Rebirth 04: Starting from Taking an Unconventional Approach

The large screen displayed the publisher's review process, the exclusive agreements signed with the authors, and the content rating standards.

Liu Zhenhua nodded: "What's the background of this publishing house?"

"This is a long-established publishing house. The president, Han Fei, is young, but he has a very flexible mindset. They used to make print magazines, but they transitioned to SP (service provider) services, which is equivalent to bringing their content production expertise to mobile phones. Let's look at another set of data."

Zhang Qiming accessed the internal data of the mobile company.

Average conversion rate for SPs across the entire industry: 2.1%

Ringback tone service conversion rate: 5.8%

News subscription cancellation rate: 35%

Bluebird Reading's cancellation rate: 7.3%

"What does this tell us, folks? It shows that users are willing to pay for good content. We have over 3 million mobile users, but we lack content that can retain them."

"This cancellation rate is surprisingly low," Chen Yuanshan interjected. "It shows that users really like these stories."

"That's right," Zhang Qiming said. "Moreover, users spent an average of over 40 minutes reading online on the first day, demonstrating extremely high engagement. This means that if we can vigorously develop this model, we can create a completely new growth point for our data business."

The group exchanged quick glances, but no one raised any objections.

"Hmm," Fang Jing began, "If these figures are accurate, it would be a milestone. But how sustainable are they? How long can 13.7% be maintained?"

Zhang Qiming smiled slightly: "President Fang, please take a look at this." He pressed the remote control and switched the PPT interface.

Content reserves: 21 authors have been signed, with 151 articles in reserve, and plans to add 100 new articles per month.

Physical store collaboration: A physical magazine will be launched soon, with online and offline channels mutually driving traffic.

Technology upgrades: database splitting, load balancing, user profiling system, improving user experience.

"This is their future plan," Zhang Qiming said. "But to be honest, this small company is currently facing some difficulties in terms of its technical team and distribution channels. If the headquarters can provide some support, such as assisting with technical optimization and providing official endorsement, I believe they can achieve a monthly turnover of over 500 million within three months."

Everyone stared silently at the screen.

Zhang Qiming glanced at Fang Jing, who nodded meaningfully.

Chen Yuanshan clapped his hands: "Alright, everyone. It's clear that you're all very interested in this business. Now let's move on to the formal Q&A session. Does anyone have a question..." Before he could finish speaking, he saw many people raising their hands. "Uh, Zhou Xiaodong, you go first."

"Hello, Mr. Zhang," Zhou Xiaodong said. "I'm the representative from Jiangsu Province, and this is my first time attending a headquarters meeting. My question is, how did you calculate that 41-minute reading time? Were the users actually reading, or were they just leaving their devices running?"

"Mr. Zhou, our backend statistics track the time users spend on the website after logging in, combined with their click behavior for a comprehensive assessment. 41 minutes is the average; many users spend one or two hours browsing at night. Of course, this is just preliminary data and requires further verification."

"Thank you for your explanation, Mr. Zhang."

"Okay, does anyone else have a question?" Chen Yuanshan said.

Zhao Guoqiang, deputy general manager of the marketing department, cleared his throat.

Everyone turned to look at the leadership table, then hesitantly lowered their hands.

"Qiming," Zhao Guoqiang said, "what you just mentioned about content-based service providers is indeed attractive, but the risks are also very high. Content compliance, user complaints, and copyright issues are all ticking time bombs. If we support small companies and they collapse, who will be held responsible?"

Zhao Guoqiang looked at Zhang Qiming with a serious expression. He was very thin, his gaunt neck peeking out from his suit collar, reminding Zhang Qiming of a long-legged waterbird wading through water. His eyes were unnaturally large, and he wore a pair of simple, round, steel-framed glasses with rather thick lenses—a type of glasses popular among radicals in the 1970s. Judging from Zhang Qiming's impression of him, the glasses suited him well.

"Mr. Zhao has hit the nail on the head," Zhang Qiming said with a smile. "Qingniao's triple review mechanism is designed to deal with this. Their president, Han Fei, comes from a publishing family and is more sensitive to red lines than anyone else. Moreover, we can clearly state in the cooperation agreement: if any illegal content is found, the cooperation will be terminated immediately, and the responsible party will be held accountable. The risk is controllable; the key is to have a contingency plan."

The meeting room was silent.

Zhang Qiming saw Chen Yuanshan staring at Zhao Guoqiang.

"Mr. Zhao's question is crucial and cannot be ignored," Chen Yuanshan said. "My suggestion is to pilot it first, then roll it out. Provide support within a controllable scope, while establishing strict risk control standards. If the pilot is successful, then gradually expand. If it fails, the losses will be limited."

The leaders exchanged glances. Zhao Guoqiang seemed to want to say something, but swallowed his words.

"Fang Jing," Liu Zhenhua began, "do you think the Qingniao case could be used as a pilot project?"

Fang Jing smiled and said, "President Liu, I think it's a good idea. They have a publishing background, understand content production, and have already established a review mechanism. Most importantly, the Shanghai branch is willing to follow up. Of course, the final decision rests with the business department."

Liu Zhenhua nodded slowly: "Yes, Qiming's case is very interesting. The 13.7% conversion rate on the first day shows that users do have a demand. But as Zhao Guoqiang said, there are indeed certain risks involved. Fang Jing, please have the strategy department follow up and write a detailed evaluation report."

"Okay, Mr. Liu."

"My opinion is," Liu Zhenhua continued, "first, the direction is worth exploring; second, the risks must be controllable; third, pilot it first, then promote it. As for how to test it and what kind of support to provide, Chen Yuanshan will take the lead, and we'll discuss it with a few provinces after the meeting. We're short on time today, so we won't go into detail. Qiming, stay behind, we'll talk after the meeting."

"I understand, Mr. Liu."

Zhang Qiming stepped down from the podium and heard the crowd whispering among themselves. As he passed Wang Hongxin and Sun Weimin, both of them looked at him with smiles on their faces.

Wang Hongxin whispered, "Old Zhang, are they going to make a plan in private?"

Zhang Qiming smiled knowingly.

When he returned to his seat, Chen Yuanshan had already gone up to the stage to summarize the morning's meeting.

"Ladies and gentlemen, the sharing this morning was very substantial. Three case studies, three directions, each with its own highlights and challenges. Mr. Liu has already given a clear opinion: the direction is worth exploring, and the risks must be controllable. This is not just empty talk, but a principle we must follow in promoting data business innovation. Of course, new businesses inevitably come with new risks. The Strategic Development Department at headquarters will follow up with an evaluation and develop a detailed pilot plan. The afternoon agenda will proceed as scheduled. After returning home, representatives from each province can reflect on today's case studies. Do your provinces have similar content resources that can be explored? Is it possible to cooperate with professional organizations like Qingniao? If you have any ideas, please feel free to contact the Strategic Development Department or the Shanghai branch after the meeting."