Page 123 of Derivation

So, what Arlowe was suggesting was that she spend all night reworking it and adding info in about the features that they’d all been wanting to launch for a while, but with such a small team, it hadn’t been possible until right now, apparently. If Sarai changed the commercial, saying that their app had all of these things, and then Arlowe and team couldn’t deliver, they would be risking a massive backlash that they might not be able to recover from.

“Arlowe, I need to know that if I do this, you can and will deliver. I’m not talking about the extra work I’d have to do. I’m talking about delivering on promises that we will be making in a television commercial and on social media. We can’t not have things ready.”

“They’ll be ready,” Arlowe replied.

“Sarai’s right: that’s a major credibility issue if we claim to have these things and they download only to discover that we don’t,” Violet said.

“Backup plan,” Enya stated. “If, for some reason, Arlowe isn’t ready by the time we have to tell the network not to air the ad, we pull the plug then so that we don’t end up making existing and potential customers upset. We’re risking taking the hit on the airtime cost, but maybe we can work with them on airing the other commercial instead, or even later, when the new features are really ready. If that’s not possible, we’d just have to air it in a cheaper time slot. We won’t get the same bang for our buck, but at least we won’t be losing customer trust.”

“Makes sense,” Violet replied.

“Sarai, it’s your call. It’s your campaign idea, your work, and you are our head of marketing,” Arlowe said.

Sarai thought about how this was the first big risk they would be taking as a company, outside of starting the thing to begin with. She looked up at Gabi, who smiled at her, and Sarai nodded.

“Really?” Arlowe asked excitedly.

“I will need so much coffee,” she replied.

“Let’s get organized before you run off, Arlowe,” Violet said, pointing at her. “We need to make sure everyone knows what they’re doing, how, and when. Can you get Mitchell and Clay in here to help in person?”

“Sure.”

“And your intern, Sarai?”

“I’ll call her now.”

“Let’s work out our plan, then,” Violet replied.

“I have to get back to work in a minute, but I’m done at five. I’ll help after that,” Gabi added.

“Thank you,” Violet said before she began doling out orders.

About ten minutes later, they all got to work, but Sarai knew she needed a quick break before she dove in. That break also needed to not be in the garage, so she walked back to her bedroom with Gabi by her side.

“Need to be alone?” Gabi asked when they got to the door.

“No. Can you come in for a minute?”

“Sure.”

They closed the door behind them, and Sarai sat on the side of the bed.

“Is this crazy?”

“No,” Gabi replied.

“No? Just no?” she asked, laughing a little.

“Babe, your campaign is good. It would’ve worked, and you still might need it, so it will work, but I know about the stuff you’ve all wanted to add, and I trust Arlowe. If she says that she can do it, she can. It could grow the business faster. It’s work right now, but it means more progress in a shorter amount of time.”

“I know.” Sarai sighed. “I have to rewrite a script and re-animate everything, though.”

“Not everything.” Gabi sat down next to her and took her hand. “Remember, your characters don’t actually move their mouths when they talk. It’s more a voice-over, so that means you can probably reuse a lot of what you’ve made already.”

“Yeah, but the screenshots or the setup will be different. I’ll have to use what I can, I guess.”

“I’m going to help Arlowe, but I’m also here to help you, so if you need anything, or even just a fresh set of eyes, you tell me, okay?”