Tag: Awareness

Singapore – Global online verification platform Sumsub has launched ‘Greenflag’, a global awareness campaign to urge businesses to rethink their verification processes by adopting fairer, more inclusive solutions. Sumsub’s ‘Greenflag’ project aims to unveil the massive issue of digital exclusion—affecting over 627 million people—and attract businesses to help solve it. 

Created by Sumsub and independent creative agency Cloudfactory, ‘Greenflag’ is a global campaign launching the first ‘nation’ for a people-friendly digital world, where unfairly red-flagged digital exiles can have their chance to rejoin the digital economy. 

It launches today in celebration of ‘World Inclusion Day’ with an online film running across digital channels directing businesses to the website https://greenflag.me and uses imagery depicting a floating server, seemingly lost at sea to powerfully illustrate the isolation and disconnect felt by the 627 million individuals excluded from essential digital services. It is also supported by influencer activity.

‘Greenflag’ represents a largely untapped market with a collective spending power of a staggering US$1.75t. For businesses, embracing inclusivity through updated verification processes unlocks vast opportunities. Those ready to rethink exclusionary practices stand to benefit from engaging this economically powerful population.

The website contains the aforementioned whitepaper and information for businesses on how to be more inclusive in their verification processes and how Sumsub can help them unlock an unfairly exiled market, making digital services accessible to all.

For context, the whitepaper by Sumsub, in collaboration with The Catalyst Group, highlights that digital exclusion is not only a societal injustice but also a significant economic oversight, as the lack of accessibility restricts economic participation.

Sumsub notes that around 627 million people around the world are unjustly exiled from digital services and often red-flagged due to bias stereotyping based for reasons such as issues with identification documents, lack of digital literacy, physical appearance changes and country of origin. This profiling can lead to exclusion from services that most people take for granted.

Julia Kim, chief marketing officer at Sumsub, said, “At Sumsub, we believe that access to digital services is a right, not a privilege. The exclusion of over 627 million people from essential services is a global crisis that demands urgent attention. Through the ‘Greenflag’ campaign, we’re shedding light on this hidden issue and challenging businesses to rethink how they approach verification.”

She added, “By implementing more inclusive solutions, we can empower people and unlock enormous economic potential, while ensuring that digital services are accessible to all. It’s time for the industry to come together and take action for creating a fairer digital economy.”

Meanwhile, César García, creative director at Cloudfactory added: “Our goal was to create a tangible representation of a very real problem that has remained invisible for too long. The concept of the floating server, seemingly lost at sea, powerfully illustrates the isolation and disconnect felt by the 627 million individuals excluded from essential digital services.”

He added, “As an agency rooted in Creative Activism, we are dedicated to driving action. Many companies are swayed to tighten security due to new AI driven fraud, meaning businesses become too risk-averse when accepting new customers. We envision ‘Greenflag’ as a genuine pathway to change, offering actionable solutions businesses can adopt immediately. We aim to show the value in this marginalised group, shifting the perception of risk to a nation that’s now open for business.”

‘Greenflag’ will run globally including the US, the UK, Singapore, Hong Kong, Mexico, South Africa, and UAE.

Singapore – The Land Transport Authority (LTA) has recently launched the first of a three-part series of films with The Secret Little Agency to demonstrate electric vehicles as a reality of Singapore’s mobility. 

While awareness of electric vehicles is high amongst Singaporeans, the campaign seeks to educate Singaporeans about the ready infrastructure supporting the adoption of electric vehicles that exist today and into the near future.

The campaign aims to ensure that electric vehicle readiness is hyper-visible to the public by making it part of everyday culture through the language of cinema. Titled ‘Now Showing on Roads Near You’, the campaign puts the power of cinema storytelling to surprising use to show how electric vehicles and its supporting infrastructure aren’t just a thing of the future but are highly present in the here and now.

https://youtu.be/ahjgNlW8SFI?si=p8NASF78QoVLM650

The first of the series touches on the EV’s longevity and range, in the style of an action thriller. Created in collaboration with Abundant Films and director Jesse James Mcelroy, the film follows a protagonist on a thrilling mission to save his family on one single electric vehicle charge. It brings the viewer through an epic journey with entertaining plot twists and turns while demonstrating just how much mileage can be achieved with a single electric vehicle charge.

Each film within the three-part series will touch on three aspects of electric vehicle readiness. With longevity being released first, the following films will tackle the ease and convenience of switching to an electric vehicle through a comprehensive charging infrastructure network, and how the electrification of public transportation drives environmental benefits – each taking on a different genre of cinema.

Talking about the campaign, Nicholas Ye & Mavis Neo, co-chief creative officers at The Secret Little Agency, said, “A cleaner future powered by electric vehicles is inevitable and something all Singaporeans can look forward to, just like an upcoming blockbuster at the cinema. And so ‘Now Showing On Roads Near You’ was born as we create the kind of sizzle that movie trailers do starting with this trailer about the amazing things you can do in just one charge.”

The upcoming two films in this three-part series are slated to be released between mid-January to early February. They will see the campaign culminating towards the Chinese New Year period.

Australia – Designed to promote healthy conversations about men’s health, Kimberly-Clark has recently announced its partnership with Elmwood, a global design consultancy based in Australia.

This collaboration introduces an initiative addressing the sensitive themes surrounding bladder weakening among adult men. In particular, the launch of DEPEND’s latest underwear product lets men go about their everyday lives without worrying about bladder leaks. 

For this product, the campaign features a blend of humour and colloquial expressions, relating to an iconic movie for the intended audience, which was derived from a thorough and deep understanding of Australian and New Zealand cultural nuances. 

Talking about the campaign, Jason Braddy, creative director at Elmwood Singapore, said, “The DEPEND brief offered a unique challenge. How do we place the brand into a consideration set for an audience who doesn’t want to talk about the issue and doesn’t really know where to start?

“Our response was to develop an idea that would be both relatable through humour while building memory structures by celebrating the brand’s distinctive assets,” he concluded.

Devki Khosla, senior account director at Elmwood Singapore, added, ”The consumer is at the centre of our approach. Once we mapped out the motivators and barriers of our target, we combined these messages with best practices across platforms to drive performance and results.”

Leah King, DEPEND Brand Manager at Kimberly-Clark, said, “Together, we have created a brand campaign that will encourage open conversations and help combat the stigma and silence, which are still often associated with discussions around men’s health today.”

For over 35 years, DEPEND has been the trusted partner to millions of men and women worldwide in caring for their bladder leakage, enabling them to confidently reconnect with the life they aspire to live and make the most of it.

Singapore – Popular dating app Tinder has rolled out a new public awareness campaign to safeguard users in Southeast Asia against romance scams. The in-app campaign is part of Tinder’s commitment to ensure the platform provides a safe space where users can make meaningful connections.

From August 28 to September 10, Tinder users will receive an alert upon launching the Tinder app, where they can get directed to more information on how they can stay cautious of romance scams on the app. The campaign will also be accompanied by in-app inbox messages and push notifications. 

In Singapore, Tinder users will be directed to Scam Alert SG – a resource supported by the National Crime Prevention Council (NCPC) and the Singapore Police Force (SPF). The comprehensive guide will serve to remind Tinder users to be alert and aware as they look to make new connections online. 

Meanwhile, in Thailand, Vietnam, and Indonesia, users can browse tips on Tinder’s Romance Scam resource that details actions they can take to protect themselves from online scams. This includes insights on the frequent methods of a romance scammer, alongside a list of Tinder’s suite of in app safety tools that can help fight fraud, including reporting and verification tools and more. 

Users can also access their local Tinder’s Safety Centre, an evolving in-app section dedicated to keeping daters informed about safety features while providing guides, tools and resources.

Earlier this year, Tinder’s parent company Match Group announced that its companies are continuing making investments to enhance machine learning tools that proactively detect, prevent and remove spam across Match Group’s global portfolio.

Additionally, nearly 5 million bots and spam accounts have been removed between January and March 2023 — before the accounts gained access to the platform or shortly after signup, in an effort to prevent potential harm. 

Papri Dev, vice president for APAC communications at Tinder, said, “Our goal is to make Tinder the safest place to meet new people online. Financial and romance scams can be highly sophisticated, and scammers are constantly working to find new ways to take advantage of others. We are committed to continuously work to evolve our own efforts to help prevent them.”

She added, “While these scams can and do occur on all online platforms, we recognise we can do more to help daters protect themselves from potential scams. Through education and information, we hope to help our users feel more confident in making new connections in more fun and safer ways.”

Sydney, Australia – To highlight the importance of those drivers returning to driving after experiencing road trauma, car servicing brand mycar Tyre &Auto has teamed up with TBWA\Sydney and Eleven to launch a campaign that features the initiative ‘Return Plates’ (R Plates). This recognises drivers returning to the road after suffering trauma or following a significant break from driving.

The R Plate aims to encourage empathy from other road users, so returning drivers will feel less pressure, giving them time and space to recover. 

Said initiative connects drivers with links to local and national support services, making help available at any time as well as providing access to real stories and the science behind road trauma recovery. R Plates sees mycar Tyre & Auto continue to build on its brand platform.

To properly launch the initiative, the campaign tapped Dr. Jason Thompson, associate professor at the University of Melbourne, for his expertise in psychology, transportation and post-injury rehabilitation. 

Commenting on the campaign, he says, “People talk about the physical injuries associated with car accidents, but we often overlook the psychological impact associated with the experience. It is a huge burden that Australia carries, it’s an issue we can do something about and this campaign is a great start.”

Adele Coswello, chief customer officer at mycar Tyre & Auto, said, “Our research shows that despite being a nation of confident drivers (89%), almost half of Australians (43%) have lost their confidence at some point, with around three-quarters (73%) having been affected by a road incident.”

She added, “At mycar, we are committed to putting people first, so supporting drivers returning to the road made complete sense. With R Plates, we are helping to signify to other road users that the driver is going through something that otherwise can’t be seen, encouraging empathy and extra care. Returning to the road is also a return to freedom, independence and confidence.”

Meanwhile, Evan Roberts, chief creative officer at TBWA\Sydney, commented, “There have been many people involved in bringing this initiative to life. While this is just the beginning I would like to take a moment to thank our incredible clients, production partners and, of course, our own people who have given so much to this project.”

India – Sanitary brand Stayfree has launched a new campaign in celebration of Daughter’s Day in India, encouraging parents to educate their sons about periods among women, which has perpetuated a long-standing stigma in the country.

The campaign’s ad, conceptualised by DDB Mudra, aims to positively change the narrative of shame and silence around periods. Commonly, men have been kept away from the menstruation conversation for generations, thinking of periods as a women’s secret – unsure of their role and choosing to make themselves unavailable because they don’t know how to offer the much-needed support.

Manoj Gadgil, vice president of marketing at Johnson & Johnson Consumer Health, said, “Stayfree set about to normalise period conversations to create a world where no girl feels embarrassed of periods. The campaign #itsjustaperiod started this journey 2 years back. This year, Stayfree urges parents to talk to their sons and tell them it’s just a period. When boys too are part of the conversation, we can truly create a period friendly world. Having an open dialogue and addressing a child’s curiosity of periods can help us build a generation that is free of societal shame around menstruation.”

Stayfree has also launched a microsite stayfree.in/talktoyoursons to help parents understand how to talk to their sons about periods and urges them to take a pledge to teach their sons about menstruation.

Meanwhile, Pallavi Chakravarti, creative head for West at DDB Mudra, commented, “At what point do children find out that periods are to be spoken about in hushed tones or preferably not spoken about at all? When we say a girl is ashamed about her period, do we ever wonder why? Or stop to think of whom she is hiding from?”

She added. “These were the questions we sought answers to, as we took the platform idea of ‘It’s Just A Period’ into another year. Stayfree has long believed that normalising the conversation involves everyone – not just one section of society – it was this belief coupled with our explorations that led us to the next chapter in our campaign – this Daughter’s Day, talk to your sons.”

Singapore – Streaming and video hosting platform YouTube has announced the launch of its ‘Creators for Impact’ in the Asia-Pacific region, launching first in Singapore. Said initiative is aimed at sharing tips and learnings for local creators to tackle issues of misinformation and mental health on their channels while delivering a compelling message to their audience.

YouTube also hopes that through this programme, it will be helpful in the creator ecosystem by being a tool that can help define and shape public discussion on important issues prevalent in today’s society.

Over the next five months from July to November 2022, 14 creators have been shortlisted based on their channel’s credibility, social impact and potential. Participants can look forward to roundtable discussions with experts, key opinion leaders, and their fellow creators as they work towards using their platform to raise awareness on topics such as misinformation and mental health.

Some of the participating channels include Denise Soong Ee Lyn, TheSmartLocal, Our Grandfather Story, UNfiltered, and Sarah X. Miracle.

Speaking to MARKETECH APAC, Siddharth Srinivasan, head of YouTube content partnerships for Singapore, Malaysia and Philippines, said that they recognise the great contribution of local content creators, to which they have leveraged the open nature of the platform to educate, inspire and entertain viewers in creative ways, with their content gaining recognition both locally and globally.

“It’s important for us to ensure we are helping our creators to reach their audiences with the right content on such topics – in terms of connecting them with subject matter experts to share safe, credible content, and creating an environment where they are able to tap on the local creator community to pick up new tips on content creation like collaborating with a licensed expert to engaging audiences in a live Q&A,” Srinivasan said.

He also noted that YouTube has been active in creating partnerships to address mental health discussion on the platform, including with social media creative studio Bloomr.sg, and Ministry of Funny through Tribe Talkin’ to discuss topics such as personal experiences with issues such as anxiety and depression, mental pressures exerted by COVID-19-induced disruptions, and content addressing topics of violent extremism.

When asked about the state of the platform in terms of misinformation, he said that problematic content represents a fraction of one percent of the content on YouTube and they are constantly working to reduce this even further. He also noted that their work on reducing misinformation has been focused on four pillars: removing violative content, raising up authoritative content, reducing the spread of borderline content and rewarding trusted creators – the 4Rs of responsibility.

“When it comes to misinformation, speedy removals will always be important but we know they’re not nearly enough. Instead, it’s how we also treat all the content we’re leaving up on YouTube by raising up information from trusted sources and reducing the spread of videos with harmful misinformation,” he added.

Srinivasan also added that in Singapore, they have taken proactive steps to raise authoritative voices on the platform and ensure people get access to the right information. These include Top News and Breaking News shelves in Singapore to highlight videos from authoritative news sources.

“Since the beginning of this pandemic, we’ve focused on connecting people with useful, high-quality information and each other while removing violative content that violates our COVID-19 medical misinformation policy and Vaccine Misinformation policy. In Q1 2022, globally, we have removed more than 50,000 videos for violating the vaccine provisions of our COVID-19 misinformation policy. These provisions took effect in October 2020,” he concluded.

Singapore – As the Chinese New Year festivities are focused on the celebration of the Year of the Tiger, the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) in Singapore has launched its latest awareness campaign on how climate change affects tigers in the world, with the launch of its island-wide tiger art trail called “AR-mazing Tiger Trail.”

The campaign, which will be unveiled this February, will feature 33 life-sized tiger art sculptures, designed by a collective of internationally-acclaimed artists in a bid to further awareness of the conservatorship of these magnificent creatures. Each of these sculptures present a unique perspective on the various effects of climate change on tigers.

Using art as an instrument to educate and effect change, WWF-Singapore’s AR-mazing Tiger Trail will explore the future of tiger conservation and ignite hope that positive change is possible if we unite with a common goal.

R. Raghunathan, CEO at WWF Singapore, said that they are delighted to be working with this incredible collective of artists to drive awareness for their tiger conservation mission in a fun, engaging, and approachable way.

“We hope that WWF-Singapore’s AR-mazing Tiger Trail will inspire our fellow Singaporeans and communities around the region to learn more about how our individual actions contribute to biological diversity. I also wish to thank our partners for supporting this important mission,” he said.

The artists hail from various countries, including Singapore, China, United Kingdom, Thailand, Australia, Bhutan, India, Indonesia, Italy, Malaysia, Syria, and the United States.

Meanwhile, Chris Westbrook, curator of Tiger Trail 2022, commented, “The mission of WWF-Singapore’s AR-mazing Tiger Trail was particularly poignant as I connected with the various artists involved around the world. The Tiger is a majestic animal, and the passion for protecting this incredible species is evident through the various works. We cannot wait to unveil the full trail.”

Singapore – Food and grocery delivery platform foodpanda has announced that it will be rolling its vaccination awareness campaign across its key markets in Asia, which lines up with the upcoming World Health Organisation’s World Immunization Week from 24 to 30 April 2021.

The campaign focuses on a series of content which will be shared through digital and social media channels that provides useful information and resources on local vaccination programs, tips on identifying vaccination misinformation and reminders on COVID-19 safeguards. Foodpanda is also supporting local vaccination programs in Singapore, Cambodia and the Philippines. 

In the Philippines, foodpanda will sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Department of Health in April 2021 to combat vaccine misinformation by creating correct information materials targeted for riders, consumers and partner vendors. Foodpanda Philippines is also supporting the ‘IngatAngat’ vaccine information awareness campaign by the local T3 Task Force, composed of government and private sector members to encourage vaccinations.

Meanwhile, foodpanda Cambodia, throughout the month of April, is supporting and showing appreciation to frontliners, by donating food and drinks to four major hospitals and vaccination centres. Foodpanda Cambodia is also working with local authorities to get employees and delivery riders vaccinated. 

In Singapore, foodpanda is working with the Ministry of Health to ensure that its rider partners are vaccinated, while exploring collaborations with local authorities on initiatives to help raise public awareness about vaccines.

Other initiatives include virtual onboarding, fee waivers, and support initiatives for merchants to join the platform quickly and seamlessly. Foodpanda has also allowed more riders to join the network and making food, groceries, and daily essentials available for safe and convenient doorstep delivery, made contactless by default to minimize direct contact and protect the health and safety of customers, riders and merchants

According to Jakob Angele, CEO of foodpanda, the campaign is the company’s objective in spreading the message of being vigilant on keeping our ecosystem safe.

“Leveraging existing channels with our network of riders, merchants, employees and customers, we can raise greater awareness around fighting misinformation and share information around local vaccination programmes, so that our entire delivery ecosystem can be informed and mobilised. We will continuously explore ways to play a part in the fight against COVID-19,” Angele said.

The new campaign comes after foodpanda has recently revamped their brand identity across Asia.

Foodpanda’s campaign will be rolled out in phases across Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Hong Kong, Cambodia, Japan, Bangladesh, Pakistan and the Philippines.

Manila, Philippines – The country’s election body Commission on Elections (COMELEC) has partnered with hackathon organizer Impact Hub Manila to upgrade its voter education website called ‘Vote Pilipinas’, as the country gears up with the upcoming 2022 national elections.

Aside from being a sole website, ‘Vote Pilipinas’ is the campaign arm of COMELEC in raising awareness among the public to go out and register to the nearest COMELEC office in their municipality.

Furthermore, the site showcases easily-digestible information on the registration process, voting precincts, requirements, and important dates to remember.

“We are thrilled for Filipino people to utilize and take advantage of Vote Pilipinas. This is a crucial step to educate voters and bring more people in to exercise their right to suffrage,” said James Jimenez, COMELEC spokesperson.

In addition to the existing information on the site, ‘Vote Pilipinas’ will now have a Voter Registration Service Test which gives users additional information such as the nearest Office of the Election Officer to contact, list of IDs to bring, forms to download, and other important reminders to reduce the time spent at COMELEC headquarters during on-ground registration.

Initially launched last August 2020, the campaign responds to the data obtained by COMELEC that only 75.9% of registered voters turned up to cast their votes in 2019, or that about 1 in every four registered voters did not participate in voting. Hence, the campaign aims to register 7 million more voters this upcoming election. 

“One of the campaign’s goals is to provide every Filipino with access to the right information so they can register and ultimately vote. We hope that through the Vote Pilipinas campaign, we can shift mindsets and make people realize that every vote counts,” said Ces Rondario, Impact Hub Manila’s co-founder and the brainchild of Vote Pilipinas.

According to a town hall conference conducted by ‘Vote Pilipinas’ yesterday, 24 March, part of the campaign will also rely on external help from volunteers, partners and stakeholders, from media practitioners, social media influencers and community organizations.