Chapter 66 Endorsement [VIP]

Chapter Summary: Do you think I have a lot of male fans?

Three days after the finale of "The Bell Ringer".

Some provocative comments have appeared online, ranging from #TheBellRingRecordIsPopular# to #TheDramaIsOkayButTheFemaleLeadHasNoSignature#.

The fact that they're keeping such an outrageous pace shows how incredibly calm and collected the Muzhi team is.

The second or third day after a typical drama series ends.

For actors, this is the peak of their popularity. They will immediately announce any commercial opportunities they have to offer to garner support from fans who are still hooked on their shows. Even if an official announcement isn't coming soon, they will release information beforehand to create the impression that the celebrity has become famous.

Mu Zhi's team, however, takes a leisurely and unhurried approach to their work.

It's been five days since the new drama ended.

Muzhi's close friend from the Yaonaier cosmetics brand has just announced the collaboration on Weibo.

This business collaboration was discussed several months ago, before the new drama even aired. The advertising shoot was arranged after a three-month evaluation period, and the original offer was as a brand ambassador.

Official announcements on Weibo and promotional videos and images in flagship stores, that's all.

Later, because Mu Zhi's new drama achieved great success, she was even given a large advertising slot.

On the day of the official announcement, the brand's main promotional product, the Muzhi-inspired makeup, was an upgraded version of the brand's newly launched powder puff, limited to 5,000 pieces.

It sold out in less than 5 minutes.

Many fans left comments under the official Weibo post saying they didn't manage to buy it and requested more stock.

Another 5,000 units have been put on the pre-sale list, with a delivery time of 715 working days.

In less than half an hour, they were all gone.

The claims that Mu Zhi, who was brainwashed into starring in "The Bell Ringer," did not reap any tangible benefits or receive any commercial opportunities have been proven wrong.

This powder puff is a bit pricey, but judging from its sales figures, the ability of Muzhi fans to support it with spending money should not be underestimated.

However, after the announcement of Yao Nai'er as a brand ambassador, Mu Zhi did not immediately announce any other endorsements.

Brands approached us for collaborations during the first week of the show's premiere. At that time, the show's popularity was only so-so, and the quality of the brands that approached us was uneven, and some were even quite poor.

For example, the fastest-growing are micro-businesses and influencer brands with poor reputations.

Mu Zhijie's endorsement deal with the quality of the card brand did not materialize.

Ji Binghe: "After the 14th, the brands that came to us for cooperation were not on the same level as those before."

From the 14th to the 26th, it took less than half a month.

The process of negotiating endorsement deals is not so quick. It involves a series of steps such as signing a contract, finalizing the shooting plan, and shooting the advertisement before an official announcement is made.

"Currently, we are in further discussions with several brands regarding the details of our collaborations, and collaborations with three brands are almost finalized."

Send the information of the three brands to Muzhi's email address and let her take a look.

Ji Binghe told Mu Zhi a funny story.

“A razor brand approached us, and the business department rejected it outright. However, the CEO of this brand was very interested in cooperating and talked to the staff in the business department several times before the case was reported to me.”

Muzhi: A razor?

"Does the brand think I have a lot of male fans?"

Ji Binghe looked at Mu Zhi approvingly: "That's right. A certain men's forum recently held a beauty pageant for female celebrities. As the only newcomer, you ranked 5th."

Therefore, brands saw the business opportunity in Muzhi promoting men's products, which is similar to male celebrities promoting sanitary napkins.

I wouldn't accept an endorsement deal that doesn't align with Muzhi's image, no matter how high the fee.

This brand's case shows that the industry and some brands are not fools when it comes to whether an artist is truly famous, how popular they are, and what their commercial value is. They are all very clear about these things.

Not all celebrities who become famous can secure good endorsements.

Some actors may have a minor hit drama, but that doesn't necessarily mean they'll get endorsement offers.

Mu Zhi's main strengths are: firstly, her fan base has strong potential purchasing power. Her Weibo data has surged compared to before the show started. She also endorsed a lipstick under Xinghe Culture, which achieved impressive sales figures. She has had a loyal fan base since the talent show began.

After becoming famous this time, she gained a large number of fans, including many fans of the couple and fans of the drama.

Secondly, Muzhi has a clean commercial image. Although she debuted as an idol, she only endorsed one lipstick and didn't have any messy promotional collaborations.

Third, Mu Zhi has a good appearance and temperament. She has gained popularity after walking the red carpet before, and her personal reputation is also good after the drama became a hit.

There's also Ji Binghe, a top agent who has worked with many brands in the industry. Her involvement in negotiating business collaborations has made the process much smoother.

Therefore, Muzhi has good business resources...

After discussing business cooperation, Ji Binghe asked Mu Zhi with some curiosity:

What was your first thought/feeling when you became famous?

Without thinking, Mu Zhi blurted out, "I hope to receive a good script and have a great production team approach me for collaboration."

After becoming famous, Mu Zhi acted nonchalantly.

It seems as if he had a premonition about his rise to fame.

Ji Binghe has no need to worry about Mu Zhi getting arrogant, nor does she, as her agent, need to remind or warn her.

About the script.

"In the past two weeks, we've indeed received quite a few scripts. I've asked the staff responsible for screening and organizing the script information to send me the list in the next couple of days. I'll go through it briefly, and then we'll take a look together."

Hopefully, there will be good news.

On September 1st, the list of most popular TV dramas for August was released.

The drama "The Bell Ringer", which concluded on the 21st, ranked first, surpassing Xi Qianwen's new drama.

Both dramas aired for the same number of days. One started airing in the first week of August, missing the last 10 days or so of the month; the other, which started airing on the 10th, aired until the last day of the month and was a daily drama.

This list of data also demonstrates that "The Bell Ringer" is of high quality, has a good long-tail effect, and performs exceptionally well in terms of viewership, popularity, and discussion.

It's absolutely outrageous.

Mu Zhi's first work achieved great success from the start.

"After acting in one period drama, I received many scripts for other period dramas."

"These are three ancient costume dramas selected from the scripts I received. I've read all the scripts. You can take a look if you have time, or not... that's fine too."

Ji Binghe brought Minmin to visit Muzhi. As soon as they entered, Minmin placed a stack of scripts she was holding on the coffee table.

After hearing her agent's words, Mu Zhi was speechless.

Are they all historical dramas?

And judging from the agent's tone, the scripts didn't seem to be very good.

She suddenly lost all interest in opening those scripts.

The next project she'll be joining is a TV series, but Mu Zhi hopes to get a movie script the time after that.

Ji Binghe gave a brief overview of the scripts she had received recently.

"Most of them are historical romance dramas. There are A-level and S-level projects with female lead scripts, as well as S+ level historical drama projects, but they are male lead scripts."

Although "The Bell Ringer" is a female-centric drama, Mu Zhi is the second lead.

Nowadays, actors in the industry are fiercely competing for top billing. When male and female actors from the same period collaborate on a drama, their respective teams and fans will inevitably fight tooth and nail over who gets top billing, which has become a bad trend.

Because of criticism from above, actors now tend to compromise and agree to equal billing when disputes arise over billing order in dramas.

Some actors simply find actors who are willing to play second lead, meaning actors with lower status than themselves, so there is no controversy about who gets top billing.

Mu Zhi, who recently became a sensation, is the actress that S+ most wants to work with in its male-centric dramas.

She has acting skills, popularity, and is young and beautiful, making her a great candidate for a "pretty face" role. She's just become famous but not yet a big star, so she can honestly play the second lead.

Ji Binghe: "You have only had one ancient costume drama broadcast so far, 'The Bell Ringer'. The industry's initial impression of you is that you are a very good actress in ancient costumes and have good acting skills. The ancient costume drama that just finished airing did well."

I think you're perfectly capable of playing the female lead in this historical romance drama.

So almost all of the scripts submitted were for historical romance novels.

Minmin said, "I played a potato, and now potatoes are coming after me?"

That's why some actresses who play a villainous second female lead end up playing villainous second female leads all the time.

To allow other directors, producers, and audiences to see more possibilities in your character portrayals, you need to produce several more works.

Let everyone know that she can play roles like this too.

You need to achieve even better results so that the producers feel that casting you in the film will definitely make money.

This is a virtuous cycle; only by standing higher can you have more choices.

"You've just become famous, so you'll get more scripts coming your way. I'll also keep an eye out for good film projects..."

Ji Binghe could tell that Mu Zhi preferred to act in movies.

Mu Zhi nodded: "I'll start filming 'The Edge of the Blade' first. I'm not in a hurry for the next project. I'll take my time choosing scripts later."

She plans to take some time to look at these three scripts, to learn about other ancient costume drama scripts and production teams, so that she can compare them with the level of resources of the scripts she receives later.

Mu Zhi understood that it was rare to find a director like Xu who spent three years making a film like "The Bell Ringer," with a good script and good roles.

Next, Ji Binghe told Mu Zhi about her recent schedule.

Filming for "The Edge of the Blade" will begin in two weeks.

Before filming began, three brand endorsements were signed in the last two days:

I have an endorsement deal with a big-name lipstick brand, a popular cooling beverage, and a high-end perfume brand. I've scheduled an advertisement shoot for the next week, as well as a cover shoot for a second-tier women's magazine.

The schedule was very tight.

On the way to shoot a magazine cover that day, Mu Zhi received a text message.

The original owner's parents said they had arrived in Beicheng and wanted to see her.

The agent noticed that Mu Zhi frowned after glancing at her phone, as if she had encountered something troubling her.

He asked Mu Zhi, "What's wrong?"

Mu Zhi pressed the side button on her phone to turn off the screen, then looked up and smiled slightly at her agent.

"fine."

We arrived at the location for the magazine shoot.

Ji Binghe recalled seeing a magazine cover photo of Mu Zhi and other girls on Weibo before, taken during the talent show.

At that time, I discovered that Mu Zhi had a strong expressive ability in magazine photoshoots.

Today, being on the set of the magazine cover shoot, I witnessed the entire process firsthand, which made the idea even more intuitive.

After Mu Zhi finished her makeup and changed her clothes, she stood in the shooting position.

The photographer didn't have a chance to instruct Mu Zhi on how to pose, but he saw that Mu Zhi was extremely relaxed in the shot, and her casual poses were very natural and stylish.

The first photo was taken immediately.

Tell Mu Zhi the effect you want, and you don't need to say too much. Mu Zhi can get it accurately. She seems to have a tacit understanding with the photographer, knowing what the photographer wants and being able to give it to you quickly.

Including the time for changing clothes, the filming was completed in less than an hour, which was surprisingly smooth and highly efficient.

After the photoshoot, there was also a written interview in the magazine.

During the interview.

When asked:

“I watched a family video during your (drama) competition. Your parents said they had been raising you with great care since you were little, hoping you would make something of yourself. You also have a 12-year-old brother. It seemed like a very happy family.”

After "The Bell Ringer" aired, you became famous. Do you feel like you've made a name for yourself?

You're alone in the north of the city right now, right? Your family isn't around, do you miss them? Do you miss home?

Mu Zhi remained silent for a full half minute when asked this question.

The original owner of this body did not have a good relationship with her family.

She knew that the harmonious family atmosphere created in the video recording of the competition was fake, and when she saw the content of the video, she felt that it would send the wrong message.

Sure enough, the reporter who interviewed her felt that her family was a harmonious and happy family.

In her recent interview, Mu Zhi handled everything with ease, almost switching to a rapid-fire question-and-answer format. Ji Binghe was surprised to see Mu Zhi remain silent for so long this time and was about to step forward to interrupt the interview.

Mu Zhi spoke up: "I don't know what my parents' specific requirements are for me to make something of myself. We haven't actually discussed this issue. As for my own understanding of #makingsomethingofsomething#, compared to myself before participating in the talent show, of course I do."

After "The Bell Ringer" aired, I felt a spotlight shining on me. Many viewers who followed the show learned about a new actress named "Mu Zhi". Many people were lying low and waiting for an opportunity to be seen, and I did it. I feel really lucky.

But my own dream and goal is to become an excellent actor, and there's still a long way to go.

The answer was both humble and ambitious.

It's as if they've made something of themselves, but it's also as if they haven't.

Regarding the second question...

"Some families believe that daughters should be raised in luxury, while sons should be raised in poverty. I remember when I was little, my family moved into a new house after our house was demolished, and I was very happy. But my parents lied to me and said that we owed a lot of money to others, and told me that I should work hard to earn money when I grew up."

Maybe they wanted me to develop a sense of independence and self-reliance. After I became an adult, I started working during winter and summer vacations to earn my living expenses. For the past two years, I have been living alone in Beicheng. I have gotten used to being independent and am not the kind of person who is very attached to home (personality).

My parents also hope that I can focus on my career and develop my career well in Beicheng.

Mu Zhi did not choose to continue fabricating the illusion created by the VCR, but instead told the original owner of the body about the actual relationship between her and her parents.

However, it wasn't very sharp; it was rather mild.

Work finished, on the way home.

Ji Binghe noticed that Mu Zhi seemed preoccupied and that she was acting strangely during the interview about her family. She was about to ask her something.

Mu Zhi took the initiative to explain the situation to her agent.

"My parents came to Beicheng."

This is actually her private matter, and she can handle it herself.

However, the original owner's parents were typical son-preference parents who constantly exploited their daughter while giving their son whatever he wanted and arranging everything for him in advance, such as a house, a car, and a lot of savings.

Every time the original owner contacted him, it was about money. This trip to Beicheng was also for money.

More money.

She foresaw the scene of her meeting them alone. To be honest, she didn't even have a six-figure sum of money right now, and they definitely wouldn't believe her. They wouldn't leave Beicheng without the money.

They must have seen her new drama air and thought she was famous and making a lot of money, so they're probably going to ask for an exorbitant amount.

The key issue is that if we give them money, there might be a next time, and the time after that.

Mu Zhi isn't the type to be blackmailed. If she falls out with her parents, it could lead to negative news. As an artist under Lanxing Media, she needs to inform her agent of the risks.

I briefly explained my situation and my family situation to my agent.

After listening, Ji Binghe asked Mu Zhi how she wanted to handle the situation.

“Before, they were afraid I would ask them for money, so they cut off all contact with me. We hadn’t been in touch for three years. But now, as a public figure with some influence, and given our blood ties, I haven’t done enough to stand on the moral high ground.”

So I still have to keep an eye on them. I want to pay some money to buy peace and quiet, to sever all ties with them.

Ji Binghe nodded in agreement with Mu Zhi's approach: "Okay, I'll ask President He to settle the money for the three advertising endorsements you recently received with the company's finance department first."

"I'll go with you."