Forefront Archives - MARKETECH APAC

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia – Luxury automotive brand Maserati in Malaysia has tapped performance marketing agency Aforemention for a six-month remit. The agency has been tasked to localize its global ‘Brutal Beauty’ marketing campaign along with a slew of tactical executions.

‘Brutal Beauty’ is the global awareness campaign for the new Levante SUV in 2021 set by Maserati’s HQ in Modena, Italy. The campaign localized by the agency will be called ‘Momentum’, and speaking to MARKETECH APAC, a spokesperson from FOREFRONT, Aforemention’s parent company, shared that for the localization, additional assets will be introduced, featuring city skylines and local destinations to evoke a sense of ‘wanderlust’ and to occupy domestic travel moments.

In addition, Aforemention will be overseeing Maserati Malaysia’s social media accounts, including performance marketing duties such as social media ads and content strategy.

Darien Mah, founder of FOREFRONT Group, said that there is a growing need for automotive brands to establish a digital presence as more consumers are shifting towards a virtual car-buying experience, with most of the decision-making moments happening online.

“We are honored and excited to ride with Maserati Malaysia along with this digital momentum,” said Mah.

The agency shared that the campaign ‘Momentum’ has been made as a social-first platform that caters to automotive marketing trends that have been accelerated in the new normal. The concept of the campaign aims to incite optimism via the digital ads space, with creative assets that visualize the ‘resilience’ and ‘fighting’ spirit of Malaysians as the nation accelerates towards ‘brighter’ days.

Jihan Malik, head of marketing and communications at Naza Italia, the importer of Maserati in Malaysia, commented that it is important to recognize and respond to rapid digital shifts in order to stay relevant.

“With state borders reopening, being present is an opportunity to spread positivity amidst changing times. As such, working with an agency that shares our passion and understands our brand is key to effectively connecting with our audience,” Malik said.

Sylvester Hiew, partner at Aforemention, remarked, “A partnership with one of the world’s top luxury automotive brands is an opportunity for us to reaffirm our commitment to deliver effectiveness-driven marketing solutions.”

At the start of the year, FOREFRONT was also the one who unveiled the first virtual launch of automotive brand Hyundai in Malaysia, to showcase its car models ‘Kona’ and ‘Sonata’.

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia – Creative agency FOREFRONT ushers in the Year of the Ox with a cheerful and colorful music video, with a track composed and produced by singer and songwriter, Ang Chee Ciang.

The campaign, dubbed ‘A Return to Abundance’, is a collaboration with its new sister tech venture FOUN. FOREFRONT said the campaign aims to represent new beginnings, good fortune, and positivity in this new year.

The film features the agency’s team members which were filmed in the comfort of their homes and were creatively stitched by its video production team. The deliberate use of the character ‘锋’ in the video, is derived from FOREFRONT’s Chinese name ‘先锋’.

“It’s truly heartwarming to witness how our team members come together virtually for this campaign despite the lockdown restrictions. It’s important that we make the best of what we have in these difficult times. The road ahead may look rough now, but we are definitely on the road to recovery,” commented FOREFRONT Group Founder Darien Mah.

Following its annual tradition, the agency will be implementing a social media giveaway for its highly-anticipated angpow packets. The angpows’ intricate design this year features a gold outline of an ox with horns pointed upwards which the company said alludes to an uplifting change in fortune. The design also features an optical illusion depicting a fish which symbolizes abundance.

In addition, the campaign has launched a microsite to host a series of interactive content and for the official giveaway details of the limited edition angpows.

Malaysia – The pandemic didn’t stop vehicle brands from amplifying their marketing – at the start of the second half of 2020, we’ve seen BMW in Malaysia unveil an augmented reality showroom, and this time another global automobile brand – Hyundai – in the country showed off its consumer engagement smarts through the leverage of virtual experience.

In partnership with creative agency FOREFRONT, Hyundai took its first-ever jump to a virtual launch, unveiling all-new units of its car models ‘Kona’ and ‘Sonata’. Running for over a little 20-minutes long, the brand captured the excitement of a car launch through its minimalist but fierce graphics, and even making the engagement more intimate via its in-depth look at the cars’ features and details.

Jeff Chang, CEO of FOREFRONT, shared to MARKETECH APAC that the creative agency chose an understated yet elegant theme to bring out the futuristic atmosphere in the virtual launch – applying darker themes to represent the Hyundai Sonata, while, colored accents used in the lighting for Hyundai Kona to help accentuate the model.

Hyundai said it separately used colored and dark themes to represent each of the brand’s models.

“The matured color tones are also symbolic of the growing-up narrative for those who are looking for an upgrade for their vehicles and help consumers to visualize that a car is more than just a transportation solution, but an extension of one’s personality,” said Chang.

Chang also shared the agency had been prepared for these kinds of projects ever since the second wave of the virus hit Malaysia, gathering its team of talents in event management, video production, and social content management, to help clients who otherwise would have to rely on physical events to engage their customers in such activities as new product launches.

Image from FOREFRONT.

“With Hyundai coming on board, it presented us [with] an opportunity to put our firm’s strengths [to] practice, and helped propel a milestone launch event which otherwise would be a challenge to organize in the age of safer-at-home,” he stated.

According to FOREFRONT, the virtual launch garnered a total of more than a million views.