ABT Chapter 142: The Magical Censorship
Advertising, in fact, has a very low entry barrier. As long as you have money, you're the boss.
TV stations work hard to buy broadcasting rights for shows and grab ratings to do what? Simply to sell more ads… so this is understandable.
Haven't you seen some shameless local TV stations helping unscrupulous merchants sell fake medicine? And often in the form of so-called expert discussions that air for over half an hour, swindling countless pensioners out of their savings?
As they say, money talks.
Though the approvals at CCTV are stricter than those of local stations, as long as the advertising unit has all the proper documentation, negotiations can still proceed smoothly.
CTV-5 is the largest sports channel in the country. Many car brands would rather not appear on the main channel but ensure they are seen on Channel 5 because the sports channel's audience is generally male, making the ads more targeted, and this demographic typically has stronger purchasing power.
Initially, the 10 PM slot was fully booked, but Li Fanyu was very clear; he wanted the slot immediately after RaceFast's ad. He didn’t consider other time slots.
So, the person in charge of negotiations temporarily communicated with the station and shortened the program's opening sequence to squeeze it in.
To maximize impact and save costs, RaceFast's ad was divided into two phases; the first phase was a 20-second full version, costing 30,000 yuan per second, aired once daily for ten days. The second phase was a 10-second edited version, also costing 30,000 yuan per second, aired for another ten days.
The entire ad campaign cost 2 million yuan for production and 9 million yuan for airing, totaling 11 million yuan.
But for Li Fanyu, everything was simple and direct; just a five-second video, aired for twenty days straight right after the RaceFast ad.
Because of the extended air time, the station gave a discount; at 28,000 yuan per second, the total cost for twenty days was 2.8 million yuan. The video was made by Wang Dazui, free of charge.
Everything was settled happily.
When the ad content was submitted for review, the person in charge was stunned; what the heck, this is allowed?
Pointing at the video, he awkwardly asked Li Fanyu, "Are you sure this is the final edited version of the ad?"
Li Fanyu stood firm, "Yeah! Any issues?"
The person in charge swallowed and was speechless—he had seen many special effects in ads, but censorship was a first.
But if the customer is happy and insists on doing it this way, what can you do? Air it as requested...
So, two days after RaceFast's V12 ad aired, Zhengxin's ad also met the audience.
...
Tian Cangjian, a working man in his thirties, had today off and was just in time to watch the NBA preseason on CTV-5. So, he had already prepared fruits and snacks on the coffee table, ready to enjoy.
Like many men his age, he liked watching sports and cars. So, when the RF-V12 ad aired, his attention was immediately captured.
"Stealing the idea, shameless. But the car is really well-made, tsk tsk…”
Even though he had seen it before, he still marveled at it.
He had watched the video on Car Reviews and knew the whole story. So, he genuinely despised RaceFast's blatant theft of the idea.
But then, something hilarious happened; right after the RF-V12 ad, another ad shot on an airport runway followed.
It was the last part of the Car Reviews video; the segment where the X-power left both the plane and the RF-V12 behind, ending the race with a drift.
However, the ad producers, in a style reminiscent of Stephen Chow's absurd humor, had put a thin layer of mosaic censorship over the entire body of the V12.
Even though the mosaic obscured any Fast logo, the V12's distinctive shape was very recognizable! And don’t forget, the V12 ad had just aired! Even people who didn’t know cars could immediately recognize that the car under the mosaic was the same as in the previous ad!
But this segment was very short, ending in just over three seconds. The ad concluded with a promotional page;
X-power, the National Supercar! Proudly presented by Zhengxin Motors, pre-sale website:.
Tian Cangjian, still chewing on potato chips, saw the ad and spat his chips far away in laughter.
Naughty! So naughty! Zhengxin, is it really okay to be this cheeky? This move was a total slap in RaceFast’s face!
But seeing you being this cheeky and naughty reassures me. To deal with these shameless people, this is the way to go!
Tian Cangjian immediately wiped his mouth, picked up his phone, and logged into the Car Reviews forum to angrily post: “Brothers, did you see that X-power ad on CTV-5? The magical mosaic! Hilarious...”
“OP, you've got twenty years of single-life hand speed, I was just about to post this, and you beat me to it.”
“Yeah, saw it, hahaha, laughed my ass off. RaceFast’s ad was for nothing.”
“Turns out, RaceFast has once again made a wedding dress for X-power, incredibly generous.”
“Zhengxin! You can’t do this, RaceFast is an old British gentleman, over a hundred years old. To contribute to the face-slapping business, they traveled all the way to China. And here you are, beating them up time and again, it’s not nice!”
“Post above, 666… even brought up Norman Bethune.”
“7th post, you’re a talent, I’m impressed!”
…
The ad immediately showed its power once it aired. Not only did netizens turn the event into various jokes, making RaceFast the biggest joke of the season, but the clicks on Zhengxin’s newly established website also exploded.
Li Fanyu’s move was ruthless, continuously stepping on RaceFast to climb up, making the whole process quite amusing.
Looking at the entire progression, Li Fanyu first used a ploy to deceive the public.
RaceFast retaliated by turning the tables and pulling the rug out from under him.
Realizing this, Zhengxin swiftly countered with a slap; borrowing a corpse to resurrect, replacing the pillars.
RaceFast, defeated.
This strategy… you can feel it.
So, within just three days, the pre-sales increased by more than forty units through the website. Including the previous hundred units, the X-power achieved such an impressive result even before formal approval.
But Li Fanyu knew that the X-power’s sales were destined not to be large. If it weren’t for his desperate marketing efforts, a hundred units would be about right. After all, this car’s unique positioning meant it was not a mass-market product.
Not to mention, the X-power didn’t even have a roof, so it couldn’t be driven in the rain. So, in Li Fanyu’s view, it was a big toy for wealthy people to enjoy driving.
The current sales had already exceeded his expectations. At this rate, selling three hundred units domestically wouldn’t be a problem. And he already had a plan for the next step—once the sales stagnate, he would launch the GT performance version through the tuning shop.
Enhancing performance, raising the price.
This way, he could drive another wave of sales, and the rest would depend on the overseas market.
After all, making a sports car is one thing, but making a mark internationally is another!
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