章 12: Chapter 12 Faith
"No worries, Old John," Colin responded, nodding his head to show that he accepted the employee's apology.
"You didn't do anything wrong. Honestly, even I don't have complete certainty about the success of these decisions," Colin continued, his voice tinged with uncertainty.
Colin's tactics at The Messenger newspaper could be described as a modern-day version of hate marketing techniques. By promoting extreme opinions, they captured the attention of specific groups, ultimately boosting the newspaper's circulation. This strategy of creating divisions was not uncommon during that time and eventually became a significant social issue.
And now, Colin had applied this approach to the Great Depression, aiming to expose people of that era to future torment in advance.
"Who would have thought that hate marketing would be the first change I brought to this era?" Colin pondered. He wondered if someone would someday realize it was a mistake, but he was certain that such a realization wouldn't come during the Great Depression.
In reality, compared to earlier times, people during this period justified minor criminal acts like shoplifting or stealing electricity. Even during the Great Depression, instances of "zero-cost purchases" had already emerged. It seemed to be a deep-rooted sentiment in the American people—an instinctive resort to such practices during times of social unrest or worsening economic conditions.
History repeats itself, and so does the concept of "zero-cost purchasing"
....
"Boss, boss!" John's voice interrupted Colin's contemplations, pulling him back to reality.
Coming back to the present, Colin noticed the elderly employee approaching cautiously, seeking guidance.
"Regarding the content of next week's edition of The Messenger, should we stick with the same style as this week, or..." John trailed off, awaiting Colin's decision.
"Continue with the same style," Colin affirmed, nodding in agreement. Then, as if remembering something important, he added, "Also, let the newsboys know that my offer still stands."
During this era, the news didn't spread as rapidly as it would in later times. People couldn't simply use their fingertips to learn about events happening on the other side of the world. This was especially true for smaller newspapers like The Messenger, which only reached a few blocks around its office, even if circulation increased. To extend their reach, newsboys were essential for physically delivering the newspapers, relying on their own legs for distribution. While there were some newsstands, they were far from ubiquitous. Each newsboy had their own designated territories for selling papers.
Jimmy and the others Colin had seen before were responsible for the blocks surrounding The Messenger's office.
If they wanted to deliver newspapers to more distant areas, they would need delivery trucks. However, this posed a challenge: newsboys in other regions were unaware of Colin's discounted offer. In the past, due to The Messenger's poor sales, these newsboys preferred purchasing competing larger newspapers instead of Colin's publication.
Another obstacle was the printing capacity of The Messenger itself. Being a small local newspaper, it lacked abundant resources. The equipment in their office was mostly outdated, making it difficult to handle large print runs. While they managed to print a few thousand copies on regular days, larger quantities proved to be a struggle.
In conclusion, these were the main reasons, particularly the last one.
The financial situation of the newspaper itself is inadequate to support the expansion of "Messenger." Expenses such as paper and ink are adding to the costs. Previously, the newspaper could rely on its existing inventory for printing, but starting this week, new paper needs to be purchased.
That's why Colin viewed his time at the newspaper as his final opportunity. If the sales of "Messenger" decline this week, there won't be any possibility of further circulation using the remaining funds of the newspaper.
Luckily, the current situation is still relatively stable.
As long as Colin gradually improves the newspaper's financial condition using this method, he should be able to navigate through this initial challenging period.
"Alright, boss," John nodded. He turned around and went back to his workstation to continue working on next week's news layout.
"Oh, old John," Colin suddenly spoke up.
"Do you know how many copies of 'Messenger' were sold this time?"
Upon hearing Colin's question, John pondered for a moment and calculated internally before responding, "I can't provide an exact number at the moment due to the ongoing work of the newsboys. However, based on the number of newspapers sold this morning, there should be around six thousand copies."
Six thousand copies may seem minuscule when compared to large papers that sell hundreds of thousands or even millions. Currently, the newspaper with the highest circulation in New York alone sells millions of copies and has influence across the entire city and surrounding areas. Therefore, the mere six thousand copies of "Messenger" pale in comparison.
However, for Colin's Messenger, this is already an encouraging figure.
In fact, to be precise, they sold three hundred more copies.
After listening to John's calculation, Colin nodded and silently made a mental note.
At the same time, he raised his gaze slightly and glanced at the words in front of him.
In the text column, the number that was originally marked as 32 had somehow changed to "Faith (93/1000)."
Clearly, the number indicated in the "Faith" column is closely connected to the sales volume of Colin's Messenger. This indirectly reminded him of the significance represented by the number 32, which coincided with the week when Colin had just returned and the newspaper's sales volume.
"So, does this number also help track newspaper sales?" Colin was well aware that these appearing words served a purpose beyond just tracking sales.
There might be deeper implications behind them.
However, for now, since he hadn't gathered all the numbers, Colin could only consider it as a temporary statistical tool. After all, in this special period where even having a meal is a challenge, making money is the top priority. Other matters can only be contemplated once he fulfills this basic need and has the luxury to ponder them.
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