Trending
November 28th, 2020
Starring: Co-founder 1, Co-founder 2 (both in 30’s)
A small office. Startup-type. Noone is there, save for the Co-founders. Co-founder 1 sits on a beanbag. Co-founder 2 stands, occasionally pacing. They both drink tall cups of coffee:
CO-FOUNDER 1
So
We’re trending.
CO-FOUNDER 2
Yeah.
CO-FOUNDER 1
We’ve never trended before.
CO-FOUNDER 2
Number five. Eighteen thousand.
CO-FOUNDER 1
What?
CO-FOUNDER 2
Tweets.
CO-FOUNDER 1
Jeez.
…
CO-FOUNDER 2
I know you want to spin this as good, but it’s not good.
CO-FOUNDER 1
Free advertising is good.
CO-FOUNDER 2
Having a nationally known criminal walking out of prison wearing our logo is not good.
CO-FOUNDER 1
Some people don’t see him as a criminal.
CO-FOUNDER 2
Do you?
CO-FOUNDER 1
He didn’t do a good thing, no. I don’t know all the facts of the case. But I do know tons of people are paying attention to this. People with deeply felt opinions. And opinionated people are more likely to spend than anyone else.
CO-FOUNDER 2
But are those the people that we want to sell to?
CO-FOUNDER 1
At this point, customers are customers. We need them all to keep us afloat.
CO-FOUNDER 2
I know. We’re going to move some inventory, and we’re ready for it, and we need it, and that’s great right now. But I’m worried long-term.
CO-FOUNDER 1
This is going to save us.
CO-FOUNDER 2
Or sink us. Like it or not, this as an endorsement of our product. That is going to bring people, but that’s also going to alienate people, and a lot of those people are faithful customers.
CO-FOUNDER 1
Who are going to be replaced by our new customers.
CO-FOUNDER 2
Right now. But what happens when the trending ends? The news cycle will shift, our new customer engagement will taper off, and our old customers will have already cancelled us. We can’t afford that.
CO-FOUNDER 1
I think you’re underestimating the loyalty of our buyers.
CO-FOUNDER 2
And I think you’re overestimating how smoothly we’re going to get through this. People want this guy gone, and won’t stop until everyone and everything associated with him go down with him. We have to take a stand.
CO-FOUNDER 1
And say what?
CO-FOUNDER 2
Speak out. Condemn him, distance ourselves.
CO-FOUNDER 1
We can’t.
CO-FOUNDER 2
We have to.
CO-FOUNDER 1
Then we lose both sides. Regardless, we’re going to get cancelled by one side for the association with him. But if we decide to condemn him, we lose the side that supports him too. And you know we really can’t afford that.
…
CO-FOUNDER 2
So we say nothing?
CO-FOUNDER 1
For now. Let things run their course. See what happens, go from there.
Co-founder 2 stands there for a few moments, in defeated, silent agreement.
CO-FOUNDER 2
This is fucked.
CO-FOUNDER 1
Yep.
...
This is business.