On Sept. 2, Xiaomi sold 40,000 Redmi 1S phones in India in a few seconds. That same month, a flash sale in Indonesia saw 5,000 Redmi 1S sell out in seven minutes. The driving forces of Xiaomi's runaway success have been threefold: its competitive price and quality offerings, its ability to create demand through social media and word-of-mouth, and its online events like flash sales.

However, real technical problems have bugged both the sales events in Brazil and a re-evaluation may be in order. The flash sale has proven to be a good tactic when testing the waters in specific new markets, especially those where Xiaomi's competitive price gives it an edge.

Despite thousands of cellphones selling out in minutes, Xiaomi' s social media was filled with complaints of fans being unable to buy the phones. Much of the Brazilian media coverage of the second sales event called it successful, but many articles focused on the ongoing technical problems.

Ultimately, Xiaomi's reputation was not built on its flashy sales events, but on the performance and affordability of its hardware, and the well-designed and user-friendly MIUI operating system. With Xiaomi aiming to surpass one billion U.S. dollars in revenue in 2015, it may need to evaluate the first impression it is making with customers. As it continues to expand around the world, especially in demanding markets like the U.S., repeated technical glitches may put customers off. You only get to make a first impression once.

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