Future Pet Shop

Chapter 247: Marathon Promotion

’Sigh, since Director Kong hasn’t called to rush me lately, I’ll just put it out of my mind for now.’ After a moment of thought, Shen Yibin’s lazy streak kicked in again. He pushed the matter to the back of his mind and went back to watching promotional videos on a video-sharing site.

In the following days, the promotional video’s impact online grew larger and larger. The phones at all of Yunzhong City’s major travel agencies were ringing off the hook. Sales for plane, train, and high-speed rail tickets to Yunzhong City from major cities across the country skyrocketed. The hotel owners in Yunzhong City couldn’t stop grinning; even after doubling their room rates, demand still outstripped supply.

For the past few days, Mayor Wang couldn’t even contain his smile during meetings. Although he had realized while drawing up the plans that this promotional video would definitely bring more tourists to Yunzhong City, he had never expected it to be this effective. He quickly organized an emergency meeting with all of Yunzhong City’s tourism-related departments.

Now that the tourists had been drawn in, the government had to do its part to coordinate. They needed to strictly regulate the tourism market, cracking down on predatory pricing, forced shopping, tourist scams, and other unsavory practices. They absolutely could not let one bad apple spoil the whole bunch. Maintaining Yunzhong City’s positive image was the only way to ensure a continuous stream of visitors and sustain the city’s GDP growth.

After several meetings, the various tasks were finally assigned. At the very least, accommodating this wave of tourists shouldn’t pose any major problems. Mayor Wang then began discussions on a new project: the marathon that Qin Qing had mentioned earlier. The race route had now been finalized. It would start at the Yunshui River and end at the Shilin Hot Spring, passing through landmarks like the bamboo forest and the Ten Thousand Mu Orange Garden. Mayor Wang planned to brand it as the world’s most beautiful marathon route and make it an annual event to drive the continuous development of Yunzhong City’s tourism industry.

"The invitations to participate have been sent out, and many celebrities with ties to Yunzhong City have gladly accepted, such as Director Kong, who helped us shoot the promotional video..." reported Qin Qing, who held an important position on the marathon’s organizing committee. "Other preparations, such as for hotels and restaurants, are also complete..."

"Good. Go find Mr. Shen later. In a few days, we’ll probably need to trouble Hah’Er to take some promotional photos for this event, as well as a short promotional film," Mayor Wang said with a nod.

"I already spoke with Mr. Shen yesterday. He said it’s no problem. Also, we’ve sent out proposal invitations to several large advertising agencies. They will be submitting their promotion plans soon," Qin Qing replied efficiently. Among these agencies, he personally favored Xu Ye’s company, as it was the only one that had worked with Hah’Er before. However, since the bidding process wasn’t complete yet, nothing was certain.

Just then, Xu Ye arrived at Shen Yibin’s shop. "Bin, I just submitted a bid for the Yunzhong City Marathon’s promotional campaign. You have to put in a good word for me with Secretary Qin."

Xu Ye’s advertising agency had been a huge help during the zoo incident. Plus, Director Kong wouldn’t be involved this time, and the other ad agencies in Yunzhong City probably couldn’t match Xu Ye’s company’s capabilities. Shen Yibin had no reason not to agree. "Secretary Qin just called. He said he’s stopping by for a visit later. I’ll talk to him about it then."

After dinner, Shen Yibin was sitting in his shop for a little while when Qin Qing arrived as scheduled. He first spoke with Shen Yibin for a bit about the boost the promotional video had given to Yunzhong City’s tourism since it started airing, then he got down to business. "The plans for Yunzhong City’s first marathon are now mostly finalized. Next, we’ll have to trouble you and Hah’Er."

"Sure. Same as before, I’ll take a look at the plan once it’s ready. If there are no issues, we can start shooting!" After the last time, Shen Yibin was now extremely familiar with the process. As long as there were no negative effects on Hah’Er, he was happy to take Hah’Er out for some fun. It was clear Hah’Er quite enjoyed these kinds of activities, too.

"That’s great, that’s great." After speaking, Qin Qing stood up and glanced at the space next door. "When does the new shop open? You have to let me know in advance! I’ll definitely come by to show my support."

"I definitely won’t forget you," Shen Yibin replied with a smile. He then subtly brought up the matter of Xu Ye’s company. Qin Qing gave a slight nod, indicating he understood. The matter was settled.

Sure enough, it wasn’t long before the bidding results were announced. Xu Ye’s proposal won unanimous praise from the organizers, and he landed the major contract. This was only to be expected. Setting aside his relationship with Shen Yibin, just in terms of the proposal, his company’s capabilities, and relevant experience, he was one of the best in Yunzhong City. The role Shen Yibin played was simply to prevent certain people from using underhanded means to screw him over.

Since Xu Ye was on the project, there was no longer a need to bother Secretary Qin about coordinating the plan with Shen Yibin. That very evening, Xu Ye came to see Shen Yibin with the proposal in hand. After dinner, the two of them sat down to discuss it. "This shoot isn’t difficult. We just need Hah’Er to wear a tracksuit and run along the planned route."

That was true. As long as Hah’Er was involved, there was no need to worry about its impact. Xu Ye’s job was simply to make the visuals look even better and to better showcase the beauty of Yunzhong City and the appeal of the marathon.

"No problem. Just find the locations, set the time, and let me know. I’ll bring Hah’Er over then," Shen Yibin said, patting Hah’Er’s head.

"Alright. I estimate I’ll need about three days. I’ll come find you in three days," Xu Ye said. Then he brought up something else. "By the way, are you going to participate in the race?"

The Yunzhong City Marathon was divided into professional and amateur divisions. The professional division was a full marathon, while the amateur division was only a half marathon. Someone who exercised regularly could probably manage to finish it. Hearing Xu Ye mention it, Shen Yibin’s interest was piqued. Lately, Shi Gaofei had been dragging him out for runs every day, and his stamina and endurance had grown by leaps and bounds. Maybe he really could finish a half marathon.

"I’ve already signed up. Why don’t you sign up too, and we can run together?" Xu Ye went to the gym every day to pick up girls, so he was in pretty good shape.

"Alright, I’ll go sign up too!" Shen Yibin agreed. He then looked over at Shi Gaofei, who was lying on the carpet. ’When the race starts, should I bring it along? With Pingtou’s stamina, finishing a half marathon should be no problem at all, right? And Hah’Er... should I buy it a pair of running shoes so it can run too?’