Chapter 52 : An Interesting Program
Chapter 52 - An Interesting Program
The promotion for I Love Remembering Lyrics was very well-executed.
Because the station was quite optimistic about it, they poured in promotional resources, and the program's popularity rose significantly during this period.
For the promotion, the station took a somewhat non-traditional approach.
Besides traditional channels such as the TV station, radio, and KTV posters, they were also inspired by Chen Ran’s lead singer selection and placed targeted advertisements on several singing apps.
As long as a user in Zhaonan logged in, there would be a splash screen advertisement.
Compared to general public-facing ads, these app advertisements were more precise; they essentially reached the program’s target viewing demographic.
Consequently, during the few days of full-scale promotion, the show's popularity increased rapidly.
The show conducted preliminary research, and essentially all the viewers surveyed said they were looking forward to the program.
Director Liu Xianlong stayed at the TV station today; not only him, but even Director Yang Qijun did not leave.
Actually, the station’s investment in I Love Remembering Lyrics wasn't particularly large—it was at the level of an average program.
Although it was initially said that the budget would be used freely, the actual expenses where they needed to be spent were only so much.
Without inviting celebrities, the expenditures weren't that significant.
What made both Director Yang and Director Liu relatively apprehensive was their high expectations for the show.
Among the programs currently airing on the station, the one with the highest ratings was Saturday night’s ‘Saturday Lotto’.
This veteran program hadn't always had the highest ratings in the past, but it was very stable; it outlasted many of its rivals and had now become number one.
With this kind of promotion, a 10% rating wouldn't be unreasonable, right? Director Liu Xianlong thought to himself.
Currently, the ratings for Zhaonan Focus were close to 17%; sometimes they exceeded it, sometimes they dropped, but they remained at this level overall when stable.
That was a news program and a daily broadcast; Liu Xianlong didn't dare compare with a show like that.
Since it was also a program planned by Chen Ran, he felt that expecting a 10% premiere rating was fair and reasonable.
Eight o'clock in the evening.
The program officially began.
The broadcast time happened to be staggered with Zhaonan Focus.
It wasn't intentional; after all, news had always been in this time slot, and entertainment programs also started from eight o'clock.
Backstage was ready, and the signal was patched in.
The program officially premiered.
"Welcome to Binghua Extra-Refresh Beer’s I Love Remembering Lyrics!"
Host Zhang Chengyu’s slightly exaggerated voice rang out; this wasn't a problem with his hosting skills, but rather that the director required him to use this specific style.
Then came the fast-paced reading of advertisements and a focused introduction of the program; the band behind him played music in accordance with his voice, and once he finished the introduction, the band performed a rock segment.
The cheers from the audience below were extremely spirited. Zhang Chengyu shouted loudly:
"Let's see which lucky viewers have come to the scene today to compete for the 20,000-yuan prize!"
The rhythm at the beginning of the program was very fast.
There weren't many points that felt boring; the host's speaking speed, the fast-paced music, and the cheers of the audience quickly led into the segment of selecting people at the KTV.
Actually, for local programs, many people held the mindset of just having a casual look; recently, there weren't many interesting shows on the Entertainment Channel.
Especially the previous Boundless Joy; the quality of that program was so poor that many people felt: this thing can be called a program?
Although the promotion for I Love Remembering Lyrics had high visibility, many people maintained an attitude of "wait and see."
After all, the more attractive options were the programs on the Satellite Channels.
Friday was a prime-time slot; many Satellite Channels wouldn't let it go, each offering more attractive content than the last.
If I Love Remembering Lyrics was boring, they would naturally throw themselves into the embrace of the Satellite Channels.
But this opening truly piqued their interest.
The atmosphere.
The program's atmosphere was very lively; the fast pace brought about a very joyful feeling.
The camera cut to Diamond KTV, a place most locals had been to before.
Diamond KTV had chains in all cities across Zhaonan; seeing it gave everyone a sense of familiarity.
The on-location host went in to pick the lucky winners—viewers found this specific segment quite interesting.
A group of strangers suddenly pushing open the door startled the people who were singing happily; first came the questioning, then the surprise, and finally, the joyful participation. This reality-show feel made many people find it interesting.
For a local station, the audience didn't care much whether there were stars or not; the key was that the program had to be fun.
After all, if they wanted to see stars, they would watch the Satellite Channels—wouldn't those be better than here?
As for being fun, I Love Remembering Lyrics did very well.
At the Zhang residence, Director Zhang knocked on the door.
No one opened it.
He knocked two more times, only to hear his wife shout, "Use your key to open it yourself."
Director Zhang thought to himself that she was likely busy and couldn't pull herself away. He fished out his keys and fumbled to open the door, only to see the mother and daughter, Zhang Fanzhi and Auntie Yun, sitting in front of the television, staring fixedly at it.
The sounds coming from the TV were rowdy and sounded very cheerful.
Director Zhang's mood soured. "I only went out for a stroll; how come no one will even open the door for me?"
He secretly thought to himself: I wasn't anywhere nearby when I was smoking just now; I shouldn't have been discovered.
Auntie Yun answered dismissively, "We're watching TV. If you have the key, just open it yourself."
Director Zhang was originally wondering what show could be so captivating, then it clicked.
"Oh, the program has started?"
He walked over to watch the TV, only to be rebuffed by his wife: "Sit down! You're blocking my view!"
Zhang Fanzhi pretended not to hear her parents' interaction and kept watching the television without blinking.
This program truly was very interesting.
Usually, when she was bored, she would listen to music or watch variety shows.
But she felt this was different from the variety shows on Satellite TV that competed based on the number of stars; this was fun and very interesting.
She remembered that some time ago, Chen Ran had told her not to be disappointed when she watched the show, as it might not compare to Satellite TV.
Now, however, Zhang Fanzhi felt that this program was far better than certain Satellite TV shows!
Especially when the lead singers came out, Zhang Fanzhi's eyes brightened slightly. As a singer, she could naturally distinguish between good and bad.
The contrast between the appearance and voice of the lead singers was also a highlight.
From this, one could see that the program was indeed made with great care.
It was a rare occasion for the three members of the Zhang family to sit together and watch television; it had seldom happened since Zhang Fanzhi entered high school.
Usually, they would either play on their phones or read the newspaper, having little interest in the TV.
Zhang Fanzhi turned to look at her parents, feeling a sense of warmth in her heart.
The program ended amidst cheers and laughter.
Auntie Yun didn't understand what made a show good or bad, but she simply found it quite interesting. She asked:
“Was this program really made by Chen Ran?"
Director Zhang shot her a glance.
"Chen Ran wrote the proposal and brought it to me for review first—could there be any mistake?"
Beside them, the corners of Zhang Fanzhi's mouth curled up, appearing quite happy. She turned and asked:
"Dad, you're a program maker; how do you think the results for this show will be?"
Director Zhang pondered for a moment before saying somewhat hesitantly:
"I feel... the ratings... should explode..."
He was a bit uncertain.