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Chapter 51: Winning the First Round
🕑 Added 2024-09-28 18:53:59 +0000 UTCBefore the advertising competition for Kerr's Baked Beans, Ethan received the results of Jimmy's investigation.
This time, Ogilvy sent their renowned advertising planner, Ole Moss. He had previously crafted proposals for many struggling companies, working for brands like Pepsi and United Airlines, and was quite well-known in New York.
His creativity was solid, always based on the product's positioning. After Ethan reviewed his ad slogans, he immediately realized that this was a formidable opponent.
Since the baked beans were positioned as an everyday food product, the only real selling point was the flavor. So, it was expected that everyone would focus on this in the competition.
That night, Ethan hand-drew a few sketches and asked Jimmy to prepare some materials. On the day of the competition, the two of them took Kayden and headed straight to Kerr's building.
Led by the receptionist, they entered the meeting room to wait. Several representatives from other advertising companies were already there.
Each table had a nameplate. Ethan quickly scanned the room and recognized the IPG ad agency from last time, along with some companies he wasn't familiar with.
Of course, Ogilvy was among them, sitting in the front row. The white-haired Ole Moss was seated, reviewing some documents.
As soon as Ethan and his team sat behind the "Supreme Creative" nameplate, the others immediately cast their gaze over.
It was obvious they were curious to see what kind of company had created that catchy ad.
However, when they saw Kayden, the men's gazes noticeably lingered for a moment.
After a brief exchange of glances, no one spoke. Everyone quietly sat in their seats, reading through their materials or resting with their eyes closed.
This advertising competition was very different from the previous one. Thomas and his team planned to decide the ad's ownership on the spot because they couldn't wait any longer. Kerr's Baked Beans couldn't afford to wait, either.
If the $400,000 creative idea couldn't save the brand, the company would soon abandon it.
Thomas was under immense pressure.
Ten minutes later, the receptionist came in and announced, "Everyone, please follow me."
The crowd stood up and followed the receptionist to the president's office, each finding a seat.
"Ogilvy, Mr. Ole Moss, it's your turn for the presentation," the receptionist said with a polite smile, inviting Ogilvy's team to be the first to enter the office.
"Thank you, ma'am," Ole Moss replied with gentlemanly charm. Although his hair was white, he didn't look old. His appearance was likely due to some illness.
When he and his team walked into the office, everyone held their breath.
Jimmy and Kayden were also anxious. Jimmy tried to relieve his nervousness by tapping his shoe against the floor, while Kayden stood behind Ethan, gently massaging his shoulders.
She intended to help Ethan relax, but soon realized he was already unusually calm, not feeling any tension at all.
So, she remained silent, continuing to massage him.
This action made some of the other representatives envious. Why did this guy get to have a beautiful girl massaging him while they had to sit on cold chairs and wait?
Damn it! Who was this spoiled rich kid, anyway?
But soon, they had no more energy to be angry at Ethan. Applause suddenly erupted from the office, as if Ole Moss had already convinced Thomas and the Kerr executives with his unique creativity.
This only increased everyone's anxiety. Jimmy couldn't help but curse, "Shit!"
Yet, Ethan remained calm, leaning against Kayden's ample chest as if to relieve his stress. Only Kayden knew that Ethan's muscles weren't tense at all—he remained completely relaxed.
It was as if, even if Ole Moss had already convinced Kerr's executives, Ethan was confident he could turn the situation around.
Alternatively, one could say Ethan had given up competing against Ogilvy.
However, Kayden didn't believe Ethan would give up. In their daily interactions and during shoots, she noticed her boss had extraordinary confidence and control, combined with an ambitious drive that wouldn't allow him to give up because of a little challenge.
Maybe Ethan had a way to resolve this?
No matter what Kayden thought, the others were clearly deflated. Even their posture slouched, with some people going outside for a smoke.
Soon, Ole Moss and his team walked out of the office, with Thomas personally seeing them off, shaking hands as if the deal was already sealed.
This only deepened the anxiety among the other companies. Though Kerr hadn't officially decided yet, all signs pointed to Ogilvy having secured victory.
Three more companies went in after that, but there was no more applause, just silence.
Until the receptionist appeared again: "Supreme Creative, it's your turn."
"Let's go," Jimmy said, standing up first. Ethan opened his eyes, adjusted his tie, and led the team into the office.
Inside, the atmosphere was somewhat noisy. Thomas and the other Kerr executives sat on the sofas, and apart from Thomas, the others were whispering among themselves.
Ethan caught snippets of words like "Ogilvy," "classic taste," and "mother's flavor."
Ethan ignored the murmurs and directly placed his stack of papers on a shelf. After Jimmy sat down, Ethan said, "Could everyone please be quiet?"
"Hmm?" The executives were surprised, momentarily feeling as if they were back in school.
Thomas raised an eyebrow and said, "Everyone, quiet down. Let's hear what Supreme Creative has to say."
"What's left to hear? I think Ogilvy already won…" someone muttered under their breath but quieted down after a nudge from a colleague.
Ethan heard this but wasn't angry. Instead, he smiled. "I understand. Ogilvy's idea was likely very good and got you excited. But in the advertising world, there's always room for even better ideas. So why not clear your minds for a moment and hear something new?"
Thomas nodded at this. "You're right, Ethan. So… go ahead."
"Alright, then let's start with a scene, a mother and child having a meal together…"
Ethan was confident because his idea perfectly matched the selling point of Kerr's Baked Beans. It was fun, eye-catching, and impressive.
And he had Heinz to thank for it. This idea was originally used for their product in the future. When it aired on TV, both the company and the audience praised it.
With Ethan's improvements, this idea was now even more suited for Kerr's Baked Beans.
