National Council of Social Service has appointed Wild Advertising & Marketing, along with GroupM media agency Mediacom, for a disability awareness campaign.
The appointment is for a period of three years, following a pitch held in November last year. There is no incumbent on the account.
The agencies will be tasked to create an integrated campaign to promote public awareness of people with disabilities. The through-the-line campaign aims to engage Singaporeans to understand the barriers faced by people with disabilities, appreciate their abilities and make Singapore a more inclusive society.
For more than 25 years, I’ve worked with companies to develop marketing strategies and infrastructure systems to help create stronger relationships with consumers. While much has changed over the last 25 years, in the last three to five years the pace of change has accelerated dramatically as consumers have gained control through access to limitless amounts of information.
But as consumer access to information has increased, organisations have not kept pace in their efforts to be more responsive to consumers; in fact, organisations often hamper rather than accelerate their relationships with consumers in this environment.
To overcome this challenge, the solution first considered by many marketers is a loyalty programme because they feel it can be implemented without requiring much internal effort.
The misnomer is that a service provider or agency can provide everything that a marketer needs to build a relationship with the customer. And, while that may be an option for some (and particularly, less mature) organisations, for most, this approach is only a temporary solution.
Initially, the loyalty programme yields results and a belief that the approach is working. Then, engagement results plateau and may even start to decline to a level below when the programme was launched.
A programme may seem to be working because the consumers’ range of experience and touchpoints are mostly through the programme itself. As consumer interest and trust in the brand increases, the consumer expands their exploration of the brand through other touchpoints, and discovers information gaps that lead to poor consumer experiences.
This often happens because the loyalty ‘programme’ is operating in isolation from the rest of the brand. All consumer touchpoints are not being leveraged at once to build a full view of the consumer’s interaction with the brand.
Yes, the details matter.
Successful organisations understand that consumers have an expectation of receiving a total experience with the brands they choose to do business with. To make this work, organisations need to plan their consumer relationship and loyalty programme efforts enterprise-wide with a keen focus on connecting touchpoints and using customer information across all channels.
Organisations successfully executing consumer relationship and loyalty programme efforts:
Have connected customer data. Note I’ve said connected and not collected. There is a tendency to plan to collect consumer data in one place, therefore ensuring all consumer information is in one place.
While that is an option, the more successful organisations focus on their information architecture and how to make the flow of customer information fluid. This doesn’t preclude them from building a central consumer data store although it doesn’t make everything contingent on the need for one. There are benefits to storing consumer data in a more federated approach.
A federated approach limits the exposure of a potential breach, provides a way to meet regulatory requirements around PII and can reduce latency issues based on the relevance of a particular data element to a consumer engagement.
Use the internet to engage and not just market. Cost reduction has been the primary focus for the internet and marketing to consumers. In the early internet days, organisations wanted to reduce the marketing cost of a campaign so they could increase the number of consumer touches. It was all about getting the organisation’s message in front of the consumer.
Only recently did the internet become a two-way channel thanks to social media. Consumers started having conversations in social networks and brands felt ignored. In reaction, brands felt they had to be part of the conversation and simply interrupted consumers like a party crasher with no comprehensive strategy. Today, brands are learning to listen before engaging so they can be part of the right conversation.
Now, organisations have more ways to engage with consumers, share information and use that information to improve the consumer experience. From fitness wearables to the microprocessors in our vehicles and appliances, there are more opportunities for consumers to share information with the organisations they choose. Organisations should have a strong strategic engagement plan to increase the degree and depth of first party data because it is a competitive asset that is growing in value thanks to the Internet of Things.
Break down the internal silos: Consumers don’t care about the complexity of an organisation’s internal structure, they want simple. This is probably one of the more difficult challenges for organisations.
For decades, companies have been designed around functional areas such as IT, marketing, finance, advertising, e-commerce and operations. This organisational structure provides clarity around who does what and streamlines overall management; however this structure doesn’t work well for the connected consumer because it doesn’t deliver a coordinated customer experience.
Adding a customer experience officer, a digital experience officer or shifting to a ‘customer centric organisational structure’ is not enough. There is a deeper audit that needs to be conducted to consider how data is collected, how it is shared, how it flows and how it is used.
Only then, can everyone in the organisation determine how he or she will use information to engage consumers to continually learn, share information and improve the experience across all channels. It is a coordinated effort, not the result of a single department or person. To make this effective, a governance approach needs to be defined and followed across the organisation.
Identify consumer data that is most used across the organisation and make it accessible and mineable: Organisations generally have a lot of data although the majority is collected or stored in a way that makes it difficult to use. Perhaps the data is not organised or tagged appropriately to understand freshness or sensitivity.
Nearly every organisation I’ve engaged with claims to be working on a ‘consumer data’ strategy or project. For most, data acquisition is not the issue, but rather how to connect the data to a consumer.
Organisations have transaction, profile data, mobile, social and online data. Most though don’t have a method to connect disparate files to a single consumer view. Depending on the organisation, Customer Data Integration or CDI may provide results although it rarely provides a complete solution.
Often, the way the data is collected severely limits the effectiveness of CDI. This is where a loyalty approach can be very beneficial to an organisation, because it acts as consumer identification. Loyalty is based on a consumer opt-in, permission based approach where consumers identify themselves when they interact with a brand. They do this because there is the expectation they will receive preferential treatment: whether it is pricing or service. When consumers identify themselves, it becomes easier to collect, share and apply consumer information to improve the consumer’s experience.
When loyalty is an element of the consumer approach, organisations have a higher probability of gaining increased consumer engagement and the ability to distinguish the brand from the competition. But loyalty programmes can’t act in isolation. These programmes must be supported by a coordinated customer relationship management strategy across channels.
When executed appropriately, loyalty effort gets consumers actively involved through their identification each time they interact with the brand. And, loyalty provides a better way to collect, share, deepen and apply the most valuable asset many organisations have today: Their customer relationships, the one relationship that keeps the organisation in business.
The writer is John Bartold, practice leader of loyalty |CX at Epsilon.
Gender bias in the work place is by no means a new issue.
Women are used as sexual objects to sell burgers, are discriminated against in job postings (that’s even before we reach the interview) and are often paid less than men even in the glam world of Hollywood.
According to the US Bureau of Labour Statistics, the gender pay gap shows a generational sliding scale, with females between 55-65 with the largest disparity (18%) and females between the ages of 25-35 with the smallest disparity (6%). Closer to home in Singapore, women are still not paid the same as their male counterparts for the same job.
The 2014 Labour Force Statistics show that women earn less than men in all occupational categories except clerical and support. In most categories, the differential is more than 10%. Unless you have been living under a rock, you have seen the on-going story about the JWT CEO who made racist and sexist comments which led to his resignation and impending lawsuit.
It’s 2016 and we are still facing gender bias and discrimination augmented by sexist stereotyping. While this is a pervasive issue our industry, women also need to look within and ask ourselves, hand to heart: Is it just the men? Don’t women discriminate and stereotype one another?
And now before you scream blue murder, pause, reflect and think of occasions where you have faced a sexist bias by a fellow woman.
The ‘You have a baby and you work’ bias
The ‘You gave up your career for your baby’ bias
The ‘You may be successful at work but if you can’t keep your husband happy, then your success is pointless’ bias
The ‘domestic bliss’ bias
Let’s move to stereotypes:
The 50-year old spinster = frustrated
The 20-year old attractive and friendly girl = flirty
The D cup size who is not shy of her assets = slutty
The mid-30s divorcee = desperate
The 40-something mother = matronly
The short-haired, tattooed female = lesbian
The gung-ho, authoritative boss = dragon lady
Can we honestly say that it’s only men who view women with the above biases? Or that they are the only ones guilty of this kind of stereotyping?Can’t women do a lot more to stand together and fight such prejudices?
We already have enough men who try to box us in neat little labelled packages. It’s high time we help each other open these boxes and let our true selves out.
Unfortunately, women have to make hard choices during our careers. It’s never easy to give equal emphasis to both work and home. Compromises have to be made, and we are often judged by our male colleagues and bosses. That’s the time we need to stand firm by our choices and bear the burden of the consequences. And when we are doing so, it’s encouraging to have our female colleagues stand by our side to offer support or words of advice- both of which go a long way.
I have been exceedingly fortunate to have the most encouraging, motivating and intelligent female bosses. They are one of the reasons I am in this position in my career today. I have always tried to offer the same sense of encouragement and backing to my female peers and juniors.
We need to rally around each other and come together to fight the unfairness which is rampant in our industry. Gender bias is not restricted to one gender. Our war against gender bias and sexist stereotyping should not be just against men, it should be against any person - man or woman- who tries to put us down by using our gender. And it starts with each one of us.
The article is written by Seema Punwani, principal consultant at R3.
The Chinese smartphone manufacturer unveiled its Huawei P9 series by collaborating with the global camera brand Leica and released a preview trailer for its new campaign at an exclusive launch event at London’s Battersea Evolution this week.
As global product ambassadors, “Superman” Henry Cavill and “Black Widow” Scarlett Johansson will make appearances in the TVC for Huawei P9 series.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TszjVGpJmps
Featuring the two Hollywood stars, the new commercial was shot in Shanghai and New Zealand by famed director Baillie Walsh. It will air internationally from mid April.
Huawei also partnered with a number of high profile professional photographers to support the launch of Huawei P9 including iconic fashion photographer, Mario Testino, who shot the campaign visuals.
Chinese consumers are renown around the world as heavy consumers of high-end luxury goods. Now one Chinese textile manufacturer is buying into the world of haute couture.
Shandong Ruyi Technology Group has acquired a controlling stake in French fashion conglomerate SMCP, owner of fashion brands Sandro, Maje and Claudie Pierlot.
The Chinese company has signed an exclusive agreement along with global investment firm KKR. SMCP’s founders and management would reinvest alongside Shandong Ruyi Group as minority shareholders, while KKR would retain a minority interest in the group.
After the acquisition, SMCP would retain its current strategy and organisational structure and its design and creative teams will continue to operate from its headquarters in Paris.
Yafu Qiu, chairman of Shandong Ruyi Group, said the investment aims to drive the group’s further growth and support its global development, as well as supporting SMCP in achieving its long-term objective of becoming a global leader in accessible luxury.
“This would be a significant step for Shandong Ruyi Group in our continued endeavour to become a leader in the fully-integrated textiles and fashion business both in China and globally,” said Qiu.
“By taking on board the expertise of SMCP, a group well-rooted with strong Parisian heritage, we would combine their merits with our existing strength in Asia, in particular China.”
SMCP, with its brands Claudie Pierlot, Maje and Sandro, has more than 1,000 stores in 33 countries, including China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Korea, Macau, Singapore, Taiwan and Thailand.
Customer Satisfaction has surpassed revenue growth and customer acquisition as the top measure for success, according to Salesforce’s 2016 State of Marketing Report.
Based on a survey of nearly 4,000 marketers globally, the report found marketers are increasingly focused on customer satisfaction and customer engagement as their top measures for success. In addition, high-performing marketers are creating journeys for customers, with 65% saying they’ve adopted a customer journey strategy and 88% saying it’s critical to their marketing success.
The physical and digital worlds are merging, causing people to expect personalised, consistent brand interactions across every channel and device. This shift is making the customer journey more important than ever before, and ultimately evolving marketers into customer experience designers. In fact, the research shows that nearly two-thirds of high-performing marketing teams (63%) are implementing digital transformations across their organisation, compared to 8% of underperformers. The key findings of the survey are:
Marketers need to prioritise the customer journey or risk falling behind
Customers have more information, choices and power than ever before. For marketers, the customer experience — which is all interactions between a brand and its customers — now matters more than anything. And today, marketers are empowered to create seamless experiences by adopting a customer journey strategy versus a campaign strategy.
Among high-performing marketing teams surveyed, 65% have adopted a customer journey strategy, and of those, 88% say it’s critical to the success of their overall marketing strategy.
The majority of high-performing marketing teams surveyed (58%) strongly agree they’re driving customer experience initiatives across the business, compared to 8% of underperformers.
Nearly two-thirds of high-performing marketing teams surveyed (63%) strongly agree they’re implementing digital transformations across the company, compared to 8% of underperformers.
In addition, 63% of high-performing marketing teams surveyed say they’re excellent at creating personalised, omnichannel customer experiences across all business units compared to 2% of underperformers.
Digital marketing ROI is on the rise
Marketers are seeing increased ROI with email, mobile and social marketing.
Among marketers who use email as part of their marketing strategy, 80% agree email is core to their business. Nearly half (49%) of those marketers say it is directly linked to their business’ primary revenue source, a 140% year-over-year (YoY) increase from the 2015 State of Marketing Report. Additionally, 79% of marketers say email generates ROI, a 48% YoY increase.
In addition, 75% of marketers who use social as part of their marketing strategy report social is generating ROI, a 166% increase YoY. Facebook is the most effective social channel according to high-performing marketing teams, followed by Twitter, YouTube, Google+ and Instagram.
Mobile marketing adoption has risen significantly, including location-based mobile tracking (149% increase), mobile push notifications (145% increase), mobile text messaging (111% increase) and mobile applications (98% increase). Additionally, 77% of marketers who use mobile as part of their marketing strategy say mobile actively generates ROI, a 147% increase YoY.
Multichannel digital marketing determines success
Marketers are taking ownership of the customer journey, and their ability to integrate digital marketing channels will determine their performance.
Among high-performing marketing teams that have integrated their digital marketing channels -- such as email, mobile and social -- at least 95% rate the integrations as very effective or effective.
Nearly two-thirds of high performing marketing teams surveyed (63%) have integrated their social media activity into their overall marketing strategy, compared to only 20% of underperformers.
Nearly two-thirds of high-performing marketing teams surveyed (64%) have also integrated their email marketing activity with their overall marketing strategy, compared to 19% of underperformers.
The majority of high-performing marketing teams surveyed (60%) have integrated their mobile marketing activity into their overall marketing strategy, compared to 12% of underperformers.
In addition, 81% of high-performing marketing teams surveyed align their mobile campaigns to email campaigns, compared to 46% of under-performing marketers.
Nearly two-thirds of marketers surveyed (65%) are increasing budgets for advertising on social platforms in 2016, making it the third largest area for increased investment behind social media marketing and social media engagement.
CRM is powering more effective advertising
Many marketers still try to target digital advertisements primarily with Web cookies, an unreliable approach with low engagement. Marketers are moving from mass, impersonalised ads to personalised ads at scale by leveraging first-party customer data. For example, marketers can take CRM data in Salesforce and match it against groups of Facebook users which are most similar to their current customers and are more likely to convert.
In order to create more personalised ads and increase engagement, 83% of high-performing marketers use CRM data (e.g., an email address or phone number) to segment or target their digital ads, compared to 57% of underperformers.
This reinforces Salesforce’s Advertising Index Report, which indicated CRM-targeted campaigns have 27% higher engagement than traditional targeting.
“The rise of the connected customer is forcing marketing to evolve from delivering outbound campaigns to managing personalised experiences that engage the customer from day one and guide them through a seamless journey with the brand,” Scott McCorkle, CEO Salesforce Marketing Cloud, Salesforce, said.
“The results of our research show that high-performing marketers that change their mind-sets, tactics and technology to embrace a customer journey strategy will reap the benefits.”
Omnicom Health Group has launched TBWA\WorldHealth, combining two of its healthcare agencies LLNS and Corbett.
Sharon Callahan has been named the CEO. In addition to her new, Callahan will also continue to serve as chief client officer of the Omnicom Health Group. Robin Shapiro, former president of Corbett, will serve as group president, North America. Additional management will be drawn from Corbett, LLNS and TBWA\WorldHealth.
“Healthcare is transforming before our eyes, and it's ripe for an agency that has a confident point of view about how to communicate around 21st century healthcare,” Ed Wise, CEO of the Group, said.
As health spends are accelerating at an average of 5.2% a year from 2014 to 2018 to US$9.3 trillion, according to recent report from Deloitte, John Wren, president and CEO of Omnicom Group thinks the formation of TBWA\WorldHealth can create new opportunities for the group to expand its clientele.
The newly combined agency boasts greater scale and resources and hopes to strengthen its presence in New York, extending full-service offices in Chicago, San Francisco and Irvine, California. This is to complement existing TBWA\WorldHealth offices in London, Paris, Hamburg, Istanbul and Mexico City.
Marketing has reached out to TBWA Singapore for comments on Asia.
AdAsia Holdings has launched its operations in Singapore, providing global marketing services and new-generation TV advertising product development. This is its first office globally.
The Singapore operations will be led by Kosuke Sogo, CEO and founder. He told Marketing, the agency is also looking to launch in markets such as Thailand, Indonesia, Tokyo and The Philippines later this year. Sogo added that while the agency will be competing with the large networks such as WPP, Dentsu and the likes for business, it is also looking to build collaborative partnerships with them using its technology properties.
In 2012 Sogo joined the Vietnam subsidiary of MicroAd, MicroAd Vietnam Joint Stock Company , as CEO. Three years later, as the CEO and director of MicroAd in six countries. He also has experience working in markets such as Singapore, Philippines, Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia .
In a press statement, the agency said the launch comes at a point where GDP and advertising market have both grown significantly in various Asian countries. Significantly, the demand for ad delivery to China and Southeast Asian countries from abroad has also greatly increased .
However, it added there are “very few companies that can understand digital marketing and the local market in various countries, or that can effectively plan and operate a marketing campaign across the region” . These circumstances have led to the establishment of AdAsia Holdings and aims to develop not just traditional TV advertising, but also next- generation TV advertising products.
The company has a goal of being listed on a stock exchange within three years .
JLL’s Hotels and Hospitality is looking for a creative agency to develop the overall visual for the business, Marketing understands.
According to a brief seen by Marketing, the developed materials will be applied across various platforms and touch points across ATL and BTL globally. The agency will be tasked to “inject a new look” for JLL’s Hotels & Hospitality business and come up with executions “based on the language it has mapped out”.
The brief also stated that for the materials developed, they need to differ from the current standard visuals.
Currently, JLL is running a campaign called ‘City Lights in Asia’ where it lighting up towers in key cities such as Hong Kong, Tokyo, Brisbane and others with JLL logo to represent the rise of Asian cities in the global economy.
The Hong Kong and Tokyo leg is currently on-going.
JLL is a professional services and investment management firm specialising in real estate. It services clients in over 80 countries from more than 230 corporate offices.
Marketing has reached out to JLL for more details.
Guinness has launched its Guinness Foreign Extra Stout limited edition series, which features artwork by local illustrator Ben Qwek on its bottles and cans.
The artwork is based on Singaporean cultural icons like Keong Saik Building, Marina Bay Sands to local foods like Kueh Tutu. The beer brand has also affectionately been known as Ang Ji Gao by locals in the kopitiams which directly translated to Red Tongued Dog.
If you look closely enough, this is also represented in the packaging.
" We created this limited edition to celebrate and pay tribute to the many things that define our Singapore culture. The original artwork weaves together icons that Singaporeans know and love in their daily lives, and creatively incorporates them into our classic mark, the Red Tongued Dog," Venus Teoh, head of marketing, Asia Pacific Breweries Singapore said.
With the Limited Edition launch, Guinness will also be offering prizes including up to SG$60,000 worth of home furnishing vouchers to customers who purchase Limited Edition bottles or cans. The Guinness Foreign Extra Stout limited edition series of cans and bottles will be on sale from now until Jun
“When I was commissioned to produce this limited edition artwork, I was inspired to create a design that would represent the real Singapore as we know it. I envisioned a design that every Singaporean would identify with, and so created a scene of the things we all fondly recognise and cherish as part of our heritage and everyday lives,” Ben Qwek added.
In line with the new launch, Guinness also partnered with the founders of Humans of Singapore to produce an exclusive coffee-table book titled ‘Men of Singapore’.
In a world where everything moves at rapid speed, it is not surprising consumers have very little patience for ineffective products.
A recent Nielson global survey shed light on Malaysians' cleaning habits, with price and product efficiency topping the charts for most desired product attributes.
Here are some of the other attributes consumers deem important:
Top 10 attributes that Malaysian consumers consider when selecting a household cleaning product
Top 10 benefits that Malaysian consumers seek when purchasing all-purpose cleaner
The report links growing urbanisation in Southeast Asia to the increasing demand in products boasting convenience and fast results. Packaging which is also easy to store or handle is also highly sought after Regan Leggett, Nielsen’s executive director, thought leadership and foresight, Southeast Asia, North Asia and Pacific said.
“Urbanisation largely means smaller storage spaces, and as a result availability of a range of pack sizes, concentrates and multi-use/multi-function products is key.”
Channels where Malaysian purchase their cleaning products were also explored, with modern retail channels coming out as the go-to choice of store for purchasing cleaning products, despite tradition trade which reigns in Malaysian for everyday shopping.
Digital retail channels have yet to gain significant traction in Malaysia, with only 13% of Malaysian respondents purchasing supplies from an online retailer compared to 23% globally in the past 12 months.
Top 5 channels where consumers purchase their household cleaning products in the last 12 months (Malaysia vs. Global)
“Consumers’ fast-paced lives is driving demand for products that reduce the time spent on cleaning tasks, are easy to use, clean quickly and deliver superior results,” observes Leggett.
The Nielsen Global Homecare Survey polled more than 30,000 online respondents in 61 countries to understand cleaning and laundry behaviours and sentiments around the world.
Allianz Life Insurance Malaysia has launched Allianz PrimeSaver, targeting Malaysian youths and the Gen Y generation.
The new plan encourages them to save for their future. As such, the cost is kept to RM200 per month and provides flexibility in choosing the preferred premium payment term between six to 20 years. It has a coverage term of between 20 to 30 years.
Zakri Khir, CEO of Allianz Malaysia Berhad said the initiative was built on the idea that saving is a habit that is lost on a lot of Malaysians, let alone Generation Y.
"We recognised that this generation wants to save for their future, and yet at the same time do not want miss out on things life has to offer. With our customers in mind, we have designed Allianz PrimeSaver to let them have the best of both worlds – long term savings and short term rewards,” Zakri Khir, CEO of Allianz Malaysia said.
The Creation Marketing Communication under IPG is appointed to be the PR retainer business partner of Cartier China.
Creation will take up the daily media communications of Cartier China, including editorial implantation, photo shooting, brand communication and other in-depth cooperation.
Established in 2011, Creation Marketing Communication is under Interpublic Group of Companies, which is the sister company of Weber Shandwick.
Creation provides a full portfolio of integrated offerings that drive earned content and leverage owned and paid, offering creative integrated communication solutions for clients across multi-platforms.
Publicis Media has named a string of market leadership roles across Asia Pacific. According to sources, the latest announcement does not affect those currently holding regional roles. The changes to regional roles is expected later this month.
The appointment follows the global restructure of the Publicis Groupe announced late last year. Earlier this year, it had announced the changes it would make to its media brands as well.
Leading Singapore now is Gareth Mulryan as CEO Publicis Media. Heading India as CEO is Anupriya Acharya. Greater China which includes China, Taiwan and Hong Kong is Bertilla Teo. New Zealand and Australia will be headed by Matt James.
In Malaysia, Piyee Wong the current lead of Starcom lead will report to Nicolas Menat, APAC regional CEO of Publicis One.
In addition to the Market CEO appointments, Chris Nolan has been appointed COO of Publicis Media Australia and New Zealand, and Mykim Chikli has been appointed COO of Publicis Media Greater China.
“Publicis Media was launched with the vision to get to the future first and these strong, dynamic, and incredibly talented leaders will ensure we do just this,” said Gerry Boyle, regional CEO for APAC, Publicis Media.
“I’m excited to work with them as we deliver on our promise to invent modern approaches to gain efficiency, create greater collaboration and effectiveness and drive new levels of scale and client value.”
In the new structure, Publicis Groupe is organised into four Solutions Hubs — Publicis Communications led by Arthur Sadoun, Publicis Media led by Steve King, Publicis.Sapient led by Alan Herrick and Publicis Health led by Nick Colucci—and connected through a chief revenue officer organisation, led by Laura Desmond.
Additionally, Publicis One will service markets outside of Publicis’ Top 20 with a global communications enterprise operating across Publicis Communications, Publicis Media, Publicis.Sapient and Publicis Health.
The inclusion of men’s and women’s rugby sevens in the 2016 Olympic Games has been a trigger for growth a sport which will be on full display in Hong Kong over the next three days.
Rugby sevens and sport in general is now recognised as an important way for brands to look beyond traditional marketing and engage consumers in an entirely different and arguably more meaningful way.
Giles Morgan, global head of sponsorship and events at HSBC, said the bank is committed to rugby sevens at all levels, from grassroots sponsorship, to employee and customer engagement at the highest levels.
“As series sponsor and co-title sponsor of the Hong Kong Sevens, this matters to us," he said. "What we are very proud of at HSBC is that we are seeing a game in growth.
“As we get ready for the Rio Olympics, participation numbers, spectator numbers, TV viewer numbers are growing exponentially. It’s an investment and we are doing it to grow our business, grow our brand, engage with customers and to make our staff proud. All that has to be measured, because we don’t invest without a return."
We are doing it to grow our business, grow our brand, engage with customers and to make our staff proud.
Ahead of the Hong Kong leg of the HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series, a new report suggests that global participation in the sport could more than double in the next decade.
The research reveals that participation could reach 15 million by 2026, with women set to be the primary growth driver, representing more than 40% of worldwide rugby union players in a decade’s time.
“The incredible thing about rugby’s growth in the last three years is that almost half of it has been fuelled by increases in women’s participation," Morgan added.
"The number of female players has gone from 200,000 to 1.7 million in that time, with sevens acting as the perfect catalyst. It has been nothing short of explosive and we believe this will continue.”
HSBC, which re-signed its title sponsorship of World Rugby until 2019/20, has also be working to grow the sport among Hong Kong youth. This year more than 3,000 school kids will participate in the Hong Kong Sevens.
Case Everaert, director of youth at HKRU, said both boys' and girls' rugby in Hong Kong is strong and growing, especially in schools.
"It is great to see so many youngsters cheer on the National Men's and Women's teams. It shows that kids of all sizes and ages aspire to one day wear a Hong Kong National Rugby Team jersey, either as player or supporter."
In addition to the serious side of sponsorship and brand building, it's also a bit of fun. Each year HSBC has used the event to showcase Hong Kong culture.
“Clearly the Hong Kong Sevens is the grandfather of all the Sevens tournaments around the world. We are enormously proud to be back as a co-tile sponsor," Morgan said.
Chinese women are under immense pressure to marry before they turn 27. For those who remain single and labelled "Sheng Nu" (leftover women, 剩女), life can be cruel.
To change this mentality, skin care brand SK-II has launched a video to empower single women and not let the pressures of the world dictate their future.
Titled "Marriage market takeover", the video covers the pressure the women face from both their parents and society to marry young and chronicles their road to acceptance.
https://youtu.be/irfd74z52Cw
Audiences, it seems, aren't immune to emotional selling, as the inspirational video has quickly garnered over 2.7 million views on Chinese social media just within three days.
In the short film, the Procter & Gamble brand has invited three women to stand up and speak their mind against society’s labels and their parents' pressures, in a bid to increase society’s understanding to finally change their destiny.
The campaign aims to show that 'Sheng Nus' are not leftovers, but on the contrary, they are the strong women who choose if and when they want to get married.
As those singles 'dare' to live independently, to wait for true love or simply choose to live alone, they decide to declare their independence and 'take over' the marriage market in Shanghai’s People’s Park. The video saw a lot of photos of single women looking strong and happy, along with personal messages for their parents.
The video was created by Swedish creative agency Forsman & Bodenfors, as part of SK-II's ongoing global #changedestiny campaign.
One interesting thing is that the campaign, despite all its local insights, came from an overseas agency without a permanent presence in China.
The 4-minute video has garnered over 1.2 million views on Tencent's video platform and played over 1.5 million times on Chinese video-streaming site Youku since it went live 3 days ago.
