Pornsak Prajakwit, or better known as Pornsak, is one of Singapore’s most visible entertainers and hosts. Originally from Thailand, the star made a home and a name for himself in Singapore, rising to popularity through shows such as Channel 8’s FOOD SOURCE, and his own series on Michelle Chong's YouTube channel called Court Porn. He is also the founder of his own chain of Thai restaurants called PORN’S sexy.thai.food.
Speaking fluent Mandarin, English and Thai, the Prajakwit carved a niche for himself in the industry, allowing him to host a slew of bilingual and multi-cultural events. This has also led him to work with brands such as Mama Lemon, Panasonic, 3M, OSIM, American Express and OCBC Singapore, some of which he is a brand ambassador for. His relationship with Mama Lemon for example, has been around since 2011.
In this edition of Now following, Prajakwit sits down with Marketing to share more about his journey as an entertainer and his transition into the online space as both an influencer and business owner. He is currently managed by Left Profile.
Marketing: As a mainstay in the local entertainment scene, how has social media changed the game for you?
I think a focus right now would be in being seen in as many different mediums as possible. In the past it was mainly about managing your image on television, radio or print. But now, having an online presence is very very important.
Everyone has a mobile phone today and the viewing habits of audiences are now different. In the past, people would go home at 8:00pm sharp to catch a drama or variety television show being shown at that time slot – but how many of us do that now?
As consumers, we just get the content we want off our mobile phones, at a time which is most convenient for us. As such it is important to be seen online, because I don’t think a lot of people are waiting in front of the television just to watch you.
Marketing: What do you do to strike a connection with your followers?
I set a target for myself to have a post on social media every day, so unless something really terrible happens to me, you will see me post something online at least once a day. I guess what I want to do is constantly update my followers; I want to excite them on a daily basis. I want to get them information that they would like to know and ensure they can always get it on my Instagram page. These are the few things I am trying to do to grow my following, hopefully whatever I share online is beneficial to my followers.
Marketing: What has the engagement been like so far?
I would say the posts which get a lot of likes online are those which are a little more personal – the ones with me just waking up, hair not done, no makeup. I have no idea why (laughs) because those are just random photos. These posts aren't even calculated, they’re just there. But the likes are amazing.
Marketing: How important is social media following today in the eyes of marketers?
Thanks to social media, businesses now actually need to change the way they think about influence.
In the past, brands had control over what they said in their ads but when it comes to people connecting on a peer-to-peer level, which is what we are doing now on a daily basis, I think brands have lost control over what they want to say or do. So the new challenge is learning to influence from a distance. I guess that is where we as influencers come in, we are the bridge that bridges this distance.
Marketing: What are some of the challenges of being a celebrity influencer?
I think the relationship I have with some advertisers now, where I am engaged for an Instagram post, can be quite a one-off relationship.
It's not like endorsing a product which is more long term, so it feels quite touch and go. As such I am unsure if the message that clients want to put across will be as effective. I do think that the message clients want to convey to consumers need to be put across constantly. It can't just be a one-time thing where I go "This is great, use it!" and that's it.
Marketing: How then do you deal with difficult clients?
I always push it to my management agency Left Profile (laughs).
Marketing: What should clients take note of when it comes to working with celebrity influencers?
The most powerful reason to buy something is actually someone else’s advocacy. I think that is very vital. Even with the coolest banner ad or the hottest viral video which may win recognition for a brand, if the product gets a mixed (or even worst – no reviews) online, the chances of purchase won’t be really high for consumers.
Marketing: How involved do you like to be when it comes to working with brands?
I must first believe in the brand and really know what I am endorsing. Because of this practice I have rejected a few brand and assignments. It’s not that these products or services aren’t good, but personally I would like to post about something I have used before or believe in. I want to be responsible for what I am pushing on my social media or what I am endorsing.
To be closer to the brand, I want to get to know the faces behind it, be it the marketing team or the people on ground.
Relationship building takes time and I think that is very important to get to know who you are working with and what they like. Over the years, I have become friends with my clients.
I'm unsure if it is as clear to my followers but for endorsement deals, I am often seen at road shows. You will see me being more associated with the brand itself and having more interaction with the brand. For example, for Mama Lemon, it’s always positioned as “me and my Mama Lemon [product]” or “Mama Lemon [as a brand] and I”. So the links are close to the products I am endorsing.
However, for one-time posts, for example on Instagram, it would be more focused on messaging which encourages people to try it. There’s also more obvious call to actions like discount codes for a limited time only. I think there is a clear difference.
Marketing: How much creative control do you like to have over your brand engagements?
It depends on the client. While I love to be as involved as possible, sometimes some clients have very specific messages they want to tell their consumers. They could just prefer the “hard-sell” model of me being pictured with their product, next to my face, and the message that being put across goes along the lines of "Buy now", "For limited time only", "Don't lose this great opportunity".
Recently, I worked with American Express and the way they handled their marketing campaign was quite unique and refreshing. They actually asked me for a childhood memory I had with my mother and they built an entire campaign around that memory and the story. I really felt for the story I shared, so when I was sharing this campaign with others, I got more passionate and it feels less like a marketing or sales pitch and more about a memory which I hold close to my heart.
Marketing: What is next for you?
I am starting my own skincare line together with a friend, which will primarily have an online presence. The product ingredients were sourced in Italy and France and the formula was created by a group of scientists. We even bottled everything in a halal facility because we are hoping to enter the Dubai market one day as well. This is something that is very exciting for me at this point in time because I always wanted to do something online after starting my line of Thai restaurants.
LEGO is currently caught up with the issue of its counterfeit sets being sold at a local retail store and e-commerce sites. The counterfeit sets feature toys which look like terrorists from the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS), and were on sale at People's Park Centre and Carousell, according to The Straits Times.
Recommended for children aged six to 12, the counterfeit LEGO sets were labelled as "Falcon commando" sets and portrayed violent scenes showing figurines carrying the ISIS flag, firing AK-47s and launching sticks of dynamite, as well as a figurine of a decapitated head, the report said. These sets have been pulled of the shelves. Brick Generals, an online retailer specialising in the customisation of LEGO figurines, was also reported to be selling similar ISIS-themed figurines described as "militants" and "bombers", with one of them known as "ISIS Jihadi John", according to The Straits Times. However, a quick search by Marketing showed no results of the said terrorist LEGO figurines.
In a statement to Marketing, Charlotte Simonsen, senior director, corporate brand communications, said the products are "in no way affiliated with the LEGO Group". They are neither LEGO products nor are the bricks in the set LEGO bricks.
"As a company dedicated to inspire and develop children, we would naturally never make a product like this," Simonsen said. While LEGO declined to comment on the marketing strategies it employs to ensure consumers are not being duped into buying counterfeit goods, Simonsen said it is taking the "necessary steps" to ensure it protects its intellectual rights and consumers.
While Bricks General has not yet responses to Marketing's queries, a spokesperson from Carousell said trust and safety is a top priority for Carousell and it takes prohibited items, including counterfeits, very seriously.
"We are constantly working to improve user features that provide a safe and enjoyable environment for our community to buy, sell and connect with interest groups. We have also built features for user feedback, user verification, as well as trust and safety guidelines. Dedicated teams at Carousell monitor for suspicious activity, and look into community reports to ensure the quality and safety of our marketplace. Technology enables us to detect unusual user activity and patterns at scale, and we are constantly innovating to improve this capability," he said.
"As a community-focused marketplace, we hope that all Carousell users will abide by our community guidelines to ensure that the marketplace remains safe, friendly and conducive for all," he added.
Ramadan and Raya are probably the biggest celebrations of the year in Malaysia. With more than 61% of Muslims within Malaysia’s 30.9 million population, opportunities are a plenty for brands to roll out marketing campaigns to target this large audience base.
However, this also poses a major challenge every year as to how brands can stand out amongst other Ramadan or Raya ads to capture and engage with its audience. In a bid to help Malaysian bank BSN achieve this, Astro came up with its BSN Kata Yang Penting Ikhlas campaign which managed to break through the clutter of festive ads while building BSN’s affinity.
This led to Astro winning the sliver for the Best Media Solution in Experiential, for its BSN’s “Kata Yang Penting Ikhlas” campaign at the Spark Awards 2017 in Singapore recently.
This post was done in conjunction with Astro.
Problem
Every year, during the Ramadan-Raya period (11 June to 22 July 2016), ad spaces are cluttered with festive ads in every high reach media platforms. BSN needed a highly relevant campaign and platform to cut through the clutter and build affinity with the Malay consumers as the period was a criticial one to capture the attention of Malay consumers aged above 15 years old.
Solution
Instead of another feel-good ad, Astro decided that it was timely and relevant to link the campaign back to BSN’s core business and talk about money management. While duit raya is known to be an important element for Hari Raya, latest insights showed that duit raya was losing its meaning as a means to cultivate mannerisms and generosity. Children were demanding for more money and adults used it to flaunt their wealth.
With that, BSN said it wanted to promote the importance of sincerity. It launched #BSNKataYangPentingIkhlas to remind the public about the values of duit raya - which is a measure with sincerity and that “when one is sincere, unexpected rewards may come your way”.
Objective
The main objective of this campaign was to break through the clutter of festive ads while building BSN’s affinity. At the same time, the bank also wanted to spread the message of generosity and sincerity.
Execution
First, Astro sparked conversations about duit raya with a social experiment on its Astro Awani’s HLIVE segment. A voxpop featuring adults’ and children’s point-of-view about duit raya was released highlighting the problem, thus triggering self-reflection amongst the viewers. The reaction of children were captured when they were given the envelope with RM1 duit raya. Most of them were surprised, some even said “mana cukup” (This is not enough).
At the same time, the company also used other platforms such as radio, talksets and CSR announcements, and promos were seeded via Era, Sinar and THR Gegar to spread the message to grassroots listeners. To engage online users, video content, branded digitorials, banners and social media postings with the hashtag #BSNKataYangPentingIkhlas were served on Astro Gempak and social media, to draw impressions and enable shareability of the content. On-ground support including radio cruisers, colour pieces and live crossover, gave extra millage by drawing footfalls to BSN’s #BSNKataYangPentingIkhlas on-ground activation at nationwide locations.
Approaching Hari Raya, a branded capsule featuring Astro’s popular host Pak Nil engaged in conversation with children about duit raya. This was released as a teaser for the finale of the campaign. The capsule highlighted the proper mannerisms for children when receiving duit raya and branded with the campaign hashtag.
Meanwhile, at the finale, BSN took over a full episode of MeleTOP and seamlessly weaved in the hashtag #BSNKataYangPentingIkhlas throughout the talkshow. The special episode invited Pak Nil, who had earlier established association with the campaign, to co-host the episode.
Between lighthearted conversations about Hari Raya, the topic of duit raya was brought up in several parts of the show. Celebrity guests who were on the show show reminisced on their Hari Raya memories where it was all about togetherness and less materialistic, whereby duit raya was just past of the perks. A parody MeleTOP skit was added to emphasise the message through comedy. To interact with TV and online audiences in real-time, TV viewers were asked to tweet and hashtag #MeleTOP #BSNKataYangPentingIkhls to win an exclusive BSN cooler box. Call-to-action was seeded at high volume through MeleTOP’s social media within the one-hour show time, to push for awareness and participation.
At the peak of the show, Pak Nil took over the stage and did a social experiment on the spot, by asking children in the live audience to search for duit raya under their chairs. After revealing the amount of duit raya they received, they were asked to watch a video of a poor family that couldn’t afford celebrating Hari Raya, and were presented with an option on whether to donate or to keep the money.
This led to the children deciding to donate to the poor. Due to their generosity, BSN gave them the “unexpected reward” by doubling their duit raya and encouraging them to save. A video reporting the happiness of the family after receiving the donation concluded the campaign on a high note.
Results
The BSN campaign surpassed expected results on all mediums. On TV spots alone (30-second HLIVE voxpox + 30-second MELETOP capsule), Reach 1+ achieved 72% of Malay aged above 15 (Astro subscribers), exceeded KPI by 16%. Effective reach 3+ also exceeded KPI by 28%. BSN-MELETOP take-over episode (Live + Repeat) was watched by 2.9 million Malay viewers (Malay 4+), and became the highest rated MELETOP episode for the month.
MELETOP video posts on YouTube garnered additional 55,298 views. MELETOP “BSN cool box” contest garnered 3,331 hashtags and 3 BSN cool boxes were given away for every 100 tweets. With 90 postings made through MELETOP Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and with #yangpentingikhlas, #BSNKataYangPentingIkhlas, it recorded in total of 18,464 engagements.
On radio assets, all spots (CSR announcement and promo spots) garnered 1.4 million listenership (19% above KPI); 81% reach 1+ (1% above KPI); 65% reach 3+(3% above KPI). Three digital editorials on radio websites recorded 450 page views; while 21 Facebook posts reached out to 155,612 followers; 28 Instagram posts garnered 17,537 engagements.
The message, delivered in a sincere and thought-provoking way, added credibility and awareness of BSN. With outstanding deliveries, the brand succeeded in cutting through the clutter and won the heart of the Malays during the crucial Ramadan-Hari Raya season, by engaging them with a highly relevant campaign message that was delivered through creative media placements and expressions.
A four-minute Malaysian Facebook ad touting a slimming and whitening product is making waves online. The ad by SlimmeWhite implies that being slim and fair is the only way to rekindle a husband's love for his wife, and features a crying wife begging her husband to take her back after he divorces her.
In the series of flashbacks shown in the ad, the initially affectionate husband promises to love his wife even when she grows old. However, his attitude changes after they get married, calling his wife a "rhino" when she does not dress up at home and a "burden" when she requests him to take her to the hospital and criticising her cooking skills.
Following the divorce, the dejected wife stays with her sister who urges her to consume a bottle of SlimmeWhite. A month later, the husband bumps into the revamped version of his wife who is slimmer and fairer and as such, begs her to take him back, claiming that he still loves her and did not mean what he previously said.
Towards the end of the video, the brand asks consumers to treasure the people they love otherwise risk losing them forever. It also assures viewers that it isn't that their wives aren't actually attractive, but rather, they are just way too busy taking care of the household chores. The video, which was published on 25 September 2017, garnered over 1.7 million views, 31k shares, 13k reactions and 3.7k comments at the time of writing.
And while we are inclined to call the ad somewhat misogynistic, some netizens have actually voiced their support for the video and commented that it is true that wives are no longer dressing up for husbands, and that they should still aim to look presentable for their husbands even when they are married. However, another netizen commented that "women are more than [just] their skin [colour] and size" and that the company should educate women on self-worth and acceptance.
This is not the first time an ad of a similar nature became the focus of online discussion. Earlier this year, Watsons Malaysia came under fire for its “Legenda Cun Raya” campaign which portrayed a “blackface” lady as unattractive. Many netizens called out the ad, deeming it “racist”, “insensitive” and “tasteless”. When the company apologised for the spot, it did not sit well with netizens, many of whom questioned the brand’s sincerity in apology. Thereafter, it released another statement of apology, stating that it "deeply and sincerely" apologises for the spot.
The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has revealed new rules for both public and private event organisers, which will take effect on 1 October 2017. All event organisers are required to notify the police if they are reasonably expecting more than 5,000 persons at any point in time for public events and 10,000 for private events.
The move followed amendments to the Public Order Act, which was passed in Parliament on 3 April 2017. As such, all event organisers affected by the new criteria must notify the police at least 28 days before the event is held via the LicenceONE platform. This requirement to notify the police will apply to events held on or after 29 October 2017.
The amendments will also give the commissioner of police the power to declare any event as a Special Event. This is after the assessment of the risk of terror attack and public disorder. This will allow the police to issue directions to the event organiser to ensure that appropriate security measures are put in place, the statement read.
If organisers do not implement the security measures required by the police, the police will be given the permission to implement the necessary security measures themselves and recover the costs of doing so from organisers.
Elizabeth Arden kicked off a China travel retail campaign, partnering with China duty free retail operators CDFG, Sunrise Duty Free, CNSC and Zhuhai Duty Free. The campaign links social media and online activations to the airport retail stores, driving footfall and purchase intent.
To bring the campaign to life, Elizabeth Arden has partnered with Chinese fashion and beauty blogger and globetrotter Becky (also known as Li Be Ka). A fun animation video has been created that features Becky packing a luggage with her selection of Elizabeth Arden products. These products have then also been included in a China travel retail exclusive set.
To reach her extensive fan base, the social media campaign started with posts on Becky’s WeChat channel on 23 September, followed by Weibo on 25 September. She will also host a hashtag activity on Weibo where she encourages her fans to share their own experience of how Elizabeth Arden has been an essential part of their own travel skincare routine.
To better engage Chinese travellers, the animation video is also featured on key China travel websites and apps, including Ctrip, Mafengwo and Tuniu. The participating China duty free operators will also announce the campaign to their WeChat fan base.
Stephane Bonnet, global head of travel retail said, “The Chinese travellers are one of our key customers in travel retail. As a brand, we need to reach out to the Chinese travelers at every possible touch point: from their frequent engagement on WeChat, to the travel websites where they do their research and book their tickets, to the airlines they use, and of course the physical airport stores themselves. We also need to engage with our customers, and hence the hashtag activity that we have developed in collaboration with our chosen influencer.”
Yumie Chia, regional director of Asia Pacific travel retail added, “We engaged Becky due to her genuine approach towards the products she writes about. Her highly authentic and ethical approach to always personally trial and test the products before recommending is important.”
Oath, a subsidiary of Verizon as well as an umbrella brand for all of AOL and Yahoo!'s media and technology properties, has announced the launch of its first global brand campaign, #BuildYourBrand, after acquiring Yahoo! in June 2017.
The campaign, which will span nine global markets and underscore the company’s differentiators across mobile, video and data for advertisers, publishers and partners, put an emphasis on Oath’s expertise in building strong brandsby combining content, data and technology on a global scale.
"We build brands that over a billion global digital consumers love," said Tim Armstrong, CEO of Oath. "We have one simple message to mobile consumers and customers - build your brand - and we have Chuck D helping us fight the power. Your brand matters, fight for it."
The campaign creative, jointly developed by Oath’s in-house creative team and partner agencies, Zenith and Squeak E. Clean, includes visuals depicting Oath’s brands as orbs, immersive augmented reality (AR) brand experiences created by RYOT, and an original brand anthem featuring a voice-over by the legendary Chuck D, American rapper, author and producer.
"Oath’s #BuildYourBrand campaign celebrates our company in a direct, emotional way for our global audience," said Allie Kline, CMO of Oath. "Brand love is the language of today’s consumers, and Oath is connecting brands with over a billion crazy-in-love people."
Uber Singapore has unveiled a film titled "'Where' is more than just a place", taking consumers on a journey to places that hold special memories and future potential for Singapore and its residents.
Conceptualised and produced by BBH and Stink Shanghai, the film will run on Facebook, YouTube and cinemas until the end of November. According to the press statement, this is the first in a series of campaigns by Uber that will explore Singapore and the special meanings places hold, as well as to inspire everyone to discover the city with Uber.
It features two intertwining stories - a mother encouraging her son to fulfil his childhood passion for art, and a retired lieutenant general reuniting with his old comrades. The latter is inspired by the life story of Albel Singh, who was the first to register for national service in March 1967. Both stories converge at Gillman Barracks, which holds a deeper meaning for the past and future of the film's protagonists.
“We appreciate that every location on the map has a unique meaning in each rider's life. Wherever they go, there is a reason that prompts them to go there beyond just a physical location. We hope that this film will resonate across Singapore and assure riders that wherever they want to go, Uber will get them there," Stacy Sy, marketing manager Uber Singapore, said.
“The film gave us room to tell an emotional story and explore the different meanings brought to a place by different people. This is so acutely felt in Singapore, where places are constantly evolving and every street, lane and corner may hold a different memory or signify a new opportunity across generations," Gaston Soto, creative director, BBH Singapore, said.
Campaign credits:
ECD: Joakim Borgstrom
Creative Directors: Omar Sotomayor & Gaston Soto
Art Director: Ronald Bunaidi
Copywriter: KC Hong
Business Director: David Webster
Account Director: Rebecca Levy
Account Manager: Victoria Fernandez
Producer: Wendi Chong
Marketing Manager: Stacy Sy
Marketing Director: Eshan Ponnadurai
Production house: Stink Shanghai
Director: Tom Green
DOP: Beniot Soler
Colourist: MPC
Offline: James Norris
Online: Kraftwr5kz
Music Composition: Mad Planet
Audio Mixing: Fuse Singapore
Nielsen has expanded its media impact and Nielsen marketing cloud footprint to Hong Kong, with local TV broadcaster TVB being its first client.
TVB has selected Nielsen to enhance its TV advertising capabilities. It will provide TVB with cross-platform consumer analytics around its subscriber base, as well as advanced audience segmentation, modeling and targeting.
Nielsen said it will empower TVB to monetise the full value of its advertising inventory and more effectively acquire new customers for its service. “This relationship further reinforces the fact that Nielsen has a winning combination of data, analytics and advanced marketing technology for companies across industries. Nielsen’s total audience framework will enable TVB to better demonstrate just how valuable its audience is and to stand out in a very competitive cross-media marketing environment,” said Cherry Lau, senior director, media, Nielsen Hong Kong.
As those solutions are part of Nielsen’s total audience framework, which aims to help marketers and media owners plan and activate audiences across platforms. Nielsen said clients will also have access to its DMP, AI-powered segmentation, data-as-a-service (DaaS), as well as integrations with over 150 third-party media and marketing applications.
Nielsen media impact brings consumer media behaviour information across TV, digital and print media data into one planning interface. Marketers, agencies, and media owners are given an understanding of how different media combinations reach audiences, and how much time their audience spends on those media channels.
The marketing cloud service delivers consumer data and analytics Nielsen can provide, in addition to a full-suite of applications including first-party data management, cross-platform media planning, marketing activation and real-time campaign analytics. It will provide insights around key aggregated customer characteristics, including age, gender, demographics, life-stage, shopping behavior and product purchase intent. Marketers can leverage these insights to build audience segments and activate them in real-time across all major media and marketing platforms, including mobile, online, over-the-top TV, video, social media, email and content management systems.
Singapore’s Temasek Holdings has made an investment into Creative Artists Agency (CAA), a global entertainment and sports agency. According a press statement, the investment will be used to further CAA’s growth, including through acquisitions.
When contacted by Marketing, a Temasek spokesperson declined to comment on the financial details of the transaction.
The move also follows an investment made into CAA this year by China’s media and entertainment fund CMC, along with Fubon Group, including Taiwan Mobile. Meanwhile, TPG Capital retains its majority position in CAA.
CAA has marketing and consulting practices, advising consumer brands including JP Morgan Chase, Intel, Bose, KPMG and IMAX, among others. It is also involved in segments such as film, television, music, sports, and ventured into investment banking, venture fund, technology start-up companies, and established a business in China, among other industry innovations.
Its sports business is focused on athlete representation, with more than 1,000 individual athlete, broadcaster and coaching clients. According to CAA’s statement, the firm’s sports business also advises on more than US$2.7 billion in sponsorship rights deals for premier consumer brands. It has also negotiated more than US$3.7 billion in precedent-setting property sales deals, and managed more than US$37 billion in media rights transactions.
Meanwhile, Temasek, has considerable experience in the telecommunications, media and technology sector, according the the press statement. It added that the investment company has a net portfolio value of close to US$200 billion, with some of its portfolio companies including Alibaba Group and Airbnb, among others.
Millennials of Singapore is a new media brand by digital media group GRVTY Media. Started in December 2016, the media brand aims to inspire Millennials in Singapore and let everyone know that we are not a “strawberry” generation nor are we apathetic towards the world.
Objective
The new Millennials of Singapore has two main objectives:
1. Build a media brand that fully represents the voices of the Millennials in Singapore. We wanted every millennial to know that there is a platform for them to voice out and share their joy, concerns and thoughts to other fellow Millennials.
2. Build a meaningful media brand that can work with a wide array of brands and advertisers to help them spread their brand messaging to Millennials of Singapore.
Solution
To reach out to the intended audience, four content formats were used:
Website editorial articles to capture search traffic
Facebook native social photo to use images to better tell stories
Facebook native video to convey messages
Instagram photo postings to reach out to audience on Instagram
Every week, a total five to 10 pieces of content are produced across the three platforms: website, Facebook and Instagram.
Execution
When we strategised how we should reach out the Millennials in Singapore, we asked ourselves how we should stake a claim in this vertical. The answer was right there in front of us: A brand called Millennials of Singapore.
Once we have decided on the brand, the next question was: How do we reach out to them? We decided to go to where Millennials are spending most of their time on: Facebook and Instagram. For both platforms, the answer was simple: creating native content dedicated to the platform . We knew Facebook would reciprocate with the reach if the content quality is consistently good.
While we took a social first approach to our content, we complemented our social content with website articles through a dedicated site millennialsofsg.com. We wanted to leverage on the empathy of our audience, hence we focus on telling real stories which deeply concern the millennials in Singapore. We also wanted to be daring yet mindful in our content curation, hence some of the topics that were discussed included:
1. Being a Millennial hawker – Focusing on unconventional career choices.
3. Interracial relationship in Singapore - Couples shared what it was like to be an interracial couple in Singapore, and the best and worst things about it.
With a focus on Millennials, the page took off and found resonance with our target audience. It has grown from zero Facebook page likes to 40,000 page likes in six months, with the page reaching over 10 million people organically in May 2017.
In just six months, here are the performances of the content created:
Website Monthly Pageviews: 40,000 (May 2017)
Facebook Post Reach: > 10 Million
Our best performing content was the feature on Mieko, a teenage mum. The content reached over 20 million people organically, resulting in over six million organic views. The video was also adopted on international sites such as Diply and Wunderweib.
Moving forward, GRVTY Media will continue to build more media assets and channels, and leveraging on its experience of digital media know-how and proven owned and operated medias to create content for brands.
Hiu May Wai (韋曉薇), owner of local boutique PR agency Studio Bianco, has been convicted of presenting false invoices and quotations to its client MCM, a German luxury handbag brand. This is for a reimbursement of expenses totalling over HKD $1.26 million.
Wai, 42, admitted to 12 fraud charges in August 2017, and was sentenced to imprisonment for eight months and suspended for two years on 29 September, Ming Pao reported.
The charges alleged that between 27 April 2011 and 23 January 2014, the defendant falsely claimed that Studio Bianco had respectively engaged and paid for services provided by 19 companies for MCM Fashion Group (MCM), totalling over HKD $1.26 million.
The defendant was a director-cum-share holder of Nube providing public relations service in the name of Studio Bianco, which was retained by MCM as its public relations agency at a monthly fee. Apart from the monthly fee, Studio Bianco could claim reimbursement of expenses from MCM with supporting documents.
A staff member MCM Fashion Group has written a plea for Wai, praising her performance and explaining that Wai had returned all the money.
The case arose from a corruption complaint. Subsequent ICAC enquiries revealed the above alleged offences.
Some say you should not put all eggs in one basket, but Manulife Hong Kong surely wouldn't agree entirely with this sentiment. For the first time, the insurance company is focusing its latest campaign on solely one specific consumer segment: Hong Kong's "dual-income-no-kids" couples.
The campaign consists of nine short situation-based "web-isodes", and was launched on digital platforms, social media, and TV. The series, filmed by director Adam Wong Sau-ping and starring local actors Gregory Wong Chung-yiu and Bondy Chiu Hok-yee, follows the daily life of a typical "dual-income- no-kids” couple in Hong Kong as they face situations that trigger them to think about how their future together might turn out.
From programmatic content to online outreach, as well as its interactive social media engagement and advertising, the campaign tailors every step to make sure it reaches the market segment, Manulife Hong Kong's chief customer officer Isabella Lau tells Marketing.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O2QUPgvfe60
"We are presenting retirement topics in a way that will resonate with our target audience. The whole campaign, with its programmatic content and online outreach is tailored to them," Lau explained.
Quoting findings from the Manulife Investor Sentiment Index, Lau added that 50% of two-member households expect their savings would last only 15 years into retirement. "That showed the urgency of early retirement planning among this "dual-income-no-kids" segment," she said.
"Retirement planning is complex and takes serious thought and timely action. Our new campaign uses video and social media as a high-impact way to get people talking and to direct them to our RetireSimple campaign site to learn more about retirement planning, product solutions and make an appointment to meet with our advisors."
Lau said it made sense to use engaging digital platforms and interactive social media to reach the market segments, as they are "busy, tech-savvy people".
Mobile shopping growth is dialing up in Asia Pacific’s emerging markets, outpacing their more developed counterparts, according to the latest Mastercard Mobile Shopping Survey. Consumers in the Philippines (53.5 percent) and Malaysia (55.6 percent) top the region with the highest year-on-year growth in mobile shopping, recording increases of 12.6 percent and 10.1 percent respectively.
Meanwhile, consumers in India (75.8 percent) retain their crown as the region’s top mobile shoppers for the second consecutive year, having made at least one purchase through their mobile phones in the three months preceding the survey. China’s mobile shoppers remain a close second at 71.4 percent, followed by Thailand at 65 percent. On the flipside, more advanced markets like Japan (31 percent), Australia (26 percent) and New Zealand (26 percent) are keeping their mobile purse strings tight.
Asia Pacific’s penchant for mobile shopping has also fueled a steady increase in digital wallet adoption, with more than one in five consumers (22.3 percent) using such payment methods. The region’s consumers are also embracing QR code payments. Over one in ten consumers use QR code payments with the most avid users hailing from China (42.6 percent) by a wide margin.
“Consumers in many of Asia Pacific’s emerging markets are mobile-first users, having leapfrogged the traditional payment evolution. Their governments are making significant efforts to push the development of the e- and m-commerce landscape as well as its supporting infrastructure, which has in part contributed to the growth we’ve seen in the latest survey results,” said Benjamin Gilbey, Senior Vice President, Digital Payments and Labs, Asia Pacific, Mastercard.
“Today’s consumers have shifted from simply being one-device users to one-app users, as they demand more seamless payment experiences. This calls for greater collaboration between public and private sectors and industry players, to facilitate interoperability among the plethora of payment options available today. Recent progress made in this direction, such as the standardizing of QR-based payments in India and Thailand, has been encouraging. We see many opportunities for further growth and remain committed to working with industry partners in enabling commerce for every device,” noted Mr. Gilbey.
Key findings from the Mastercard Mobile Shopping Survey:
Over the past five years, shoppers in India tracked the largest increase in mobile shopping by 45.5 percent across Asia Pacific. Following closely were the Philippines with a growth of 32 percent and Malaysia with 30.2 percent.
While shoppers in India (45.5 percent) and China (38.2 percent) lead the pack as the region’s most avid digital wallet users, Malaysia recorded the largest growth in usage with a 14.8 percent increase from 11 percent the previous year.
Majority of consumers across the region (53.6 percent) cite convenience as a key reason for shopping on their mobile devices, particularly those in China (70.9 percent), Thailand (60.8 percent) and Taiwan (59.2 percent). Contrary to the rest of the region, majority of consumers in Malaysia cited the ability to shop on the go as a key reason, as opposed to convenience.
Clothing and fashion accessories (34.9 percent), personal care and beauty products (21 percent) and movie tickets (20.2 percent) are the top purchases made by Asia Pacific’s mobile shoppers. Interestingly, this was not the case for mobile shoppers in Japan, New Zealand and Taiwan, whose top purchases include books, CDs and DVDs; toys and gifts; and personal and beauty care products, respectively.
Consumers in China (27.8 percent) and Korea (26.8 percent) lead the region when shopping for items from supermarkets and superstores via their mobile devices.
Preferences for in-store shopping continues its steady decline across Asia Pacific, dropping to 45.9 percent from 48.6 percent two years ago. Consumers in India record the sharpest decline of 10.3 percent from 54.7 percent in 2015, likely due to the significant progress in developing the country’s e-commerce industry and supporting infrastructure.
ACMA relaunches to transform content marketing in APAC
Members that have come on board at the time of launch include Allison + Partners PR, MEC Wavemaker, Publicis Content, Bloomberg Media, Click2View, Isentia, LinkedIn and Text100 PR.
Facebook IQ and SECTION launch new insights tool
The new insights tool enables businesses to find and reach new audiences by comparing country data based on past campaign performances across Facebook, Instagram and Audience Network.
Kan brings more than 15 years’ experience in professional in-house marketing communications.
Isentia appoints marketing manager for Asia
Prior to her latest role, Kwong was the business operations and marketing executive at Isentia for over two years, according to her LinkedIn.
Publicis One Vietnam launches Prodigious Brand Logistics
Prodigious will offer its services across Publicis One’s agencies Leo Burnett, Saatchi, Publicis, Zenith, Starcom, Performics and MSLGROUP, as well as to direct clients.
R3 elevates Seema Punwani to partner role
She has led global initiatives for clients like MasterCard, Economic Development Board of Singapore, Fonterra and Suntory amongst others.
Lazada and Samsung sign first regional deal
The expanded partnership marks the first ever regional contract between both parties spanning six countries including Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam and the Philippines.
Havas Group acquires Sorento
This strategic acquisition will allow Havas to further develop its regional presence and add to its depth and breadth in India to deliver for global clients.
ONE Championship partners GoDaddy
GoDaddy branding is set to be featured at ONE: DYNASTY OF HEROES which will take place at the Singapore Indoor Stadium on 26 May.
OMD makes appointments to strategy team
He has extensive experience across the globe, having worked for OMD in the region as the strategy lead for OMD APAC as well as the global VP of marketing for HTC.
Sizmek appoints general manager for APAC region
He will be responsible for managing the company’s operations across the Asia-Pacific region, including customer engagement, sales development and innovation, strategic planning, and revenue growth.
Singtel partners NYP to help SMEs in the retail and F&B sectors
SMEs can also seek additional support on social media marketing, online merchandising and analysis of online consumers from students and lecturers at the NYP’s customer experience and analytics centre.
The agency would begin work immediately across strategy development, creative, execution, partnerships, influencer relationships and experiential platforms.
Tapad hires Andrew Tu as APAC VP
Tapad’s APAC team is currently headquartered in Singapore with plans to expand into Japan and Australia in the coming months.
Alibaba Cloud partners with NUS and EZ-Link
Alibaba Cloud will contribute US$500,000 in cloud credits towards the use of its cloud platform and data centres by students and researchers from NUS for academic and research purposes.
EZ-Link introduces NFC enabled card readers
In March 2016, EZ-Link launched the EZ-Link NFC SIM, pioneering the use of compatible mobile phones with NFC technology for making public transport payments.
Amobee names global innovations lead Chu will be charged with leading Amobee's new product offerings that are driven by and utilise telecommunications operator assets.
Amnet and RadiumOne partner up
The partnership will see RadiumOne’s proprietary mobile and sharing analytics software deployed across Amnet‘s clients, complementing existing technology to fuel paid media effectiveness.
Freeman launches brand experience agency in China and Singapore
The global provider of brand experiences has integrated several of its creative services across the Asia Pacific region, including China and Singapore, under the company’s agency division, FreemanXP.
Sitecore appoints The Hoffman Agency
The appointment comes as Sitecore plans to further establish its presence in this region and meet the ever increasing digital marketing needs of brands with context marketing.
McCann Worldgroup Japan appoints new CCO
Antony Cundy will be responsible for overseeing excellence in the targeted and efficient delivery of campaigns for clients who work across multiple MWG disciplines.
Ogilvy Public Relations Australia appoints new director
In this new role, he will oversee the consultancy’s social, content and digital practice - Social@Ogilvy, and will lead the Microsoft account as the key client relationship manager.
Adknowledge announces country head for India
He has over 20 years of experience in building and scaling businesses and brands, defining strategy, and running operations for companies.
WWF and Toyota head towards a zero carbon society
The project will take place in WWF priority places such as Borneo and Sumatra. In the future, the project will expand to the Greater Mekong region.
Outbrain renews multi-year deal with SPH
With the extended partnership with SPH, Outbrain continues to demonstrate significant momentum with its publishing partners.
NTUC FairPrice hosts first ever Facebook Live event
Food channel, co-owned by NTUC FairPrice, and operated by content marketing agency Brand New Media, will be hosting its first Facebook Live event entitled Live Healthy, Eat Healthy.
Outbrain partners up with Mediacorp
Outbrain will aggregate Mediacorp’s coveted audiences with those from its previous local publishers and global site wins.
L'Oreal Paris Singapore employs star power
L’Oréal Paris Singapore has launched an interactive out-of-home (OOH) panel featuring brand ambassador and local celebrity Rui En.
SPHMBO shows off latest OOH offering in VivoCity
Since its inception, the digital advertising network has played host to Seiko, Rado and Walt Disney's Finding Dory, which will be screening in local cinemas later this month.
Royal Caribbean International has launched a social media campaign titled "#RCIFAMILYFIRST", to drive home the importance of family.
Conceptualised and produced by JWT x Mirum’s The Social Team and Abundant Productions, the idea for #RCIFAMILYFIRST stemmed from data showing Singaporeans were spending lesser time with their families. Royal Caribbean saw it as an opportunity to step away from its usual messaging that focuses on its ships and onboard activities, and spread awareness about those sentiments that hit close to home. The campaign runs until 18 October.
The video features influencer Aarika Lee having a chat with a Singaporean grandmother, father and son, depicting response that majority of Singaporeans could directly relate to. The company is also offering cruise prizes for families and extended members with a Facebook contest, in hopes of creating the "ultimate" ambience for quality family time.
https://youtu.be/MrvzhSje5Jo
“We have been in the market for 10 years and we would like to do something different. We want to give something of great value back to the society. We want to connect with our guests beyond their wants. We hope with this campaign, we can show them what they really need and one of them being spending quality time with the family," Nicole Lai, head of marketing (Asia Pacific), Royal Caribbean International, said.
IPG Mediabrands has appointed Simon Talvard-Balland (pictured) to the newly created role of head of digital solutions APAC for the digital performance and experience marketing agency Reprise.
Based in Singapore, Talvard-Balland will report to Scott McBride, chief digital officer IPG Mediabrands APAC.
According to the agency, Talvard-Balland is responsible for championing digital experience and growth of the next generation digital network worldwide. With more than 10 years of industry experience spanning Singapore, Tokyo, New York, Paris and Walldorf, Talvard-Balland is proficient in leading multinational teams across search, social media, channel marketing, digital transformation and business development. He specialises in multiple categories including FMCG, technology, hospitality, health and automotive.
Prior to his new role, Talvard-Balland was regional director at performance marketing agency Resolution Media for more than two years, where he led the Unilever account across Asia Pacific. Before that, he was the regional director at PHD for over two years. He also worked at Matchcode and SAP.
“I am both honored and delighted to join IPG Mediabrands APAC. Meeting with Scott McBride, Leigh Terry and Craig Ellis stimulated the appetite for a new challenge in an innovative space, and I look forward to us building great things together," Talvard-Balland said.
"Talvard-Balland joining the Reprise APAC team marks the evolution of the agency, moreover the beginning of a journey for which I'm very excited to enlist the holistic digital experience and channel skills that Simon brings to the network," McBride said.
McBride was appointed to his role of chief digital officer of APAC last year to drive innovation and adaptability of Mediabrands’ digital product to its key global and regional clients.
Malaysia Airports has partnered with Alipay to create awareness, boost interest and strengthen its brand positioning among Chinese travellers. According to Badlisham Ghazali, managing director of Malaysia Airports, partnering with the cashless payment platform is a "major step" towards embracing the future of retail and F&B transactions at its airports.
He added that Malaysia Airports fully supports cashless payments platforms to offer convenience to customers, especially Millennials who prefer to travel light and are technology savvy. The convenience of cashless payments are also in line with the organisation's efforts to move towards a highly digitised airport environment.
Additionally, it will introduce the Chinese Traveller Welcome Pack which includes information such as special promotions, transit and baggage facilities and local city tours. This is part of its Total Airport Experience initiative and the Welcome Pack will be made available from mid-October 2017 until March 2018. Malaysia Airports is also launching the Spend & Win campaign catered specifically for Alipay users from November 2017 to March 2018, in a bid to further entice Chinese tourists.
“To date, 55.8% and 56.7% outlets at KLIA and klia2 Terminal respectively are transacting via Alipay. So far, we have seen a 25% increase in sales from overall Alipay transactions at both terminals. During shopping campaign period, sales can increase further by 35% to 40%,” Ghazali added.
In 2016, Malaysia Airports recorded 4.9 million passenger traffic movements from China, with the number increasing by 22% to 3.3 million from January to July 2017 compared to the same period last year. The latest initiative to attract more Chinese tourists into the country comes after Genting collaborated with CIMB Bank in June this year, to launch Alipay at Resorts World Genting. The partnership marked Resorts World Genting as the first hospitality merchant to introduce Alipay in Malaysia.
Companies in Malaysia are not the only ones that are looking to lure Chinese travellers. Recently, the Singapore Tourism Board signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Alipay to increase exposure of Singapore’s offerings from a variety of tourism businesses, and provide Chinese tourists better information access before and during their trips. In August, Alipay partnered with Singapore digital payment provider CC PAY to offer cashless payment services to Chinatown retailers, to help “revitalise” shopping centres such as People’s Park Complex, People’s Park Centre and Chinatown, as well as attract more locals and tourists to shop there.
Changi Airport Group (CAG) has appointed FALCON Agency as its full-service email marketing agency for its Changi Rewards Programme, following an open pitch held in August. The length of appointment is 12 months, with an option to renew for another 12 months, and covers the local market.
The agency will be tasked with developing cross-channel customer life-cycle communications and campaigns on the Changi Rewards marketing platform. This is including but not limited to the implementation of automated life-cycle programs, calendar planning, creative development and on-going optimisation, according to a press statement.
“We chose FALCON because it had the right experience and were able to demonstrate a synergy of strategy, creativity and technical capabilities that we were looking for in an agency partner,” Shirley Tui, senior manager, CRM at CAG, said.
“We are elated to be given the opportunity to work with a well-loved brand such as Changi and to play an important role in developing the life-cycle strategy for Changi Rewards,” Kelvin Koo, managing director at FALCON Agency Singapore, said.
Most recently, CAG shortlisted six agencies for the next round of its creative and digital pitch. The shortlisted agencies were incumbent J. Walter Thompson Singapore, Blk J, BBDO Singapore, Ogilvy & Mather Singapore, TBWA Singapore and TSLA. The pitch, which was launched in August is managed by R3, with the appointed agency being responsible for strategic planning and creative services, as well as offer digital marketing and maintenance services for CAG’s digital assets.
Currently, CAG works with Havas Media Singapore for its media buying. The agency was appointed in May 2015 for a period of two years, with an option to extend for another two. The account is reported to be valued at SG$16 million.
Star Media Group is tipped to be reducing its staff headcount by approximately 200, as it aims to implement the mutual separation scheme and early retirement option, said multiple media reports such as Nikkei, Malaysiakini and New Straits Times.
The news sources said that this was according to a Star Media Group internal memo. This comes amid challenges in terms of profitability. According to the reports, the memo, which was signed by group managing director/CEO Wong Chun Wai (pictured), stated that more needs to be done to "rationalise [its] business pillars", one of it being manpower, as Star Media Group works to continue being at the forefront of the industry.
Star Media Group will review its manpower needs with the goal of becoming a "lean organisation" that would readily meet mounting business challenges, the memo added.
A+M has reached out to Star Media Group for comment on whether this move will affect its marketing team.
In 2016, Star Media Group reported an overall revenue decline of 8.53% for the whole year, from RM1,019 million in 2015 to RM932 million the last year. Print and digital registered a lower revenue of 12.7% due to economic uncertainties and poor consumer sentiment, said the company in a statement. This resulted in overall newspaper advertising expenditure (ADEX) falling by 12.3% in the first quarter.
The radio broadcasting segment recorded a loss before tax of RM360,000 on a lower revenue of RM855,000, while the television channel segment registered a loss before tax of RM1.98 million on a decreased turnover of RM2.02 million.
Its event, exhibition, interior and thematic segment however, saw its revenue rising to RM42.02 million compared with RM38.09 million in the first quarter of last year. It comprises of businesses carried out by Cityneon Holdings and i.Star Ideas Factory (Perfect Livin’). The overall decline came despite a 10.3% increase in revenue from its events, exhibition, interior and thematic segments.
In May, it sold its 52.51% stake in Cityneon Holdings for RM360.18 million cash to investment holding company, Lucrum 1 Investment. The deal was expected to allow Star Media Group to realise a gain on disposal of about RM214.07 million. Following the sale, the group looked to diversify into areas other than print, despite it bringing in a bulk of the revenue.
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