchen Advertising' in!"

Such an excellent team needs to establish a long-term cooperation mechanism!

"They're much more reliable than those foreign advertising companies..."

Wang Shuai was very talkative, and he had already rambled on for quite a while.

Then, he put on a big smile and looked at "Little Xu" across the table.

Xu Chen continued the conversation, saying:
"Dongchen Advertising doesn't seem to care much about service fees."

If possible, we would like to waive the service fee, but we have another request.

"Oh?"

Wang Shuai's eyes widened, clearly still somewhat surprised; it was probably the first time he had ever heard of such a request.

"I'd like to hear the details," Wang Shuai said, exhaling a puff of white smoke.

Xu Chen: "Our Fei Jie has another sports brand company that currently has a store on Taobao and has received an invitation to join Taobao Mall."

Currently, the platform has given us an A-level rating for joining, but we hope to get an S-level rating..."

Wang Shuai paused for a moment, then turned to look at Zhang Yong, nicknamed "Xiaoyaozi," without replying.

Zhang Yong touched his chin, his expression becoming serious again.

As the "Chief Operating Officer" and the person in charge of the "Taobao Mall" project, he directly determined the rating of the invited merchants.

Zhang Yong, who had barely spoken throughout the meeting, finally spoke up:

"Excuse me, what sportswear brand is it?"

Xu Chen picked up the mouse on the table and played a video on the big screen, which was a promotional video for "Ranbing Sports".

Wang Shuai was smoking a cigarette, but his face was full of surprise:
I know the brand "Ranbing"! Their previous advertisements were of a very high standard!

I really didn't expect it; it was you guys who did it too!

Zhang Yong frowned, and instead of beating around the bush, he brought up the practical issue:
I know about 'Ranbing Sports'; it was one of the first companies invited to join Taobao Mall.

But there is a practical problem...

Our S rating is currently only available to international and overseas brands.

All domestic brands only have three levels: A, B, and C.

"Ranbing, like Anta, Li-Ning, and 361 Degrees, received an A-level invitation to join."

He turned to look at Wang Shuai and added:
"These are also the basic rules that Teacher Ma has established."

"Teacher Ma" refers to Ma Yun, the founder of Alibaba, who is also the current chairman and CEO of the group.

Wang Shuai took a drag of his cigarette, but hesitated to speak.

He was actually a little speechless, not expecting that "Xiaoyaozi" would bring up Ma Yun.

Xu Chen remained calm and picked up the mouse again.

On the projected screen, Xu Chen displayed two news reports, which were the latest news during the New Year's Day holiday:
"my country's female hurdler Xie Bingran has won the 'Laureus Sports Award for Best Newcomer'..."

"Time magazine released its list of '100 Olympic Athletes to Watch,' and Chinese track and field athlete Xie Bingran was included..."

Wang Shuai and Zhang Yong exchanged glances, somewhat puzzled.

Xu Chen closed the page and played another match video.

It was in April of last year that Xie Bingran participated in the recording of the "International Athletics Grand Prix" in Zurich.

In Xie Bingran's first international competition, she defeated a host of European and American stars, including Lolo Jones and Lopez Schlip, winning the first world gold medal for Asians in women's hurdles.

Sports competitions, in themselves, possess the greatest power to resonate with emotions.

Wang Shuai and Zhang Yong were clearly moved as they watched the exhilarating match footage and listened to the CCTV commentator's commentary.

Xu Chen spoke calmly and slowly:
"Taobao is a purely domestic e-commerce platform, yet it drove out the overseas platform eBay."

Xie Bingran is of Asian descent, yet she defeated a host of Black and White athletes in competitive track and field events where genetic disadvantages exist.

Many people may not have seen our 'Burning Ice Sports' shoes yet, nor have they witnessed the recognition and affection our consumers have for us...

How can you judge our rating as inferior to overseas brands simply because we are a 'domestic brand' of gas ice?
If this logic applies, then Taobao wouldn't need to compete with eBay and Amazon.

Xie Bingran no longer needs to stand on the same starting line as Black and White people..."

That's all I have to say; it's already quite clear.

Xu Chen deliberately brought up the examples of "Taobao" and "eBay" in order to resonate with the other party.

The reason for playing Xie Bingran's match video was to add some emotional elements to the persuasion.

Sure enough, Wang Shuai stared wide-eyed and said:
"Okay! Well said!"

He turned to look at Zhang Yong:
"Xiaoyaozi, we are a domestic e-commerce platform, and we should support national brands and domestic products!"

"At the end of last year, Teacher Ma went to Beijing to attend a symposium on the private economy, and he said the same thing in his speech..." "Xiaoyaozi" remained expressionless, but after Wang Shuai finished speaking, he only said one sentence:

"Okay... I'll go back and look into it."

Wang Shuai frowned, seemingly getting a little annoyed:
"Research my ass! I'm going to talk to Professor Ma right now!"

The "handsome boss" looked somewhat anxious and annoyed. He stubbed out his cigarette and was about to get up.

"Xiaoyaozi" panicked for a moment and quickly grabbed him:
"No, no, no! Mr. Handsome, don't be in such a hurry!"

When I said I'd "study it out," I meant I needed to discuss it with my subordinates and inform them.

Wang Shuai paused for a moment, then chuckled.

He didn't say anything more and obediently sat back down.

Then he looked at Xu Chen and Nie Fei, giving them a smug smile.

……

……

in the afternoon.

Gu Xinxin helped contact the operations manager of "Taobao.com," who was also Sun Lingfeng's daily contact person and was in charge of the online traffic and event arrangements for "Ranbing Sports."

Although Xie Qiang, the "operations expert," doesn't hold a high rank within Taobao, he directly controls the traffic of the "Ranbing Sports" store, so it's worthwhile to get to know him and maintain a relationship with him.

Within Taobao, Ma Yun defines this type of operation that connects with brand merchants as "Xiao Er," meaning that one must have the "Xiao Er mentality" of serving merchants.

But Xu Chen had worked at Alibaba in his previous life and knew that many of the "Xiao Er" (employees) were actually "big shots" who stood above the merchants.

Meanwhile, many corruption cases within Alibaba involve merchants bribing frontline staff.

In some years, an inconspicuous Taobao employee might have owned a 200-square-meter luxury house by West Lake...

Xie Qiang wore black-rimmed glasses and looked like an honest and down-to-earth "science and engineering guy".

His nickname is "Qianglu," which immediately evokes the image of "the masts and oars turning to ashes," giving it a somewhat ominous feel.

Nie Fei brought a box of pastries from Shanghai. Xie Qiang took the box from the powerful and beautiful "Sister Fei," feeling slightly shy.

Xu Chen chatted with Xie Qiang for a while, and casually mentioned, "I just had a project meeting with Xiaoyaozi."

This crucial information indeed startled Xie Qiang, who instantly became serious and solemn, showing no negligence towards Xu Chen and the others, and becoming exceptionally polite.

Then, without thinking, he asked out of curiosity, "What kind of meeting did you have with Xiaoyaozi?"

Xu Chen said casually:
"What else can we talk about? Your 'Taobao Mall' business, of course..."

Xie Qiang didn't ask any more questions, but his small eyes behind his black-rimmed glasses followed him around a few times.

They were clearly somewhat intimidated by the fact that "Ranbing Sports" could directly hold a meeting with Xiaoyaozi.

And coincidentally, Gu Xinxin received a message, saying while browsing her computer:
"Qian Yue asked me for the plan document from earlier, saying that Xiaoyaozi wants to study it..."

Xie Qiang: "!!"

……

After leaving the Taobao headquarters, Nie Fei led Gu Xinxin, Sun Aimi, and others to visit West Lake.

Since it was a rare opportunity to get out, we decided to visit some tourist attractions.

Xu Chen also had some personal matters to attend to, which involved visiting his classmate Feng Qingqing, who was studying in Hangzhou.

After all, Feng Wenjiang and Xu Zhiquan are "good brothers," and it would be a bit unreasonable for Xu Chen to come to Hangzhou on a business trip without meeting Feng Qingqing.

Feng Qingqing is still the same as before.

Wearing a white hair clip, she looked fresh and innocent.

A casual chat reveals that even after more than a year of university, he hasn't matured much mentally.

Feng Qingqing was quite happy to see Xu Chen. She took him for a walk around the campus and then they went to the school's snack street for milk tea.

When Feng Qingqing talked about Xu Chen's family's electric vehicle business, she couldn't help but express her admiration and envy.

They even started talking about Xie Bingran, and she said rather happily:

"Bing Ge is amazing! She's actually a world champion!"

Even though we were never classmates, I still feel so proud!

"And your 'Burning Ice' shoes are so comfortable! The styles are so beautiful!"

Last year, Xu Chen sent Feng Qingqing a pair of the latest "Burning Ice 001" and "Burning Ice X" sneakers.

"We've released new shoes, I'll send you a pair later."

"Okay, okay! Thank you!"

……

……

When I drove back to Shanghai, the city lights were already on.

Everyone on the bus was still very happy to have secured a new project today.

Nie Fei, Sun Aimei, and Gu Xinxin in the back row were happily sharing the Hangzhou pastries they bought that afternoon.

The "Taobao Mall" project has been finalized, and Gu Xinxin had already connected with the opposing team that afternoon.

Upon returning, the first step is to push forward with the formal contract process.

The original project budget remains unchanged at 1.1 million. As for the "Burning Ice Sports" rating, it will not affect the project costs here.

A budget of 1.1 million isn't too much, but the project is relatively simple to follow up on and won't require too much effort.

In terms of design, Sun Aimi also needs to lead the team to create a complete VI visual system.

Xu Chen also needs to refine the market packaging plan.

But it's pretty much correct; I estimate I can finish revising it in an hour or two when I get back.

The platform name has been confirmed, and the proposed name "Tmall" will be adopted.

Wang Shuai really liked the name.

Fearing that "Xiaoyaozi" might have different opinions, he took the name directly to Ma Yun's office.

No one knows how the two communicated, but after Wang Shuai came out, the name "Tmall" was officially decided...

Tmall's positioning label is "Authentic Brands, Big Brand Mall".

The advertising slogan, also proposed by Xu Chen, is "Ideal life on Tmall"...

Gu Xinxin also inquired about the proposals from other advertising companies. After Xu Chen looked at them, he thought that none of them were very convincing.

The platform's name is similar to "Taobao Authentic Products", "Taobao Big Brands", "Taobao Authentic Products Website", etc., and it is not even in the same competitive level as "Tmall".

Actually, it was not as good as the original "Taobao Mall", so it is not unjust for it to be eliminated.

……

On the way back, Sun Lingfeng sent a series of messages in the "Burning Ice Sports" project group:
[I just received a message from Xie Qiang, an operations manager at Taobao, saying that "Ranbing Sports" might be downgraded to S-level...]

Immediately, cheers and applause erupted in the group.

Everyone naturally knew that this was thanks to "Little Xu" leading the business trip, so a few people, represented by Ma Lingyao, started to fawn over "Little Xu".

……

……

(End of this chapter)