“声”财有道
A sweet voice can turn into real cash. Taobao store owner Weini has worked in Chengdu for about six years. She began to charge 1 yuan ($0.14) for each call in early 2016.
Although still a part-time job for Weini, she has hired seven workers to help her cover both day and night shifts. Customer demands vary from good morning or good night calls to send wishes to friends, or calling to apologize(道歉) for young lovers.
Prices vary as she offers different kinds of service. The store also promises to deliver the service in different styles or with different time lengths. Fees have also increased from 1 yuan to 5 yuan. Monthly orders have reached nearly 400 and rank first on Taobao’s alarm clock service category(类别).
Weini said her customers are mainly those who are worried about oversleeping and missing school, work or a meeting. One of her loyal customers was fined(罚款) 1,000 yuan a month for going to work late now and then in the past and now only pays 100 yuan to be punctual, according to Weini.
To keep good customer relations, Weini’s store provides value-added service such as reminding customers of weather information. Comments on the store include “sweet voice” and “responsible”.
Weini added she doesn’t earn much from the part-time job but she likes the sense of fulfillment.