Chapter 36: Creating History
A new week begins.
Ma Hui arrived at the company early, collected a thick stack of newspapers, and set off for the distribution points.
"Uncle, I'm here to deliver the newspapers."
Before long, he arrived at his uncle's newsstand, greeted him, and opened the car's trunk to hand over a stack of pre-marked newspapers.
The number of newspapers delivered to each newsstand is determined the day before, based on the orders placed by the newsstand owners. This helps confirm the print quantities and speeds up the delivery process, ensuring the newspapers reach the stands before the city wakes up, so as not to affect normal sales.
"Xiaohui, your newspapers are really selling well. I wonder if the 300 copies we requested will be enough!" The newsstand owner remarked with some emotion.
Compared to other newspapers, the sales terminal staff had the most direct experience of how popular the "Jiu Ding Daily" was. Through conversations with customers buying newspapers, he gained deeper insights into the factors driving the rise of the "Jiu Ding Daily."
Having sold newspapers for decades, he was familiar with all the newspapers in the city and their various standings and popularity. His instinct told him that as long as "Jiu Ding Daily" didn't make mistakes, it would surely secure the top spot in newspaper sales in Xiangjiang.
"It's a pity that you don't provide the 'Jiu Ding Daily' for me for free anymore, or I could make even more money!" The newsstand owner sighed regretfully.
Hearing this, Ma Hui chuckled and said, "Uncle, be content. Since our newspaper came out, your newsstand's sales have surged. You've earned what you used to make in two months over the past seven days. If we kept giving you free newspapers, our newspaper office would go bankrupt. How would we make a living then?"
"Haha!" The newsstand owner laughed and didn't say anything more. He knew it wasn't feasible to get free newspapers forever. However, having earned so much money in just seven days was a big deal, and not getting free newspapers anymore was a bit disappointing.
"Alright, the number is correct. Go ahead and deliver to the next stand. Our newspaper office treats its staff well, and being a big paper, it offers both face and substance. Work hard, earn money to support your younger brother's education, and don't lose your job. It's hard to find such a good company elsewhere." After roughly checking the newspapers, the newsstand owner advised Ma Hui.
"Don't worry, Uncle, I'll work hard. Goodbye for now, I'll be on my way." Ma Hui nodded seriously, bid farewell, and rode off to the next newsstand.
Similar scenes were happening all over Xiangjiang. Within a short time, the "Jiu Ding Daily" was delivered to major newsstands by employees.
That day, all the company's employees were filled with enthusiasm, displaying 200% dedication to their work.
The data was collected periodically, and it soon surpassed 100,000 copies.
When Summer Yu announced this to everyone, the company erupted into a sea of joy.
Summer Yu didn't stop the employees from celebrating; instead, he watched with a smile.
The more excited the employees were, the higher their sense of belonging and recognition for the company, which was a good thing!
When people are passionate about something, time seems to fly by quickly.
Soon, two-thirds of the day had passed, and it was past five in the afternoon.
Amidst the anticipation, the final statistics were revealed.
The total newspaper sales reached 250,000 copies!
This was a sales record never before seen in Xiangjiang!
The previous record was set by the "Dongfang Daily" with a daily sale of 170,000 copies!
Now this record had been shattered and increased by 80,000 copies. Other newspapers might not surpass this figure for at least another decade, when Xiangjiang's economy would be more prosperous.
But by then, the sales of "Jiu Ding Daily" would likely be much higher!
Summer Yu was very satisfied with the 250,000 copies sold, which was within his estimated range.
Although 350,000 copies were distributed yesterday and today's sales were only 250,000 copies, a drop of 100,000 copies, it was important to note that of the 350,000 distributed yesterday, only 220,000 were actually sold by newsstands. Today's 250,000 copies were actually 30,000 copies more than yesterday.
This meant that one-quarter of the 120,000 people who received free newspapers yesterday paid for "Jiu Ding Daily" today. Considering that 220,000 people had already bought the paper, those who received free newspapers were not the most valuable potential users. Achieving a 25% conversion rate was already quite high.
Furthermore, the 220,000 copies sold by newsstands were through the effort of newsstand owners promoting the newspapers. The actual number of people willing to buy spontaneously would be lower.
Today, newsstand owners had to buy "Jiu Ding Daily" themselves, and the period of high profit was over. They wouldn't push as hard to sell "Jiu Ding Daily" anymore. Thus, increasing the sales by 30,000 copies from yesterday's base, reaching 250,000 copies, was already a great success in Summer Yu's view.
When other newspapers found out this data, they would definitely be envious and resentful, as it was solid sales figures contributed by paying users, leaving no room for doubt about the "Jiu Ding Daily."
"Alright, the high sales of 'Jiu Ding Daily' are thanks to your contributions, so I'm announcing that you'll receive a month's salary bonus in advance instead of waiting until the end of the month!" Summer Yu said loudly.
Then, several department heads came out with trays covered by red cloths, each stacked high.
Summer Yu pulled off the red cloths to reveal a mountain of red envelopes.
"Wow!"
Seeing the red envelopes, all employees' eyes widened, and they cheered. They hadn't expected such a surprise from the boss, thinking they would have to wait until payday.
"Form a line and don't rush. I'll call out names, and those named should come up to receive their red envelopes. Wang Dashan."
"Here!" A loud voice answered from the crowd.
"Haha!" Everyone laughed, and even Summer Yu couldn't help but smile.
"Come up when I call your name, don't just shout out. Are you too excited?" A colleague nudged Wang Dashan, teasing him.
Wang Dashan scratched his head, smiling awkwardly. After Summer Yu nodded at him, he eagerly ran up.
Summer Yu handed a red envelope to Wang Dashan, who received it with a flustered "Thank you, boss! Thank you, boss!"
"Keep up the good work!" Summer Yu smiled and patted his shoulder encouragingly.
"Yes, yes, boss, don't worry, I'll work hard!" Wang Dashan, visibly excited and blushing, nodded vigorously.
"Go back now."
"Next, Liu Neng…"
...
"Keep it up, work hard!"
...
Each employee received their red envelopes directly from Summer Yu's hands, with shoulder pats of encouragement.
Even new hires were treated equally, receiving a month's salary in red envelopes, which delighted them. They hadn't expected such generosity from the boss, and it completely changed their perception. They had never heard of anyone receiving a month's salary bonus just a few days into a job.
This fostered deep gratitude and recognition towards Summer Yu and the company.
Summer Yu also clearly felt that as employees came up to receive their red envelopes, their spirits and respect towards him noticeably increased.
Feeling this atmosphere, Summer Yu was pleased. This was exactly what he wanted. Every effort he made was aimed at winning people's hearts. To enhance the company's control and cohesion, he spared no effort to seize every opportunity and even created opportunities.
This was why leaders often engaged in public displays—they had minimal costs but significant returns. Missing out on such a chance would mean failing as a leader and capitalist. If Summer Yu continued to perform such acts, he would boost employee loyalty so much that even if he sold them, they would probably still happily count the money for him!
After reviewing and confirming that all tasks were completed, the employees left one by one, and Summer Yu prepared to head home.