Tag: Marketing Campaign

Mumbai, India – As February concludes in a non-leap year, McDonald’s India has taken the liberty to celebrate the so-called ‘leapling’ birthdays, and give them the celebration they deserve through its new marketing campaign.

The Indian arm of the popular fast-food chain has initially released a short film, conceptualized by advertising agency DDB Mudra Group. The film depicts quirky highlights on what do people jest about celebrating the birthday on February 29. From their ‘actual age’ jokes to calling their birthday a holiday, the film concludes with a curated meal for these birthday celebrants to enjoy.

“Everyone loves their birthday. It’s the day the world makes you feel special. But for some, this happy day appears on the calendar only once in 4 years. And as a brand that believes that happiness is for everyone, we thought McDonald’s could make it special for these leaplings,” said Rahul Mathew, chief creative officer at DDB Mudra Group.

The promo meal called ‘Surprise Leap Meal’, offers leapling birthday celebrants an exclusive meal which includes vegetarian and non-vegetarian burgers, as well as desserts and shakes.

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(Left) Rahul Mathew, Chief Creative Officer, DDB Mudra Group; (Right) Arvind RP, director – marketing and communications, McDonald’s India (West and South)

“McDonald’s has always aimed to create special moments for one and all. Unlike all others, the leaplings have to wait for 3 long years to celebrate their actual birthday. With this campaign, we hope to add some extra cheer to our leapling customers’ birthday week and make them feel special,” according to Arvind RP, director for marketing and communications at McDonald’s India, in West and South.

The ‘Surprise Leap Meal’ was initially rolled out last February 27, and will run until March 7, 2021. The exclusive meal is also only open to customers at select McDonald’s outlets in West and South.

New Delhi, India – As part of the fast-food chain’s commitment to bringing their in-house meals at a ‘great value’, the Indian arm of McDonald’s has launched a new combo offer called #MatchedByYou, where customers are able to add Coke or Fries at @ Rs. 45 with select McDonald’s menu items. The promo is for a limited time for branches in North and East India.

With this, the fast-food brand has launched a new mini-series, conceptualized together with advertising company DDB Mudra Group, where it humanizes the combo offer through a story about a love triangle between the Burger (aka Buggy), the Fries (aka Freya), and the Coke (aka Kiara), and viewers would have to decide which combo wins the popular vote. 

“We know that many of today’s customers are looking for value for money options for the food they crave. The #MatchedByYou offer is the latest way we want our customers to enjoy their favorite meal served hot and fresh at an affordable price,” said Robert Hunghanfoo, head of Connaught Plaza Restaurants, which operates McDonald’s franchises in North and East India.

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(Left) Robert Hunghanfoo, head of Connaught Plaza Restaurants, (Right) Ashutosh Sawhney, managing partner for North India at DDB Mudra Group

Speaking about the mini-series concept, Ashutosh Sawhney, managing partner for North India at DDB Mudra Group, said, “In a first of its kind sales-driven mini-series, McDonald’s is giving the remote to its consumers so they can play match-makers. #MatchedByYou is a unique campaign where people show their love for the sides they prefer and end up completing the burger’s love story. Backed by sales and consumer preference, the story will move forward to reveal what happens next in this love affair.”

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia – Mimpikita, a local-based modest fashion label, has appointed martech company elfo in elevating its digital advertising and performance marketing initiatives.

Through the one-year partnership, elfo will be executing year-long bite-sized campaigns for Mimpikita to streamline and amplify its brand identity, as well as to align with the modest fashion label’s goals to be inclusive and provide meaningful experiences to its community known as #KitaGirls.

Furthermore, elfo will be running campaigns hand-in-hand with Mimpikita’s planned collections for the year. The campaigns, which will be deployed across all digital touchpoints – website, social media, email, conversational bot – are expected to build and uplift a Mimpikita community built on inclusivity, empowerment, and universal acceptance.

Mimpikita, originally founded by three sisters – Nurul, Amirah, and Syahira Zulkifli – has been in the fashion industry for more than 12 years, and has since then garnered a ‘local cult based on bespoke ready-to-wear pieces’, according to Rose Maria Bague, senior account manager at elfo.

“What we can bring to the table is our expertise in helping brands and businesses establish a solid brand identity and increase overall share of voice (SOV), by providing Mimpikita with brand consulting, performance optimization across all of its digital channels, and lead-generation campaigns,” Bague stated.

Meanwhile, Sri Yosephin, head at elfo, stated that their contribution to Mimpikita is part of the fashion brand’s aspiration to expand globally, as their fashion pieces have been prominently featured at the Kuala Lumpur Fashion Week and had intimate collaborations with other local designers.

From left to right – Syahira, Nurul, Amirah Zulkifli, Co-Founders of Mimpikita

“Our service offerings for Mimpikita are part of a bigger plan for this modest fashion label to go global. Besides harnessing our digital marketing expertise, we are also utilizing elfo’s proprietary digital platforms such as elfoMAP (an email marketing automation platform), elfoA2P (an application-to-person messaging platform), and soon, elfoBOT (an intuitive chatbot), to complement and enable our strategic campaigns for Mimpikita,” Yosephin explained.

For one of the founders, Nurul Zulkifli, their recent partnership with elfo will center on keeping their values with the #KitaGirls community, regardless of progress and expansion.

“As we continue to evolve and expand with the help of elfo, designing carefully crafted pieces for the everyday woman will still be at the heart of Mimpikita. Our wish is to build an inclusive community, to inspire women all over the world with our casualwear,” she added. 

Singapore – In an appeal to encourage more people from the younger generation to donate blood for a better cause, the Singapore Red Cross (SRC) has revamped the look of its existing mascot, ‘Blood Buddy’, or more commonly known as ‘BB’.

Officially launched back in 2005, ‘Blood Buddy’ has traditionally been recognized as a physical mascot at malls, mobile blood donation drives, and outreach activities run by SRC.

The revamp of the mascot stems from SRC’s objective to engage the youth and advocate blood donation with a consistent brand voice. With a refreshed image that reflects its adorable and lively personality, ‘Blood Buddy’ is well-positioned to connect with young and potential donors who are at the early stages of their blood donation journey. 

“We also recognize the importance of inculcating the habit of giving blood from a young age, and we hope to encourage youth to adopt blood donation as a lifestyle. This is where Blood Buddy will be a lively and relatable voice of encouragement for those getting started on their blood donation journey,” said Prakash Menon, director of the Blood Donor Programme at Singapore Red Cross.

The revamp also comes in line with the organization’s ‘One More Step’ campaign, which encourages potential donors to take small, incremental steps towards the eventual goal of being a regular blood donor who donates at least twice a year. Through the campaign, ‘Blood Buddy’ serves to empathize with the physical and emotional concerns all blood donors have and to showcase the small steps one can easily take to give blood and help save lives.

“Over the years, we’ve observed that many potential blood donors are deterred by prevailing misconceptions towards blood donation. Through ‘One More Step’, and with the help of Blood Buddy, we want to dispel these concerns and at the same time remind people of the power of their individual actions. Each of us can contribute in our own way to create a culture of good, by taking the next step in our blood donation journey,” Menon added.

As part of the ‘One More Step’ campaign, SRC will introduce a series of activations including videos and comic strips to engage potential donors on social media. Members of the public may also win SRC memorabilia by participating in a giveaway from February 7 to March 8, where the public must submit photos of ‘Blood Buddy’ as seen in buses island-wide.

Singapore – Singapore’s telco giant Singtel has launched its latest Chinese New Year short film, a comedy sketch titled “My Grandmother’s House”, which centers around the theme of the importance of unity over rivalry.

Singtel-Chinese-New-Year-Snapshot-1

The video revolves around two rival families, headed by their missus, Wendy, and Adeline who are about to visit their grandmother in the upcoming Chinese New Year. Due to the regulations mandated by the government, only eight visitors are allowed to be guests in a house, which results in the standoff between the two families, where both race in reaching grandmother’s house first.

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As both families engage in competition, a twist in the story ensues as an emotionally driven grandmother narrates the story of how she met Daisy, an old best friend of hers, at an old Tracy Kwang concert, with whom she lost touch with, yet memories remain thanks to a jade pendant they both shared.

Singtel-Chinese-New-Year-Snapshot-3

All of a sudden, Wendy’s youngest son surprises all of them when he was able to get in touch with Daisy over a video call. The grandmother and Daisy talk over and show surprise that they both wear the jade pendants years ago. Wendy tips off the skit by saying “You can always join us” in reference to Singtel’s 5G connectivity, as the whole family laughs and spends the Chinese New Year together in unison.

“Chinese New Year has always been a great time for us to underscore Singtel’s brand message that connections in the deeper sense of the word should be esteemed, hence the film’s tagline, ‘Stay connected to what matters’. This is all the more pertinent as Singapore eases into Phase 3 with renewed hopes of post-COVID recovery,” said Lian Pek, Singtel’s vice president for group strategic communications and brand.

Pek added, “Ultimately, we’re all in this together and we should continue to help each other out of the woods. We also wanted to bring some fun and cheer through a film that everyone can relate to, as people look forward to better things ahead.”

Commenting on the abundance of 5G references in the comedy skit, Pek said, “As a company that’s been leading in the next-generation connectivity stakes, we made a subtle nod to the benefits of 5G – from faster GPS downloads which gets the family to their destination earlier to faster gaming speeds and high definition video calls. As we roll out our 5G network and coverage, this is a tongue-in-cheek way of illustrating how this next-generation technology can deliver positive new experiences and possibilities.”

Singtel’s “My Grandmother’s House” rolls out today, January 22 and to all of Singtel’s social media channels and Singtel TV.

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia – Superapp Grab and electronics company Panasonic have partnered to launch a marketing campaign for in-car air quality that provides overall in-car experience enhancement.

The marketing campaign will combine both offline and online advertising solutions, as Grab will turn 5,500 GrabCar Premium vehicles across four countries into mini-showrooms for Panasonic’s nanoe™ X generators. The promoted product is an air-purifying unit which cleans the air, and improves air circulation. Ads will also grace the Grab app. 

“Our partnership with Panasonic reflects our belief that advertising is not a one-sided relationship, but one where there is a value exchange between brands and customers. It also marks a milestone for our fast-growing GrabAds business that is increasingly becoming the advertising platform of choice for brands within and outside of our ecosystem to better connect and engage with the everyday Southeast Asian consumer,” said Ken Mandel, regional managing director for GrabAds, the advertising arm of Grab.

“We will continue to take a collaborative approach in working with brands and agencies to ideate and launch impactful campaigns in Southeast Asia,” added Mandel.

The campaign will also provide additional income opportunities for Grab driver-partners who will earn a monthly product placement fee throughout the campaign period, as well as  5,500 air purifiers to participating drivers at no cost.

The Grab x Panasonic collaboration will span across Singapore, Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi, Kuala Lumpur and Jakarta for a period of two months, starting this January.

Digital applications have been a key enabler in creating a connected digital life for consumers. With the COVID-19 pandemic accelerating the adoption of digital applications and placing more focus on online shopping channels and digital payments, holiday shopping and Christmas rush might be a little different this year. As the holiday season approaches, we are seeing a fundamental shift in social interactions, digital entertainment and shopping habits.

Online shopping continues to grow year-over-year. In 2019, Forrester estimates that 56 percent of shoppers in Southeast Asia (SEA) will make their purchases online.

With mobile as the main channel used by shoppers, the same study predicts that 62 percent of online retail sales in SEA will come from mobile purchases. This presents opportunities for brands to reach more than 150 million online shoppers from various markets across the region including Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

Online shopping statistics

When developing a marketing strategy for Christmas, it’s essential to check online Christmas shopping statistics and know how this will impact your overall strategy. For instance, due to the pandemic, the latest Retail Sales Index and Food & Beverage Index from the Department of Statistics in Singapore shows a – 5.7 percent decline on total retail sales compared to last year. However, items under Recreational Goods, Furniture and Household and Computer and Telecommunications category have a positive increase in sales this year.

 Digital payments for frictionless shopping

Online shopping is also gaining momentum in the region due to the rise of digital payments. According to Deloitte’s report, Indonesians and Singaporeans are amongst the highest proportions of people who shopped online and retail shops that prefer digital payments. Digital payments are fast and frictionless. As more merchants adopt digital payment channels, e-commerce apps must also ensure that they leverage digital payment channels to respond to the demands of the consumers.

Here are some of the best practices to keep in mind when developing your e-commerce marketing campaign for the holiday season. 

1. Free shipping
Adding unexpected costs at the final stages of the user journey may frustrate your customers and cause them to churn. This is why free shipping may be worth the expense. Entitling your users to free shipping during the holiday season is an effective gift to shoppers, and may give you the edge over your competitors.

2. Bundles and gift guides
Creating bundle offers is an effective way to autonomously upsell to your customers while also giving them a good deal on grouped purchases. Bundles are also a smart way to turn inexpensive items into a more significant gift recommendation for your users. Alternatively, you can include a ‘recently bought with’ function on your website or app to encourage multi-item sales.

You can also create curated gift guides to help shoppers with their search, combining best-selling items, surplus stock and discounted items.

3. Offer gift cards
Gift cards are a simple but effective way to generate revenue during the holiday season. For best results, gift cards should be purchasable and can be used digitally and in-store. This accounts for the preferences of all gift-givers and those who have received your gift vouchers.

4. Set up a themed landing page
Get your shoppers into the Christmas spirit by directing them to a Christmas-themed landing page – where you can share your curated gift guides and bundle options, and encourage customers to proceed with their purchases.

5. Branded hashtags
Using a branded, Christmas-themed hashtag across your social media channels is a smart way to raise brand awareness while also providing app users with a means to share their purchases on social media. Examples of Christmas-themed hashtags by brands include #SwishUponAStar (Lush cosmetics) and #BarbourChristmas (Barbour).

This also allows your social media team to gather user-generated content (USG), which can then be shared and retweeted.

 From a retailer’s point of view, Christmas is the most wonderful time of the year. Despite the challenges of the year, the Christmas season is a great opportunity for e-commerce app marketers to boost sales, build their audience and reward loyal customers.

The author is April Tayson, Vice President for Adjust India and Southeast Asia. Adjust is an app marketing analysis platform, and provides services such as attribution and measurement, fraud prevention, cybersecurity, as well as automation tools for mobile apps.

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Singapore – A new exclusive partnership has been formed between ad platforms AdColony and Anzu.io, which entails AdColony to offer Anzu.io’s in-blend advertising solutions across both video and display to brands and agencies within the Asia Pacific.

The new partnership now allows seamless advertising to games such as custom-paint Formula One race cars or virtual perimeter of an in-game football studio, where brands can now create deeper levels of engagement with the gaming community.

Screenshot from Samsung in-game advertising campaign inside Axis Football  (Credit: Anzu.io)

Alongside the partnership is a suite of industry tools, which includes campaign effectiveness measurement, fraud prevention, and ad verification for the first time to bring to fruition the in-game advertising integration. 

According to their press release, more than 1.5 billion consumers in Asia Pacific are gamers, where70 percent play games daily on their mobiles. Furthermore, 40 percent claim to play more games since the COVID-19 outbreak.

Screenshot of an in-game ad from 7-Eleven mobile campaign in Gravity Rider Zero (Credit: Anzu.io)

“We passionately believe that gaming is the new and improved social media for marketers in terms of connecting with consumers at scale. This opportunity has been accelerated in recent months with the pandemic, and 2020 has seen an enormous uplift in the demand for new solutions for brands to reach gaming audiences,” said Tom Simpson, AdColony’s senior vice president for APAC.

He also added, “This partnership allows AdColony’s expertise in APAC markets to combine with Anzu’s global-leading blended in-game ad technology to offer a unique solution for brands to connect with consumers seamlessly in and around their favorite games. We look forward to pioneering new marketing offerings for our clients and delivering great work across APAC.”


Anzu’s CEO and Co-founder Itamar Benedy commented, “APAC is really the epicenter of worldwide gaming, and Anzu is thrilled to bring the combination of our programmatic in-game advertising experience with AdColony’s offerings to the region. This partnership represents a major opportunity for advertisers who are ready and eager to reach these ultra-engaged audiences.”

Singapore – As a way to show its appreciation for healthcare workers’ efforts during the country’s battle against the pandemic, Manulife will be giving away up to four complimentary admission passes to workers to the Manulife Sky Nets – Walking at Jewel Changi Airport. 

The recent campaign is in line with the company’s “Life Goes On, Let’s Move Responsibly”, which focuses on encouraging Singaporeans in embracing life in the new normal.

For Darren Thompson, chief customer officer at Manulife Singapore, the campaign launch is a way of bringing the focus point of gratitude to healthcare workers.

“2020 has been a whirlwind of a year for everyone, but no community has fought and endured the eye of the storm quite as much as healthcare workers. In the thick of the pandemic, these dedicated and resilient individuals not only performed their duties diligently, but also risked their lives to protect public health,” Thompson said.

He also added, “At Manulife, people are at the heart of what we do and we pride ourselves on walking with our customers and ensuring that their needs are upheld in every season. We want to thank these everyday heroes for their spirit of sacrifice, and are humbled to extend to them a window to unwind. We hope that this simple act will be an opportunity for our frontline fighters to take time to put them and their families first, even for just a few moments.”

To redeem their admission tickets, healthcare workers simply need to flash their own vocational passes at the Concierge Counter located at level 5 of Jewel for their admission tickets

The campaign is effective from November 25, 2020 to December 25, 2020, and in support of SG Cares Giving Week 2020.

Manila, Philippines – The Colgate brand has been doubling down on its global-wide advertising campaigns, where its optimism-themed #SmileStrong campaign released just recently in Southeast Asia market Malaysia. Today, another region-bound country, the Philippines, has officially announced its installment of the campaign, where the specific Colgate arm decided to spotlight on the optimistic attitude among individuals with special needs.

Three individuals are the protagonists of the Filipino ad spots – teacher and motivational speaker and born with down syndrome Brina Maxino, local actress Candy Pangilinan who is mother to a son who has ADHD, and Arizza Nocum, peace advocate and entrepreneur who co-founded KRIS, a non-profit organization promoting peace through education.

Much like the Malaysian campaign, the ambassadors in the spot states a recurring statement of “When they say…I smile,” where they share people’s judgments of their capabilities and capping it off with a positive “I smile.”

Colgate Philippines, in a press statement, shared that with the local implementation of the global advocacy, it hopes to make the same big impact that other #SmileStrong campaigns in other key markets have generated, which is “an increase of brand love and loyalty among consumers.”

The country’s Marketing Director Ari Mandelbaum speaks of how the ad aims to break the false positivity in “Filipino resilience” and inspire “optimism in action” instead.

“The common Filipino’s ‘resilience’ has constantly been held up as a shining character trait even in the face of natural disasters, violent conflict, poverty, and a number of deep-seated societal issues,” he said.

However, Mandelbaum added, “A growing number of people are seeing ‘The Filipino Resilience’ as a glorified coping mechanism, seemingly resigned to just powering through adversities with a mindset to live just to survive each day. At Colgate, we believe that it takes more than optimism to power through the challenges of today, thus launching #SmileStrong where we encourage Filipinos to believe and uphold the power of ‘optimism in action.’”

Together with Colgate-Palmolive’s global creative partner Red Fuse, which is advertising and communications company WPP’s integrated global team, the brand in the Philippines has tapped another WPP network – integrated marketing communications firm SOHO Square, its local arm – to bring the local rendition to fruition.

Caloy Sambrano, managing partner at SOHO Square Philippines said, “As an agency, we have developed and implemented various equity campaigns in the past, but we must say that this Colgate #SmileStrong campaign is one, if not the most, important campaign that we have ever done. We wanted each and every Filipino to feel inspired and relate to the stories of our muses especially when they see the contents that we put out.”

Following the global campaign’s wide marketing strategy, Colgate Philippines will be releasing integrated communications across digital and public relations, where activations in partnership with muses Arizza, Candy, and Brina will be run until 2021.

Aside from the #SmileStrong campaign, Colgate-Palmolive has earlier piloted its “Made for Greatness” campaign in Thailand, featuring professional climber and Academy Award-winning documentary director Jimmy Chin. The campaign is said to be progressively rolled out across Singapore, Malaysia, and Australia & New Zealand.