Ye Maozhong usually likes to wear black sports T-shirts, wear black hats, black-rimmed glasses, and love to smoke cigars. Image source: Ye Maozhong Weibo
On January 13, 2022, Ye Maozhong, a well-known marketing planning expert and brand management expert in China and the founder and chairman of Ye Maozhong Marketing Planning Agency, died in Shanghai due to illness at the age of 54.
Outsiders may not be familiar with his name, but Ye Maozhong has created a lot of advertisements with memory points, which must be familiar to many people. "This year's festival does not receive gifts, only receive gifts of brain platinum", "everyone on the earth knows", "visit Heilan Home twice a year", these popular advertising slogans are from Ye Maozhong's hand.
People familiar with him said that Ye Maozhong's struggle experience is a typical history of the struggle of young people in small towns. When it comes to creativity, Ye Maozhong has an almost obsessive love.
In the memories of his disciple Cheng Yingqi, Ye Maozhong was a planner of the "inspirational hair type". He likes to smoke cigars when he thinks about ideas, and the conference room is always smoky. He kept reading words in his mouth, knocking on the table with his hands, shaking his head, taking a pen to write and draw on the paper, and suddenly some thoughts and ideas burst out, and the idea came out.
Ye Maozhong wears a black duck-tongue hat with a red five-pointed star with flames on his hat, and the flames are blown vigorously by the wind.
Ding Junjie, president of the National Advertising Research Institute, recalled at the "Ye Mao Online Memorial Meeting", "In the Chinese advertising industry, it is good to love him or hate him, but you can't ignore him." ”
Associated with advertising
In 1968, during the Dragon Boat Festival, Ye Maozhong was born in Taizhou, Jiangsu Province, to a fisherman's family, because he weighed 10 kilograms at birth, and his nickname was "Ten Kilograms". Ye Maozhong and his sister grew up on fishing boats, and their families were poor.
In 1989, 21-year-old Ye Maozhong worked as an artist at Taizhou Television Station in Jiangsu Province, responsible for miscellaneous work such as drawing board newspapers.
Ding Shi'an, his eldest disciple and head of Ye Maozhong's planning, said that he had heard his master tell the story of his first exposure to advertising many times. Ye Maozhong got an air-conditioning advertising project by chance, he hired professional photographers, costumers, makeup artists and props artists, became his own director, and shot an advertisement of "six goals in one shot". At that time, billiards was popular in society, and the advertisement successfully let the audience's impression of "superb ball skills" linked to the air conditioning brand, coupled with an advertising slogan: XX air conditioning, high-level pursuit. The air conditioner manufacturer was greatly satisfied after seeing the film and released it on CCTV for five consecutive years.
Ye Maozhong told Ding Shi'an that he made 1300 yuan with this advertising film at that time, and he found that shooting advertisements could make money, and then decided to devote himself to the advertising industry.
What made Ye Maozhong famous subsequently was that he systematically studied advertising knowledge, and at the same time wrote his theory and practice into an "Advertising Man's Handbook".
When it comes to Ye Maozhong's book publishing experience, I have to mention Wen Shuo.
In the eyes of those who are familiar with Ye Maozhong, Wen Shuo is Ye Maozhong's "Bole" and "NobleMan". Wen Shuo is a well-known accounting scholar and brand marketing expert, in 1996, Wen Shuo planned and published the Miki Advertising Series, and left a call for papers at the end of the book. One day, he received a phone call from a person who called himself Ye Maozhong, and on the phone, the other party said to submit an article.
At that time, Ye Maozhong wrote the manuscript of "Advertising People's Handbook" and looked for someone to publish it everywhere, but he ran into walls everywhere. Ye Maozhong was working as a clerk at an ordinary advertising agency in Hangzhou, and no publishing house was willing to publish books for an ordinary person.
After the telephone communication, Wen Shuo asked Ye Maozhong to send the manuscript to Beijing. "As soon as I got my hands on it, I was attracted by the narrative style of the manuscript, which must have been released after I had packaged it." Wen Shuo said. He believes that Ye Maozhong's "Advertising Man's Handbook" is the first in China to introduce the knowledge of advertising planning from the perspective of practical practice in an example way, and he has a mature packaging concept and sales channels, and he has confidence in the market of this book.
At Wen Shuo's invitation, Ye Maozhong went to Beijing to fight for the revision and publication of his first book. Wen Shuo recalled that when he first met Ye Maozhong, he spoke straight and concisely, with a strong body, wearing a hiking suit and a baseball cap. "At that time, there were no stars and flames on his hat, but he already knew how to wrap himself and label his own image."
Under the packaging of Wen Shuo, "Advertising Man's Handbook" was successfully published, and Wen Shuo remembered that the first edition of the book was 15,000 copies, sold out in half a month, and has been reprinted many times since then.
Around 1997, with the help of Wen Shuo, Ye Maozhong published his first book. Courtesy of respondents
In "Advertising Man's Handbook", Ye Maozhong called himself an advertising duck, "The duck is a thing that can run on land, swim in the water, and can flutter twice when you are in a hurry." ”
Subsequently, the two published Ye Maozhong's "Turn Around to See the Plan" and "The Record of the Planning of the Sacred Elephant Floor". The publication of several books before and after made the lonely and nameless Ye Maozhong suddenly widely known.
After the incident with Ye Mao, Wen Shuo found that in addition to his planning talent, Ye Maozhong was very diligent. At that time, the mainland had not yet published advertising books, most of the theoretical books were translated from Taiwan to Europe and the United States, and Ye Maozhong almost exhausted all ways to read in large quantities, and almost all his energy was focused on planning and reading.
"Wen Shuo is my nobleman, without him there would be no me today." After becoming famous, Ye Maozhong introduced Wenshuo to his friends in this way.
In 1997, Ye Maozhong was selected as "China's Top Ten Planners" by a magazine, which made Ye Maozhong, who already had a certain degree of popularity in the society, leapt into the "first-line planner".
"The first person in China's marketing planning"
In 1997, Ye Maozhong founded his own advertising agency in Beijing.
With a short and powerful, easy-to-understand, grasping the memory point and other self-contained planning styles, Ye Maozhong has launched many successful advertising planning cases, creating a new way of advertising marketing in China, and is known as "the first person in China's marketing planning".
"This year's festival does not receive gifts, only receive gifts of brain platinum", "everyone on the earth knows", "men should be cruel to themselves", "washing is healthier", "Hengyuanxiang, sheep and sheep", "Heilan Home, men's wardrobe", "blue bottle of calcium, delicious calcium", "tired and sleepy, drink Dongpeng special drink" and other advertisements are all from Ye Maozhong's creative planning.
In those years, many of the slogans he created became social buzzwords because they were simple and fun and catchy.
Ye Maozhong also brought a number of brands to fire through marketing packaging.
True Kung Fu is one of the most classic cases of Ye Maozhong's planning. In 2004, the small company, also called "Double Seed", chose the Chinese cultural symbol of Kung Fu and renamed it "True Kung Fu", forming an East-West cultural conflict with the American cultural symbols Uncle McDonald and Colonel KFC. And customized the strategic appeal of "nutritious fast food", proposing "nutrition or steaming is good" positive just McDonald's and KFC.
On the product, he suggested that the company decisively cut off fried food, focus on Chinese nutritious fast food, and expand rapidly with such a concept. He helped "True Kung Fu" fast food from several small shops in Dongguan to more than 400 directly operated stores nationwide in 6 years, becoming the first local fast food brand.
Not only planning and packaging for enterprises, Ye Maozhong knew how to package himself in his early years. His personal identity is a black and white character silhouette. The silhouette figure is of a man in a black hat, a light hitting the side of his face, eyes with black-rimmed glasses hidden in the shadows, mysterious.
There was a red five-pointed star in the middle of the black hat, and one of the horns on the star was changed into a fire that moved with the wind. Ye Maozhong also wears such a black hat all year round.
Ye Maozhong once explained to people the origin of his black hat: First, he worshipped the Red Army, "the spark of a star can burn the plains." Second, he worships Cui Jian, who likes to wear a white hat with a red five-pointed star in the middle of the hat.
Ye Maozhong's personal symbol is a black and white character silhouette. The silhouette is of a man wearing a black hat with a five-pointed star in the middle of the hat. A ray of light came down from the side of the face, and the eyes with black-rimmed glasses were hidden in the shadows. Courtesy of respondents
The clothes he often wears are black T-shirts, about 175 cm tall, dark and healthy wheat-colored skin, a strong muscle, the whole person is very energetic.
"The attitude of being responsible for life is to play with life"
In 1998, Ding Shi'an Mao, who was in the same township as Ye Maozhong, volunteered to work in Ye Maozhong's studio in Beijing.
Ding Shi'an recalled that when he first arrived at the company, creative planning, driving, cooking, cleaning, and doing all kinds of chores, four start-up employees rented a three-bedroom and a hall in Beijing's Erlizhuang Community. Four people eat and live together, compared to the company, more like a home feeling.
Ding Shi'an's cooking skills are general, and there are two dishes that Ye Maozhong loves to eat, chili fried pork ear and winter melon ribs kelp soup.
Always make these two dishes, after the company moved to Shanghai, every New Year Ding Shi'an will make two dishes at home and bring them to Ye Maozhong's home to visit the New Year. Two people can drink two dishes in one night.
After years of following, Ding Shi'an saw Ye Maozhong's obsession and obsession with creativity that was almost crazy. Ye Maozhong once said in his speech, "If you are cruel to yourself, the world will be a little better for you", which is his belief in the struggle motto. In his work, Ye Maozhong can be described as "fierce".
Ye Maozhong's company is getting bigger and bigger, with more and more projects, and the more it is done, the richer it is. But he had a habit of setting up a camp bed in his office. Wanting to plan and create often all night long, Ye Maozhong slept directly on the camp bed. It was a luxury to go home and rest, and he didn't want to waste time.
The studio is just starting out, and everyone is working hard. Interviews with customers during the day, all interviews must be sorted out overnight. No matter how late it is, Ye Maozhong accompanies the staff throughout the process to sort out the interview information and write a summary report.
Ding Shi'an said that in the promotion of creativity, Ye Maozhong not only attaches importance to creative copywriting, but also deeply participates in creative scripts, including on-site shooting and post-production. He discussed the shooting angle with the director and listened to suggestions for improvement. Sometimes several films were filmed late together, and Ye Maozhong set up a camp bed in the corner of the set to sleep for one night, and the camp bed slept badly several times.
At that time, there was no takeaway, in order to solve the problem of eating, Ding Shi'an often went to buy barreled instant noodles, and then the cost was too large, and he went to the supermarket to buy promotional or wholesale instant noodles. "Master's bedside, our office, is full of instant noodles. Now I see instant noodles and I don't want to eat them anymore. ”
In 10 years, Ye Maozhong Studio has expanded from two offices of less than 50 square meters in the Olympic Sports to a full floor of the International Trade Fortune Center.
On January 24, 2022, Ye Maozhong's office building on Taojiang Road in Shanghai and the courtyard and sculpture in front of the door were located. Beijing News reporter Qiao Chi photographed
There is a saying in Ye Mao, "At a certain stage of life, the attitude of being responsible for life is to play with life." In Ding Shi'an's view, Ye Maozhong, who was immersed in the working state, was very desperate.
Staying up all night was a common thing for him, and once Ding Shi'an saw with his own eyes that Ye Maozhong slapped himself hard because he was not satisfied with the idea. Ding Shi'an was frightened and quickly stepped forward to stop it, "Ye Zong, don't be so anxious about yourself. ”
Ye Maozhong is not only cruel to himself, but also strict to employees.
In the early days of the company's entrepreneurship, Ye Maozhong would let employees hold their urine, and employees would throw an idea before they were allowed to go to the toilet.
During the 2018 World Cup, the Mafengwo Tourism Network, which Ye Maozhong's team was responsible for planning, needed to temporarily change the advertising film. At 9 o'clock in the morning, I received a notice of change, and if I couldn't think of a new advertisement in a day, the customer would face a loss of more than 100 million yuan.
The situation was urgent, and it was useless to hold urine, Ye Maozhong let the employees start running, and they kept running without thinking of creativity. Ding Shi'an recalled, "At this time, the idea must be fast, and if you can't think of it, you will be exhausted." In the end, they ran for more than half an hour and got out of the crisis with new ideas.
On January 19, 2022, the Academic Committee of the China Advertising Association held a memorial service for Mr. Ye Maozhong online. Ding Junjie, president of the National Advertising Research Institute, mentioned that Ye Maozhong in his eyes is a hard-working enough person. "Writing so many books, not to mention, his diligence in reading and writing is rare in the industry."
Ye Maozhong's nephew Shao Yucheng followed him for nearly a decade, and he often sent WeChat messages to Shao Yucheng at two o'clock in the middle of the night, asking Shao to go upstairs to discuss the plan.
Shao Yucheng said that they are not nervous about customer proposals, but they are nervous to discuss proposals with Ye Zong internally, because Ye Maozhong's requirements for creative planning are higher than those of customers. If he didn't get a satisfactory proposal, he just got angry. "Everyone in the company was nervous to see him, and I was shaking my legs when I first started with him." Ding Shi'an said.
After the company moved to Shanghai, because of his age, Ye Maozhong's personality became more and more gentle.
"Be simple, repetitive, and speak to people"
In the eyes of the disciples, Ye Maozhong's creativity is always in hand, and often a flash of inspiration, good ideas appear.
Ye Maozhong said, "To do planning, 80 rely on your feet, 20 rely on your brain." He's not just a planner who just sits in his office and thinks the contrary, his creativity comes from the bits and pieces of life.
Ding Shi'an remembers that whether in the first-tier big cities, small counties or even rural areas, on business trips or sketching, Ye Maozhong had a habit of talking to strangers everywhere he went.
He asked the taxi driver what kind of cigarette he smoked, why he chewed betel nut, what brand of clothes he was wearing; Ask the mother holding the child what brand of milk powder to buy for the child, and which brand of children's car to use; They will also ask young people what brand of toothbrush and toothpaste they usually use, and why they choose this brand.
In Ye Maozhong's view, everyone who passes by may become a consumer, and communication with consumers is crucial. This habit gives him in-depth insight into the local market and consumers, and also makes his planning ideas very "grounded". ”
Disciple Cheng Yingqi observed that during the brainstorming sessions at the creative conference, Ye Maozhong followed his own set of logical methods. He does not hesitate to impart the essence of creativity, "to be simple, repetitive, and to speak." ”
Simplicity means that the word count of creative ideas must be small, reduce the nonsense, and the simpler the clearer. At the same time, the selling point value of the product is constantly repeated and repeated, and only repetition can have a deep impression and memory.
Speaking people's words is to express them in an easy-to-understand way, easy to remember, can not be awkward, not to mention written, speaking people's words is the most effective dissemination.
Ye Maozhong once said in an interview with Interface News, "Effective communication must meet two points: let people remember who you are, let people remember what you can do, and what conflicts can be resolved by consumers." ”
Cheng Yingqi recalled that Ye Maozhong liked to ask three sentences when connecting with the brand, what are the characteristics of your products? Why do customers like your products? Why do you think customers should buy your product?
When the company answers the question, he will think and keep chanting words in his mouth for more than half an hour. He knocked on the table with his hand, smoked a cigar, shook his head, and took a pen and wrote and drew on the paper, all keywords about the brand or symbols that others could not understand. Suddenly some thoughts and ideas burst out, and the idea came out.
Cheng Yingqi recalled that once when doing a certain silicone-free shampoo idea, after the company briefly introduced the situation of the product, Ye Maozhong constantly said to himself to read the creative sentences, washed his hair for a lifetime, have you washed your scalp? Scalp is good, hair is good, so-and-so shampoo, silicone oil, no irritation.
Ye Maozhong (right) and disciple Cheng Yingqi (left). Courtesy of respondents
Cheng Yingqi made a suggestion and washed his hair for a lifetime, which was too cheesy. In addition, no silicone oil, no stimulation, should be added to the scalp, so that consumers have a clearer advantage of the product.
Ye Maozhong directly interrupted: "Didn't I tell you to be simple, repetitive, and speak human words?" Washing a lifetime of hair is the words of people in life, no silicone oil does not stimulate the back do not add scalp, so it is too wordy, can not remember. ”
In the end, the meeting only opened for half an hour to determine the idea of shampoo, and in the follow-up communication, Ye Maozhong's creativity was proved in reality, and the shampoo became a very successful Chinese shampoo brand.
Creativity and controversy
Ye Maozhong's advertising creativity has also been spat on by many people at the grassroots, brainwashed, lacking style and beauty.
"Experience has taught me that good advertising never makes others like it, and annoying people is the characteristic of advertising." Ye Maozhong once said bluntly.
Ye Maozhong's creativity was summed up in three paragraphs, a catchy Ye Mao Chinese slogan, and then invited a big star, and then went to CCTV to repeat and repeat.
During the 2018 World Cup, Ye Maozhong planned the advertisements of Zhihu and Ma Honeycomb, and the two advertisements became the hardest hit areas for spitting.
The advertisement for Ma Honeycomb is a dialogue between spokesperson Huang Xuan and Tang Monk, "Why should you get on Ma Honeycomb first" before traveling, which is repeated three times. This kind of marketing method of repeatedly broadcasting lines has aroused the doubts of many public opinions, some people say that it is brainwashed and vulgar, noisy and disturbing, and has no creativity and beauty. Many of his peers are accusing him of pulling down the vulgar downline of Chinese advertising.
In the face of criticism from inside and outside the industry, Ye Maozhong was very indifferent. He once responded: "Advertising is put on the stage of the World Cup, and the most feared thing is perfectionism without any conflict and waves." ”
He said in an interview with the media: "In the face of the World Cup hotspots that we have seen once in 4 years, we must interfere with people's attention, let them remember us, remember our products, we can't be willing to just do normal advertising." ”
He once said to Cheng Yingqi, "As long as you think you are right, you will insist." As for others, no matter what you do, someone will talk about it. ”
Shao Yucheng said that some customers have sent WeChat to Ye Zong, saying that the more people criticize, the happier they are, indicating that the advertisement is effective. It costs hundreds of millions of dollars to do an advertisement, and if no one talks about it, it is a failure. "Some ads are very beautiful, creative and tonal, but they are useless if they can't be sold."
Although Ye Maozhong's ideas have a mixed reputation in the industry, the communication effect is always unattainable.
Stand and make money
In the eyes of his disciple Cheng Yingqi, Ye Maozhong was a person with feelings. In 2013, when a shampoo found Ye Maozhong to talk about cooperation, foreign washing companies accounted for more than 70% of the domestic shampoo market.
It is very difficult for local shampoo companies to do it under the influence of foreign brands.
The shampoo owner found Ye Maozhong, who said that his dream is to make a domestic shampoo company and let Chinese brand shampoo have a place in the market.
After Ye Maozhong heard this, he said, "Your idea is good and your intentions are high, and I will definitely help you accomplish this." ”
Ye Maozhong once said to Cheng Yingqi, we are all mental workers, and the most important thing for mental workers is not the comfortable wallet, but the comfortable head. First, we can rely on brain power to help more businesses succeed, which is very comfortable. Second, we achieve our own success by helping more businesses succeed.
Cheng Yingqi said that Ye Maozhong is still a principled person. Some slimming and beauty, health care aphrodisiac enterprises, products through the pseudo concept to package, there is a suspicion of deceiving consumers. Ye Maozhong, an enterprise that is "pitted and abducted," does not do anything.
"No more than the draft, one price, one-time full payment in place and then start construction." This rule was set from the time when Ye Maozhong was not yet big. A well-known planner posted on social media to mourn Ye Maozhong, saying, "Ye Maozhong is full of pride and freedom, he has always stood to make money, he does not have a trace of advertising people's 'hypochondriasis', his standing figure, has always been the benchmark of the industry." ”
Work is fierce, but in life, Ye Maozhong in Ding Shi'an's eyes is an otaku, either at home or at work, or in the gym. His hobbies are cigar smoking, fitness, drinking tea, and painting. He doesn't like to go to social drinks and only eats box lunches with employees. "No matter how much money the customer signs, it is impossible to let Teacher Ye accompany you to dinner."
In the summer of 2015, Ye Maozhong changed his habit of eating box lunches in the past and offered to go out to eat hot pot with Cheng Yingqi. Ye Maozhong ordered more than 20 dishes, and 8 of them were pig brains. "I like to eat pig brain the most, we mental workers, we should eat more brain, eat what to supplement."
Cheng Yingqi thought it was funny, so he joked in passing, will eating pig brains make up pig brains? Ye Maozhong listened and smiled and punched Cheng and said, "When you talk like this, you really should make up your brain." "That day, the two of them drank a lot of beer and had a lot of fun.
In 2017, Ye Maozhong went to Guangzhou on a business trip to visit Cheng Yingqi, and seeing that the disciples' work encountered bottlenecks and were not smooth, he patiently listened to Cheng Yingqi complain and complain.
Ye Maozhong did not speak, and wrote two words on the spot, "Arrogance is due to less experience" and "peace of mind is only for torture more".
Around 2018, Ye Maozhong gave his disciple Cheng Yingqi an inscription. Courtesy of respondents
Cheng Yingqi hung two paintings in the middle of the corridor at home. Every time he passed, he would take a hard look at it, and he knew that Master was using words to teach his disciples what kind of pattern and attitude they should have when facing setbacks.
Collector, painter
In addition to his well-known status as an advertiser, Ye Maozhong is also a heavyweight collector in the Chinese art market.
He has a large collection of modern and contemporary masterpieces and contemporary oil paintings. Including the works of modern and contemporary Chinese masters Qi Baishi, Fu Baoshi, Xu Beihong, Huang Binhong, Zao Wou-ki, etc., as well as Cai Guoqiang, Li Xiangqun and others.
Ding Shi'an said, "He was so successful, but he was frugal in life. From the point of view of profligacy and pleasure, it is to buy paintings. ”
Ye Maozhong himself was a painter.
Ye Maozhong mentioned in his self-description that his fate with the painting came from his father. When he was four years old, Father Ye drew a boat on the back of the cigarette shell, "Just a few lines, the boat appeared, with sails, floating on the water, I think it is amazing." ”
On January 24, 2022, Ye Maozhong's paintings hung at the front desk of the Shanghai office building. Beijing News reporter Qiao Chi photographed
Father Ye casually drew a painting, but it affected his life. Ye Maozhong took a pen and painted for decades. When he got his mother's pocket money in elementary school, he saved up to buy comic strips and copy the characters on the comic strips.
Ye Maozhong mentioned in his self-report that after graduating from high school, he went to the waiting room of the steamship dock at night to paint tourists waiting for the ship. Going all year round," in the dim light, with a drawing board between them, desperately painting and painting their future destiny. ”
Ye Maozhong was admitted to the local cultural center under the tutelage of his teacher Wu Junsheng, who was a student of The Master of Chinese Painting. At the age of 18, he was admitted to the stage art major of the Jiangsu Provincial Drama School, and his calligraphy and painting teacher Tai Qiyou was also a student of Fu Baoshi.
Art historian Tang Zheming once commented: "Lao Ye is a Taizhou native, Jiangsu ink painting since the founding of New China has been greatly influenced by Fu Baoshi, especially landscape painters, Lao Ye is no exception, in the Tibetan world he is not only famous for collecting Fu paintings, but also naturally has a deep imprint on the heart of Bouldering.
In June 2019, after being diagnosed with advanced cancer, Ye Maozhong's family "respectfully followed the doctor's advice" and did not allow Ye Maozhong to continue working. During this period, Ye Maozhong often traveled in the outer clouds to sketch, the terraces of Guangxi, the beautiful scenery of Hangzhou, Ye Maozhong "sent love between landscape paintings and calligraphy, looking for inner peace".
On December 8, 2020, Ye Maozhong made his debut as an artist at the auction, and at this special auction, his 16 works were finally sold for 2.38625 million yuan, of which the highest-priced work "Hengling Cangsong Youjia" sold for 448,500 yuan, and all the proceeds from the auction were donated to public welfare projects.
On December 11, 2021, Ye Maozhong sent the last circle of friends, he wrote, "I am very happy for the children who have been rescued because of this!"
Beijing News reporter Qiao Chi Wu Xiaofei Editor Hu Jie Proofreader Liu Yue