A Decisive Comeback

With Chen Fan promising five fen per post, with no upper limit,

the paid posters finally let themselves loose.

Their comments came in every variety, but they all shared the same message.

The Easy Domain Network's features were absolute trash, nowhere near those of the Domain Name Network.

Some people pushed back on the forum, defending the Easy Domain Network.

But the moment they posted, dozens of replies from paid posters flooded in, flaming them so badly they dared not show their faces again.

The Easy Domain Network's moderators clearly noticed something was wrong, too.

But back in those days, they had no clear understanding of paid posting armies.

As a result, they failed to deal with it in time.

By the time they caught on, it was already too late.

The entire forum had been flooded with all kinds of comments from paid posters.

The Easy Domain Network's moderators began frantically deleting posts, blocking accounts, and issuing bans...

But it was all just a drop in the bucket.

Whenever they deleted posts, the paid posters blasted the Easy Domain Network for silencing dissent, refusing to accept criticism, and only allowing praise.

Whenever they blocked accounts, the paid posters accused the Easy Domain Network of being a sore loser, banning them just for telling the truth that its website was inferior to the Domain Name Network...

All those measures accomplished little. Instead, they dealt a substantial blow to the Easy Domain Network's reputation.

The commotion continued until after nine that evening.

Finally, the Easy Domain Network could no longer hold out and simply disabled posting on its forum.

The stated reason was a network fault, with urgent repairs underway.

With no way to post on the forum, the paid posters could no longer earn money.

So, without anyone teaching them, they began branching out into other corners of the internet.

Someone discovered the Easy Domain Network's ads on the three major portals.

A swarm of posters rushed over and began frantically flooding the comments beneath those ads.

What made it even more infuriating was that they did not simply hurl abuse. They listed the Easy Domain Network's various shortcomings.

Even anyone who wanted to argue back had nowhere to start, because everything they said was true.

Others took the opportunity to promote the Domain Name Network.

"Everyone should check out the Domain Name Network instead. Once you've browsed it, you'll understand the difference."

"I honestly don't understand where the Easy Domain Network got the nerve to go head-to-head with the Domain Name Network."

"They have money to spend on marketing here, but won't spare any to improve their forum's garbage features."

"The Domain Name Network is better. They don't even advertise. All their money goes toward improving the site."

"Even a great site needs people to spread the word. Keep those posts coming, everyone..."

Surprisingly, these self-taught posters actually made a convincing case.

At the very least, plenty of passing internet users who knew nothing of the situation remembered the Domain Name Network.

Within just a few days, every Easy Domain Network ad on the three major portals had been overrun.

Open the comments, and all anyone discussed was the Domain Name Network.

Perfectly good ads had become free publicity for someone else.

And with money as an incentive, the paid posters did not limit themselves to the three major portals. They also roamed through forums and web pages...

Wherever there were crowds, there were comments from them.

For a while, almost everyone online came to know a website called the Domain Name Network.

In less than half a month, the Domain Name Network's traffic experienced an explosive surge.

Countless users flocked to the site, sending its traffic soaring.

The number of registered users in the backend kept climbing, too.

Chen Fan had spent those days maintaining the backend. Watching the figures rise, he could only describe it as equal parts pain and pleasure.

With things having reached this point,

unless the people behind the Easy Domain Network were idiots, they had to have guessed who was responsible.

They copied the tactic, immediately gathering members to smear the Domain Name Network.

But their numbers were too small, and the paid posting army led by Guo Shuai crushed them outright. They were no match at all.

Moreover, this was already the third time in half a month that the Easy Domain Network had been flooded with posts until it shut down its forum.

The terrible user experience drove even longtime users to leave the site cursing and head to the Domain Name Network instead.

In just half a month, the two websites' traffic figures underwent a staggering reversal.

The figures for Chen Fan's Domain Name Network left the Easy Domain Network far behind.

Once users had experienced the Domain Name Network, they could never go back.

At that point, the two sides' offensive and defensive roles had switched.

With this method, Chen Fan pulled off a decisive comeback and raced far ahead.

And he had spent less than half of what his earlier promotion had cost.

There were no secrets on the internet.

To some keen observers, the Domain Name Network's marketing comeback was nothing short of brilliant.

It was a textbook case of business competition.

Previously, a prominent businessman had posted a dedicated analysis of the Domain Name Network and the Easy Domain Network on a forum.

He had concluded that the owner of the Easy Domain Network had deep pockets, while the owner of the Domain Name Network seemed to have little money for promotion.

Even though the Domain Name Network offered a better user experience, it would still struggle to surpass its rival.

He estimated that before long, the Easy Domain Network would leave the Domain Name Network far behind.

Reality, however, had slapped him hard in the face.

Thanks to user comments appearing everywhere,

the Domain Name Network had made a comeback from the brink and left its rival far behind.

The two sites' traffic volumes were no longer even in the same league.

On several well-known business forums, people who would later become internet industry heavyweights were engaged in heated discussions.

Some said the competition was over and the Easy Domain Network had no hope of recovering.

Others analyzed the Domain Name Network's comeback strategy, discussing how much of it was worth studying and adopting.

Still others asked who the owner behind the Domain Name Network was, seemingly hoping to make his acquaintance.

Someone even openly offered to spend ten thousand yuan on a meal with the Domain Name Network's owner.

If the owner agreed, he could join that person's company on an annual salary of two hundred thousand yuan.

Just as everyone was heatedly discussing who the mysterious founder behind the Domain Name Network might be,

a piece of news sent shock waves through the internet startup community.

"Mystery buyer purchases for fifty thousand yuan, setting a new record for a single transaction on the Domain Name Network."

This sent and the Domain Name Network into the spotlight once again.

"Fifty thousand yuan for a mere web address?"

"Since when were potatoes worth so much?"

"Doesn't tudou just mean potato, spud, whatever you call it? They sell for a few mao per jin at our local market..."

"This is insane. I don't understand the world of rich people..."

"..."

At that point, everyone was simply shocked and baffled by the transaction price.

No one noticed anything special about the domain name.

Only Chen Fan knew that over the next few years, this domain name would change hands several more times before officially launching in 2005 as one of the world's earliest video websites.

For a while, countless curious onlookers flocked to the Domain Name Network to view the transaction announcement.

Some investors also quietly began taking notice of the Domain Name Network and the Easy Domain Network.

While the Domain Name Network basked in the spotlight and its traffic soared, the Easy Domain Network's situation grew increasingly bleak.

Its traffic plummeted, and its reputation kept worsening.

The contrast between the two could hardly have been sharper.

Chen Fan had thought he could finally breathe a temporary sigh of relief.

But before he could even let that breath out, his cornered opponent suddenly began resorting to every means available.

They actually sent hackers to take down Chen Fan's website.

Staring at the Domain Name Network, which would no longer load,

Chen Fan sat stunned for quite a while before slowly nodding.

"All right, all right, all right. So that's how you want to play."