The click-through rate surged, and the follower count rose alongside it, changing every minute, like riding a rocket.
Andrew realized this was a golden opportunity. If he played his cards right, he could become a super influencer, an internet celebrity like Superman and Batman, on ShowMe.
He acted immediately, setting aside his movie for the time being and dedicating himself entirely to creation. He spent one night producing seven different styles of the "Black Coffin Dance."
Sci-fi style, Oriental style, grotesque style, fantasy style, and the indescribable "girly style," satisfying the needs of different demographics.
After uploading these videos to his space, Andrew collapsed into bed. When he woke up, his phone was littered with missed calls; his girlfriend Lisa alone had called seven times.
How annoying!
He grumbled impatiently, then called his girlfriend back. As soon as she answered, he was met with a barrage of hysterical questions.
Andrew held the phone away from his ear. When the interrogation ended, he yawned and asked,
"What is it?"
"You're famous, didn't you know? Get online, now!"
With that, she hung up. Andrew scratched his head, completely baffled. He slowly climbed out of bed, opened his laptop, and logged into his account. When he saw his follower count, his eyes widened into saucers.
Holy crap! What the hell?
He suspected he'd misread it and rubbed his eyes vigorously. After confirming it was five digits, not four, he was utterly stunned.
He had gained 30,000 followers just by sleeping!
He quickly clicked into his space. Seeing the view count on the seven videos, he was baffled again. Four of the seven videos had made it onto the recommendation page. The "girly style" Black Coffin Dance was the most explosive, with 500,000 clicks and over a thousand comments, leaving the other videos far behind.
Andrew grabbed his hair, unable to understand. The girly-style video took the least amount of time and was, frankly, shoddily produced. Yet, the lowest quality video was the most popular.
Why is this happening?
He looked down in thought. Just then, a text message caught his eye.
It was from a funeral home in Metropolis's southern suburbs, hoping to place an ad on Andrew's video to promote their newly launched "Black Coffin Dance" service.
Andrew paused, then typed:
"Are you kidding me?"
The other party quickly replied: "We are willing to pay $3,000 for the advertising fee. If you're interested, we can meet to discuss it."
The message included contact details: the funeral home's address, phone number, and the owner's name. It was clear the offer was serious.
A funeral home wants me for an ad!
Andrew was speechless, feeling overwhelmed. He considered it for a moment, then forwarded the message to his girlfriend. Lisa didn't hesitate and immediately gave an affirmative reply.
Her reasoning was simple: The seven videos cost you a night of effort; why shouldn't they have ads?
What's wrong with a funeral home? Everyone goes to one eventually!
In fact, ShowMe's rapidly increasing user base was attracting the attention of many businesses, especially sports and electronics brands targeting young consumers.
Today's youth are different; they spend far more time on their computers than on TV or newspapers. Traditional media is declining; the internet is the future. To capture the hearts of young people, marketing must happen online.
ShowMe's appearance perfectly filled this gap.
Before Andrew, many influencers had received advertising invitations. Even superheroes like Batman were no exception, having received dozens of ad messages within just two days of launching his account.
Bruce Wayne couldn't understand why these companies wanted him for commercials or insisted on meeting in person. Are they joking?
I am the heir of the mighty Wayne Enterprises, a billionaire with hundreds of millions in income a year. Do I need your advertising money?
Alfred sighed.
"Master Wayne, we can't delay this. From both a personal and business perspective, acquiring ShowMe is an excellent choice. This is a highly promising internet company, and no one knows how far it will grow."
"What does Blair say?"
Alfred shook his head. "I've carefully considered it. It would be better for the Wayne Family to handle this."
"Acquire ShowMe in my name?"
"No, in the name of the Wayne Family."
Bruce paused, deep in thought.
Alfred continued, "After Batman's account went online, ShowMe has been remarkably silent, which is uncharacteristic. I worry they might be in trouble."
"Are you suggesting..."
Alfred sighed. "ShowMe's owner is only seventeen years old. Who can guarantee that a seventeen-year-old won't change his position when threatened by the gangs?"
Bruce understood. He stood up and said,
"I'll leave it to you, Alfred. Please test the waters for me. I want to secure that company as soon as possible."
"Understood, Master Wayne."
The $300 Million Offer
Since the new version launched, Luke had been busy—either patching bugs or maintaining the servers. The servers leased from Redwood Group were no longer keeping pace with ShowMe's growth and had to be replaced.
Replacing the mainframes required money, and Luke was so poor he couldn't even pay this month's salaries, let alone anything else.
Financing was inevitable!
On Wednesday morning, Robert Downs opened the door to Luke's office.
"Boss, here's the file I compiled on potential investors. Take a look."
Luke put down his keyboard, took the file, and quickly scanned it.
Robert added, "After the launch of Version 2.0, ShowMe's market feedback has been excellent. Banks and investment firms that cut ties with us due to the video incident have re-established contact. However, due to some gossip, most of them are currently in a wait-and-see state."
"Gossip?"
Luke looked up. "What kind of gossip?"
"Someone is saying that ShowMe's accounts are fabricated."
Luke scoffed. "And people actually believe that?"
"If someone says it, someone will believe it."
Luke closed the file and said indifferently, "It seems we don't have many choices."
Robert shook his head.
"Actually, we have quite a few. Chase Bank, Central Bank, Queen Consolidated, Redwood Group, and the Wayne Family have all indicated investment interest and can meet the $35 million funding requirement."
The appearance of the Wayne Family did not surprise Luke. He thought for a moment, then asked, "Which company do you think is suitable?"
"We can exclude Chase Bank and Queen Consolidated."
"Reason?"
"Both are investment structures. They have money but no influence, and they won't significantly boost ShowMe's future development. In contrast, Redwood Group and the Wayne Family are different. The former is a leader in the internet industry and can comprehensively elevate ShowMe's level. The latter—well, it's the largest financial conglomerate in the world; that speaks for itself."
Luke smiled. "Five options, you explained four. You missed Central Bank. Why?"
"Because the price they offered is outrageous."
Oh?
Luke was intrigued. "How outrageous?"
Robert held up three fingers. "$300 million for 30% of the shares!"
Luke gasped, surprised.
"Are you sure you didn't misread that?"
Robert took a contract from his briefcase and placed it on the table.
"This is the contract template they provided."
Luke opened the document. After reading it, he became visibly excited.
"Three hundred million dollars!"
"Robert, you've given me a massive surprise. I don't know how to thank you."
"It's my job."
Robert said with a beaming smile.
🗒️Note:
Support me on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/MistaQuartz
Explore up to 20 chapters in advance!