I looked in the mirror.
Huh? Is this really my face? The dark circles are no joke. I have been suffering over the photospot these past few days.
I went to work.
"Division director... Good morning..."
It was Kim Junho.
He usually isn't just energetic but bursting with it. Yet his face looked very tired.
I understood why.
He was helping the Marketing & PR Team but also working for the Reform Division at the sa ti.
As for Shin Miyoung, the team leader of the Marketing & PR Team, her workload was heavily focused on her team's tasks.
She had been running around everywhere lately, striving to recruit suitable talents for her team.
I lightly patted his shoulder and said,
"Thanks for all your hard work."
He answered, forcing a smile.
"No, it's fine... We're all working hard. I like that it really feels like we're one team."
Why he said such a thing—
It must have been because, in the opposite hallway, Choi Hyena was drinking coffee as she walked down the corridor like a zombie.
"Good morning to you both..."
Feeling sorry for them, I said,
"Is it really a good morning?"
"If we made it in alive, then it's a good morning."
"Yes... Thank you for staying alive."
The three of us had a eting on the photospot together with Lee Yunjung.
I explained about the hidden photospot.
Everyone nodded in agreent.
Choi Hyena imdiately began to explain.
"I agree. The reason why, though it's sad, is simply because it seems like it will cost a lot."
The reason we struggled with the photospot.
First, the financial problem was big.
Of course, it's not like we don't want to spend money. Never underestimate the power of money.
For example, that giant statue in Odaiba, Japan. Whether it's for vibes or concept, putting sothing that cool in place using money would more than serve the basic function of a photospot.
But given our situation, we couldn't do that.
Another big issue was that the the park's main the wasn't firmly decided.
I declared I'd set a the, but I hadn't actually proceeded with that yet.
Why? Because we needed to approach this from a long-term perspective. Now wasn't the ti.
Anyway, since the the park didn't have a unified concept at that mont, there was a risk that the photospots would be sloppy and aningless.
That could never happen. That's usually why these projects fail.
That's why I'd emphasized the concept of "ti that never returns".
Choi Hyena started to raise her voice. She truly shone when acting as an advisor.
"To proceed with this, we'll need to negotiate with the Operations Division. Division director, will you handle that?"
"Of course."
"Then let's also discuss what kind of reward we'll give people who complete the Hidden Photospot Quest. Simply giving ticket discounts is aningless."
I guess this was the difference between the executive team and those on the ground. The executives might think even giving discounts is a major favor.
But those who actually work know—the reality is, that's not enough.
"We'll finalize this later. I plan to create a 'Superday Tour', which will likely be used as the reward."
"Superday Tour?"
Places like Disney have extrely high-priced tour tickets. Over a million won per person—sotis several million.
It's a program where a guide personally accompanies guests, giving them VIP treatnt.
We were planning to introduce sothing similar.
Of course, Next Planet was not Disney, so I wasn't thinking of selling it outright as a product.
Who'd buy it? We'd just get mocked.
But offered as a special event prize, it would be effective.
In the beginning, I'd probably have to act as the guide myself.
I explained the Superday Tour to everyone.
They all nodded.
Kim Junho said,
"I think this is great. It's good for the mories, and the fact that it's not sothing being sold makes it feel rare and special."
Lee Yunjung's eyes sparkled.
"Division director, give the Superday Tour soday! I really want to experience Next Planet with you as the guide."
"Yunjung-nim, you're already an employee, so you're not eligible."
"That's so an..."
Since this alone wasn't enough, we planned to discuss more ideas down the line.
Choi Hyena spoke up.
"I understand the deadline for the photospot concept and facility completion is the end of May. We'll do our best to fit that schedule."
"Sounds good."
Now it was Kim Junho's turn.
He brought up a video on the screen in the eting room.
"I want to make a promo video to tie in with the recruitnt promotion. I'm thinking of two videos."
It looked like he'd taken a clip from a drama. The scene was about seeing off a friend entering the boot camp.
"I plan to make two promo videos with the concept of 'beautiful ti that will never return'. The first is about a man going to boot camp alone. But one of his friends finds out and persuades other friends to go together to see him off."
"The next part must be about them coming to Next Planet the day before enlistnt, making their final mories before entering the bootcamp. I like that it emphasizes friendship."
Kim Junho explained how he wanted to give the video an analog feel. He'd even studied the topic separately to improve his marketing work.
Impressive. Very reliable.
"The second video starts from a female point of view. She's seeing off the man she's had a crush on as he enters bootcamp. But she's too shy to see him off alone, so she calls her friends to go together."
"What happens next?"
"They all enjoy the rides at Next Planet, and the friends help the man and woman spend ti together."
"In the end, after sending him off, the woman cries, right?"
"That's right."
"It's classic, but emotional—I like it."
Lee Yunjung's eyes shone like starlight.
"Wow, just imagining it is nice. But who will you use as actors? I've never done stuff like this before, so I'm really looking forward to it."
Kim Junho looked troubled.
"Well... we can't spend much of the budget here... I'm thinking of hiring unknown actors, like college models. Is that all right...?"
It was a realistic issue.
I spoke up to encourage him.
"There's no need to push for star marketing. Rather, I hope you use relatability as your weapon. I fully support using actors who genuinely look like that age group, just like you suggested, Junho-nim. Just capture the feeling of a real special event outside daily life."
"Understood."
"The problem is the director."
"I've selected a few candidates—the team leader and I will take care of it."
He really works like a diligent ox.
I could only be grateful.
Suddenly, Lee Yunjung raised her hand high.
"As a mber of the Reform Division I want to do sothing too, but I don't really have a role yet. It's too bad."
That boundless energy—how should I express it? Maybe "refreshing".
An idea suddenly ca to mind.
"Our YouTube channel doesn't have many subscribers... We need to do sothing before the promotional video for the boot camp cos out."
Choi Hyena said,
"Should we hire so famous strears to film them exploring Next Planet?"
"I don't think that's going to be effective."
"It didn't work before either..."
"It's a fundantal issue with Next Planet, we can't help it. We need sothing different."
I pointed at Lee Yunjung with my finger.
"Let's shoot a video of Yunjung-nim making strawberry waffles. I think it'll be really popular as a short."
"Eek!"
Lee Yunjung frantically shook both hands.
"No way. That's just too embarrassing. And how would a video of making strawberry waffles help with promoting the park?"
"It'll work! Absolutely work!"
Choi Hyena almost shouted.
"Division director, I support this idea. Yunjung, let's do it. It'll totally go viral. This cuteness—yeah, it has to be shown to the world. Let's film it with the concept of 'strawberry waffle fairy' or sothing."
"Strawberry waffle fairy... unni, no way! Not just no—I can't! If I film sothing like that, I'd be too embarrassed to show my face anywhere."
Lee Yunjung's face started to turn red.
Choi Hyena got even more excited and said,
"Ah... this is it. No need to add any story. Just Yunjung herself is enough."
But Lee Yunjung stubbornly refused.
Should I step in?
"One of the key points in the boot camp promo is delicious snacks. Isn't that why we went all the way to Japan?"
"Well... that's true."
"I plan to make your strawberry waffles one of Next Planet's signature products. And you said you wanted your own independent brand."
Lee Yunjung nodded.
It felt like she was already halfway convinced. I felt like I was tricking an innocent student to get things done... but it couldn't be helped.
"I hope you'll think of making the promotional video as the starting point for that. I'm not doing this just for your looks. I want to capture a sincere image of your strawberry waffle."
Choi Hyena and Kim Junho both nodded.
Lee Yunjung, after looking at everyone's reactions, closed her eyes tightly and pursed her lips before saying,
"R...really embarrassing... But then, you have to fulfill one wish for ."
"What's your wish?"
"Let experience the Superday Tour. That's my condition."
"It's still at the planning stage, though..."
"You'll need to do a trial run soti. When that happens, let experience it—I'll be the very first, okay? If you don't, I'll be so mad I'll never make you strawberry waffles again for the rest of your life."
"For sothing like that... Fine. Then we'll film the video."
And so, we agreed to shoot the video of Lee Yunjung making strawberry waffles.
Since it wasn't a professional CF, we decided to proceed with it right away, using in-house staff.
"Hello, I'm the strawberry waffle fairy... Ha... fairy, I really can't do this..."
Lee Yunjung had a miserable look and was visibly distressed.
But dozens of Next Planet staff ca to watch the shoot, and the response was explosive.
"No, it's cute!"
"Unni is cheering for you!"
"Wow, Yunjung-nim is so adorable."
We also fild videos of staff eating the strawberry waffles Lee Yunjung made.
Everyone looked happy and thanked .
"Division director, events like this are always welco."
"We used to resent you for limiting our purchase of student Yunjung's strawberry waffles! These are so delicious."
Two weeks had passed since we uploaded Lee Yunjung's video.
The effects of the video were starting to show.
Just as I expected, the video of her making strawberry waffles went viral and was reproduced as shorts.
[She's totally the strawberry waffle fairy. Next Planet isn't that far from my place.]
[That kid is working so hard. It's really great to see.]
[Those strawberry waffles look so good. Should I go out this weekend and try it?]
See, it wasn't just about looks.
When Lee Yunjung sincerely made the strawberry waffles, she shone. Sincerity really does co through, however the process or dium.
"Di... division director."
Choi Hyena rushed into the office, out of breath.
"You really run a lot these days."
"That's because you keep making run, division director."
"You're usually lacking exercise, so this is good for you."
"It's better than the team's rage inducers at least."
"So, what's up?"
"Did you see the average daily visitor numbers? It's increased. It's really increased!"
"Yes, over the past week, our average daily visitors went up by 100."
I smiled.
Choi Hyena also smiled back.
"Amazing."
"Well, it's not really amazing with these numbers."
"But it's the first ti! It's the first ti Next Planet has had an actual increase in paid visitors."
I shared with her the emails sent from the External Business Division.
[Proposal: Visit from famous strear ParkTV]
"ParkTV? I know who that is. The strear who goes looking for cool places, right? Doesn't that person have more than 500,000 YouTube subscribers?"
[Proposal: TokTok Ice, Ice Cream Store Franchise]
TokTok Ice is an ice cream brand only found in Chungcheong Province. It's not well known nationally yet, but it's been growing rapidly.
[Proposal: Comrcializing Strawberry Waffle PB]
[Proposal: Location Offer for Short Drama Filming]
Many more business proposals had co in.
Choi Hyena opened her mouth in delight.
"Division director, which ones will you go with? There are so really good proposals. Aren't we growing super fast?"
"I plan to reject them all."
Choi Hyena's smile vanished completely, looking like her world had ended.
"What? Why? These are good opportunities!"
"Taking those external deals right now would only expose our weaknesses. Next Planet is still an underperforming the park that can't even manage 1,000 visitors a day. We need to face reality."
"That might be true, but those deals could start the snowball effect for us."
"We're in a position of weakness, so we'd just be led around by others. Let's wait, so we can get better proposals under better conditions."
"Okay, I trust your insight."
April was approaching.
"Let's raise average daily visitors to 1,000 first. That's the next target."
"Ooh! I'm excited. What's the next step for unifying Next Planet? Are you going to take out the head of the Business Strategy Team?"
"The cafeteria."
"Huh? Not taking out soone, not reforming the the park's restaurants or food court, but... the cafeteria? What does that have to do with increasing visitor numbers?"
"It does. Our cafeteria food is just that good."
-------------= Clacky's Corner -------------=
【ദ്ദി(⩌ᴗ⩌)】
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