American History 1988
Chapter 52 - 48: Let’s Have a Party too_2

Chapter 52: Chapter 48: Let’s Have a Party too_2

"Oh~ buddy, it seems like you really made a killing back home," Simon didn’t refuse. He volunteered to replace Dean in selling Price’s List to their own school’s fraternity, and naturally, necessary expenses were inevitable.

Relying on just sweet talk? There were no such easy gigs in the world. But it was a different story if they treated a key member of the fraternity to a drink or brought a little surprise.

Dean knew the relationships between fraternities, which rarely cooperated; competition was the norm. It might be to maintain their pride or perhaps just out of jealousy over girls; in any case, those fraternities were capable of all sorts of foolishness.

Therefore, Price’s fraternity would definitely not calmly seek out other fraternities to talk business—they’d already be showing considerable restraint if they met without resorting to a brawl.

But Dean had provided them with an excellent platform: what I need, what you can provide, straightforward pricing. If the deal fits, they trade; if not, they pass, skipping all sorts of haggling.

Of course, once they discovered the more intriguing aspects of Price’s List, maybe the trading itself wouldn’t be the point anymore.

"Simon, maybe we should also throw a party," Dean suggested an idea while cleaning up the materials on his desk.

"Our party?" Simon’s eyes widened.

"Exactly," Dean put down what he was holding and paced in the dorm, "I’ve even thought of the theme—it’ll be called ’Celebrating the Successful Launch of Price’s List’s Heterosexual Mingling Community!’"

Don’t mention that Price’s List had just gone online; instead, pretend it was an old friend, and emphasize heterosexual mingling!

Dean still believed that playing up the yellow was the ultimate marketing strategy.

As one of them, Dean was very clear that college students’ hormones and abundant energy were never-ending, so "heterosexual mingling" was sure to catch their eyes.

"But Dean, throwing a party is going to cost a fortune," Simon had to gently remind him. Attending a party was one thing, hosting it was another.

Venue rental, drinks, food—all these expenses couldn’t be covered without a couple of thousand US dollars. Especially the alcohol—who knew how much those animals would end up guzzling.

"Don’t worry, Simon. We’re not just going to have a party, we’re going to offer champagne," Dean felt they had to go big.

"Oh~shit, are you insane, Dean? Even the cheapest champagne costs 20 US dollars a bottle, those guys will bankrupt you," Simon thought Dean’s brain might still not have recovered; it seemed the last incident had severe aftereffects!

"Ok~ I know," Dean signaled Simon to relax, "the champagne is just a gimmick, offered in limited quantities. But don’t worry about the party expenses, I’ve got that covered. You just need to pick the venue and send out invites to the right people."

"Dean, I suggest you go see a shrink again..." Simon put it nicely.

Shush, Dean’s response was pulling out five hundred-dollar bills from Benjamin.

"Ok~OK~" Simon forced himself to calm down, "Dean, I have one last question."

"Hmm~"

"Where the hell did you get this money, man? We’re brothers, right? You didn’t think to include me with such a fortune at hand? I feel like our friendship is facing a serious test..."

"Hey~ hey~ Simon, we are on the road to wealth," Dean said.

"Really?" Simon stopped his endless chatter.

"Of course, granted that our party is hot enough~" Dean winked at him.

Shush, Simon immediately stood up and headed out.

"Where are you going?" Dean called after his retreating figure.

"To find the hottest girls from every college. Dean, you’d better be prepared to get milked dry," Simon’s voice carried from the hallway.

Dean shrugged, well, college was all about partying creatures.

However, Dean had his own reasons for willing to spend a lot of money to throw a party to promote Price’s List.

Even though Price’s List hadn’t earned Dean a penny so far, he had decided to go ahead with it.

One reason was to accumulate users and establish an early brand image. Besides, the cost of operating Price’s List is shockingly low!

So far, no matter how many users there were in Youngstown, Price’s List hadn’t hired a single formal employee. Dean and Debbie had handled everything.

For a lifestyle service website, the most important operators are actually the users. With every message or post they publish, the content on Price’s List becomes richer and consequently more attractive.

All Dean and his team needed to do was maintain it, plus the monthly internet and server rental fees totaling a bit over a thousand US dollars.

Now that the servers were rented, it obviously wouldn’t hurt to add the city of Cleveland. The internet provider hadn’t even set up separate channels for Price’s List, meaning no matter how many users it had, the cost would be the same.

Nobody had experience with online business, and of course, Dean didn’t remind them; it was an opportunity too good to miss.

Therefore, in Cleveland, Dean was willing to dig into his own pockets to pull in users. Maybe Price’s List would hatch a surprise in the future.

Speaking of Cleveland, Dean sat back at his computer and opened up his website.

He had launched the Cleveland page yesterday, just didn’t know if there were any new users who had discovered it today.

Upon opening the webpage, eh, Dean saw that someone had left a message in the "Seeking the Opposite Sex" section at first glance.

Seems like matters of men and women are more attractive after all. Dean carefully read the first post, and almost slid off his chair.

[F*ck you! I’ve got a 7-inch long schlong, as thick as a Soviet sausage; whoever’s interested head to Case School of Engineering...]

"F*ck! My website will get 404’d someday!" Dean was really fed up with these animals.

Even though the section’s called "Seeking the Opposite Sex," this was pretty much just mating!

Not a shred of gentlemanliness! Dean picked up the mouse and pinned this post to the top, and gave it a highlight.

It might be a bit crude, but it sure catches the eye, haha.

After leaving the "Seeking the Opposite Sex" section, Dean casually looked over the general page. Thanks to last night’s promotion, the Cleveland site had already gained several dozen users.

Debbie must be helping with handling the account registration emails. When Dean wasn’t around, the helpers in Youngstown would fill in for him.

There were also messages in the suggestion box. Dean clicked to take a look.

"Dean, the website you’ve created is very interesting, keep it up~"

Smack, Dean immediately closed the window.

Who the fuck are you, acting like we’re that familiar.

The suggestion box is for suggestions. Dean even felt the criticisms were more meaningful than this kind of idle chatter, at least others were pointing out his shortcomings.

Ding-a-ling, Dean was engrossed when the dormitory phone rang.

"Mr. Price, I have been waiting at the Student Management Center for half an hour, but it seems you are still in your dormitory?"

"Miss Miranda, there was a slight mishap, I’ll be there in 5 minutes!"

F*CK! Dean grabbed his backpack and rushed out. He had actually forgotten about that high-achieving Yale girl.