Marketing Magazine SG - Sep 2014

MARKETING MAGAZINE SINGAPORE EDITION

THE ART & SCIENCE OF CONNECTING WITH CONSUMERS

SINGAPORE

SEPTEMBER 2014

marketing-interactive.com

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Elizabeth Low, Deputy Editor elizabethl@marketing-interactive.com Rezwana Manjur, Senior Journalist rezwanam@marketing-interactive.com Editorial – International Matt Eaton, Editor (Hong Kong) matte@marketing-interactive.com Oliver Bayani, Editor (Philippines) oliverb@marketing-interactive.com Production and Design Shahrom Kamarulzaman, Regional Art Director shahrom@lighthousemedia.com.sg Fauzie Rasid, Senior Designer fauzier@lighthousemedia.com.sg Advertising Sales – Singapore Che Winstrom, Sales Manager chew@marketing-interactive.com Johnathan Tiang, Senior Account Manager johnathant@marketing-interactive.com Trina Choy, Senior Account Manager trinac@marketing-interactive.com Joey Lau, Account Manager joeyl@marketing-interactive.com Advertising Sales – International Josi Yan, Sales Director (Hong Kong) josiy@marketing-interactive.com Events Yeo Wei Qi, Regional Head of Events Services weiqi@marketing-interactive.com Marketing June Tan, Regional Marketing Executive junet@lighthousemedia.com.sg Finance Evelyn Wong, Regional Finance Director evelynw@lighthousemedia.com.sg Management Søren Beaulieu, Publisher sorenb@marketing-interactive.com Tony Kelly, Editorial Director tk@marketing-interactive.com

I recently had drinks with one ad agency lead who said the local ad industry has become commoditised. “It’s so hard to stand up for what you believe in. When I choose to stand up and say, no I’m not going to do that ad (because it’s sh--) or for that cost (because it’s sh-- as well), another start-up agency is going to come in and say, well we will.”

He’s not the only one. Another ad agency lead talked about how the ad agency is the first to be blamed if the business goes wrong, talking about one account the agency lost when the client had poor business results. “There were so many other factors, but they blamed us and moved the business.”

In a rant in our Last Word column, Grey India’s creative director Bodhisatwa DasGupta writes about how the industry needs to stand up for itself when clients steal ideas by setting proper boundaries during pitches, instead of fuming in anonymous silence. It’s the same for Singapore. But the idea of doing anything about it, for instance, setting pitch fees, remains a far flung ideal, it seems.

It’s a large question – if the industry has low self-esteem – and there are arguments for both sides. There are several individuals and hot shops in the local agency scene that are carving out a name for themselves, but there are many other incidents which hint otherwise.

I recall earlier interviews such as Scoot’s Campbell Wilson wishing for more outspoken agency partners.

In our profile interview with BMW’s global marketer Steven Althaus, this question once again comes up. But Althaus thinks the industry shouldn’t have low self-esteem, if it does.

The communications industry has never been in a better place to understand the digital era, which in itself is throwing up new challenges every day, he points out. “Most corporations are looking to change their communications models in the face of digitisation. Communications agencies can help to foster this change,” Althaus says.

In this issue, you’ll read about McDonald’s struggles on Instagram, Facebook’s new policy for Likes and marketers talking about their digital challenges.

And like any industry, it all turns on strong leadership, which is why we’ve listed the agency landscape’s leaders in our Meet the CEOs feature.

While the industry has its pain points and uncertain waters to navigate, I take Althaus’ point of view.

There’s never been a bigger opportunity for intelligent communicators.

Enjoy the issue.

Photography: Teck Lim — Lumina Photography (www.animulstudio.com); Makeup & Hair: Michmakeover using Make Up For Ever & hair using Sebastian Professional – www.michmakeover.com

Editorial Rayana Pandey, Editor rayanap@marketing-interactive.com

DO SINGAPORE’S AGENCIES HAVE LOW SELF-ESTEEM?

Justin Randles, Group Managing Director jr@marketing-interactive.com

Marketing is published 12 times per year by Lighthouse Independent Media Pte Ltd. Printed in Singapore on CTP process by Sun Rise Printing & Supplies Pte Ltd, 10 Admiralty Street, #06-20 North Link Building, Singapore 757695. Tel: (65) 6383 5290.

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No material may be reproduced in part or in whole without the prior written consent of the publisher and copyright holder. Permission may be requested through the Singapore office. Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in Marketing are not necessarily the views of the publisher. Singapore: Lighthouse Independent Media Pte Ltd 100C Pasir Panjang Road, #05-01 See Hoy Chan Hub, Singapore 118519 198755 Tel: +65 6423 0329 Fax: +65 6423 0117 Hong Kong: Lighthouse Independent Media Ltd Unit A, 7/F, Wah Kit Commercial Building 302 Des Voeux Road Central, Sheung Wan, Hong Kong Tel: +852 2861 1882 Fax: +852 2861 1336 To subscribe to Marketing magazine, go to: www.marketing-interactive.com

Elizabeth Low Deputy Editor

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OUT NOW.

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CONTENTS THE ART & SCIENCE OF CONNECTING WITH CONSUMERS

SINGAPORE

SEPTEMBER 2014

marketing-interactive.com

FEA TU R ES 13 NEWS ANALYSIS: MCDONALD’S SOCIAL MEDIA DISASTER The fast-food giant’s PR issues blew up when it took to Instagram. Here’s what happened. Rezwana Manjur and Jennifer Chan report.

14 NEWS ANALYSIS: FACEBOOK’S POLICY FOR GENUINE FANS Facebook is getting rid of “Like-Gate”, and here’s what you need to know. Jennifer Chan reports.

18 NEWS ANALYSIS: CAN PR AGENCIES BE AS CREATIVE AS AD AGENCIES? “Conceptual thinkers are not the purview of ad agencies.” Read one agency’s stand on this.

Elizabeth Low reports.

22 PROFILE: BMW’S STEVEN ALTHAUS S$5.90 INC GST

How do you deal with a talent shortage? Ad veteran and BMW’s global brand director Steven Althaus discusses his solution and the role of agencies with Elizabeth Low.

What does it take to be a successful agency CEO? We get personal with adland’s leaders as they speak up on their management philosophy and journey to the top. Page 28.

28 FEATURE: AGENCY LEADERS Meet the leaders behind adland’s agencies in these in-depth interviews on their management philosophy and how they got to where they are.

OPINIONS

DE PA RT M E N T S

20 AD WATCH/WEB WATCH

4 NEWS

StarHub’s “local heroes” campaign scores brownie points with The Alchemy Partnership’s Caroline Chua; while Vocanic’s Ivan Ng singles out Virgin America Airlines’ website as the epitome of the saying “less is more”.

NLB reviews its communications strategies; PropertyGuru appoints UM Singapore; former head of trading at VivaKi, Bharad Ramesh, strikes out on his own; Publicis Worldwide acquires a minority stake in local agency Arcade; plus more.

66 ROUNDTABLE: DISSECTING THE MARKETER’S DIGITAL DILEMMA

21 DIRECT MAIL CASE STUDY

Marketers discuss their biggest challenges in the digital space at this roundtable sponsored by SMRT.

The Singapore government introduced its Pioneer Generation Package. Here’s how it raised awareness with seniors.

SCAN TO SUBSCRIBE!

18 13 KEY TAKEAWAYS: >> Leadership strategies of Singapore’s agency CEOs. >> How to deal with Facebook’s new policy. >> How to handle the talent shortage your brand is facing.

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NEWS

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WANT MORE BREAKING NEWS? SCAN THE CODE TO FIND OUT WHAT’S GOING ON IN THE INDUSTRY.

Let’s play fair The Tripartite Alliance for Fair and Progressive Employment Practices’ (TAFEP) has handed its fair employment practices creative account to Y&R Singapore. The appointment is for a year and the agency was appointed following an open pitch. Y&R Singapore is responsible for the development and management of the Fair Employment Practices campaign.

The campaign is themed: “Create a fair and inclusive workplace.”

Foxy new look FOX International Channels (FIC) appointed local agency The Alchemy Partnership (pictured) to lead the campaign for the launch of the new FOX Sports Network.

This followed a pitch against other multinational agency networks earlier in the year. The job scope covers the launch campaign which includes TV, print, activation and digital for regional markets.

The markets include Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Thailand, Philippines and Vietnam.

A new relationship Publicis Worldwide acquired a minority stake in homegrown Singaporean agency Arcade.

Headquartered in Singapore with offices in Shanghai, Tokyo and Jakarta, Arcade employs more than 100 individuals across the region. Nick Marrett, founding partner and CEO of Arcade, would not confirm the size of the stake, but said he would continue to lead the agency. Marrett first launched the agency in 2010.

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NLB reviews process Following the recent uproar over the removal of controversial children’s book titles And Tango Makes Three and The White Swan Express, NLB said it was re-evaluating its communication process. According to the Minister for Communications and Information, Yaacob Ibrahim, the NLB will now have clearer processes on how books will be withdrawn and NLB will also have an advisory panel.

Moving forward David Ketchum, president of Bite Asia Pacific, confirmed he was launching a new venture in a matter of months following the integration of Text100 and Bite.

“The business idea is around helping marketing directors deploy marketing automation and data-driven content marketing,” Ketchum told Marketing.

Cycling on OCBC Bank plans to refresh its OCBC Cycle event in Singapore and Malaysia and is on the hunt for a new event organiser. The bank is calling for tenders from interested event organisers. The previous event organiser for the OCBC Cycle Singapore and OCBC Cycle Malaysia was Spectrum Worldwide. OCBC said the contract had ended with Spectrum and declined to comment further.

Smart investments Real-time bidding platform Smaato raised US$25 million in a Series E funding, with Singapore Press Holdings as one of its investors.

Other investors were Aeris Capital, Singapore’s EDB Investments (EDBI) as well as Smaato’s other existing shareholders. In a statement, Smaato said the funds would be used to fuel growth, operations and development of its platform, which is focused on selfserve automation.

Lighting up After becoming the title sponsor of the Singapore Grand Prix, Singapore Airlines is launching its first branded event for the sponsorship. It first announced it was taking over the title sponsorship for the Singapore Grand Prix in April, with a series of print ads in local papers. It also announced its branded event called the Singapore Airlines “Light Up The Night” Carnival which was held on 16 August.

The right Moove OOH media owner Moove Media created eye-catching 3D rooftop ads for Sentosa’s Wings of Time attraction. The structure is nearly 40cm tall, with a 100cm-wide wing span and features the attraction’s characters such as Shahbaz, a prehistoric bird-like creature and others. The cabs will also be wholly painted as part of Sentosa Leisure Management’s publicity campaign for its latest night show by the sea.

A long-term affair Y&R Singapore has been retained as M1’s creative agency of record, extending the agencyclient partnership until 2016.

Originally appointed in 2008, Y&R Singapore’s creative work for M1 includes campaigns such as “Welcome to the World of M1”, and “M1. For Every One”.

“We look forward to more bold and imaginative ideas from Y&R as we navigate the future of communications together,” said P Subramaniam, chief marketing officer at M1.

Venturing out Bharad Ramesh, former head of trading and partnerships for Southeast Asia at VivaKi, launched his own company, eMVC, aiming to help clients maximise media value. He has not divulged many details at this stage, but excerpts from his LinkedIn profile read: “After a dozen years in media agency trading, I’ve just launched my own outfit to help marketers realise more from media, particularly in digital.”

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NEWS

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Starring on National Day This National Day, StarHub decided to shine the spotlight on 12 local businesses by creating 12 TVCs and airing them across StarHub TV channels for free. This was a first for both StarHub and the 12 local businesses. StarHub also produced the commercials on a pro bono basis. StarHub said the brands were chosen because they were at the core of what Singaporeans were passionate about.

Ramping up PropertyGuru has stepped up its communications and marketing efforts by appointing UM Singapore for its media planning duties and Vocanic as its social media agency. UM Singapore oversees media planning and buying for the portal’s advertising activities, in addition to the event marketing activity assistance it has provided PropertyGuru for the past nine months. It also recently appointed H+K Strategies as its PR agency.

A smart move Smaato, a mobile real-time bidding (RTB) ad exchange (SMX) and supply side platform (SSP), is collaborating with BlackBerry.

Smaato SDKs provide BlackBerry developers with a simple way to include demographic data such as gender, age or keywords describing the content the user sees. This is aimed at increasing demand for advertisers by improving precision and targeting capabilities, and leads to a higher advertising bid.

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Adapting to change Mindshare entered into an exclusive partnership with big data outfit Crayon Data to power its planning, insights and consultancy offering. The partnership aims to allow for greater adaptive solutions for marketers, to identify different consumer profiles and segments, and to target and track profiles across a complex range of media channels, including social media and video. Mindshare said this partnership continued its focus on developing leadership in adaptive marketing.

Singapura appoints agency Local mall Plaza Singapura appointed Allison+Partners as its PR agency. The agency is tasked to drive positive awareness of the mall’s fashion, lifestyle and dining offerings and will handle its family focused events. The contract will see Allison+Partners manage all media and blogger outreach activities, together with community engagement initiatives, to support Plaza Singapura’s marketing strategy. The appointment is for one year.

Pernod appoints GOVT Pernod Ricard Malaysia appointed Singaporean agency GOVT to handle its creative account.

The agency is working across all of Pernod Ricard Malaysia’s portfolios, and with brands such as Martell, Chivas Regal, Glenlivet, Aberlour, Absolut Vodka and G.H. Mumm Champagnes. Going forward, the agency will also be working on creative and brand strategies, conceptualisation and ideation before implementing goto-market strategies.

Game on Deloitte has come on board as the official professional services partner for the 28th SEA Games with the Singapore Southeast Asian Games Organising Committee (SINGSOC). Pledging more than SG$5 million in cash and value-in-kind services such as advisory, assurance and consulting services, Deloitte is now the third “Tier One” sponsor for the games.

Deloitte will also provide SINGSOC with talent and manpower as part of the deal.

Adding more bite Next Fifteen Communications Group reorganised its operations to bring together Text100 and Bite in the Asia Pacific region. The newly combined Asia business, operating under the Text100 brand, is about a 300-strong integrated communications agency with an expanded presence in Mainland China, India, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore and Australia.

The move also sees Bite’s Asia Pacific president and founder of Upstream Asia David Ketchum exit the agency.

Kicking goals Tiger Beer launched the Tiger Street Football campaign with the help of iris Singapore. In its fourth year, the campaign launches with an online film featuring acclaimed former international football star, Deco. “If football is so beautiful, why do we keep it caged?” says Deco in the TVC, which shows a stadium torn down as a dramatic symbolic display of what Tiger Street Football is all about.

Kallang appoints agency Kallang Wave Mall appointed Y&R Singapore as the creative agency for the shopping and leisure complex at the new Singapore Sports Hub. The mall is run by SMRT Alpha, a joint venture by subsidiaries of SMRT and NTUC FairPrice. SMRT Alpha was appointed by the Singapore Sports Hub to manage the retail space. Y&R Singapore will conceptualise the mall’s branding and communications ahead of its official opening.

Great prospects Social relationship management platform Hootsuite appointed iProspect as its digital agency. iProspect is responsible for driving Hootsuite’s search engine marketing, performance display, and paid social across Asia Pacific.

Ken Mandel (pictured), managing director of Hootsuite in APAC, said: “iProspect’s expertise and knowledge of digital is a great fit with our strategy and will serve our clients well.” The one-year appointment comes after a pitch.

Standing out Singapore’s well-linked innovation ecosystem, strong innovation infrastructure and investments in human capital have helped the city earn a solid reputation as being an innovative economy. According to the Global Innovation Index (GII), co-published by Cornell University, INSEAD and the World Intellectual Property Organisation, Singapore topped the regional rankings to emerge as the leading innovative economy in Asia and achieved seventh place among the 143 economies surveyed worldwide.

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No more grey areas Grey Group Singapore launched its own in-house production facility called GreyWorks Singapore. This new arm aims to bring the agency together as a one-stop shop for all post-production work which provides convenience to brand owners by centralising advertising implementations and by reducing the time taken to create a campaign. Under GreyWorks’ centralised model, all stages of the post-production work are done under one roof.

New look for Valore Valore, parent company of the Challenger brand, launched a new look in its stores. Retail and brand consultant agency FITCH was appointed to create a new seamless retail experience for the brand. Taking cues from the fast-paced nature of the fashion industry, Valore’s new positioning allows consumers to shop for their tech accessories by colour or “life moment” both in the physical store and online.

A big win Singapore Sports Council (SSC) appointed UM Singapore as its media agency. UM is required to plan, strategise and execute media strategies. It is also required to propose appropriate advertising media, co-ordinate and place media bookings for Sport Singapore’s programmes, initiatives and campaigns, inclusive of the 28th SEA Games.

Vying for the account were Dentsu Singapore, OMD, PHD, ZenithOptimedia and Square Innovations.

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More gain for Singapore Changi Airport Group (CAG) launched a Growth and Assistance Incentive (GAIN) programme to strengthen the airport’s “hub status” and anchor Singapore as a major air gateway to and from the region. It is committing a total of SG$100 million through various initiatives, and to stimulate traffic demand, CAG will invest in destination marketing campaigns to promote Singapore in major source markets such as Australia, China, India, Indonesia and Russia.

Topping up Petra Foods appointed Saatchi & Saatchi as the agency of record for two of its brands. The brands are SilverQueen and Top. The appointment follows a pitch involving multiple agencies. As part of the new assignment, Saatchi & Saatchi will drive the creative direction and strategy for both brands in Southeast Asia, with the account being led from the agency’s regional hub in Singapore.

Saying sorry Singapore’s national carrier Singapore Airlines apologised for a post it published on its Facebook page which read: “Customers may wish to note that Singapore Airlines flights are not using Ukraine airspace.” It suffered a backlash from the public over the post – being accused of insensitivity in relation to the MH17 tragedy. In a statement to Marketing, an SIA spokesperson clarified that the post was in response to many requests from its customers who had asked for information about flight routes for their upcoming flights with the carrier.

A good spot RTL Group, a European entertainment network, agreed to acquire a 65% majority stake in the video advertising monetisation company SpotXchange. In addition to RTL Group’s initial investment of US$144 million, the parties agreed on an earn-out component that might increase the initial consideration which is subject to the future performance of SpotXchange. RTL Group also has the option to acquire the remaining shareholding in the future.

New bonds Design agency JKR Global redesigned the packaging for Australian underwear brand Bonds. The new design is said to take Bonds back to its roots, building on the foundations of a very strong and recognisable logo. The overhaul, conducted for Pacific Brands Underwear Group in Australia, was led by JKR Singapore. The redesign covers all Bonds products including Wondersuit, an iconic product for the brand.

To the future ADSKOM, a Singapore-based programmatic advertising startup, raised SG$1.06 million in seedround funding from investors Digital Garage, East Ventures, Beenos Plaza and Skystar Capital.

ADSKOM provides programmatic advertising platforms to help adbuyers reach their audience more efficiently, and to help publishers increase revenues. With close to 40 people, Adskom is led by Daniel Armanto (pictured right), CTO of the company and CEO Italo Gani (pictured left).

A symbiotic relationship JWT Singapore will join the Gigya NEXUS Partner Ecosystem, a network of over 50 independent software vendors and agencies that provide Gigya customers with full suite of consumer identity and data management products.

The non-exclusive partnership will extend out to JWT’s Asia markets.

Gigya will provide JWT access to any new features and application updates as well as training for the JWT Singapore digital team.

(Pictured: Frank Bauer, CEO of JWT Singapore) Looking back Founder of creative agency Ninety Nine Percent Calvin Soh and founder of J & U Consulting Saleem Jumabhoy launched a global mobile platform called Time Travellr. The app aims to allow the public to be the creators of their own history. For Singapore, the location-based app allows you to see local hawker stories, their history and heritage, within the user’s proximity.

Content is king Content marketing agency King Content came on board LinkedIn’s Certified Content Partner program. LinkedIn’s Certified Content Partners program connects companies with content producers, publishers and technology platforms to provide them greater access to relevant information better target their audiences. King Content is the first participant in the Asia Pacific region. The professional network allows brands to create and manage content with speed and scale.

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NEWS

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Coffee or tea?

The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf will make its entry into the Japanese market by the end of this year.

The brand signed an exclusive area development agreement with developer L.A. Style to introduce its beverages into the market. L.A. Style is a joint venture partnership between HOTLAND, an actively growing operator in the Japanese fast-casual restaurant segment, and AEON MALL, a Japanese shopping mall developer.

Havas’ new business Havas Media Group India won the integrated digital duties for Businessworld (BW) in a multiagency pitch. BW has spotted key trends in the economy and business for three decades, including the rise of the IT sector in the 1990s and more recently the social media, healthcare and e-tail booms. The magazine now embarks on a new journey to create an international standard digital platform.

Doing the math Digital media buying platform MediaMath opened a new office in Sydney, Australia. In addition, a number of the staff from advertising technology company Kinected will join the MediaMath team in Australia to enhance its presence in the country and broaden product offerings to clients and partners. Kinected has worked in partnership with MediaMath for the past two and a half years in Australia.

You can depend on us In its latest campaign for its incontinence underwear Depend, Kimberly-Clark is asking folks to “drop their pants”. Through the campaign “Underwareness”, the brand hopes to reduce the social stigma of bladder leakage. Created

by Ogilvy & Mather, the campaign aims to reach out to people under the age of 50. The brand also teamed up with the band Capital Cities for its launch party.

LinkedIn buys Bizo LinkedIn is buying B2B ad tech firm Bizo for US$175 million.

The transaction, which sees a combination of 10% stock and 90% cash, is expected to be closed in Q3 2014. Deep Nishar, LinkedIn’s SVP of product and user experience, said: “Our ability to integrate Bizo’s B2B solutions with our content marketing products will enable us to become the most effective platform for B2B marketers to engage professionals.”

PepsiCo launches campaign Suntory PepsiCo Vietnam Beverage launched a campaign for the Japanese brand C.C. Lemon in Vietnam. The campaign was created by BBDO Vietnam.

The new 60-second commercial focuses on the “lively” and healthy feeling the drinker enjoys with C.C. Lemon. This is illustrated through the TVC adopting a musical genre. Through the campaign the brand hopes to evoke an uplifting physical and emotional effect on consumers.

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Dads know best General Mills is putting dads on the map with its new campaign promoting peanut butter Cheerios.

The campaign shows modern day fathers #HowToDad and do it right. It explains the various perks and jobs that only a dad can understand and the diverse roles fathers play in the eyes of their children. The campaign was created by Tribal Worldwide in Toronto.

Streamlining operations As part of a massive streamlining exercise, Procter & Gamble will be dropping a majority of its brands to focus on its top earners. The largest consumer products firm today, Procter & Gamble will sell, discontinue, merge or eliminate up to 100 brands in the next two years as part of a cost-cutting exercise – and to focus on its top 70 to 80 brands.

Off the table The deal between Rupert Murdoch’s 21st Century Fox and Time Warner is off the table.

21st Century Fox announced it was pulling the plug on the US$80 billion bid on Time Warner.

Murdoch, chairman and CEO, said despite the proposal having “significant strategic merit and compelling financial rationale” the Time Warner management and its board “refused to engage” with his company.

Bolting ahead Instagram looks set to take on SnapChat as it launches its newest app Bolt, a tool that allows you to instantly send pictures and videos to friends. A one-to-one visual messaging tool, Bolt allows users to shoot and send photos to friends with a single tap. The app is being launched in Singapore, South Africa and New Zealand.

HOW MUCH DOES THAT COST? ST? T?

THE PLEASURE WAS S ALL MAGNUM’S Last year Magnum launched its Magnum Pink and Black campaign to push demand for its new flavours and attract the 20 to 30-year-old target audience.

The campaign, created by The Alchemy Partnership, ran in-store in supermarkets, hypermarkets and convenience service outlets throughout Singapore; as well as on outdoor bus and bus shelter posters, and in various social media advertisements.

Mindshare Singapore handled the media buying for the campaign.

As part of the campaign, Magnum also created a sleek paper folder which was a special ad in The Straits Times. The newspaper folder aimed to communicate the unique proposition of each ice-cream in a unique manner that grabbed the reader’s attention. At the back of the

folder, Magnum also extended the brand’s invitation to pleasure seekers to visit the fi rst Magnum Pleasure Store launch in Singapore located at Clarke Quay.

For this creative buy by Magnum, the brand did a zonal buy with SPH which meant the campaign would run only in certain areas of the country. The media cost for a zonal buy is about SG$50,000.

This amount did not include production costs of the envelope.

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NEWS

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More partnerships eBay appointed MediaCom and Goodby Silverstein & Partners as its media and creative agencies respectively. The agencies are supporting its global media and creative business. eBay said as its brand evolves, it is constantly looking for new ways to inspire and engage its buyers and sellers around the world.

Goodby Silverstein & Partners and Mediacom will help eBay explore how to continue telling the eBay story.

Into the future The Futures Company expanded to Shanghai, a move that followed its launch of a Singapore office in 2013. Kunal Sinha (pictured), Ogilvy & Mather’s former chief knowledge officer for China and cultural insights director for Asia Pacific, is leading The Futures Company in China. Sinha is also taking up the role of chairman for Asia Pacific, working closely with Singapore-based Stephane Alpern, the managing director for Asia Pacific.

Making TV cool again Panasonic launched a new crowdsourced ad campaign for its ultra-high definition VIERA 4K TV product. To make TV cool for the younger generation, it created original videos co-created

by YouTube video creators.

The campaign aims to promote Panasonic’s VIERA 4K TV, an ultra-high definition set, “as the perfect screen to enjoy watching online videos such as YouTube videos”, said the company in a press statement.

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Guinness appoints agencies Guinness appointed BBDO and Iris Worldwide to handle its global digital duties. BBDO is leading strategic insight, content creation and digital activation for the brand globally. The current global appointment also adds to BBDO’s existing creative responsibilities in Africa, Western Europe and North America. Iris Worldwide will lead integrated marketing through to the point of purchase – focusing on delivering experiential, shopper marketing and trade advocacy programmes.

A new look To coincide with a PR storm that unravelled around tainted meat used by McDonald’s from food supplier Husi Shanghai, the chain is embarking on an 18-month rebranding plan to reshape its basic offerings, including business value, service, marketing and menu. “To reignite momentum over the next 18 months, we’re focused on fortifying the foundational elements of our business by concentrating our efforts on compelling value, marketing and operations excellence to become a more relevant and trusted brand,” said McDonald’s president and CEO Don Thompson

New partnership M&C Saatchi Worldwide partnered up with Delhi-based independent creative agency February to see the launch of a new Indian agency: M&C Saatchi February. February’s founders Gopal Krishnan and Nirmal Pulickal will be taking over the leadership of the combined operation. They will be supported

by Anjali Nayar (pictured centre), the current CEO of M&C Saatchi Delhi, who has been appointed president of the new venture.

AUDIT WATCH

WEEKENDER COMPLETES FIRST AUDIT The mass circulation leisure and entertainment weekly newspaper, Weekender, has completed its fi rst audit since it launched in 2012.

Founded by Frank Young, its editorial director and CEO, and David Phey, chief operating officer, both of whom have held various roles in the advertising industry, the newspaper saw its fi rst audit for the period of October 2012 to June 2013.

It officially has an audited circulation of 206,949, according to the Audit Bureau of Circulations Singapore.

Speaking to Marketing, Phey said the company believed it was very important for the media to be credible and measurable. “There are a number of other checks: readership, profiling, but the most important one is circulation auditing,” said Phey, who previously held the position of business group director at Dentsu.

Another OOH venture Dentsu Aegis Network acquired OOH company Milestone Brandcom in India.

The acquisition of Milestone Brandcom comes following the acquisition of Posterscope – Dentsu Aegis Network’s global outdoor media agency. Founded in October 2009, Milestone Brandcom will continue to be led by founder and managing director Nabendu Bhattacharyya after the acquisition. He will report to Ashish Bhasin, chairman and CEO of Dentsu Aegis Network, South Asia.

Go Communications expands to Indonesia Independent PR network Go Communications has formed a partnership with SKPR Asia in Indonesia. The GO Group partnership offices in Asia now include Indonesia, China, Japan, Thailand, Philippines, Cambodia, Vietnam, Laos, India and Sri Lanka. SKPR Asia has clients in real estate, banking, FMCG, consumer and retail industries.

“When we can provide that authenticity to advertisers and media agencies, we can build trust. Otherwise they will always be in doubt. Some of the largest and most credible publishers do circulation audits as well.”

The Weekender continues to target a mass audience, and has recently seen advertisers such as TungLok, EU Holidays, Canon, Topseller, Econ Minimart as well as the three telcos advertising in it.

The publication is distributed at 32 MRT stations and 200 7-11 outlets island-wide.

The newspaper was launched in August 2012.

Globe turns on direct carrier billing for Google Play Google Play is now supporting carrier billing with Globe Telecom as another option to pay for apps, in-app items, books, movie rentals and everything offered by the internet giant’s store. Globe Telecom is the first network in the Philippines to support the feature, allowing its subscribers to shop from Google Play and pay for the download using their prepaid load or monthly postpaid bill. The service has been rolling out since 20 August and is scheduled to be completed. It will be exclusively available to Globe Postpaid, Prepaid and TM customers. To date, Globe has yet to appear on Google’s official list of carriers that support direct billing.

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NEW WORK .................................................................................................................................................................................................................

1 Campaign Subaru XV – Go Your Own Way Brief To promote the Subaru XV, the campaign aimed to tell the story of a driver creating a cheeky drawing on his Subaru XV’s GPS as he finds his own way home to dodge the traffic jams. The integrated campaign also included two activation ideas. The first idea allowed viewers to create their own ending for the commercial by driving a virtual Subaru XV on a microsite and creating their own GPS art. The second idea allowed viewers to have a test-drive experience, where the driver got to create new shapes on the GPS system. The campaign ran in nine markets.

Client

Motor Image Enterprises

Creative

Mangham Gaxiola

Media

Havas Media

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2 Campaign The Best of You Brief Julie’s rolled out its latest campaign, “The Best of You” to celebrate every hero. The campaign urges the public to think and recognise the people and experiences that have brought out the best in them. In May 2014, Julie’s first rolled out a series of teaser advertisements with no mention of the brand, but a simple “Who is She?” The movement celebrates family ties and social acceptance and runs in Singapore and Malaysia until November.

Client

Julie’s

Creative

[kloo]

Media

City Life Advertising

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NEW WORK ................................................................................................................................................................................................................

3 Campaign Tiger Street Football 2014 Brief In its fourth year, the campaign launches with an online film featuring acclaimed former international football star, Deco. Deco stars in a TVC which shows a stadium torn down as a dramatic symbolic display of what Tiger Street Football is all about where rules are being changed. Meanwhile, its site, uncagefootball.com, is the digital participation platform where fans get to let Deco know what they love and hate about football and are given the opportunity to “change the rules of the game”.

Client

Heineken Asia Pacific

Creative

Iris Singapore

Media

ZenithOptimedia

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4 Campaign Your Personal Economy in Good Hands Brief HSBC Premier launched a global campaign to rebrand its banking service from a bank account into a wealth management service.

Globally, the campaign covers Hong Kong, Brazil, the UK, Singapore, India, Malaysia, UAE, France, the US, Taiwan, Argentina and Australia.

HSBC introduced a new slogan, “Your Personal Economy in Good Hands”, to run with the global rebrand.

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Client

HSBC Premier

Creative

Saatchi & Saatchi London

Media

Mindshare Worldwide

SUBMISSIONS PLEASE SEND US YOUR BEST NEW WORK REGULARLY IN HIGH-RES JPEG OR PDF TO BE CONSIDERED FOR THESE PAGES. EMAIL RAYANAP@MARKETING-INTERACTIVE.COM

S E P TE M BE R 2 01 4 M ARKE TI N G 1 1

5/9/2014 7:45:31 PM

NEWS ANALYSIS

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MCDONALD’S SOCIAL MEDIA DISASTER ON INSTAGRAM The fast-food giant’s PR issues blew up when it took to Instagram. Here’s what happened.

Rezwana Manjur and Jennifer Chan report.

Not loving it: Social media is where McDonald’s reputation got fried.

It has been a tough time for McDonald’s in the wake of its China food-safety scare, among other woes that has thrown it in the midst of a PR crisis. Earlier, it announced an 18-month rebranding plan to reshape its basic offerings, including business value, service, marketing and menu.

“During the quarter, we evolved our strategic ‘plan to win’ framework to enhance our focus on the customer through insights, planning and actions,” said McDonald’s president and CEO Don Thompson.

“To reignite momentum over the next 18 months, we’re focused on fortifying the foundational elements of our business by concentrating our efforts on compelling value, marketing and operations excellence to become a more relevant and trusted brand.”

To add to its woes, it looks like its attempts to engage the public on Instagram have tanked.

Its Instagram account for the US market, which has 3,299 followers (at the time of print), is chock full of angry comments and even verbal abuse from Instagram users. While comments vary, it looks like most of the angry comments are centred around health concerns about McDonald’s products.

For example, users commented on one of its posts when McDonald’s snapped a pic of its fries, calling it “fake potatoes”.

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Other food posts also had users on a rant about how harmful the food is (see second post shown below). Here’s a look at its Instagram account:

This situation went on as the company invested in sponsored ads on Instagram for its Bacon Clubhouse burger. Reported in Adweek, the ads appeared recently and although they had more than 45,000 likes, many of the comments were rather negative.

According to the article, David Martinelli, digital marketing manager at McDonald’s, said: “While we are unable to provide specific details about our media strategies, we are always looking to engage with our guests and fans in fun and relevant ways in social media. Instagram allows us to share compelling and entertaining photos about our brand, food and more, in unexpected and innovative ways.”

Interestingly, McDonald’s also has Instagram accounts in markets such as Malaysia and Australia. It also earlier ran a smaller campaign in Singapore for charity. A quick scan of both accounts showed little of the same backlash that its US account has received.

Simon Kemp, regional managing partner at We Are Social, said the issue was not with the platform. “Brands such as McDonald’s generally evoke strong emotions and comments from consumers. If you are to advertise on these highly visual platforms, it has to be of value to the consumer.

“If you are going to interrupt consumers, as in this case, you have to justify it with a reason.

You need to add value to the consumer, if not, it would result in backlash.”

Commenting on its overall reputation and efforts to save it, Rachel Catanach, managing director and senior partner at FleishmanHillard Hong Kong, suggests McDonald’s should better understand the drivers impacting its reputation in different markets.

“In China and Hong Kong, it’s food safety, in other markets, it’s dietary concerns or service issues,” she said.

“A rebrand will only have a skin-deep impact unless McDonald’s really solves some of the business issues it seems burdened by, including supply chain integrity and service quality.

Otherwise, rebranding will be as effective as a sticking plaster on a deep cut.”

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9/9/2014 4:24:57 PM

NEWS ANALYSIS

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FACEBOOK INITIATES NEW POLICY FOR GENUINE FANS Facebook is getting rid of “Like-Gate”, and here’s what you need to know. Jennifer Chan reports.

The number of “likes” is often a benchmark for a brand’s successful Facebook strategy, but the number of genuine likes or what Facebook calls “quality connections” is often under question.

Often called “Like-Gate”, forcing users to like their pages to gain access to apps and games, is a widely employed strategy by brands to inflate their popularity.

Now Facebook is trying to make sure when users “like” a page, they truly like it.

The social media giant has announced a new policy on a developer blog to knock down the “Like-Gate” to ensure “quality connections”, effective 5 November.

It reads: “You must not incentivise people to use social plug-ins or to like a page. This includes offering rewards, or gating apps or app content based on whether or not a person has liked a page. It remains acceptable to incentivise people to login to your app, check in at a place or enter a promotion on your app’s page.

“To ensure quality connections and help businesses reach the people who matter to them, we want people to like pages because they want to connect and hear from the business, not because of artificial incentives. We believe this update will benefit people and advertisers alike.”

In a nutshell, brands are no longer able to force a user to “like” their page to enter contests or to receive incentives.

Rudi Leung, general manager of Social@ Ogilvy, regards the new policy as a “positive change” for not only brands, but also agencies.

“As Facebook users are moving away from desktop to mobile, the Like-Gate tactic will be obsoleted sooner or later anyway.

“A lot of brand pages have been relying on the Like-Gate tactic to acquire new fans. From now on, they need to give a stronger reason to make someone liking their page.”

Apparently, Facebook is now looking for true love, and so should brands, Leung stressed.

“As a brand, you should also give true love back to your customers rather than just wanting to acquire a huge volume of them without building a genuine relationship.

“A lot of marketers are still living in the reach/ broadcast mindset from the past. When it comes to social media, all they care is how many people they can reach and how far they can amplify their marketing message.

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Facebook is looking for true brand love: Does your brand have it?

“From now on, they should stop just counting the numbers of customers that they can reach. Instead, they should start considering to reach the customers that count.”

Mark Chan, managing partner of CMRS, considers the policy a reasonable one because it allows a “grace period” for app developers and marketers to adjust their Facebook strategies.

“It affects most of the local marketers I believe, as they tend to do fan acquisition through giveaways or incentives,” Chan said.

“Now they have to look into how to connect with the fans, who are ideally the brand lovers and advocates, customers or potential customers, by portraying the brand story through the right content.”

He said it had been observed that many brand pages were able to acquire fans, but were not engaging and responding to fans and, more importantly, not doing advocacy for their pages or the brands.

“I believe only genuine fans are useful to brands. Hence, the new rules will restrict those who are chasing after sheer ‘like’ numbers, but not the quality of fans.”

With this golden gate for “likes” demolished,

where should brands look ahead?

“Social media is all about building relationships,” said Leung, “so consider your fans on Facebook an extension of your CRM practice. Pampering them consistently rather than feeding them like zombies with random incentives.

“Don’t invest in Facebook media only during a campaign period. Consider an always-on Facebook media strategy for fan acquisition.

Have a long-term strategy rather than a tactical one.”

Ben Woo, project director of Pixo Punch, agreed on the value of maintaining quality content, but stressed the importance to beef up investment in the social space.

“Given the organic reach for wall contents is dropping occasionally, the only way out would be allocating a larger budget on social ads placement, and increasing ad spending to maintain the reach and attract new fans,” Woo said.

“Marketers should also redefine the KPI for maintaining the page, they should no longer cherish only the number of fans, but more on the engagement of each piece of content.”

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5/9/2014 7:44:33 PM

MARKET SPOTLIGHT: HONG KONG

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THE ERA OF THE EMPOWERED CONSUMER As the internet instigates a power shift from companies to consumers, how should brands equip themselves to embrace the brave new world of consumer empowerment? Jennifer Chan finds out.

Can brands adapt to the new consumer quickly enough?

“Shame” is how a Facebook user chose to describe Hong Leong Bank’s recent attempt at humour, after the bank released an insurance commercial that was widely called an ignorant and racist portrayal of domestic helpers.

This was one of many attacks on Hong Leong Bank, which forced the bank to pull the ad and release an apology.

Another who was forced to withdraw a recent commercial was online travel agency Zuji, which pulled a print ad featuring a fist-pumping Nelson Mandela saying “freedom” was the choice between 150,000 hotel and 400 airline brands.

Such is the nature of these types of responses to brands, which the

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public are increasingly willing to lambast and call out should they feel the need to do so.

Welcome to the era of the empowered consumer where opinions about everything from delayed flights, poor service, inappropriate calls and short-tempered staff are splashed across the social web without too much care for the consequences that may follow.

The increasing use of social media as a virtual megaphone shows how much the balance of power has shifted from corporations to consumers.

But adaptive brands such as Zuji see it as an opportunity rather than a threat.

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“The internet is a catalyst to the power shifting from brands to consumers, and it’s absolutely positive to us,” says Charlie Wong, CEO of Zuji Hong Kong.

“Consumers have always had a voice with or without the help of the internet.

“Comments on our social media platforms are usually rational and reasonable, it helps us fine-tune our strategies, address problems quickly and make a rapid response to any mistakes.”

Social media is a platform that can send comments – whether positive or negative – across social networks quicker than ever before. But it does not entitle absolute power to consumers, Wong believes.

“It only serves as a platform for users to express their emotions and to speak up. As a responsible brand we need to listen to customers’ wishes, answer to their demands and respect their feelings.

“The Mandela incident has given us a valuable lesson that brands should calculate the risk of using sensitive materials, and have contingency plans prepared.”

In this digital age, brands are engaged with unscripted and raw communications on social media on a daily basis, where the consumer is empowered to create image-threatening crisis just by hitting “post”.

Threat or opportunity?

It all depends on how it’s managed, says Wilson Lee, managing director of social media management firm Ying Interactive.

“What brands need to do now is to take a further step to have a deeper insight about consumers so as to answer to consumers’ needs,” he says.

“It is by all means closer to the principle of marketing – catering to what consumers really want.”

But listening to the voice of the consumer doesn’t necessarily mean kneeling down to pat or to flatter them, he stressed.

“Marketers need to study the feedback carefully before reacting.”

In an official written statement from Hong Leong Bank, one day after pulling its controversial insurance ad, it said: “We regret that our recent advertisement involving an individual playing two characters resulted in comments about the advertisement being deemed inappropriate … we have taken action to withdraw the said advertisement as we sincerely do not wish to upset any member of the public.”

On the other hand, Zuji, which was embroiled in a similar case, has quickly replaced the icon with Albert Einstein, who represents a relatively positive personal image, to regain lost ground.

“Although we withdrew the ad in response to customers’ requests, our core message – liberty and being innovative – remains,” Wong says.

The drama gained Zuji global exposure across the UK and Australia.

Indeed, social media acts as an equaliser to the power balance of consumers and brands, and customers’ voices now have more weight.

“With the increasing competitive environment, customer feedback and complaints are taken more seriously, and acted upon. Or at least for the brands that aspire to lead the pack with great customer experience,” says Robert Hah, consumer business consulting leader at Monitor Deloitte Consulting.

“Social media provides opportunity for brands as it has emerged as a powerful alternative as user-generated content is perceived as more reliable.

“Many companies in China have leapfrogged the traditional marketing channels and instead are investing in social media platforms to engage consumers,” adds Hah, who says very few companies, however, successfully leverage social media as a means to monitor customer experience and collect feedback.

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“Consumers have always had a voice with or without the help of the internet.”

Charlie Wong — CEO of Zuji Hong Kong

“Customers are becoming increasingly demanding with respect to customer experience and taking power on controlling how they want to be engaged, but companies are failing to keep pace with rising expectations.”

Technology advancement and penetration, as evidenced by increased internet adoption and social media participation, have transformed the way companies interact with customers, he says.

“As touch-points increase, customers expect companies to deploy a holistic customer engagement model to connect with them. What this means for customers is now they can afford to be picky.

“They are empowered with knowledge and a wide range of options. If one brand does not fulfil their need, they can easily go to the next.

The proliferation of technologies in recent decades has forced companies to adopt different channels to engage with customers, and companies are facing challenges of maintaining a consistent customer experience.

“For companies, the shift of power creates pressure to keep up with the pace of customers. While this means more investments to be made and new initiatives to develop, this also serves as a good opportunity for the whole organisation to transform to a more customer-centric organisation,” Hah says.

The primary reason for this struggle, he says, is many companies operate with a business unit oriented mindset.

“For example, incentives are structured around business unit or department performance metrics versus customer satisfaction or crosssell and up-sell performance metrics,” he says, adding that delivering truly customer-centric experiences requires companies to break down organisational silos.

Apart from social media, customer information and analytics are strong driving forces on the power dynamics.

“As a customer proactively, or unintentionally, provides their data to companies, in exchange for better customer experience, smart companies are starting to use this as opportunity to also take some power back.”

Better customer understanding allows companies to better serve customers in the short term, and perhaps even predict and actively shape customer demand in the long-term.

Leading companies have been differentiating themselves through performing need-based or even attitudinal customer analytics, and some even consider this as a core competency and competitive advantage, says Hah. So how should companies respond and wield this power change?

“We believe companies should embark on a structured and customised approach to transforming into a customer-centric organisation,” he says.

“Also, to enable consistent customer experience across channels, and strategically manage interaction points to enhance customer engagement.

Additionally, brands should define clear objectives and desired results in deploying a customer experience enhancement programme.

And finally, to leverage advanced customer analytics to drive better customer insight, and improve marketing effectiveness.”

Change can, depending on how it’s treated, fluster companies or shape their business.

The winner will be the most adaptive and take advantage of a changing environment.

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9/9/2014 4:26:31 PM

NEWS ANALYSIS

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CAN PR AGENCIES BE AS CREATIVE AS AD AGENCIES? “Conceptual thinkers are not the purview of ad agencies.” Golin Harris’ ambition to take from the creative agency model. Elizabeth Low reports. about how this helped the agency produce videos for clients.

With all its efforts, has the PR agency picked up a traditional ad brief?

Yes, said Hughes, revealing it had signed on a Singapore-based client, and had been tasked to do all aspects of the account, from logo creation to advertising duties and public relations. But he declined to reveal the company.

Blurring the lines: Can PR agencies be as creative?

It’s a year since Interpublic’s GolinHarris introduced an internal revamp to its G4 model.

Now it has recently appointed Caroline Dettman as its global chief creative and community officer to oversee the network’s creative work.

Last year, GolinHarris revamped its internal operations according to what it calls the G4 model, classifying its operations into four groups: strategists, connectors, creatives and catalysts.

According to its explanation, strategists take care of insights, connectors over media relations, catalysts can be seen as “brand stewards” and, of course, creatives over creative work.

In an interview with Marketing, Dettman and international president Jonathan Hughes talk about why PR agencies can be as creative as ad agencies.

On mimicking ad agencies When asked if the agency was mimicking the ad agency model, both did not deny it.

“As an industry, PR still isn’t thought of as being able to think big cut-through ideas. People still think of a traditional ad agency for that. PR agencies need to be able to show they have that capability. If you really want to engage in proper integrated marketing you need to be able to

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handle all aspects of that and not live in a narrow silo,” Hughes said.

“We have good account people who are good at media relations. We need to focus on bringing in good creatives. Ad agencies created the job of a planner and we need to bring those people in.”

They are competition, said Dettman, referring to ad agencies.

“If you look at the biggest campaigns today – I’ll tell you that they are all very much ‘PR’ ideas,” she said.

“Coming from Cannes and seeing the campaigns, when agencies promote the success of it, they always talk about the earned media aspect.

“So, you see the PR agencies trying to move into the ad space and the ad agencies into the PR space. They have been amazing at the creative packaging, we have been the better storytellers.”

Even in its hiring, it looks like the agency is moving the way of the ad shops. When asked where he was solving talent crunch issues (something that plagues any agency), Hughes said that of late, one area was in hiring graduates trained in areas such as videography – talking

Can PR guys be as creative as the ad guys?

Dettman said her team consisted of creatives from ad agencies, as well as those from PR agencies. I ask her if there is a difference in thinking from either. (Dettman herself is a classic PR executive, having worked in various roles at PR agencies throughout her career.)

“Conceptual thinkers are not the purview of ad agencies. (Ad agencies) are great at content creation and making things look beautiful. But conceptual thinkers are a very small group of people and everyone is gunning to find them.

You can find them in either profession.

“I’ve worked with creative directors who grew up in the ad world and the ones who worked in the PR world and it depends on the person. Not all the creative directors who grow up in traditional advertising are conceptual thinkers and not all can get past the tactical. It doesn’t matter what background you’re from, you have to be a good idea person.”

What’s the biggest challenge for the PR industry now, I ask.

Dettman’s answer and solution appears to lie once again in ad agency thinking.

“It’s being able to have creative bravery – getting our account leaders to have the creativity that ad agencies have.

“There has been a misguided thought where account servicing executives become yes men instead of a counsel to the client. We have to make sure that everyone, not just creatives, are pushing that perspective through.”

Once again, in justifying the PR industry’s creativity, Hughes mentions the campaign done

by PR firm Red Consultancy in Australia which won several awards: The Most Powerful Arm. (The campaign is a petition to raise funds for a charity, Save our Sons, for the condition of Duchenne muscular dystrophy.)

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OPINION: AD WATCH/WEB WATCH

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Caroline Chua Senior copywriter The Alchemy Partnership

AD WATCH HOT: StarHub #SG4SG “Celebrating our local heroes” campaign

NOT: Singapore Police Force “We live for more” campaign

Strategically, this campaign is right on the money. A well-loved local boy celebrates other wellloved Singaporean businesses on National Day – and I have to say both the brand and ad agency scored extra brownie points with this campaign.

When I watched the commercials, I felt all warm and was overwhelmed by a sense of patriotism. And it was the first time in many years that a campaign actually got my attention, enough for me to watch all the mini-commercials they’ve painstakingly shot for these local businesses.

Although the executions were really simple, the stories immediately drew me in and in my view, they spoke volumes where each story paid tribute to the life work of these local boys. It was also nice to know that in times like these, there’s a brand out there that truly has its heart in the right place.

Once again another government body runs an ad that is nothing fresh or surprising. Anyway, why am I not surprised? It would be nice if the ad presented a case of show and not just tell. Or should I say talking about propaganda is so passé? The main message of, “We live for more”, does nothing for me. An ordinary citizen like me would wonder what exactly is this “more” that our police enforcers live for. And to top it off, there’s an obvious visual and headline clash because you don’t have to look closely to be able to tell these law enforcers aren’t living for more. In fact, they aren’t even doing much in the visuals. Maybe a career change will do them good, something along the lines of strutting their stuff on an episode of Project Runway. But for now, it’s auf wiedersehen for these law enforcers.

Ivan Ng Head of creative Vocanic

WEB WATCH HOT: Virginamerica.com

NOT: Designtaxi.com

The newly revamped Virgin America Airlines website is the epitome of the saying “less is more”. In comparison with the typical airline website, infamously cluttered with all types of promotional content trying desperately to grab your attention, the new Virgin America website brings a refreshing change. The entire website takes the user on one simple journey, from selecting your destination, making a booking to even choosing your seat. The user journey is also intuitive with ample space that provides a stylish yet minimalistic representation of each step of the user’s booking journey. This site impressed me with its responsive design and a seamless transition between each step of the booking journey. The bonus? Not once did I encounter an annoying “loading” screen. This, to me, exemplifies the perfect marriage of design and technology.

Being known as a news portal for creativity and design, this site needs to up its game. When a user lands on the site, they are presented with a buffet of content that they have to sift through themselves, instead of providing a clear cut navigation for users to easily select their categories of interest. Infinite scrolling without clear classification of creative categories and sub categories makes navigating this site extremely tedious. When a user clicks on a specific article to read more, infinite scrolling continues once again without your hygiene “back to top” button. Perhaps a category selection or a drop down menu on the navigation bar that directs users to their content of choice would make life a lot easier.

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5/9/2014 7:43:43 PM

DIRECT MAIL CASE STUDY

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PIONEERING THE FUTURE The Singapore government introduced its Pioneer Generation Package. Here’s how it raised awareness with seniors. outpatient treatment at polyclinics, specialist outpatient clinics and general practitioners under the Community Health Assist Scheme. They will also receive additional annual top-ups to their Medisave accounts.

Our agency was tasked to conceptualise a direct mail kit (along with all accompanying collaterals housed within the kit) that would actualise the Pioneer Generation Package into a physical form to serve as a communication tool and reference for the numerous benefits of the package.

Noting the importance and significance of our target audience and the objective of the kit, we knew that fundamentally, the kit should have a presence and its form should befit its core purpose, that is, to honour and exude gratitude.

Functionally, we wanted a kit design that allowed provisions for the PM’s handwritten key message, a health benefit card, a commemorative gift set and accompanying brochures that explained the benefits of the package. Above all, these provisions would also need to be presented in a systematic way so the flow of information was correct and would minimise confusion of our aged target audience.

Bearing in mind the age of our target audience, the art direction adopted was to feature a clean and uncluttered look, with a minimal font size of 14. And in a patriotic red and white colour palette.

THE MAIL Objective: To communicate the benefits of the government’s Pioneer Generation Package to those aged above 65.

Idea: A clean and uncluttered direct mail package, with a minimal font size of 14 and dressed in Singapore’s national colours.

A healthy message to the pioneer generation.

Singapore has come a long way to become who she is today as we, the current generation, enjoy the fruits of our fore-generations.

To quote our prime minister: “The contributions of the first generation of Singaporeans were what started the Republic on a remarkable journey and they taught us the values and spirit that enabled Singapore to succeed.”

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To honour and thank Singapore’s pioneers (that is, those aged 65 and above this year) for their hard work and dedication, the government has introduced the Pioneer Generation Package.

The package’s benefits for these 450,000 Singaporeans, who are the first generation living and working in post-independence Singapore, include having to pay less in premiums for MediShield Life and getting extra subsidies for

Results: It helped the government reach seniors.

Thong Chew Fatt creative director, Addiction Advertising

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5/9/2014 7:43:24 PM

PROFILE

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5/9/2014 7:56:41 PM

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5/9/2014 7:56:42 PM

PROFILE

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“Talent crunch? It’s not a problem.”

It is our first meeting, but the conversation with BMW’s global director of brand management and marketing services Steven Althaus shifts quickly.

The outspoken marketer starts off by quizzing me on the current issues we’ve been seeing in Asia’s agency landscape. It was timely, given I had just come from meetings with several agency leads who had been bemoaning their talent issues. How agencies are finding their footing for their business models is another.

The German national’s early days in advertising was for leading ad agency Springer & Jacoby before heading client-side to German finance and insurance firm Allianz. He then moved to lead Publicis’ German and Austrian operations before making a high profile move to his current role at BMW in January 2013. At Publicis, under his reign as CEO and chairman, the agency was streamlined together with the management board.

It seems his penchant for pushing change has continued in his role at BMW. First, in his outlook on hiring. Continuing on the issue of talent shortage, he says: “There’s no such thing as a talent crunch if you are looking beyond the obvious. If you are always looking for the same kind of talent – like a square peg in a square hole, looking to recreate the marketer from the 80s and 90s then yes, you would have that.”

Every company will have a number of topics it needs to have a voice or an opinion on. Then the company needs to find the right people to have a seat at the table of that discussion, he adds.

“CMOs are simply looking for the best people – we are searching for great ideas, and these can come from anywhere. I can only ask everyone to go beyond the traditional silo of thinking.”

The same goes for his approach with agency partners. One other trend in recent years is the blurring of agency roles – for example, PR or media buying agencies looking to be more like ad agencies and vice versa. To Althaus, this is good progress. A convergence of ideas, just the way industries are going, is a good thing.

“In the automotive industry we are influenced by trends from consumer electronics. What holds true for individuals also holds true for industries. There are a great number of individuals, no matter what age they are, who are looking for this ‘cross fertilisation’ of industries. I find this approach more robust,” he says.

It comes back to agencies or people that can help the company to express BMW’s stand, which he sums up as mobility, urbanisation and sustainability.

“This goes way beyond a briefing that a company expresses. We really need a journey partner, someone that comes proactively to us.

Which is why we need more than just agency labels. We will speak to someone who understands the business needs of a client and takes the client forward.”

EXPERIENCING BMW BMW currently has a marketing council at the global level, and partners with several key agencies for larger communication projects. New Yorkbased kbs+, Germany-based Serviceplan and Interone under Omnicom are its key agencies. But the brand largely works on a localised approach.

Its new campaign, BMW Stories, alludes to this approach. It uses crowd-sourcing, inviting consumers to tell their BMW stories locally.

“These are ideas of the people, not an ad agency,” is the way Althaus describes the campaign in another interview.

The other focus for Althaus in BMW’s marketing is experiential. He talks about BMW World, its showcase of its cars. In Singapore, this was held at the Marina Bay Sands Expo where the company also flew in its global executives for the event.

“BMW World has been about driving the cars, touching the brand

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and meeting the people. I’m a very strong believer in a very simple brand management approach and keeping the brand aspirational. Do things that people aspire to; keep the brand experiential and cut out the crap in the middle,” he says.

DO ASIA’S AGENCIES HAVE LOW SELF-ESTEEM? At some point in the interview, after discussing the industry’s pain points, Althaus finally asks me a fairly polarising question: “Correct me if I’m wrong, but it sounds like Asia’s agencies have low self-esteem. Do you think so?”

It’s a large question, and there are arguments for both sides. There are several individuals and hot shops in the local agency scene that are carving out a name for themselves, but there are several other incidences which hint otherwise. I recall interviews such Scoot’s Campbell Wilson wishing for more outspoken agency partners. How about the debate on whether Asian agencies are creative enough?

While he doesn’t answer the question himself, he thinks the industry shouldn’t be pessimistic: “Asia’s employment rate is incredible. Look at other markets, such as Italy (Italy has an unemployment rate of 43.7% for those under 25 years, as of June 2014). Now that’s a whole generation of youths lost.”

The marketing industry needs a strong push from Asia, adds Althaus.

He believes it’s a moment of opportunity for the communications industry.

Digital transformation is affecting everyone, so what does this mean to the way companies market themselves, he asks.

“Agencies need to help companies understand how people are using, for instance, Facebook? How are they buying, who do they trust?”

“The communications industry is uniquely equipped to understand and spoon-feed back to corporations what digital and digital communications mean. Most corporations are looking to change their communications models in the face of digitisation. Communications agencies can help to foster this change.

“So there are two ways you can deal with this. You can either wait for those companies to come up with a brief and execute it. But if you are close to companies and have a relationship you are actually able to come up with a phenomena of next generation thinking for the organisations and help them to understand how the business is going to be shaped and positioned.

“That’s why it’s a great time to be alive.”

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5/9/2014 7:56:42 PM

001111000111100001000100010101011011110111101011000101010101000110101010101010

101011101010001011001101011010101010101110001010101011010111101010010111000101

010101101011110101110010101010110101111010101011101000110110100010101011011100

011110001111000010001101101010101010101001001101011010101010100101010101010111

101010111110100011111010001110101011111010001111100111000111010101111101000111

110110101111010101001111001000111100100011110001110101010111010101010001111000 HOTEL ACCOMMODATION

25,138 111100001111000111100001111000111100001110110001000101010110111101111010110001

010101000110101010110101010100011111001110100011010101010101010101110101011010 WALT DISNEY PICTURES

6,503 101100110010101010101011101010001011001101011010101010101110001010101011010111

101010010111000101010101101011110101110010101010110101111010101011101000110110

111010001101101

100010101011011100011110001111000010001101101010101010101001001101011010101010

100101010101010111101010111110100011111010001110101011111010001111100111000111

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010101010001111000111100001111000111100001111000111100001110110001000101010110

111101111010110001010101000110101010110101010100011111001110100011010101010101

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IN JUST ONE 010101110101011010101100110101010001001111000111100001000100010101011011110111

101011010101000100111100011110000100010001010101101111011110101100010101010101

101111010110001 DAY, HOW MANY

010010010001100010011100100101101100010011110100101011110101011011001111010110

010101010101010

010110001001111010010101111111000111100001110011001010011010110101010101001010 CANON SINGAPOREANS

CAMERAS LG 101010101111101000111100111001111000111100110101100101010001100011000001110110

101011001010110

WERE INTERESTED 2,194 MOBILE 101010010011000100110101110010011100001110110111110100001000100010101011011110 8,720 111101011000101010101000110101010101010101011101010001011001101011010101010101

010110110101010 IN YOUR BRAND?*

110001010101011010111101010010111000101010101101011110101110010101010110101111

111000111101010

010101011101000110110100010101011011100011110001111000010001101101010101010101

001001101011010101010100101010101010111101010111110100011111010001110101011111

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010001111100111000111010101111101000111110110101111010101001111001000111100100

010010101010101

011110001110101010111010101010001111000111100001111000111100001111000111100001 TOYOTA

3,155 110110001000101010110111101111010110001010101000110101010110101010100011111001

110100011010101010101010101110101011010101100110010101010101011101010001011001

101011010101010101110001010101011010111101010010111000101010101101011110101110 BMW 010101010110101111010101011101000110110100010101011011100011110001111000010001 1,523

101101010101010101001001101011010101010100101010101010111101010111110100011111

010001110101011111010001111100111000111010101111101000111110110101111010101001 SAMSUNG TV 111001000111100100011110001110101010111010101010001111000111100001111000111100 SAMSUNG GALAXY 5,632

001111000111100001110110001000101010110111101111010110001010101000110101010110 49,804

101010100011111001110100011010101010101010101110101011010101100110101010001001

111000111100001000100010101011011110111101011010101000100111100011110000100010

001010101101111011110101100010101010101010010010001100010011100100101101100010

011110100101011110101011011001111010110010110001001111010010101111111000111100 SINGAPORE AIRLINES 001110011001010011010110101010101001010101010101111101000111100111001111000111 1,809

100110101100101010001100011000001110110101010010011000100110101110010111001001 ENTERTAINMENT/MOVIES

144,082 110101110010011101001110000111011011111010_

Imagine the data we have on your audience for an entire month!

Exponential provides advertising intelligence that turns data into action enabling smarter marketing decisions. We combine media, data and technology to help advertisers find their perfect audience and reach them across display, video and mobile media at a global scale. +65 6831 5293 | www.exponential.com | scott.lee@exponential.com *Data shown above indicates the number of unique users across the eX Advertising Intelligence Platform who were interested in that category or brand in Singapore in a single day in August 2014.

Exponential Divisions

And where, exactly, am I going with this article?

I can’t charm you with the insights I’ve gained from my three years of working. What I can do is remind you of the “good” old days when you were a junior creative, suit, intern or some other nobody in the agency.

LIFE AT THE BOTTOM When you were younger, did you ever wonder where your life was going?

As a 26-year-old fledgling writer at freeflow productions, I do.

And here are 10 things I would ask my 50-year-old-self.

1. Do you still believe you can change the world?

2. What are the coolest tech gadgets out there right now, surpassing even the Oculus Rift and 3D printers?

3. Are you as passionate as when you first started?

4. Do you earn enough money to see the world on a whim?

5. What advice do you have for a 26-year-old fledgling writer?

6. Is Facebook still around and should you have become a social media guru?

7. How many of your friends are still in video… actually, do you have any friends left?

8. How many times have you pulled your hair out over bad scripts?

9. How many times have you told the client/boss: “Your idea sucks”?

(In your mind, of course!)

10. Where do I go from here?

You enjoy the energy of youth, relish the camaraderie formed over late nights spent together, and cherish the opportunities to learn from your seniors.

You show your portfolio to any CD who deigns to look at it. How many pieces should I show?

Are my scamps too amateurish? What should I wear to the interview?

You blast your job application emails. See that one from an unknown sender? Yep, the hopeful one that your inbox asks, without batting an eyelid, if it should mark as spam. That’s someone who would work or intern for next to nothing in your agency; someone like me. (Just so you know: Whether it’s “Nice work, but…”, “Keep in touch”, or “Sorry, we’re full house at the moment”, every reply fills me with eternal gratitude.)

You try too hard. Reading/watching some of your past work still makes you cringe.

You work late and face the frustrating creative block. Why is it that your CD can easily come

up with five great ideas when you struggle to knock out three bad ones?

You get a gazillion butterflies when presenting your feeble ideas to your boss, dread the horror when he spots a careless mistake, and sweat over a brainstorm session which you have zero ideas.

And I also speak for the junior editors who spend countless sleepless hours editing and waiting for videos to render, designers who face the beach ball of death, producers who get mini heart attacks every time a talent pulls out at the last minute, and assistant directors who have to think on their feet when directors think of a new shot while shooting, in their bid to perfect the video.

Life at the bottom. Sucks.

So when you turn on your computer and find 234 unread emails overnight, take a deep breath and think of what life was like as a junior. Then, for humanity’s sake, reply that unknown sender begging for a job because you’ve been there before and know what it’s like. freeflow.com.sg vimeo.com/freeflowproductions facebook.com/freeflowproductions Magdalene Lim is a writer at freeflow productions who is surviving life at the bottom.

And where, exactly, am I going with this article?

I can’t charm you with the insights I’ve gained from my three years of working. What I can do is remind you of the “good” old days when you were a junior creative, suit, intern or some other nobody in the agency.

LIFE AT THE BOTTOM When you were younger, did you ever wonder where your life was going?

As a 26-year-old fledgling writer at freeflow productions, I do.

And here are 10 things I would ask my 50-year-old-self.

1. Do you still believe you can change the world?

2. What are the coolest tech gadgets out there right now, surpassing even the Oculus Rift and 3D printers?

3. Are you as passionate as when you first started?

4. Do you earn enough money to see the world on a whim?

5. What advice do you have for a 26-year-old fledgling writer?

6. Is Facebook still around and should you have become a social media guru?

7. How many of your friends are still in video… actually, do you have any friends left?

8. How many times have you pulled your hair out over bad scripts?

9. How many times have you told the client/boss: “Your idea sucks”?

(In your mind, of course!)

10. Where do I go from here?

You enjoy the energy of youth, relish the camaraderie formed over late nights spent together, and cherish the opportunities to learn from your seniors.

You show your portfolio to any CD who deigns to look at it. How many pieces should I show?

Are my scamps too amateurish? What should I wear to the interview?

You blast your job application emails. See that one from an unknown sender? Yep, the hopeful one that your inbox asks, without batting an eyelid, if it should mark as spam. That’s someone who would work or intern for next to nothing in your agency; someone like me. (Just so you know: Whether it’s “Nice work, but…”, “Keep in touch”, or “Sorry, we’re full house at the moment”, every reply fills me with eternal gratitude.)

You try too hard. Reading/watching some of your past work still makes you cringe.

You work late and face the frustrating creative block. Why is it that your CD can easily come

up with five great ideas when you struggle to knock out three bad ones?

You get a gazillion butterflies when presenting your feeble ideas to your boss, dread the horror when he spots a careless mistake, and sweat over a brainstorm session which you have zero ideas.

And I also speak for the junior editors who spend countless sleepless hours editing and waiting for videos to render, designers who face the beach ball of death, producers who get mini heart attacks every time a talent pulls out at the last minute, and assistant directors who have to think on their feet when directors think of a new shot while shooting, in their bid to perfect the video.

Life at the bottom. Sucks.

So when you turn on your computer and find 234 unread emails overnight, take a deep breath and think of what life was like as a junior. Then, for humanity’s sake, reply that unknown sender begging for a job because you’ve been there before and know what it’s like. freeflow.com.sg vimeo.com/freeflowproductions facebook.com/freeflowproductions Magdalene Lim is a writer at freeflow productions who is surviving life at the bottom.

THE CEOs FEATURE

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THE CEOs FEATURE

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5/9/2014 7:37:14 PM

THE CEOs FEATURE

“MISERABLE,” JOKES FRANK BAUER, CEO OF JWT. THE AGENCY HAS ARGUABLY HAD A GOOD RUN UNDER BAUER, BAGGING MAJOR PIECES OF BUSINESS SUCH AS SINGAPORE TOURISM BOARD, CHANGI AIRPORT AND KELLOGG’S. THE BEST WAY I’VE HEARD IT SAID IS THAT AGENCIES TEND TO GO THROUGH CYCLES – TIMES OF HIGHS AND TIMES OF LOWS. AND THE FORMER IS WHAT JWT SEEMS TO BE EXPERIENCING NOW IN BAUER’S TIME – A SEASON EVERY AGENCY LEAD LONGS FOR. 30_CEOs_SEP14_sub.indd 30

In the midst of working on this piece, I ask him what makes a successful agency CEO. Bauer highlights being able to create the right agency culture as being the mark of a successful CEO. While growth is important, of course, it’s a chicken and egg situation, he says.

The right culture will eventually bring growth: great work, new clients and new revenue streams, he says.

“It’s about creating an environment that allows people to question the status quo and create an entrepreneurial spirit,” Bauer says. He adds that one of the best decisions he has made is promoting star creative Valerie Cheng. Cheng now holds the role of chief creative officer at the agency.

Driving the agency “Agency heads are incredibly important, the two critical things they can bring are confidence and focus,” says Michael Chadwick, director of brand strategy for APAC at Mondelēz International. “One of the key things which enables an agency (or rather, the people in an agency) to produce great creative work is confidence.

When an agency is on the back foot, you’ll never get good work,” he says.

“For that reason, I’ve always liked a slogan that W+K used: ‘embrace failure’. That kind of sentiment spreads confidence because it’s a sign the agency has your back.”

The second thing is that the people in an agency need to know where they should be focusing. With the industry seemingly calling for new directions each day, focus is more vital than ever before.

“What’s top of the agenda, what’s important to the agency?

Right now, the marketing world is awash with complexity. Agency staff have a hundred different things they could potentially focus on. Agencies need to keep their eye on their core competency: building brands with the power of creativity,” Chadwick says.

Aside from focus, the agency lead has the role of attracting and nurturing the right talent.

Damien Cummings, chief marketing officer at Philips ASEAN and Pacific, says while he feels the agency head means little when it comes to winning new businesses, agencies live or die based on getting the best people to work on the business. “Often, the performance of the agency is heavily influenced by amazing team leaders, account leads and agency heads.

The best people will always want to work with the best agency leaders,” Cummings says.

He highlights account leads as being more important to getting great work done, but cites the agency leader as the cheerleader and direction-setter.

Roland Smith, vice-president and managing director for the Centre for Creative Leadership Asia Pacific, calls it “talent orchestration”.

“For organisational success, CEOs play a major role in setting the direction, creating alignment and gaining commitment from the employees; steering the team towards achieving the organisational goals,” Smith says.

“These three outcomes – direction, alignment and commitment make it possible for individuals to work together willingly and effectively to realise collective achievements.

It is through these collective achievements that will impact the culture and the bottom-line, and enable the company to continue growing, have business sustainability and to successfully taking a quantum leap to the next level.”

With that, we’ve decided to feature the top leaders of the agency landscape in Singapore and the region. Read about how they began their careers, what their take to management is and more in Marketing’s Meet the CEOs feature.

10/9/2014 2:43:12 PM

THE CEOs FEATURE

CAMERON RICHARDS CEO, CPR VISION Your first job? While studying I forced my way into the retail trade – at the time a leading surf shop in Sydney. I loved surfing, and thought it would be cool to work in an industry that I had a passion for and to get paid for it would be an added bonus! Initially, there was no job, so I volunteered to vacuum the floors for free and six months later was promoted to store manager. This experience taught me a lot – if you really want something you can get it.

Who was the mentor that most influenced you? Clichéd as this may sound, my mum and dad – being cut from the same cloth, the way I view the world and business (work ethic, morals, values, principles) has largely been shaped by them. There are also two other people that have helped shape my career – Ray and Bing whom were the joint CEOs of a company I worked for … they later sold the business.

Your biggest blunder in your career? Not starting the business with an exit plan (shareholders agreements, etc).

When you’re not working, what are you up to? I have been competing in endurance races/multisport events for over 10 years with the same teammate (Greg). These races typically consist of a team of two for a period of six hours to over five days, where there is a mix of running, climbing, cycling, swimming, sleep deprivation, orienteering, strategy and endurance. Our team represented Singapore twice in the world championships for the Adventure/ Endurance Race presented by National Geographic and won the World Championships (Morocco).

When you were a newbie in the industry, did you dream you would be a CEO? Yes – starting, owning and driving a successful

The craziest thing your staff has done? The craziest thing that has ever happened was a staff member that joined for two weeks and out of the blue didn’t turn up the next day and also took our new Apple laptop

work for some people, helping a plumber fix some of the problems in his business. I came up with interesting ideas to help him build his business, which he did very successfully. In fact, he invented the sensor tap, and we took that into hand dryers and similar products almost 30 years ago.

That made me interested in doing my own thing, so I started my own agency with a friend.

Tell us more about the agency.

It was called Kuchinsky and Ziegler.

We knew, of course, that nobody would be able to remember those names, so we had a great little logo with two owls, and everyone always said: “Why are there two owls? They look really kind of wise and smart and intelligent.” We said “exactly”.

We started the business with A$2000 and built it up over six years to have over 70 full-time people and 360odd contractors. We really wanted to grow the business, so we started talking to DDB and BBDO because we’d used both of those agencies as clients. The agency eventually was bought out by DDB. Craziest thing your staff has ever told you? One of them could have been John, can you stop standing on your head to win business. Because I remember once we were pitching for M1 here in the early days and we thought we had to do something because we’re very small and it was going to be very hard, but we had to do things that made us stand out. So when we did the presentation on video for the pitch, I got up, stood on my head on the boardroom table and I finished

JOHN ZEIGLER CHAIRMAN & CEO, DDB GROUP ASIA PACIFIC

Tell us about your first job. My first job was at a manufacturing company called Nicholas Kiwi and they made boot polish, and Kitten car polishes, and bleaches. I was the only person ever to finish the traineeship.

How did advertising happen?

From Nicholas Kiwi, I went to a company called Carnation that made cat and dog food among other products. Later I worked at Campbell Soups, then I joined Nabisco Brands.

I was also doing a bit of part time

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business and building and being part of a dynamic team was always a dream of mine. To be able to travel and be paid for something I am truly passionate about and work with brands and clients that I can resonate with makes me happy … this is what gets me out of bed each day despite the pressure!

with him! We reported it to police, but never managed to get the machine back.

One thing you would say to a newbie in this industry?

1. Don’t over schedule yourself 2.

Immerse yourself in data 3. Manage by walking around 4. Go on an e-mail diet 5. Maintain the personal touch 6.

Read everything with your business in mind 7. Hire people you trust, and let them do their jobs 8. Your position is about them, not you 9. Build the team that builds the product and 10.

Self-awareness. the presentation by saying: “You can see that we will do anything, including stand on our heads, to win this business.”

Did you ever think you would become a CEO of an agency? No. You know, and this might seem a bit odd, but I don’t actually see myself as a CEO now. I’m probably more of a conciliatory supporter than I am a traditional CEO. And I think I’ve got that from my upbringing, there’s never been a pretentiousness or an ego that I’ve had to live up to, so no I never thought about becoming a CEO. What’s the one thing you absolutely hate about this industry? The fact we have existed for so long and allowed our valued contribution to clients to demise because we have not built a value equation where business can evaluate what we do. Also, the one question that clients should ask, they never do. Which is, how much time from the senior management and the most skilled people in the agency will I get if I appoint you?

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9/9/2014 4:30:07 PM

THE CEOs FEATURE

NICK WATERS CEO ASIA PACIFIC, DENTSU AEGIS NETWORK Last year was no doubt a big year for Aegis Media following Dentsu’s US$4.9 billion acquisition. While that kept CEO Nick Waters very busy, we caught up with him for a light-hearted chat. Waters, who has been with the agency for nearly four years, has also previously held several senior-level positions at WPP’s Mindshare.

What do you enjoy doing outside of work, aside from spending time with the family? I got persuaded to do triathlons this year, so I have been running, cycling and swimming.

Now that I’ve done some, I need to improve the time or increase the distance. I haven’t decided which – maybe both. It’s very good for keeping me out of the pub.

Who is the mentor who has most influenced you and why? I’ve been fortunate to work with some very smart people, but can probably point to two mentors – Dominic Proctor and Jerry Buhlmann. Dominic led Mindshare the entire time I worked there and I learnt a lot by watching and listening. He’s a very skilled operator and great with people.

Jerry’s style is very different – a dynamo, high energy, high tempo, and there’s no obstacle that can’t be overcome. You learn different things from different people.

Your biggest blunder in your career. I narrowly avoided one blunder. I did consider moving to ad agency account management, but reconsidered and kept on with media – an ever evolving industry that has suited me well so far.

Harshest thing said to you in your career. I usually ignore people that talk rubbish, so nothing’s stuck that I can remember.

What do you dislike most about the media industry/your job?

Unreasonable clients that don’t pay properly and self-important agency people that think they’re better than they are.

When you were a newbie in the industry, did you dream you would be CEO one day?

What kind of CEO did you want to be and how closely have you stuck to it? No, I didn’t think that far ahead.

I was only interested in football, beer and girls. Probably in that order.

Proudest moment in your career.

Pride is not a useful sentiment in this business.

Craziest thing your staff has told you. “We don’t think we can achieve that budget.”

Your first job. Wiring electrical plugs for eight hours a day. I had a set quota to get through and they were randomly tested to see if they were wired right. If one didn’t work you had to open them all up and start again. I lasted in the job for three weeks. Misery.

VISHNU MOHAN CEO ASIA PACIFIC, HAVAS MEDIA When you’re not working, what will you be doing? Reflecting on the day – as someone once said: “A day is not done if a memory has not been made.” I always wonder what the one thing from the day to remember is.

Who was the mentor who most influenced you and why? Ajit Balakrishnan got the engineer out of me to appreciate the world of advertising that was not just glamour. I wouldn’t be in this industry if I wasn’t mesmerised by the 45 minutes of his pre-placement talk on a Saturday afternoon after I was dragged into it by a friend.

Harshest thing said to you in your career ? One month after being appointed, a client said: “I wish I could turn the clock back and change the decision.”

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Your biggest blunder in your career? Making an entire presentation that said “Mastercard” instead of “MasterCard”. The client asked the agency to spot the mistake and we still could not. It got even more embarrassing when he actually pointed out the error.

Proudest moment in your career?

Having built a network in the region from scratch – being the employee No.1, it’s great when you are told you have employee No.1000.

There was another incident early in my Singapore stint that took me by surprise and filled me with overwhelming pride. A year into joining the agency in 1996, I was called out of the blue to come to Penang for just two hours to be part of a regional CEOs meeting.

I had no idea what it was, but when the country presentation was to start,

I was introduced by the regional CEO as a pillar of the agency.

That public recognition almost got me into tears and I must admit, acted as a very heavy steroid dose for the future.

Craziest thing your staff has told you? I have had some crazy staff under my watch and there have been some great moments to remember, but this one takes the cake. It wasn’t said to me, but happened in my presence at a client meeting. A midlevel client had been making some absurdly foolish business comments and suggestions one after another at

a meeting when a staff of mine just got up and said: “I am wondering how you got hired, you know nothing about marketing.” A dead silence filled the room, concurrent with a noise of me as well as the client’s boss, who was presiding over the meeting, kicking my staff under the table.

What do you dislike most about advertising/your job? The word “supplier”.

One thing you would say to a newbie in the industry? Be simple, be honest, be yourself.

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8/9/2014 2:41:48 PM

THE CEOs FEATURE

PRASHANT KUMAR

FRANK BAUER

PRESIDENT, WORLD MARKETS, ASIA-PACIFIC, IPG

CEO SINGAPORE, JWT What are you doing when you’re not at work? Rock climbing and being a very humble student of kung fu.

Who is the mentor who has most influenced you and why? Hey, this is the ad business. You don’t always have a mentor. Not a real one at least. But I looked out for someone and found Master Yoda.

What are you up to when you’re not at work? I’ll be reading.

For example, books such as Unaccustomed Earth by Jhumpa Lahiri, is the latest one I’m reading these days. I used to fly planes as a hobby pilot, but I get to do that less since I became a father, (and while trying to be a good husband). I travel a lot in my job, but I try to steal some moments to enjoy new places.

Who is the mentor who has most influenced you and why?

I’m probably too much of a sceptic to have a mentor, but I have been influenced and inspired by many people for different reasons. For example, Steve Jobs’ belief in his design vision; Gabriel García’s storytelling; Jimmy Wales’ Wikipedia vision, Warren Buffett’s stark simplicity; and Bill Gates’ generosity.

Also, my two little sons have inspired me to be a better father.

Harshest thing said to you in your career. All my harsh professional experiences happened in one particular short stint where my boss believed that a young fellow like me not agreeing to everything he said amounted to sacrilege. I came quite close to leaving the industry. In retrospect, it did teach me to accommodate all sorts of weirdos I may encounter in my career.

When you were a newbie in the industry, did you dream you would be CEO one day? What kind of CEO did you want to be and how closely have you stuck to it? Not really. I did dream about doing some really mind-bending

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work, and working with a team of people who were highly intellectually stimulating. As I matured as a person and leader, it occurred to me there is more to a career than mere intellect.

Having said that, the product and the teams I have been most able to influence are still built around keen intellect – whether expressed through strategic thinking, interesting ideas, or “blue ocean” edginess. I find a personal joy in “collecting” good minds around me with varied stimulating perspectives.

But I also believe today that to be a really good leader, you need to be a nice person – as life has given you the opportunity to make more people happier than you usually can.

Leadership is a social contract and you can assign a lot more meaning and value to it with your individual character. It’s not that I wasn’t nice in those days, but it’s just that I didn’t understand how important it was.

Craziest thing your staff has told you. A new hire once said: “This place is too open. Everything is out in the open. People sit in the open, talk openly, share openly. It’s all very uncomfortable.” We immediately knew this was a wrong hire.

What do you dislike most about the media industry? I dislike agency professionals who overpromise to their clients and do not deliver afterwards. They bring a bad name to our industry. Not to mention, clients who believe those promises without due diligence or reasonable compensation and later blame our industry.

[Luke:] “I can’t believe it.”

[Yoda:] “That is why you fail.”

Harshest thing said to you in your career. “Bauer, you are never going to be an account director.”

This was told to me by a young and proud managing director quite a few years back at BBDO. He was one of those falling stars who shine brightly, but burn out fast. He runs a bed and breakfast now.

When you were a newbie in the industry, did you dream you would be CEO one day? What kind of CEO did you want to be and how closely have you stuck to it? No. I always just wanted to be smart, funny and inventive and find ever new ways to sell chocolate bars.

Your biggest blunder in your career. In one of my first financial negotiations we mixed up net and gross figures. Since this question

is about blunders, you can imagine which way this went.

Proudest moment in your career.

My team, a bunch of BBDO and Goodby, Silverstein ad people were kicked out of a meeting room in Silicon Valley after we presented a very innovative way to sell a tech product because, “we didn’t understand their products and how the company works”.

One week later they called us back in, apologised deeply, told

us they (finally) got the idea now and were totally blown away by its potential. It definitely changed the way this company developed products and marketed them. And I’m still proud.

Craziest thing your staff has told you. “Can you please wear colourful things, like red or green?” (Bauer admits to always wearing black and white.)

What do you dislike most about advertising/your job? When great ideas don’t see the light of the day.

One thing you would say to a newbie in the industry. “Do or do not; there is no try.” – Yoda.

Your first job. Junior marketing manager at BMW’s headquarters in Munich.

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8/9/2014 2:41:55 PM

THE CEOs FEATURE

NICK FOLEY

JAREK ZIEBINSKI

PRESIDENT, SOUTHEAST ASIA, PACIFIC & JAPAN, LANDOR

PRESIDENT, ASIA PACIFIC, LEO BURNETT, Your first job? My first job was as a journalist. I was in it for four years working on an educational programme that was helping people understand what market economy was all about when my country, Poland, was going into transformation – from communism to capitalism and democracy.

When you’re not working, what are you up to? Perhaps this question should be, “What would I like to be doing”, given working with the fabulous team at Landor seems to absorb most of my time.

When the cooler weather envelopes the southern hemisphere I like to throw on the skis and head to the Victorian or New South Wales snowfields. I also like anything that involves driving or racing cars.

Recently I headed back to rural New South Wales to attend the holy grail of Australian motor racing – Bathurst.

Who was the mentor who most influenced you and why? That’s easy. Walter Landor. Walter was passionate about branding and bridged the divide between graphic design and “idea-driven marketing”.

Walter understood that products needed a function and consumers wanted an emotional connection with their favoured brands.

Walter captured everything that branding stands for with a quote that is as relevant today as it was 49 years ago: “Products are made in the factory, but brands are created in the mind.”

Harshest thing said to you in your career? “Do you really need to go to university to do that?”

When you were a newbie in the industry, did you dream you would be CEO one day? What kind of CEO did you want to be and how closely have you stuck to it? It’s fair to say that nowhere between dreaming of being an

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F/A-18 fighter jet pilot and a chief winemaker on the Mornington Peninsula did I consider a career in brand consulting at Landor.

In saying that, it’s exciting to be working with a talented Landor team across the Asia Pacific.

The best CEOs are the ones that lead by example, roll up their sleeves to help where it’s useful and empower their team to bring out their best.

The biggest blunder in your career? Putting on the Nesquik Bunny outfit while working at Nestlé and venturing into a crowd of bored kids without security!

Proudest moment in your career?

Every time Landor partners with one of its clients to improve their brand position is a moment worth getting excited about.

Craziest thing your staff has told you? “I’d rather not attend the Cannes Lions Festival on the French Riviera during summer.”

What do you dislike most about advertising/your job?

Losing clients.

One thing you would say to a newbie in the industry? You have two ears and one mouth. Use them in direct proportion.

Your first job? Delivering newspapers, when I was 14, six mornings a week come hail, rain or shine. No photos of that exist because 5:15am on a Melbourne winter’s morning is really dark!

How did you end up in advertising? From being a journalist I moved to the client side where I got really passionate about marketing. I ended up as marketing director of Gerber Products Company – one of the international companies investing in emerging Central and Eastern Europe – which had just started producing baby food in Poland.

Shortly after they came to Poland and they bought the factory and invested a lot, we started realising that the birth rate was dropping radically. So we had a massive problem. My boss comes to me and said: “I have invested millions, I have production lines that are maybe only 50% or 60% used.

Come up with an idea that will help me get returns on my investment.”

That took three years of my life, and I ended up creating a product called Frugo, a fruit drink. (If you have baby food production lines you realise that you can also produce a fruit drink.) That was on the market in early 1996. When I was preparing to launch this brand on the Polish market, I needed my advertising agency to help me launch the product and the campaign. I ended up in the final stage of the pitch with two agencies, and one of the two agencies was Leo Burnett. Guess who won the pitch?

Leo Burnett? No. The other agency won the pitch, which obviously was not good news for LB, so the minute I announced the news, I got a phone call from the managing director of Leo Burnett in Poland, who called me to express his extreme unhappiness. While we eventually ended in peace, the agency sent me a beautiful book on Leo Burnett’s

speeches over the years. There was a letter in it which went, “We’re still crying that we did not win the pitch, but we want to win you for Leo Burnett. Please consider this letter as a formal job offer as managing director of Leo Burnett Poland.”

But I still had to launch Frugo, so only after the product launch, I took up the role at the agency in February 1996.

What was the proudest moment of your career? I was going to the Golden Drum Festival hoping to win the title of Agency of the Year in New Europe. The moment we won was the proudest moment, I started crying.

What about the worst moment of your career? When I was running the agency and it was the fastest growing and biggest in the country, I had one huge client that was

representing a massive percentage of my revenue. One day I lost the client. Imagine you lose, over a period of two or three months, 40% of your business. It was one of the moments in my career which scared me the most, and I realised how much I was responsible for the people in my agency. I took a lot of risk because I decided to not fire anyone. The whole team that was serving that account became a new business team, and I gave myself 12 months to rebuild the strategy.

Fifteen months later we were a bigger agency than before we lost the business. That’s the thing about this industry, you can go very low, but if you work hard, you can turn around a business in 12 or 18 months. (And you can ruin the business in 12 months too.)

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8/9/2014 2:42:39 PM

THE CEOs FEATURE

WAYNE ARNOLD

personal rent. Call it fate or luck, but a long overdue client cheque came in 48 hours later.

GLOBAL CEO, LOWE PROFERO and ways of doing things. Needless to say not everything worked and we learned that out of challenges often come the most rewarding moments.

We did something very few people have done because we never doubted ourselves or knew any limitations. Namely creating a global business covering Asia, EMEA and the Americas from scratch with no outside investment, let alone do it in digital, in the days before Google and in markets like China.

What was the toughest part about co-founding Profero? I started the business with my brother in our early twenties, and part of our early success was definitely down to naivety and innocence. We basically knew nothing about the industry or running a business. In many ways this helped us, as we were completely open to new ideas

Describe one of the most challenging moments in your advertising career. There have been plenty, but the ones that stand out always seem to be around building the business.

There was a point about a couple of years in where we had about SG$15 to our name, full stop.

With no money to cover wages due in the next few days, let alone

Proudest moment in your career?

The successful launch of the New York office and team – the New York market gives you one chance. I like the fact it will give you that chance, but boy if you don’t deliver it will stamp on you and then stamp on you again and again. New York is not for the faint-hearted.

From a standing start with one client project (thank you Mr Berger) we now have a thriving business of close to 100 people doing amazing work for the likes of Unilever, Diageo and the iconic New York Times.

I was back there only last week and it made me very proud to see the team in its great new office growing stronger than ever.

Craziest thing your staff has told you? Sitting in a bar in Denver Colorado on a Monday night, our account manager for Western Union announced he had just booked five

STEPHEN LI more skillful than he is sometimes remembered for, but was always very clear in his mission – it doesn’t matter if you win rough, and win ugly – so long as you win.

Harshest thing said to you in your career? “You wouldn’t know a good ad if it slapped you in the face!” It doesn’t seem overly harsh, but it was said to me when I was quite new in the industry by an experienced creative director who wanted to show off. Idiot.

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One thing you would say to a newbie in the industry? Always do yourself out of a job. This may seem strange, but find a way to do yourself out of your current role by nurturing your successor and defining your next challenge. Not only will you progress well in your career, but the entire business will be in a much better shape in the long run.

How did you get into advertising?

By being a really, really bad lawyer.

I quickly realised just how bad and bored I was going to be practising law, so I made the decision to move on.

I escaped, and by chance discovered Asia’s very first Bloomberg machine, understanding its potential to send information globally, the rest developed from there.

What’s the biggest blunder in your career? Not coming over to the media side of the business sooner.

CEO, APAC, MEC

When you’re not working, what are you up to? I will be playing golf, badly. When it comes to golf, I’m not the most brand loyal … I’m always clutching at straws, trying out different equipment, in the eventual hope that something will lead to improvement. However, at the end

tickets for us to all fly to Vegas for the night and was kidnapping the client’s husband. Needless to say it was a big night.

of the day, I still enjoy spending time with family.

Who’s the mentor who has most influenced you and why? Ron Harris, aka, The Chopper – one of the greatest defenders ever to pull on a Chelsea shirt. He was a lot

When you were a newbie in the industry, did you dream you would be CEO one day?

What kind of CEO did you want to be and how closely have you stuck to it? I always knew that one day I would run an agency.

Having spent the first 13 years of my career in ad agencies though, I never imagined that when I did become CEO, it would be of a media agency.

How about the proudest moment in your career? Every time someone at MEC says that they couldn’t imagine working anywhere else.

(Happens more than you may think!)

Craziest thing your staff has told you? While I was engaged in a very deep and serious conversation with a client, I was passed a note from a junior member of the team saying, “Boss – your fly is undone”.

What do you dislike most about advertising/your job? People who take themselves too seriously. We are in one of the few industries in which we should genuinely always be having a good time.

One thing you would say to a newbie in the industry? “You will never, ever, be bored.”

Your first job? Flipping burgers at McDonald’s when I was 16.

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8/9/2014 2:42:41 PM

THE CEOs FEATURE

DIVYA GURURAJ CEO SOUTHEAST ASIA, MEDIACOM What do you do when you’re not working, aside from spending time with the family? Long walks on the ECP beach, lots of reading, travelling to exotic places, pottery, photography, learning sailing, tai chi, glass blowing. And lots of sleeping and doing absolutely nothing in between!

Who was the mentor who most influenced you and why? No one mentor, but many people along the way – some amazing colleagues, some very kind clients and some gracious media partners. I owe them all big time.

Harshest thing said to you in your career? This was on my first day as managing director of MediaCom India where I was meeting clients for an introduction. I thought they were going to be nice pleasant meetings and I was really looking forward to

them. But the first two clients I met said they were waiting for me to join so they could officially communicate to somebody they were putting the agency on notice!

It was a horrific way to begin a new job. Thankfully the third client I met that day was very complimentary. That gave me hope and saved me from jumping off the office window!

When you were a newbie in the industry, did you dream you would be CEO one day? What kind of CEO did you want to be and how closely have you stuck to it? To newbies, CEOs seem very boring, stuffy and geriatric! My head was so full of other dreams that CEO dreams never came up. But as a CEO I dream of two things: First, I want to create an environment that engages and inspires people – staff, clients and partners. This was and

R GOWTHAMAN COO, ASIA PACIFIC, MINDSHARE When you’re not working, what are you up to? To be honest, I do think about work (in a non-working way). I think a lot about the industry, the way this industry has changed in the past and going to change in the future and the impact of technology in all this. Watching movies (any movie), editing them and reading books on Indian philosophy are three of my favourite pastimes.

Who was the mentor who most influenced you and why? There is no one mentor, I have a few – both within and outside the industry. The fact that you are working with the top Fortune 500 companies gives you the rarest of opportunities to interact with so many CEOs (even they themselves cannot dream of it!).

I learn every day.

When you were a newbie in the industry, did you dream you would be CEO one day? What kind of CEO did you want to be

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and how closely have you stuck to it? Definitely not – primarily because this industry has evolved so much (at least five times since 1990) that I would rather focus on staying current and doing the right things rather than dreaming about a destination. Even today, as a CEO, the focus is on staying current, updated and relevant first, and then to lead the team towards the future.

I consciously ensure I spend one third of my time thinking about the future.

remains most important for me. And is the one thing that keeps me awake at night.

Second, I want to stay connected with people. It gets difficult as you move up when the team is 400 people in six countries and because of our rapid growth, newcomers joining every day. But I love the people we have. In their ideas and enthusiasm, I find my inspiration and energy. I hope I am always able to make the time to connect with people and be there for them.

Biggest blunder in your career?

There have been many! Wrong choices, bad decisions, wrong hires.

Some day I hope to cash in on them by writing a thrilling best seller!

taking over some critical decisionmaking processes in the future, and technology, and in turn, the CTO’s role; and how should we transform ourselves to manage multiple stakeholders in the new evolving ecosystem.

What do you dislike most about advertising/your job?

When people call us commission agents, which truly we are not. Also

Craziest thing your staff has told you? We were having a team meeting the other day and a newcomer asked if I was the digital planner on the account! It’s quite flattering at my age.

What do you dislike most about advertising/your job? The pathetically low remuneration that clients offer media agencies. As a result, we are struggling to attract/ retain the best talent.

One thing you would say to a newbie in the industry? Hang in there. You may not know this now, but this job is the most fun you are going to have.

Your first job? Sales with Blowplast.

the way the system is hell-bent on commoditising this service. I could draw parallels to the telecom and IT industry where some sanity was brought in when the industry got together to create some benchmarks. It’s high time we also think of doing this.

One thing you would say to a newbie in the industry? Stay hungry. Stay relevant. Stay current.

Your biggest blunder in your career? Nothing comes to mind that particularly troubles me in these past 24 years. However, there are definitely a few things I could have done differently, that is, to look at our clients’ business more deeply and to understand and foresee potential issues that could come our way.

For example, the transformation of the marketing function in the client organisation; how finance is

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8/9/2014 2:45:48 PM

THE CEOs FEATURE

FIONA GORDON

CHEUK CHIANG

GROUP CHAIRMAN, OGILVY & MATHER SINGAPORE

CEO, ASIA PACIFIC, OMNICOM MEDIA GROUP

Who was the mentor who most influenced you and why?

A lady called Jane Mercer, who was my first boss at Ogilvy. She was hugely influential. She was a true “gentlewoman with brains” and actually helped me get a big break.

She was my boss at American Express and had worked at Ogilvy New York and so recommended me to the American Express team there.

Proudest moment in your career? I was hugely proud of the team when we won the IPA prize for the Health Promotion Board’s “I Quit” campaign last year, which was the first for a Singapore agency.

It was particularly rewarding to be recognised on a piece of business we are very passionate about.

Craziest thing your staff has told you? I once got an urgent text

Harshest thing said to you in your career? It was more an action than actual words. A creative director once threw a briefcase at my head when I was an account executive because we hadn’t sold the work to the client. Top tip – learn to duck fast.

during a big client meeting. It read: “You can relax, Chootiya has been found.” It took me a few minutes to move from being totally baffled to figuring out they were talking about the agency hamster, which had escaped from its cage and gone walkabout.

When you were a newbie in the industry, did you dream you would be CEO one day?

What kind of CEO did you want to be and how closely have you stuck to it? My dream was really more to work on great brands and with smart people from whom you can learn and be consistently inspired by. While it may be 50 years since David Ogilvy wrote Confessions of an Advertising Man, much of his thinking remains relevant today and I try to stick to his central message of, “if each of us hires people who are bigger than we are, we shall become a company of giants”. I think you can also grow giants if you show people you believe in them.

Many people in my career have believed in me so I try to pass on that encouragement.

What do you dislike most about advertising/your job? Sometimes we can treat it a bit too much like ER (emergency room) and we have to remember it is more like PR (public relations).

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One thing you would say to a newbie in the industry? It’s going to be a roller coaster so make sure you like and trust the people you work with and remember to laugh a lot.

Your first job? My first job was as a graduate trainee at Ogilvy & Mather London right out of Edinburgh University. I was very chuffed to buy an “Ogilvy red” jacket (I had seen David Ogilvy’s red braces) with my first pay packet and thought I had really entered the glamorous world of advertising.

What are you doing when you’re not at work? Fitness, that’s the very thing that keeps me sane in our stressful business environment.

If I don’t keep fit I will go crazy.

Second, I love cooking – I grew up in a Chinese restaurant in Melbourne. Occasionally I’ll prepare a dinner party, a pretty elaborate one with several courses. I find it very relaxing to be creative.

Tell us about your first job?

I started cooking very young, working as a waiter at the age of seven. My mum gave me this clipon bow tie and I would stand on a milk carton and take orders. It was a great experience – it taught me how to interact with people. It taught me so many things for my career.

About service for instance, it taught me how to ensure clients got good service. (He points to the Chinese word “Ren” sitting in his PA’s room.)

You see that word there? It means a lot to Chinese culture – it means resilience, tolerance or patience.

Describe your management style. The one thing that is very important to me is the EQ component. More than ever today, leadership is not about having a strong IQ, but a strong EQ. How you relate to people is very important.

That’s not just at the CEO level, but at the ground level and the trainee level as well. I like to think of management style as being very open and collaborative and very relatable to people.

Biggest blunder in your career?

The ones I remember most was from early in my career when I was an account executive. There was one time when I was working with

GE Capital. They had a Myer Card.

We used to produce brochures for the card through GE Capital. At the back of the card there would always be terms and conditions. There was once I didn’t read the fine type and the client printed it. And because it was financial, it was a huge issue.

And I had a really tough boss too.

What that taught me was attention to detail. That is so important in our business. It’s been burnt into my psyche now. Anyone that works with me will know – if there’s even one spelling error.

Harshest thing ever said to you?

I was told by a creative director that I couldn’t sell because his ad got rejected. That was when I was an account executive. And my word, that was the best thing he could have ever said to me because from that moment in time I knew I had to make it my thing to sell that ad. It was harsh at the time, but very important from a career development point of view.

Another time would be a few months ago, when Cindy my PA, came in and was going through my things and telling me what I needed to do. Then as she was going out, said: “By the way you need to dye your hair.”

Craziest thing your staff has told you? Mark Holden, (PHD’s worldwide strategy and planning director) he’s bald, and a lot of the guys that work with him are bald. He once said to me, if you want to be smarter, go shave your head, you’ll be disproportionately smarter by 7.5%. And if you add glasses to that you add another 2.5%. Now you can see why I thought that was crazy.

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8/9/2014 2:45:49 PM

THE CEOs FEATURE

KENNY POWAR

DEAN BRAMHAM

CEO, ASIA PACIFIC, POSSIBLE WORLDWIDE

CEO, SOUTHEAST ASIA, PUBLICIS Describe your management style. My management style is a hybrid between pacesetting and coaching. We work for an organisation which is very entrepreneurial and likes to give people room to grow. Pacesetting is very important as we have to put the foot to the accelerator, instantly driving success in our industry. On the coaching side, I’ve enjoyed seeing people grow and flourish and talented people be successful. I enjoy being part of the process.

When you’re not working, what are you up to? Driving – I’m an absolute petrol head. I also like watching team sports, especially football and rugby.

have to experiment and take risks. Unfortunately when you do, sometimes you break things!

However, when you get it right you can get some amazing results.

Who was the mentor who most influenced you and why? I’d have to say my first boss in the industry – John Foenander. He was a big data guy before “big data” existed. He’s also a genuine balance of right and left brain.

Proudest moment in your career? I’m proud to have had the opportunity to work with some of the best people in the industry.

Proudest moment of my career?

No idea – it’s not over yet. Will let you know when I switch careers to become a professional race car driver …

Harshest thing said to you in your career? “What do you mean you don’t play golf? What kind of CEO are you?”

When you were a newbie in the industry, did you dream you would be CEO one day? What kind of CEO did you want to be and how closely have you stuck to it? To be honest I kind of stumbled into the industry. After studying engineering at university I thought I’d try my hand at being a techie. A mate was working in a direct and database marketing agency so I gave it a go.

In my role, I’ve been heavily influenced by team sports. From my experience, the best sports teams have a core of individuals who are committed to winning and ready to back up each other when needed. It’s the same thing with a successful business.

Biggest blunder in your career?

Too many to list. In our industry things change so quickly you

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Craziest thing your staff has told you? My colleagues have an evil streak which surfaces every year.

One year they convinced our top three clients around the world to send me termination notices … on my birthday. As you can imagine I almost had a heart attack! When they told me it was just a birthday prank I was tempted to throw them all off our helipad!

When you were a newbie in the industry, did you dream you would be CEO one day? What kind of CEO did you want to be and how closely have you stuck to it? I joined advertising after doing a marketing degree and after that I went into the Feds as a graduate investigator doing surveillance and undercover to find corrupt customs officials. After that, when I got into the industry I was around 25 and so I approached the industry at 1000 miles per hour and won a piece of advertising business for the company I joined in three months. And stayed in that job for 18 months.

I’ve been surrounded by mentors and people who weren’t

man. Richard Pinder, ex-COO of Publicis Worldwide, because of his passion and determination to get something done and his energy.

Michael Wood, my senior at Leo Burnett, who had a “can do” spirit in creating amazing work and life experience, as well boundless energy. He knew what he wanted from life, what experiences turned him on and knew how to make life and work interesting.

Your biggest blunder in your career? If I have a regret it is hiring really good people, but for the wrong role.

When you’re not working, what will you be doing? I like cycling and Malaysia has the best road cycling in Asia. I like mountain biking in Indonesia as it’s downhill and more fun. I have a small dog and I like walking my dog and doing boring things. And I am trying to learn how to be a better cook. I have a fondness for Italian food, but I recently cooked a Beef Wellington that wasn’t too bad. It’s pretty therapeutic.

One thing you would say to a newbie in the industry? I would say the communications industry

What do you dislike most about advertising/your job? That the industry is still measured by awards rather than results.

One thing you would say to a newbie in the industry? As my mate Shrek would say – it’s better out than in. Don’t be afraid to use your voice.

What was your first job? Shelf stacker and trolley collector at Sainsbury’s (a grocery store with a rather fetching brown uniform).

into office politics. Becoming a CEO was a big responsibility and it’s the same as being a newbie – you take initiative and responsibility and do the best you can every day.

Who was the mentor who most influenced you and why? Steve Gatfield, the ex-CEO of Leo Burnett, because of his sheer intellect. He was a man of his word and a good

is fantastic for creative intelligent people to have exciting, nonstructured careers. But, there is no room for halfheartedness. It is a “give it all” kind of industry.

Everything is personal and if you bring full commitment to the industry, it will reward you with travel, brands and salary and a roller coaster of experiences.

No two days are ever the same.

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THE CEOs FEATURE

CHRIS FOSTER CHAIRMAN & REGIONAL CEO, ASIA PACIFIC, SAATCHI & SAATCHI

What was your first job? Was it in advertising? No. I grew up in Canada and worked in a company called College Pro Painters. It fuelled my passion for business, creativity and for entrepreneurship. It was a franchise-based company where you basically ran your own painting company. I was responsible for hiring staff and procuring contracts, for the painting systems and decisions on aesthetics as well as for the payroll. I was barely 22 then. I put myself through university studying economics and philosophy and did

that for four consecutive summers. I absolutely loved it and it became a real success.

In an age where you see brands moving from agency to agency so quickly, isn’t that a challenge?

I don’t think this is the nature of brands; this is the nature of unenlightened marketers.

There’s a huge amount of pressure on the client side and the marketer to prove their worth and ROI. I think there’s a stronger ROI now – not return on investment

but return on involvement. Great advertising is based on a truly great relationship. Advertising agencies and marketers need to build commitment and trust as a team.

The best years Harley-Davidson had was when it was entrenched with its agency. I haven’t seen anything from them lately.

I think short relationships suggest a very short-term view. You define yourself in work and in life by the kind of people you have around you. Changing relationships every couple of years, is not going to lead to real depth.

(On the bright side,) the average tenure of a CMO used to be 15 to 18 months. But I think it’s getting longer as we get through the recession. People now understand the importance of continuity more. I love the move P&G did to reinstate A.G. Lafley.

How prevalent is this in Asia, these fast-moving agency relationships? It depends on the maturity of the industry. For local brands you are still looking at lowest

JEFFREY SEAH

What was your first job? I was a media planner/buyer at Ogilvy &

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Mather – distributing free cinema tickets, magazines and media owner premiums to eager agency colleagues hovering around the old boiler room media department.

What’s the craziest thing your staff has told you? “Stop dressing like a woman.”

Craziest thing your staff has told you? Me: “How did you lose three accounts, and only knowing about it from a trade magazine?”

Staff: “Jeff, I was top 5% in my graduating class, it is not my fault.”

Who was the mentor who most influenced you and why?

Andre Nair, the mentor of many mentors and last of the personas of the industry – a man who lives and breathes the business, and who showed me how to live and let live.

Your biggest blunder in your career? Too many to rank.

Personally, it would be sacrificing family gatherings for a pitch on the first day of the Chinese New Year holidays. Professionally, turning down a CEO role in the middle of the dotcom boon in the 1990s. Those stock options cashed … could have built a full new wing for the Assisi Hospice – a Singapore charity organisation for which I sit as a board director.

What kind of CEO did you want to be and how closely have you stuck to it? I really believe in the power of creative leadership to inspire people to be their best. I am fortunate in the sense that my career has been a journey where I have had the opportunity to work alongside some amazing people. They have shown me what it takes to be a great leader – both professionally and personally. There are some general expectations of a CEO, but I think the best and most effective approach continues to evolve based on what our people and clients need.

bosses then, you could not identify or ascertain what made them get there.

So it was about learning by “not repeating the mistakes of others”.

CEO, SOUTHEAST ASIA, STARCOM MEDIAVEST GROUP Career path. I started out in advertising by accident. It was serendipity. I did triple science in school because my parents wanted me to be a doctor, like all Asian parents. But I knew I was not conservative enough to be a startout general practitioner (the excuse I gave myself).

I studied business at National University of Singapore. Upon graduation, I promised myself to accept the first job offer to pay off my stock punting debts.

Ogilvy & Mather came calling. I liked the red shoes of David Ogilvy.

Then it was the red apples of Leo Burnett, followed by parting the “Red Sea” of advertising – launching Starcom, when media agencies came to the fore.

Then back to WPP with Mindshare, and then VivaKi.

price and fastest turnaround. But you have to be geared to service that as well. As businesses mature and get more complex in their requirements, their businesses mature as well. I think that an agency today needs to be fast, nimble and reactive, you can’t rest on the laurels of your relationships.

One thing you would say to a newbie in the industry? Learn three new things every day. OK, learn 10 new things every day.

Harshest thing said to you in your career? “Since you have been to the military as part of Singapore’s conscription, you must understand what is a bulletproof glass ceiling.”

What’s the toughest thing about your job? Balancing time. Last year I made more than 30 business trips.

Trying to balance that with my family and societal commitments was hard.

When you were a newbie in the industry, did you dream you would be CEO one day? What kind of CEO did you want to be and how closely have you stuck to it? Never. There was no red thread in the persona of agency

Your biggest peeve about the ad industry? Advertising professionals should champion our profession with pride. This is something we don’t do enough of. Another pet peeve, not holding up our intellectual property enough!

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THE CEOs FEATURE

PHILIP BRETT PRESIDENT, SOUTHEAST ASIA, TBWA Describe your management style. Hmmm … not sure I am the best person to say. But if pushed, I would say collaborative. I have been brought up playing team sports so I very much believe in leading a group from within rather than from the front. Also, I have always believed you should never ask someone to do something you aren’t prepared to do yourself.

Tell us how you got to where you are. I trained as a barrister, then took a year off, realised I wasn’t grown up enough, fell into a temp job in an ad agency which could not have been more different from my previous environment. I dabbled with road managing some famous stand-up comedians, came to Singapore to help get Tequila going on a threemonth posting in 1996 … and am still here!

Who was the mentor who most influenced you and why? Not a

mentor, but the person that I have always believed is the man to live up to is Jean Marie Dru. He is one of the most impressive people I have ever met or worked with. You don’t have enough space for the reasons.

What was the proudest moment in your career? Easy. The moment we were told we had won the SIA account. I burst into tears and then hugged the client. It was the biggest pressure release I have ever felt. I don’t think we could ever top that in a career. It was a defining moment for many people around me at the time, and certainly a very special one.

What was your biggest blunder in your career? There have been so many. But if I have to come clean, it was probably when I failed my Institute of Sales Promotion exams as an account executive because my submission was strikingly similar to that of a close friend of mine!! Very

JEFF CHEONG

Career path. I was trained as a graphic designer – started working in a design house producing annual reports, packaging, logos and illustration. Then I got bored, crossed the street, hopped into Batey Ads and picked up some freelance work and that got me started in the world of advertising.

I got bored (again), taught myself web design, got an opportunity to run some dot-com start-ups and found my calling with innovation.

Then I held senior appointments from Ion Global to XM to TBWA before coming to DDB Tribal Worldwide. Over the years, I have gone from creative to business.

I’m really excited about marketing breakthroughs.

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Harshest thing said to you in your career? I can’t remember anything specific. I have a good mix of thick skin, bad hearing and a short memory, so nothing really comes to mind. Oh, wait, actually someone said I looked like Simon Cowell. That hurt!

When you were a newbie in the industry, did you dream you would be CEO one day? What kind of CEO did you want to be and how closely have you stuck to it? It was never my plan at all.

I think I took a risk with my career at a good time and it paid off. I never wanted to be a “CEO”, so my only

consciousness in the A&E, the first person I saw was David. He has a keen interest in people in the agency.

PRESIDENT, ASIA, TRIBAL WORLDWIDE Describe your management style.

Be open, be brave – I learn, build on other people’s experiences and reapply.

naughty. I thought my career was all over before it had started.

Your first job? I was 15 when I took a vacation job as a sales assistant at Metro, Beach Road. In just one week, I made an impact with the sales results in the electronics department and the sales director took notice of me. She tasked me to create a roving road show to run a 30-minute pop-up special. So there I was with a microphone selling anything from shoes to pots to bed sheets. But it was there I learnt the art of passion and selling.

Your biggest blunder in your career? As a young creative, I had to do some paste-up job for some layout. Without knowing how precious bromide paper was, I binned the excess prints after I was done. Needless to say I was fired on my first day of work.

Harshest thing said to you in your career? “So what if your wife is having a baby, you’re not. I need you to fly over and oversee the job.”

hope would be that people enjoy working with me and would do it again if asked … either colleague or client.

Craziest thing your staff has told you? Pass. Most of them are bonkers.

One thing you would say to a newbie in the industry? You had better want to do this. It is a great career, but it really demands its pound of flesh.

What’s the toughest thing about your job? Not taking everything personally.

One thing you hate most about advertising? The industry’s vanity.

This was during the first trimester of our first born where I was scheduled for an overseas job, which I hoped to be excused from. I left the agency a year later.

When you were a newbie in the industry, did you dream you would be CEO one day? What kind of CEO did you want to be and how closely have you stuck to it? I never set out to be a CEO. It’s a role you can do, but you never forget about the many people you work with. I’m learning, always learning. Those who can – do. Those who can’t – talk.

Who was the mentor who most influenced you and why? David Tang, my boss. David is not a textbook marketer. His unpredictable, smart and opportunistic business moves leave a lot of the competition behind. Apart from work, he has taught me a lot about life and family – always reminding me about family and life. Two years ago I met with a bicycle accident and when I regained

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THE CEOs FEATURE

MELVIN KUEK

GERRY BOYLE

MD, SINGAPORE, Y&R

CHAIRMAN, ASIA PACIFIC, ZENITHOPTIMEDIA Describe your management style Open and collaborative, but ultimately decisive. It’s been described as a democratic autocracy. It’s so important to take different perspectives, but then to make a call. I also think it’s important to lead from the front and be involved in the work every day.

It’s not acceptable to ask people to do things which you’re not prepared to do yourself.

Who was the mentor who most influenced you and why?

A lot of people I work with influence me and I have been lucky to have worked with some fantastic people throughout my career. People like Joseph Tan (CEO of Lowe Indonesia), Richard Tan (president and CEO, DDB Group North China), David Tang (president DDB Singapore) and my current bosses Matt Godfrey and Sanjay Bhasin.

Their energy, passion and “never say die” attitude toward everything they do is amazing.

However, the most important lesson I learn from them is humility and that we can always learn something new from anyone and everyone.

Harshest thing said to you in your career? I had one of my first creative briefs sent back to me by the creative director with a sketch of a stick figure with a noose around its neck and the words, “Hang the idiot”. I confronted the CD later and he apologised, giving the excuse that he had a blinding hangover. It was an interesting introduction to the world of advertising!

When you were a newbie in the industry, did you dream you would be CEO one day? What kind of CEO did you want to be and how closely have you stuck to it? Nope, I never ever really thought about it. I just wanted to enjoy what I do for a living and see how far it takes me. Advertising was serious fun for me 17 years ago and continues to be so.

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As an agency lead now, I hope to infect those who work with me with a similar mentality; I truly believe that success comes when you throw everything you’ve got into what you do.

What is your biggest blunder in your career? Probably not a blunder, but I did regret not joining Wieden & Kennedy to run Nike when I was given the opportunity. It was a time when digital and social media was really coming into play and I could have been at the forefront of something truly momentous.

Career path. I joined Leo Burnett as a media assistant and experienced the spectrum of buying, planning and lots and lots of administrative work. Then I joined Michaelides & Bednash as a media strategist and learned from the master George Michaelides for three years. I have been with ZenithOptimedia since 1999. I have been lucky in that my boss Steve King has given me so many different opportunities. I have led the planning function and was then trusted to

today. The value of client service, focus on brand and consumer and the appreciation of creativity is something we need to ensure lives on in the various agencies we all work in today.

Proudest moment in your career? Watching people learn, grow, develop and succeed.

Your biggest blunder in your career? Not learning enough from my many mistakes and maybe not coming to Asia the first time I was asked.

Harshest thing said to you in your career? “Not good enough.”

When you were a newbie in the industry, did you dream you would be CEO one day? What kind of CEO did you want to be and how closely have you stuck to it? I have always simply tried to work hard and to do my very best

What is your proudest moment in your career? Leading and winning my first pitch as an account executive at DMB&B. It was for the Cadillac business.

What is the craziest thing your staff has told you? “I am taking a MC because I am sick from partying.”

What do you dislike most about advertising/your job?

Unpredictable hours, daily heart attacks, crazy deadlines … gotta love it!

One thing you would say to a newbie in the industry? To quote Bruce Lee, “Be like water making its way through cracks”. Keep an open mind, judge nothing, and absorb everything.

Your first job? I had the awesome task of data entry at Pan Pacific Publications.

help run the agency as managing director. I then went to London Business School before becoming the UK CEO. After six great years in that role, I became global managing partner, responsible for business development, and then was given this fantastic role in Asia.

Your first job? I was invited for a three-week placement at Leo Burnett straight from University, following which they offered me a job as a media assistant.

The culture of Burnett is so strong and I still have a book of 100 Leo quotes on my desk

in any of the roles that I have had so far, and have been “new” in so many of them across the years. It is important to make any role your own, rather than corresponding to a particular type. That is what makes our business so interesting – so many people from so many backgrounds doing things their own way.

Craziest thing your staff has told you? “If I’d known you were going to review that piece of work I’d have tried much harder.”

One thing you would say to a newbie in the industry? Listen.

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OUT OF HOME MEDIA OF THE YEAR

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It has been nimble, innovative and resilient in a digital era, which is why the out-of-home medium remains a key part of the marketing mix, and one exciting space to watch. In this report, we see how marketers have ranked their preferred OOH media partner.

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METHODOLOGY HOW DID WE ACHIEVE THIS? The OOH rankings were derived from questions in Marketing Research’s annual Media Spend Benchmarking Survey.

Marketing Research employed an online questionnaire and surveyed its database of client advertisers and marketing services agency professionals. All answers given by respondents were considered by Marketing when finalising the rankings.

QUALITY RECIPIENTS AND RESPONDENTS More than 700 respondents participated in the Media Spend Benchmarking Survey.

Genuine advertising decision-makers and influencers across key agency-using industries were well represented as were agency professionals from various marketing services.

Nearly 87% of client advertiser-side respondents were manager-level decisionmakers and above, with 10% from the most senior ranks of client advertisers – CEOs, MDs or GMs – and another 18% were VPs or director-level marketers.

The majority of the respondents from the agency side were CEOs, MDs or GMs (32%), 16% were marketing personnel, while 23% were sales personnel. The remaining 29% were operations, creative and media personnel.

Advertisers from major and local international banks, FMCG companies, property and construction, IT and telecommunication firms, as well as those from travel and tourism companies participated in the survey. Agency professionals across the marketing services spectrum were also well represented.

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1 | JCDECAUX

JCDecaux grabs top spot in the 2014 OOH Media of the Year once again.

In the past year, the company has invested several million dollars in new digital media landmarks, interactive platforms and enhancing its current sites. For example, digital towers have been installed at Changi Airport Terminal 1 equipped with programmable screen rotation. It also launched a new interactive media platform at ION Orchard which features a range of capabilities such as augmented reality, touchscreen and kinect and is equipped with social media connection. Its billboards in Chinatown have been rebuilt and increased by 70%.

JCDecaux also commissioned a market study of 500 respondents about the effectiveness of billboard advertising.

As for new senior hires, it appointed Evlyn Yang as its deputy managing director.

Previously, Yang worked at the company from 1996 to 2011. Her previous role in the company was general manager, leading the sales team. It also appointed Nicolas Dupuit technical director responsible for the Singapore operations.

Key campaigns run in the past year included those by long-term clients Chanel, Dior, Estée Lauder, AMEX, Inter Parfums, Nissan, Burberry, LVMH and Marina Bay Sands. Lipton ran its first interactive campaign at the new Interact@ION.

Tissot executed its first real-time digital clock on the digital 70-inch screen network across all three terminals at Changi Airport to reinforce its positioning as the official timekeeper at the 2014 Asian Games. Tiger Beer launched its island-wide “Uncage” campaign at 43 Keppel, the landmark billboard along Keppel Road and was the first advertiser to launch at the all-new

Baggage Claim Impact Wall at Changi Airport Terminal 2. Air Asia also used Cathay Cineleisure Orchard’s external facade to target the new budget airline’s travelling demographic.

“Our continued objective is to improve our media offer wherever practicable and deliver better value to advertisers,” said a JCDecaux spokesperson.

at Tang Plaza. It is a combination of façade banners on the building exterior and underpass and escalator wraps.

It also launched SOAR or Singapore Outdoor Audience Research, the first official provider of audience measurement data for the Singapore out-of-home media industry.

This is an initiative by Nielsen and co-funded

by Clear Channel Singapore, MediaCorp, Moove

Media and SMRT Media. It produces audience insights for OOH advertising that can be used in planning, trading and valuing advertising investment in the medium. Travel journeys of the consumers will be visually tracked via software and trips will be mapped out to show which outdoor sites the consumers passed by.

Another global initiative, Connect, was also launched. Advertising panels on Clear Channel Outdoor’s pedestrian-accessible sites across the globe will be turned into mobile launch pads, enabling consumers to access interactive content from advertisers via their smartphones.

Connect creates seamless integration between out-of-home and mobile, driving deeper brand engagement with consumers when they are out and about.

Singapore has taken the lead by offering advertisers interactive mobile advertising solutions through Mobile Life! since August 2011. In May 2014, Mobile Life! was rebranded as Connect.

By September 2014, all 4,000 six-sheet advertising panels in Singapore, in addition to existing Mobile Life!-enabled panels in the CBD, will be permanently equipped with Connect capabilities, allowing advertisers to launch mobile-enabled campaigns with ease.

2 | CLEAR CHANNEL

Clear Channel does well this year taking second spot once again. This year saw a change of leadership at the company, with CEO Adam Butterworth exiting and sales and marketing director Kelly Khoo taking over the reins as the new CEO. The company has also seen many new developments. For example, in July 2013, Clear Channel Singapore was awarded the contract to sell and market the outdoor advertising space

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3 | SMRT MEDIA

Over the past year, building on its digital leadership, SMRT Media launched its latest e-commerce initiative – iMOB/I’m On Board in May 2014. The platform was created to integrate advertising, digital and retail business and offers passengers immediate access to rich-branded content and lifestyle deals in and around SMRT’s transport network.

SMRT Media also extended its reach through strategic partnerships. Recently it inked a partnership with Kallang Wave, the new mall at Singapore Sports Hub, with its integrated sports, lifestyle and entertainment, as its official OOH media partner.

It also rolled out its first batch of doubledecker buses. Through this, SMRT hopes to entice advertisers into advertising on huge moving billboards. More buses will be deployed progressively throughout the year.

Its daily ridership figures have gone up by 4.43% to 2.8 million trips per day from FY12 to FY13. The network has an average of 19.6 million passenger trips per week.

One major campaign over the past year was by ComChest. ComChest came on board to partner SMRT Media to launch Singapore’s first ever OOH digital donation drive in a transit environment to help the disadvantaged in ComChest’s Care & Share campaign.

Commuters could use their EZ-Link card to tap on SMRT billboards to donate SG$1 to Community Chest as they viewed the ad panels at key stations – Orchard, Somerset, Tiong Bahru, Yishun and Bishan. The public could also use their smartphones to scan the QR code on posters to donate large amounts via the ComChest website.

Other advertisers that came on board included international electronic brands such as Samsung, HP, LG, and most recently, Huawei.

Ads for these brands ran across Orchard station’s iBillboard and iView digital screens, and Raffles Place’s 62-metre link-way wall to create

an extensive showcase of their latest mobile and tablets.

Meanwhile, luxury brands venturing out of mainstream media into OOH also used SMRT’s mediums. New on its canvas is BMW who came on board SMRT Media to showcase the BMW 4 series. New FMCG brands such as Clinique, Kao, Sephora, Luxola, Kleenex, Orbis and Eversoft, came on board with greater strength this year.

To activate sales and boost brand presence, various advertising platforms such as window stickers, platform screen doors, concept train and wholly wrapped buses delivered their message with impact.

around royalty to resonate with the brand’s image of JWEL ice-cream. Besides being fully wrapped on the exterior, the bus also underwent an interior makeover to resemble a royal grand hall in a colour scheme of teal and gold. In it were also customised seat covers.

On four weekends from 12 April to 4 May,

the concept bus provided free shuttle services to the public in Orchard Road, with radio DJs and royal jesters entertaining the passengers on it.

The launch of Downtown Line also gave the company many new opportunities to showcase campaigns for clients in the new stations. One of the most prominent was CIMB’s station dominance campaign at Downtown Station.

Through this campaign, it is nearly impossible for CIMB and its brand to not be noticed by target audiences such as PMEBs working around the Marina Bay Financial Centre.

CIMB’s advertisements covered the pillars, floor, platform station doors and wallscapes of the station. Taxis are another area the company has been trying new ideas and executions.

In March, NTUC Income Travel Insurance, through Moove Media, rolled out a fleet of taxis each adorned with a 3D model of a piece of luggage on top, and also wholly wrapped in eyecatching and brightly coloured stickers.

Last month, Sentosa also ran a campaign with the company to promote its show by the sea, Wings of Time. This multi-platform campaign included fully wrapped buses and taxis with their tops featuring a 3D model of the show’s characters; Shahbaz, a pre-historic birdlike creature, and Felix riding on them.

4 | MOOVE MEDIA

2014 has been an eventful year for Moove Media, the out-of-home media company says.

Its concept bus campaign for F&N Creameries’ new product, JWEL ice-cream, was nominated as a finalist for The Spark Awards 2014 and Singapore Media Awards 2014.

Moove Media came up with a concept

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5 | GOLDEN VILLAGE

In the past year, as part of the continuing growth strategy, Golden Village Multiplex completed the revamp of another two of its cinemas – GV Bishan and GV Grand.

Golden Village Grand underwent a SG$2.5 million revamp and re-opened its doors to the public in October 2013, while Golden Village Bishan re-opened its doors in February 2014. GV also presented the public with new movie-going experiences through the introduction of D-BOX motion seats. The D-BOX motion seats are programmed with movements and sensations to complement the action on the screen.

GV also launched Quick Tix™ island-wide.

With every online transaction made either through the GV app, iGV, or online, a unique QR code was embedded in the confirmation email and sent to the customer’s email address.

Customers can then head down to the auditorium after scanning the QR code from their mobile devices. Internally, the company also appointed Clara Cheo as the new chief executive officer of Golden Village Multiplex in 2013. She has 17 years of experience working in GV. Some of the key campaigns that ran on its platform included Volkswagen’s GTI Fast Lane where Volkswagen built an actual slide on the

grand staircase of GV VivoCity, encouraging people to take the “Fast Lane” as a speedier alternative to the stairs.

Sennheiser also had a roadshow in which it set up a competition booth for patrons to take part in. Winners were rewarded with Sennheiser’s new headphones and the campaign ran from June to July 2014. Other key advertisers for the brand included Visa, StarHub and L’Oréal.

Both of these prominent screens will feature news, lifestyle, fashion, dining and entertainment content from MediaCorp, as well as a live broadcast of national events. One such example would be the National Day Parade, which will be played on all its malls’ digital screens.

MediaCorp OOH has had numerous projects in the past year. Some of the more notable campaigns included the DBS Orchard road buyout; a 3D flagship for OCBC Frank; and the augmented reality (AR) campaign for Pepsi.

The last of which was done to create hype for Pepsi’s new sponsorship deal with Manchester United. Tapping into the rising trend of AR, the Pepsi campaign revolved around a virtual reality whereby the public were offered a rare opportunity to snap a photo with their favourite football player by kicking a virtual ball.

In April this year, MediaCorp OOH welcomed Henry Goh to head the unit. As a pioneer in outdoor advertising, Goh was at the forefront of developing, implementing and promoting the bus shelter advertising medium in Singapore from 1996 to 2009.

One of the key campaigns it did was for Citibank at The Sail Linkway. The global campaign aimed to position Citi as the leading provider of global banking products and services.

The objective was to bring the campaign to life in the outdoor space and anchor the campaign in Singapore. The idea was to dominate the high traffic underpass at The Sail with an extensive

mural wall bringing eight recognisable city skylines to Singapore. The skylines were blended into one seamless panoramic view and shaded from dawn through night (echoing Citi’s brand colour). The piece symbolically represented how Citi clients are connected, through Citi, to the wider world, and how global travel can be an unbroken Citi experience. LED lighting and innovative 3D print techniques were used on the walls and floors to create an engaging and attention-grabbing communication piece.

Another one was a campaign for Club 21.

Setting out to stop PMEBs in their tracks, Club 21 executed an eye-catching accordion wall ad that people could see from a different angle when viewed from left and right of the advertisement.

Creative aside, it was done in conjunction with the launch of its online platforms.

6 | MEDIACORP OOH

In the past year, MediaCorp OOH expanded on its platforms further with the addition of two new outdoor digital screens at Westgate and Orchard Gateway.

Westgate is the newest landmark in Jurong with direct connections to both Jurong East MRT and bus interchanges. The high-definition screen takes prime position, facing the Jurong East MRT platforms and above the pedestrian thoroughfare.

Strengthening its dominant foothold along Orchard Road, MediaCorp OOH continues to edge out its competitors by securing a partnership with Orchard Gateway, a mall located in the heart of Orchard. Located at the façade of Peranakan Palace, the new LED digital outdoor screen displays high-resolution images and high-definition sounds.

7 | SPH MEDIABOXOFFICE

SPH MediaBoxOffice (SPHMBO) has done well in the rankings this year coming in seventh.

It has been focusing its efforts on providing integrated outdoor solutions to advertisers through its network of digital and static inventory across the island.

It has also been integrating its sales force for better synergy and coverage. It has expanded its product portfolio as well.

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OUT OF HOME MEDIA OF THE YEAR

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8 | FOCUS MEDIA

Focus Media has once again retained its eighth position in this year’s rankings. Established in April 2004, the company was publicly listed on the stock exchange of Hong Kong in July 2011.

Available at the elevator lobbies of premium office and commercial buildings in the prime business districts of Hong Kong and Singapore, Focus Media operates a large in-store digital network that provides a point-of-sale advertising platform for brands sold at leading retail chainstores in Hong Kong and Singapore.

According to the company, it intends to build one of the largest digital out-of-home media networks by attracting the highest calibre of people and partners in the media industry.

As of 30 June 2013, the company deployed flat-panel displays at more than 1,000 office buildings and shopping malls in Hong Kong

and Singapore under its office and commercial buildings digital OOH media network; and across 250 retail chain stores in Hong Kong (partnership with Mannings) and Singapore (partnership with Watsons) under its in-store digital OOH media network.

This includes more than 50 major private residential complexes in Hong Kong under its newly launched residential digital OOH media network. Focus Media has also recently launched its static billboard network in Hong Kong under its static OOH billboard media solutions.

Campaigns it ran this year included ones for Audi A3 Sedan, ExxonMobil (Cleaner Engine), Sealy Lift Door Stickers, City Developments Limited, HSBC, Korean Tourism Organisation, Hershey’s Chocolate, Okinawa Prefecture, Star Cruises Norwegian Cruise Line, HP, Cerebos

(Brand’s Chicken of Essence), BMW, Tokio Marine and more.

According to the company’s site, digital billboards are the principal driver of growth for out-of-home.

9 | MANGO MEDIA

Over the past year, Mango Media has strengthened its offerings with the addition of the new large format and event space inventories in the quaint Katong enclave at 112 Katong. First to anchor this new large format and display space was Mercedes-Benz, launching its new C-Class.

Meanwhile, the existing large format billboard at Holland Village has been rebuilt, improved and made grander. Tiger’s “Uncage” is the current campaign running.

In its continuing efforts to improve its events and activation services, Mango Media has extended its out-of-home capabilities with the launch of “M-ACTIVATE” – its mobile pop-up platform that will enable advertisers to reach their target audience via the client’s choice of routes with its roving billboards. When anchored at strategic venues, M-ACTIVATE will transform

into pop-up installations to engage the audience, offering up brand and campaign activities.

First to come aboard is AXA Insurance with its SmartDrive campaign.

While the company has had no new hires over the past year, it has had several key

campaigns. Mango Media has been handling all of Tiger Beer’s large format outdoor buys for the “Tiger Uncage” campaign which has been run on three billboard installations – @ Holland Village, The Arcade @ Raffles Place and Faber House along Orchard Road.

Meanwhile, it also handled AXA’s SmartDrive mobile campaign activation and the MercedesBenz – The New C-Class campaign which had both large format and car display aspects.

DBS Bank also ran its “Mini Surprises” campaign on a large format billboard along the AYE. Nissan Teana ran its “Ahead of the Game” campaign in large format on The Verge.

Some of the other brands have included Mitsubishi Electric, AXA Insurance, M1, DBS Bank, Volkswagen and Daimler South East Asia.

known as The Empire. Since then, it now owns seven cinema locations: Shaw Theatres Lido, Shaw Theatres JCube, Shaw Theatres Bugis, Shaw Theatres Century, Shaw Theatres nex, Shaw Theatres Lot One and Shaw Theatres Balestier. The latest addition was its second digital IMAX theatre at JCube, Jurong East.

Its first digital IMAX theatre system at Shaw

Theatres Lido increased box office takings by about 50% in its first six months of operation for the multiplex (after re-opening in May 2011).

This prompted the company to bring forward plans to introduce a second IMAX theatre by including IMAX in its newest multiplex, Shaw Theatres JCube. Shaw Theatres JCube increased the number of multiplexes managed by the exhibitor from six to seven locations island-wide. Lido reopened following a SG$20 million overhaul and houses the first digital IMAX theatre in Singapore. Shaw Theatres nex, the company’s first new multiplex in more than a decade, opened in December 2010 with the introduction of Premiere, a premium cinemagoing experience in a suburban district.

Further developments are on the horizon, said a company release.

10 | SHAW

Shaw comes in 10th position in this year’s survey. The Shaw Organisation was founded in 1924 when the late Tan Sri Runme Shaw (1901-1985) arrived in Singapore from Ningbo, Shanghai.

In 1927, the group began operating its own “proper” cinema in the Tanjong Pagar district.

This first makeshift wooden cinema was

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5/9/2014 6:30:48 PM

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THE LOYALTY & ENGAGEMENT AWARDS 2014 ................................................................................................................................................................................................................

After its debut in Singapore last year, we have made the L&E awards bigger and better by going regional this year, encompassing the entire Southeast Asia. Here’s a look at the winners on the night.

JUDGES Agnes Tan, regional director, digital marketing, loyalty and partnership, Accor Hotels Singapore Nik Laming, general manager, loyalty division, Cebu Air, Inc. Jerry Lim, senior CRM and digital manager, South Asia, Danone Asia Pacific Holdings Lawrence Law, global general manager, Diageo Yan Tsang, general manager, eBay Enterprise Cheryl Kwek, corporate CRM manager, Estèe Lauder Companies Ajay Mohan, director, partner marketing and sponsorships, consumer marketing and sales, Intel Asia Pacific and Japan Gaurav Gupta, marketing director, ASEAN, Kimberly-Clark Mia Icasiano-Bulatao, CRM head, assistant vice-president, LBC Express Inc, Philippines Karren Koo, general manager, Southeast Asia, business unit, LEGO Singapore Phoebe Lee, director, loyalty marketing, Marina Bay Sands Angeli Beltran, director, digital marketing and CRM, Mead Johnson Nutrition Singapore Salil Murthy, associate marketing director, Asia, personal healthcare, Procter & Gamble Corrine Tan, vice-president, customer marketing and engagement, Prudential Assurance Company Singapore Lee Huei Chern, director, communications and engagement, strategic development and marketing group, Sport Singapore Zoe Harris, head, brand engagement, Standard Chartered Vittoria O’Connor, APAC CRM manager, The Body Shop Pankaj Batra, chief marketing officer – home service, Yum! Restaurants Asia Franchise

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THE LOYALTY & ENGAGEMENT AWARDS 2014 ................................................................................................................................................................................................................

L&E 2014 BRAND OF THE YEAR

Sanofi-Aventis wins Brand of the Year

Dean Bramham of Publicis, Sanofi-Aventis' agency, picking up the trophy for the client.

Sanofi-Aventis stole the show with stellar results across multiple award categories, earning it the coveted title of the L&E 2014 Brand of the Year.

Sanofi-Aventis triumphed as the top performing brand by sweeping four golds in Best Engagement Strategy for a Female Audience; Best Regional Loyalty Marketing Campaign; Best Use of Relationship Marketing – B2C and Best Use of Social. It also had one silver in Best Use of Integrated Media Campaign and a bronze in the Best Use of Games/Contests/ Quizzes and Best Use of Brand Advocacy categories.

The runner up was Pizza Hut, which

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bagged two golds in Best Use of Rewards & Incentives and Best CRM Strategy and one bronze in Best Use of Relationship Marketing – B2C. Another impressive contender was adidas which won one gold in Best Use of Loyalty Related Technology, two silvers in the categories Best Engagement Strategy for a Male Audience and Best Use of Relationship Marketing – B2C and a bronze in Loyalty Programme of the Year for its 3Stripes campaign.

This year, three agencies were indisputable the best performing agencies for the segments Loyalty, Engagement and

Relationship marketing respectively. CPR Vision Management walked away with the Loyalty Agency of the Year for its work on adidas’ 3Stripes campaign; Publicis Communications Malaysia bagged the Engagement Agency of the Year for the campaign – It’s time to love your ‘V’; and Capillary Technologies won the overall Relationship Marketing Agency of the Year.

Supported by platinum sponsor eBay Enterprise, gold sponsor Power2Motivate, supporting partner ThoughtBuzz and partners Freeflow Productions, Grimbergen Beer, Cornerstone Wine and Lanyon, the second edition of the Loyalty & Engagement Awards was organised with the mission of elevating marketing standards and practices in the region and is the only awards in the Southeast Asia market to focus completely on customer loyalty, engagement and relationship marketing.

Judging the entries were 18 client-side marketers, loyalty, engagement and relationship marketing experts, who have a rich knowledge in consumer loyalty and vast experience in the art of engagement in the digital age. The evening also saw winners from KFC Singapore, Unilever Malaysia, MediaCorp, NTUC Link, The Body Shop Indonesia, McDonald’s Singapore, Microsoft Thailand, Johnson & Johnson Thailand, DBS Bank and more.

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THE LOYALTY & ENGAGEMENT AWARDS 2014 . . . .......................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... . . .

L&E LOYALTY AGENCY OF THE YEAR

CPR Vision Management What the winner had to say: “We are very honoured and extremely grateful for such recognition and accolades and to be recognised as an industry leader in Southeast Asia. CPR Vision received top honours and won awards in key categories: Best Engagement Strategy for a Male Audience; Best Use of Loyalty Related Technology; Best Use of Relationship Marketing – B2C; Loyalty Programme of the Year and the icing on the cake, the overall winner – Loyalty Agency of the Year for Southeast Asia. This wouldn’t be possible without three special ingredients – the first being our wonderful, dedicated, passionate and hardworking team; the second, our clients for their trust and making this all possible and believing in us and Marketing magazine for creating such a wonderful event that brings to life the region’s best work and best agencies. To come out No.1 is great recognition for our team and a nice reminder the business is on the right track for future growth.”

– Cameron Richards, chief executive officer, CPR Vision Management

L&E RELATIONSHIP MARKETING AGENCY OF THE YEAR

Capillary Technologies What the winner had to say: “We are very gratified on being honoured with the Relationship Marketing Agency of the Year award. It’s very exciting to see how our customers have been translating insights from data to become more relevant to their customers. Data holds the key to better business profitability in our industry and we are glad to see Marketing magazine bringing together industry players who can share best practices in this area.”

– Anant Choubey, regional head – Asia Pacific, Capillary Technologies

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THE LOYALTY & ENGAGEMENT AWARDS 2014 ................................................................................................................................................................................................................

L&E ENGAGEMENT AGENCY OF THE YEAR

Publicis Communications Malaysia What the winner had to say: “The entire agency was thrilled to win the Engagement Agency of the Year and have Sanofi win Brand of the Year. The awards is a recognition of an ambitious client, a great product and a big idea. Long-term, deep consumer engagement is the new benchmark for brands and agencies. The Lactacyd campaign has gone from strength to strength, on a very sensitive topic, by adding real value to our consumers’ engagement with the brand.

And a big thank you to Marketing magazine for supporting the industry with the Loyalty and Engagement awards.”

– Dean Bramham, Southeast Asia chief executive, Publicis

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THE LOYALTY & ENGAGEMENT AWARDS 2014 ................................................................................................................................................................................................................

BEST ENGAGEMENT STRATEGY FOR A MALE AUDIENCE

BEST ENGAGEMENT STRATEGY FOR A FEMALE AUDIENCE

GOLD Client: Procter & Gamble Campaign: Real Racing 3 with Gillette Agency: MediaCompete

GOLD Client: Sanofi-Aventis Campaign: It’s time to love your ‘V’ Agency: Publicis Communications Malaysia

SILVER Client: adidas BRONZE Client: Unilever Malaysia

SILVER Client: Unilever Malaysia BRONZE Client: theAsianparent

BEST USE OF BRAND ADVOCACY

BEST USE OF CO-CREATION/CROWD SOURCING

GOLD Client: McDonald’s Singapore Campaign: McDonald’s Surprise Alarm App Agency: DDB Group Singapore

GOLD Client: Watsons Malaysia Campaign: Malaysians Powered the Creation of New Raya Song Agency: OMD Malaysia

SILVER Client: Golden Arches Restaurants BRONZE Client: Sanofi-Aventis

SILVER Client: Microsoft (Thailand) BRONZE Client: United Laboratories

BEST USE OF EXPERIENTIAL/LIVE MARKETING

BEST ENGAGEMENT STRATEGY BY A GOVERNMENT/COMMUNITY

GOLD Client: Shell Campaign: Shell Eco-marathon Asia 2014 Agency: Imagination Asia

GOLD Client: Singapore Kindness Movement Campaign: The Singa Project Agency: Strategic Public Relations

SILVER Client: Moving Walls BRONZE Client: FrogAsia

SILVER Client: Singapore Sports Council BRONZE Client: National Heritage Board

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THE LOYALTY & ENGAGEMENT AWARDS 2014 ................................................................................................................................................................................................................

BEST ENGAGEMENT STRATEGY BY A MEDIA OWNER

BEST USE OF GAMES/CONTESTS/QUIZZES

GOLD Client: Moving Walls Campaign: Moving Minds Challenge 2014

GOLD Client: FrogAsia Campaign: FrogAsia Word Mania Challenge Agency: Lowe & Partners, Malaysia

SILVER Client: MediaCorp BRONZE Client: Telekom Malaysia

SILVER Client: PETRONAS BRONZE Client: Sanofi-Aventis

BEST USE OF INTEGRATED MEDIA CAMPAIGN

BEST EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT STRATEGY

GOLD Client: Astro Malaysia Holdings Campaign: OlaBola 2014 World Cup Campaign

GOLD Client: DBS Bank Campaign: Consumer Banking Operations Singapore, People Engagement

SILVER Client: Sanofi-Aventis BRONZE Client: Alliance Bank Malaysia

SILVER Client: DHL Express Singapore BRONZE Client: Visa

BEST CARD-BASED LOYALTY PROGRAMME

BEST PARTNERSHIP IN A LOYALTY PROGRAMME

GOLD Client: BLoyalty Campaign: BCard

GOLD Client: StarHub Campaign: Live life to the fullest with StarHub Rewards

SILVER Client: NTUC Link BRONZE Client: Hong Leong Bank

SILVER Client: NTUC Link BRONZE Client: Panduit

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THE LOYALTY & ENGAGEMENT AWARDS 2014 ................................................................................................................................................................................................................

BEST USE OF LOYALTY RELATED TECHNOLOGY

BEST USE OF REWARDS & INCENTIVES

GOLD Client: adidas Campaign: adidas 3Stripes Agency: CPR Vision Management

GOLD Client: Pizza Hut Campaign: Intelligent Targeting of Offers and Incentives Agency: Capillary Technologies

SILVER Client: MediaCorp BRONZE Client: Maybank

SILVER Client: McDonald’s Singapore BRONZE Client: United Overseas Bank

BEST REGIONAL LOYALTY MARKETING CAMPAIGN

LOYALTY PROGRAMME OF THE YEAR

GOLD Client: Sanofi-Aventis Campaign: It’s time to love your ‘V’ Agency: Publicis Communications Malaysia

GOLD Client: Think BIG Digital Campaign: The BIG Campaigns 2013/2014 Agency: Arc WorldWide, Big Bash Event Management, Loki Media

SILVER Client: InterContinental Hotels Group BRONZE Client: Think BIG Digital

SILVER Client: NTUC Link BRONZE Client: adidas

BEST CRM STRATEGY

BEST USE OF CONSUMER INSIGHTS/ANALYTICS

GOLD Client: Pizza Hut Campaign: Customer Engagement powered by Big Data Agency: Capillary Technologies

GOLD Client: The Body Shop Indonesia Campaign: Love Your Body Agency: Visible Results Singapore

SILVER Client: KFC Singapore BRONZE Client: The Body Shop Indonesia

SILVER Client: KFC Singapore BRONZE Client: DBS Bank

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THE LOYALTY & ENGAGEMENT AWARDS 2014 ................................................................................................................................................................................................................

BEST USE OF RELATIONSHIP MARKETING – B2B

BEST USE OF RELATIONSHIP MARKETING – B2C

GOLD Client: DHL Express Singapore Campaign: Customer Life Cycle Programme

GOLD Client: Sanofi-Aventis Campaign: It’s time to love your ‘V’ Agency: Publicis Communications Malaysia

SILVER Client: Hewlett-Packard Asia Pacific BRONZE Client: Panduit

SILVER Client: adidas BRONZE Client: Pizza Hut

BEST USE OF SOCIAL

BEST USE OF MOBILE

GOLD Client: Sanofi-Aventis Campaign: It’s time to love your ‘V’ Agency: Publicis Communications Malaysia

GOLD Client: Singapore Red Cross Campaign: Red Cross Connection Agency: McCann, MRM

SILVER Client: StarHub BRONZE Client: Johnson & Johnson (Thailand)

SILVER Client: Unilever Malaysia BRONZE Client: Golden Arches Restaurants

BEST USE OF DIRECT MARKETING GOLD Client: Singapore Red Cross Campaign: Red Cross Connection Agency: McCann, MRM

SILVER Client: DEAL.com.sg BRONZE Client: Star Publications (M)

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THE L&E AWARDS WILL BE BACK NEXT YEAR, STAY TUNED!

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THE SPARK AWARDS 2014

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Marketing magazine launched its first awards for media owners in the region. Here’s a look at the big winners of the night.

JUDGES FOR THE AWARDS Bala Pomaleh, chief executive officer, Carat Malaysia Miguel Ramos, CEO, Dentsu Aegis Network Philippines Pippa Hollebone, managing director, Southeast Asia and India, DWA Singapore Stuart Clark, managing director, APAC and regional head of Middle Office, Havas Media International Neeraj Gulati, executive director, digital integration, IPG Mediabrands Adam Hyslop, regional planning director, Kinetic Worldwide Kevin Rooney, managing director, APAC, m/SIX Asia Pacific Ann Lim, head of client services, global solutions, MEC Singapore Aloysia Dian, managing director, Media Kaiser Gerald Wittenberger, managing director, Mindshare Malaysia Jimmy Lim, general manager, PHD Malaysia Andy Miller, CEO, Vizeum Malaysia Harpreet Singh Kaintel, CIO, ZenithOptimedia

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THE SPARK AWARDS 2014

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BEST IN SHOW ABS-CBN CORPORATION

ABS-CBN Corporation was crowned the inaugural Best in Show at Marketing’s Spark Awards for Media Excellence after bagging three golds, two silvers and four bronze in categories, including Best Event by a Media Owner and Best Campaign by a Media Owner.

It sealed the top honour and made history after edging out closest rival GMA Marketing and Productions which bagged three golds, one silver and three bronze.

Another strong performer at the awards was Astro, after winning two golds in the Best Media Solution – Radio and Best Acquisition Team categories. It also added two silvers and two bronze to its awards haul.

The Spark Awards is the first-of-its kind organised by Marketing magazine and honours

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top media owners in the Southeast Asia region, giving them the chance to showcase their value proposition and strength to the industry.

More than 170 entries were received before they were assessed by media professionals who head some of the most renowned agencies in the region, including Havas, Mindshare and ZenithOptimedia and others.

Held at the Westin Hotel Singapore, the gala dinner saw gold, silver and bronze trophies being handed out across 24 categories. Some of the other winners included TripAdvisor with two golds, A+E Networks Asia, Discovery Networks Asia-Pacific, Facebook Singapore, Star Publications and TubeMogul.

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THE SPARK AWARDS 2014

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BEST APP BY A MEDIA OWNER

BEST CAMPAIGN BY A MEDIA OWNER

GOLD

GOLD

Media Owner: GMA Marketing and Productions Campaign/Programme/Project: Del Monte Kitchenomics Branded Content & Companion Mobile App

Media Owner: ABS-CBN Corporation Campaign/Programme/Project: Tulong Na, Tabang Na, Tayo Na

SILVER

SILVER

Media Owner: ABS-CBN Corporation Campaign/Programme/Project: PasaHero Mobile Application

Media Owner: Discovery Networks Asia-Pacific Campaign/Programme/Project: Car vs. Wild

BRONZE

BRONZE

Media Owner: BBC World Singapore Campaign/Programme/Project: BBC News App

Media Owner: ABS-CBN Corporation Campaign/Programme/Project: Online Bahay ni Kuya

BEST CORPORATE BRANDING BY A MEDIA OWNER

BEST EVENT BY A MEDIA OWNER

GOLD

GOLD

Media Owner: CNN International Asia Pacific Campaign/Programme/Project: Go There

Media Owner: ABS-CBN Corporation Campaign/Programme/Project: Tulong Na, Tabang Na, Tayo Na Solidarity Concert

SILVER

SILVER

Media Owner: Hootsuite Campaign/Programme/Project: Game of Social Thrones

Media Owner: e27 Campaign/Programme/Project: Echelon 2014

BRONZE

BRONZE

Media Owner: Star Publications (M) Campaign/Programme/Project: Don’t leave your advertising to chance

Media Owner: ABS-CBN Corporation Campaign/Programme/Project: ABS-CBN’S Grand Kapamilya Weekend

BEST INSIGHTS AND RESEARCH PROJECT BY A MEDIA OWNER

BEST LAUNCH BY A MEDIA OWNER

GOLD

GOLD

Media Owner: A+E Networks Asia Campaign/Programme/Project: Dude-ology Research Campaign

Media Owner: Moving Walls Campaign/Programme/Project: Moving Minds Challenge 2014

SILVER

SILVER

Media Owner: BBC World Singapore Campaign/Programme/Project: BBC Affluent Connection on Mobile

Media Owner: Twitter Campaign/Programme/Project: #PhoneOfTheYear

BRONZE

BRONZE

Media Owner: SPH Magazines Campaign/Programme/Project: The Singapore Women Digital Study

Media Owner: Discovery Networks Asia-Pacific Campaign/Programme/Project: Bindi Irwin’s Animal Adventure

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THE SPARK AWARDS 2014

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BEST MEDIA SOLUTION – INTEGRATED MEDIA

BEST MEDIA SOLUTION – MOBILE

GOLD

GOLD

Media Owner: ABS-CBN Corporation Campaign/Programme/Project: Tulong Na, Tabang Na, Tayo Na

Media Owner: Facebook Singapore Campaign/Programme/Project: Reebonz Facebook Campaign

SILVER

SILVER

Media Owner: GMA Marketing and Productions Campaign/Programme/Project: Del Monte Kitchenomics Branded Content & Companion Mobile App

Media Owner: Astro Campaign/Programme/Project: Astro on the Go

BRONZE

BRONZE

Media Owner: Astro Campaign/Programme/Project: MasterChef All Stars

Media Owner: Media Prima Digital Campaign/Programme/Project: TONTON MOBILE (http://m.tonton.com.my)

BEST MEDIA SOLUTION – ONLINE

BEST MEDIA SOLUTION – OUT OF HOME

GOLD

GOLD

Media Owner: TripAdvisor Campaign/Programme/Project: MasterCard Travel Offers & Experiences Hub

Media Owner: MagiqADs Campaign/Programme/Project: Dutch Lady In-aisle Animated 3D Ad

SILVER

SILVER

Media Owner: Google Campaign/Programme/Project: Unilever Clear

Media Owner: OOH Media! A MediaCorp Enterprise Campaign/Programme/Project: Pepsi Live for Now Singapore

BRONZE

BRONZE

Media Owner: Rappler Campaign/Programme/Project: #WHIPIT

Media Owner: OOH Media! A MediaCorp Enterprise Campaign/Programme/Project: SingTel Hawker Heroes

BEST MEDIA SOLUTION – PRINT

BEST MEDIA SOLUTION – RADIO

GOLD

GOLD

Media Owner: THE NEW STRAITS TIMES PRESS (M) Campaign/Programme/Project: NST-Permanis 5 Senses (5D) Campaign

Media Owner: Astro Campaign/Programme/Project: Eratkan Jalinan Bersama Tropicana Twister

SILVER

SILVER

Media Owner: Ink Global Singapore Campaign/Programme/Project: The Style File

Media Owner: BFM Media Campaign/Programme/Project: The Talkback With Your Ministers Series

BRONZE

BRONZE

Media Owner: SUMMIT Publishing Company Campaign/Programme/Project: 30 #Beyondbeautiful Filipinas

Media Owner: BFM Media Campaign/Programme/Project: Pfizer: Take A Shot Immunisation Campaign

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THE SPARK AWARDS 2014

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BEST MEDIA SOLUTION – SOCIAL MEDIA

BEST MEDIA SOLUTION – TV/ ONLINE VIDEO

GOLD

GOLD

Media Owner: RAPPLER Campaign/Programme/Project: #WHIPIT

Media Owner: GMA Marketing and Productions Campaign/Programme/Project: GMA Christmas Short Film Festival 2013

SILVER

SILVER

Media Owner: Facebook Singapore Campaign/Programme/Project: dtac ‘happy’ brand refresh

Media Owner: simpleshow Asia Campaign/Programme/Project: MAKOplasty – Partial Knee Surgery

BRONZE

BRONZE

Media Owner: Linkedin Campaign/Programme/Project: Professionals Redefined

Media Owner: GMA Marketing and Productions Campaign/Programme/Project: Knorr Sinigang Asim Kilig

BEST PROGRAMME PROMOTION

BEST SUBSCRIPTION STRATEGY

GOLD

GOLD

Media Owner: Discovery Networks Asia-Pacific Campaign/Programme/Project: I Am Bruce Lee

Media Owner: Star Publications (M) Campaign/Programme/Project: Some things are better shared

SILVER

SILVER

Media Owner: Discovery Networks Asia-Pacific Campaign/Programme/Project: Manhunt With Joel Lambert

Media Owner: Astro Campaign/Programme/Project: Best Subscription Strategy

BRONZE

BRONZE

Media Owner: Astro Campaign/Programme/Project: Fear Factor Selebriti Malaysia

Media Owner: Dealguru Holdings Campaign/Programme/Project: Toast Box Deal

BEST USE OF BRANDED CONTENT BY A MEDIA OWNER

BEST WEBSITE BY A MEDIA OWNER

GOLD

GOLD

Media Owner: GMA Marketing and Productions Campaign/Programme/Project: Del Monte Kitchenomics Branded Content & Companion Mobile App

Media Owner: Expat Living Publications Campaign/Programme/Project: expatliving.sg

SILVER

SILVER

Media Owner: ABS-CBN Corporation Campaign/Programme/Project: Pamilya OnGuard

Media Owner: Star Publications (M) Campaign/Programme/Project: Launch of the Revamped No 1 News Portal

BRONZE

BRONZE

Media Owner: ABS-CBN Corporation Campaign/Programme/Project: The CLEAR National Aspirants Camp

Media Owner: ABS-CBN Corporation Campaign/Programme/Project: Choose Philippines: Find, Discover, Share

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THE SPARK AWARDS 2014

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MOST IMPROVED OFFERING BY A MEDIA OWNER

MOST INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGY

GOLD

GOLD

Media Owner: MagiqADs Campaign/Programme/Project: Animated 3D Advertising

Media Owner: TubeMogul Campaign/Programme/Project: Viewability Reporting & Audit

SILVER

SILVER

Media Owner: Big Tree Outdoor Campaign/Programme/Project: CUBIG@BUKIT BINTANG

Media Owner: Moving Walls Campaign/Programme/Project: Moving Minds Challenge 2014

BRONZE

BRONZE

Media Owner: GMA Marketing and Productions Campaign/Programme/Project: Kapuso Milyonaryo (One-at-Heart Millionaire)

Media Owner: OOHM International Holdings Campaign/Programme/Project: OOHM! – Reinventing Dooh Landscape

BEST ACQUISITION TEAM

BEST COMMERCIAL TEAM

GOLD

GOLD

Media Owner: Astro Campaign/Programme/Project: Astro Commercial Acquisition Programme

Media Owner: TripAdvisor Campaign/Programme/Project: TripAdvisor Display Advertising APAC

SILVER

SILVER

Media Owner: Moving Walls Campaign/Programme/Project: Moving Minds Challenge 2014

Media Owner: Ink Global Singapore Campaign/Programme/Project: The Tiger Tales Asia team

BRONZE

BRONZE

Media Owner: Dealguru Holdings Campaign/Programme/Project: DEAL’s Marketing team

Media Owner: TubeMogul Campaign/Programme/Project: TubeMogul Singapore

BEST CONTENT TEAM

BEST CREATIVE TEAM

GOLD

GOLD

Media Owner: Mongoose Publishing Campaign/Programme/Project: Mongoose Special Projects

Media Owner: theAsianparent.com Campaign/Programme/Project: Sentosa Microsite

SILVER

SILVER

Media Owner: simpleshow Asia Campaign/Programme/Project: Various simpleshow videos for clients

Media Owner: SUMMIT Publishing Company Campaign/Programme/Project: Creative Solutions

BRONZE

BRONZE

Media Owner: RAPPLER Campaign/Programme/Project: rappler.com

Media Owner: GMA Marketing and Productions

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EVENTS

Date: Thursday 5 June 2014

Venue: Oso Ristorante

Sponsor:

MARKETING ROUNDTABLE SERIES: DISSECTING THE MARKETER’S (DIGITAL) DILEMMA Soren Beaulieu, publisher, Marketing magazine: Let’s start by going around the table and telling everyone a little bit about your marketing or digital marketing dilemma.

LUNCH MENU FRITTURA DI PESCE CON ARRABBIATA DEEP-FRIED DORY FISH WITH ARRABBIATA SAUCE RUCOLA CON UOVA DI QUAGLIA POMODORINI E PARMIGIANO ROCKET SALAD WITH QUAIL EGGS, SAN MARZANO TOMATOES AND PARMESAN CHEESE ZUPPA DEL GIORNO SOUP OF THE DAY FETTUCCINE CON CREMA DI GORGONZOLA E ZUCCA HOME-MADE FETTUCCINE WITH GORGONZOLA CHEESE AND BUTTERNUT PUMPKIN TAGLIOLINI CON GAMBERI E ZUCCHINE TAGLIOLINI WITH TIGER PRAWNS AND ZUCCHINI IN LIGHT TOMATO SAUCE LASAGNA ALLA BOLOGNESE GRATIN BEEF LASAGNA WITH MOZZARELLA CHEESE BISTECCA DI TONNO ALLA GRIGLIA CON VERDURE GRILLED SICILIAN TUNA STEAK WITH ROASTED VEGETABLES DOLCE DEL GIORNO DESSERT OF THE DAY

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Jeslyn Tan, senior general manager, SMRT Media: The digital dilemma is real; marketers have limited marketing budget, and they are uncertain whether there is significant ROI on their digital spending. As such SMRT Media has taken the lead to integrate digital with advertising and retail. iMOB or I’m On Board – is the single platform that marries the on- and off-line with advertising, to reach the millions of commuters on-the-go.

Siva Ganeshanandan, director of digital marketing suite, APAC, Adobe Systems: My digital dilemma is working with people to get the right set of processes and skill sets to operate in digital marketing.

Michael Primalani, head of business, Parisilk Electronics & Computers: We sell consumer electronics in as many ways as we can. We do have a few retail outlets on the island, but we try to do it in more creative ways as well. I am the head of marketing and business development, and we are currently looking at going into digital

marketing. We try not to market ourselves too traditionally – 10 or 12 pages in the weekend Straits Times – we try to be a bit more targeted in who we want to approach and what message we want to send across. So this is something that is quite interesting to us.

Jessica Nasr, director of marketing and communications, Mouawad: I think my digital dilemma is to create the right content that will attract my consumers to interact with different social media. Because we are a luxury brand, it is a little bit tricky.

Andrew Yip, marketing director, Cognex Singapore: I hope to learn more about digital marketing business trends and how to use this to reach out to more customers.

Angeli Beltran, director of digital and customer relationship management, Mead Johnson Nutrition Singapore: My digital dilemma is that we know the mums of today WWW. M ARKE TI N G- I N TE RAC TI VE . C OM

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EVENTS

and tomorrow are becoming more and more digital, they are very savvy. So it’s about how to be engaged with digital mums and deliver that through the organisation’s people who process technologies for us.

Elizabeth Low, deputy editor, Marketing magazine: We have print and digital products and I would say that my digital dilemma is pretty

much similar to anyone who tries to take on the online space.

Loo Pei Fen, group director of marketing and strategy, Challenger Technologies: My digital challenge would be how to constantly come up with programmes and campaigns to drive traffic to our stores. We always want to ensure that customers come to our retail stores, so the digital and retail divide is always a little fun and challenging, especially in Singapore.

Leslie Beckman, marketing director, APAC, Avaya Singapore: It’s been fun over the last couple of years as marketing has begun to talk more about customer experience management and multi and omni-channels. Certainly now, the CMO has become one of our target audiences.

I think the dilemma I would highlight would be the

same for both B2B or B2C marketers – by the time our target audience reaches us on whatever platform we are reaching out to them, they already have 50% of their expectation of our brand set.

How do we use our channels? And remind yourselves, channels change don’t they? How do we connect to the audiences with the right message based on where they are?

Simon See, Senior Account Manager, SMRT Media: We believe in helping our clients conceptualize a campaign that will create emotional connections between consumers and brands for the long term. This comes through integrating digital and mobile solutions into Out-ofHome for optimal campaign results.

Fai Booth, head of commercial excellence and digital marketing, GSK: For GSK, we are still on the journey to digital marketing, it is new for us. People find us traditional and conservative, and we’re probably the last to jump on digital.

We’re hoping to get some insights today.

Krishnadeep Baruah, senior director of marketing, APAC, BlackBerry: The part of the business that I am working on is on linking the revenue streams around social platforms, as well as building tie-ups with the mobile wallet. My dilemma is brands who believe more in traditional media versus social media, and secondly, to show the value of ROI and engagement.

Sirpa Ikola, senior marketing director for South Asia, HTC: I work in marketing for the Asian region that covers everything from India, Southeast Asia as well as Australia and New Zealand. It’s a huge area and a lot of local content creation is needed. But the real dilemma lies in these three areas: Where you create a lot of content and you engage a lot with digital and social, but it doesn’t resolve into sales. You cannot see that attribution easily and management gets very edgy about that.

You spend and you do all these activities, but we are not selling more. Why? So that’s one. Second, content creation is hard to scale, how do we do this with lean resources? Third, I have a unique dilemma – women don’t buy HTC phones, 70% of my buyers are men. So if anyone has any ideas, let me know.

Alvin Neo, chief marketing officer, Parkway Hospitals Singapore: We are one of the biggest hospitals and health providers in the region. Digital is increasingly important to everybody and us as well. To me, digital is characterised by three things that we are grappling with. One of them is

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EVENTS

The protagonists Andrew Yip, Marketing director, Cognex Singapore Inc Leslie Beckman, Marketing director, Avaya Singapore Pte Ltd Sirpa Ikola, Senior marketing director for South Asia, HTC Singapore Alvin Neo, Chief marketing officer, Parkway Hospitals Singapore Pte Ltd Jessica Nasr, Director of marketing & communications, Mouawad Siva Ganeshanandan, Director digital marketing suite APAC, Adobe Systems Singapore

thousands of brands and products under the iMOB ambit to help our advertisers raise awareness, acquire leads and activate sale. Through various campaigns, advertisers were able to extend their brand into the mobile transit environment.

Take for instance “Scan+Win”, a campaign that we partnered 14 advertisers for, and integrated OOH with mobile technologies. We encouraged commuters to scan the QR code on ad panels to participate in a lucky draw, and garnered a total of 500,000 entries over the 12 week period! A record number for any digital campaign, and laid the foundation for greater consumer interactivity in a transit environment.

Loo Pei Fen, Group director marketing & strategy, Challenger Technologies Ltd Fai Booth Head of commercial excellence and digital marketing, GlaxoSmithKline Pte Ltd Michael Primalani, Head of business development, Parisilk Electronics & Computers Pte Ltd Angeli Beltran, Director digital & customer relationship management, Mead Johnson Nutrition Singapore Pte Ltd Krishnadeep Baruah, Senior director marketing APAC, BlackBerry Jeslyn Tan, senior general manager, SMRT Media Simon See, senior account manager, SMRT Media Soren Beaulieu, publisher Elizabeth Low, deputy editor

content creation; and the other one deals with big data, and the over use of it; and the manipulation, mining and use of data. Digital is always on. So for the traditional marketer like me, this always-on mentality is a challenge.

data acquisition thanks to social media and content syndication. And because of search, whether it is organic or paid, we still get those contacts and nurture them through other marketing pieces.

Digital and social is closely woven with the rest of the marketing mix, so I don’t always have to prove the ROI of social media on its own.

Beaulieu: How do you decide where digital stands in your marketing strategy? How do you justify the ROI to management?

Baruah: When you look at digital there are a lot of phases. And it happens a lot with our devices marketing. When you are launching new products into the market, marketing begins even before the product hits the market. And when you look at digital that way you don’t need to relate it to sales.

Beckman: I don’t spend as much time as I did on

Tan: Over the years, SMRT has brought in

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Beaulieu: That brings us to our next question, which is on omni-channel. What does it mean to you, and is it a feasible option?

Ganeshanandan: The definition of omnichannel should not be that of carrying the same message on all channels, but rather continuing the message from one platform for a continuous experience. For example, Lane Crawford allows people to try clothes on in the store and buy them online or buy them online and pick them up from the store. That to me is the definition of omnichannel.

Primalani: For us, it’s having the same perception of the brand on all touch-points – from the sales people to even the vehicle bearing our logo.

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Beltran: It’s about giving the consumer a seamless experience of your brand whenever they decide to engage with you. It’s also about understanding the journey they take and where those key touch-points are, so you are there when it’s relevant. You don’t have to be at every touch-point because it’s going to be so expensive.

But if you understand the consumers well, how they interact with your brand, at which points it is important and relevant to engage, then it’s enough.

It goes back to consumers – what value have they derived from you? What’s relevant? Relevance will always cut through the noise. So that’s omnichannel marketing for me. Is it achievable? Maybe.

But the deciding factor for my efforts lies with the consumer.

Nasr: It is about giving the same experience throughout different platforms. It is important to have certain platforms in place, should the consumer choose to be there. For example, should they choose to go to your website, that

should be available; should they choose to do e-commerce, that should also be available. I don’t think there should be a differentiation. But of course, within the company, the way ROI is measured is different. It doesn’t matter where you buy from, and it doesn’t matter which country you buy from, online or offline. The challenge is to be more focused on the consumer’s experience.

Yip: Omni-channel is the way we connect to consumers seamlessly whether they are using mobile or desktop, online or offline. And I would rather focus on the potential of being relevant to the consumer, instead of whether it is multichannel or omni-channel.

Beaulieu: When it comes to out-of-home advertising and digital, do any of you see a need to actively try to connect those two? Or do they exist in different spheres for you?

Tan: SMRT works with different brands, advertisers

and clients, and each brief is different and unique.

We focus on what their objective is and propose a solution to achieve their ROI. This involves a thorough understanding of who the consumer is, how to capture, engage and activate the consumer in the long run, and integrating across platforms. SMRT Media’s unique proposition is the ability to marry both on- and off-line via our digital OOH islandwide network and reach 19.6 million consumers on-the-go.

Ikola: Our flagship products get the OOH physical marketing, but not the whole portfolio, because it is too expensive. And you can’t create engagement through billboards, but there is the halo-effect of billboards that leads later to more engagement.

Ganeshanandan: What about NFC? (to SMRT).

Are you doing any developments around it?

Tan: SMRT Media was one of the pioneers to roll out NFC marketing campaigns in Singapore.

In 2010, together with Nokia and Cold Storage Group, we championed “Shopping on-the-go” and “Christmas on-the-go” where commuters could buy their products using their mobile phones via large OOH billboards.

For NFC to be truly successful, we need a good infrastructure. We believe in time, it will take off in a big way! In the meantime, we have been leveraging on existing new mobile and media technologies, e.g. launch of Citibank-SMRT cobrand card, Singapore’s first travel rewards card that integrates EZ-link functionality and payment facilities. We are excited about ongoing digital developments, and will continue to help marketers embrace OOH and digital in a big way!

Beaulieu: Thanks for sharing those insights, and what a great note to end the discussion on. While it’s true that consumers have evolved very quickly and digital has thrown up many new challenges for marketers, but as many of you have pointed out, the fundamentals still apply. With that, I’d like to end this discussion and thank you all for sharing your challenges but also digital plans for the future.

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5/9/2014 6:31:47 PM

SENIOR APPOINTMENTS

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70 MARKETING SEP MAYTEMBE 201 4 R 2 014

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SENIOR APPOINTMENTS

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ABOUT AMBITION

Ambition is a leading global boutique recruitment business with coverage across Singapore, Hong Kong, Australia and United Kingdom. Founded and listed on the Australian Securities Exchange in 1999, the company has grown to become a prominent specialist player within marketing recruitment. For more information, please visit www.ambition.com.sg.

CEO INDONESIA F '%& .0-i*# 1#,'-0 + , %#+#,2 0-*# F 20-,% 31',#11 . 02,#0',% $-!31 5'2& &'%& %0-52&A *'12#" #"' F 0# 2'4# *'#,2 !',% -*# + 0)#2 *# "',% *'12#" #"' A -30 !*'#,2 & 1 , '+.0#11'4# 20 !) 0#!-0" ," '1 5#** .-1'2'-,#" $-0 '++#"' 2# ," 1'%,'i! ,2 *-,% 2#0+ %0-52&@ '2& $3** !-++'2+#,2 2- 2&#1# %0-52& 120 2#%'#1A , #6!'2',% -..-023,'27 #6'121 $-0 .0-4#, .0-i*# $-0 2&#'0 ,"-,#1' -$i!#@ 1#" ', ) 02 ," 0#.-02',% 2- 2&# & '0+ ,A 2&'1 )#7 0-*# 5'** 1## 7-3 0#1.-,1' *# $-0 ** %0-52& 0# 1 !0-11 2&# 31',#11A 0#/3'0',% 7-3 2- .0-4'"# 120 2#%'! ," 1 *#1 -0'#,2#" *# "#01&'.A -.#0 2'-, * "#!'1'-, ," 120-,% i, ,!' * 5 0#,#11@ &'1 '1 ,-2 + ',2#, ,!# 0-*# ," 7-3 5'** & 4# 2&# $0##"-+ ," -..-023,'27 2- 0#Q1& .# ," 0#Q-0'#,2 2&# 31',#11@ &# 0-*# '1 4'2 * 2- 2&# #$$#!2'4# "#!'1'-, + )',% ," 120 2#%'! "'0#!2'-, -$ 2&# !-+. ,7C 2&#0#$-0# 7-3 5'** 5-0) !*-1#*7 ," # 20312#" 31',#11 . 02,#0 2- 1#,'-0 + , %#+#,2 %*- **7@ - /3 *'$7A ',"'4'"3 *1 +312 .-11#11B F &'%& *#4#* 120 2#%'! #6.#0'#,!# ', + , %',% +#"' G -0 #2 '* 1#!2-0 F 120-,% * ,!# -$ !-++#0!' *A i, ,!' * ," -.#0 2'-, * 1)'** 1#21 F &'%&*7 "#4#*-.#" .#-.*# + , %#+#,2 #6.#0'#,!# Q ',2#0, * ," #62#0, * F .0-4#, 20 !) 0#!-0" -$ "#4#*-.',% 31',#11 .0-!#11#1 ," '+.*#+#,2',% #12 .0 !2'!#1 F 0- " + 0)#2',% !)%0-3," 5'2& 1-+# "'%'2 * #6.#0'#,!# F results oriented F #6!#**#,2 ',2#0.#01-, * ," *# "#01&'. 1)'**1A 5'2& 2&# '*'27 2- !-++3,'! 2# #$$#!2'4#*7 2 1#,'-0 + , %#+#,2 ," - 0" *#4#* Contact Matthew Gardner on (65) 6854 5633 or email matthew.gardner@ambition.com.sg quoting reference number RTH27685.

HEAD OF MARKETING APAC F Senior Leadership Position in MNC F #%'-, * 1' !'i! #1.-,1' '*'27 F ummkAkkk Q umqkAkkk 1# * 07 30 !*'#,2 '1 %*- * +3*2', 2'-, * i, ,!' * ',12'232'-, 2& 2 '1 *--)',% $-0 20 2#%'! 0)#2',% # "#0 2- 03, 2&#'0 31',#11@ -0)',% 2-%#2&#0 5'2& #,'-0 # "#01A 2&'1 0-*# 0#/3'0#1 7-3 2- 5-0) 5'2&', 2&# -0% ,'1 2'-, 2- '"#,2'$7 )#7 0#/3'0#+#,21 $-0 2&# 31',#11@ -3 5'** 2&#, # 0#1.-,1' *# $-0 "#4#*-.',% 2&#1# 0#/3'0#+#,21 ',2- 5-0) *# + 0)#2',% .* ,1 2& 2 ! , # #6#!32#" 7 2&# 5'"#0 + 0)#2',% $3,!2'-,@ -3 5'** # #6.#!2#" 2- 5-0) -, +3*2'.*# .0-(#!21 2 ,7 -,# 2'+# ," !-,1'12#,2*7 "#*'4#0 -, 2&# 5'"#0 31',#11 ,##"1@ -3 5'** *1- + , %# 2&# 0#%'-, * + 0)#2',% 2# + ," "'0#!2 2&#+ 2- "#*'4#0 + 0)#2',% ','2' 2'4#1 2& 2 "&#0#1 2- 2&# !-+. ,7`1 0 ,"',% ," %3'"#*',#1@ - /3 *'$7A ',"'4'"3 *1 +312 .-11#11B F 120-,% 0)#2',%A .0#$#0 *7 m #6.#0'#,!# ', 2&# i, ,!' * ',"31207 F #62#,1'4# #6.#0'#,!# 5'2&', .* ,,',%A 120 2#%7A .0-"3!2 + 0)#2',% F 20 !) 0#!-0" ', 13!!#11$3**7 + , %',% * 0%# 1! *# .0-(#!21 F #6!#**#,2 !-++3,'! 2-0 5'2& 2&# '*'27 2- 3'*" 1#,'-0 12 )#&-*"#0 0#* 2'-,1&'.1 F .0-4#, 20 !) 0#!-0" ', + , %',% 0#%'-, * 2# + Contact Matthew Gardner on (65) 6854 5633 or email matthew.gardner@ambition.com.sg quoting reference number HJQ26460.

Data provided is for recruitment purposes only Business Licence Number: 200611680D. Licence Number: 10C5117.

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CAREERS

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CAREER PATH Rod Strother

Director, digital and social centre of Excellence Lenovo First job? I had a temporary job working in a bank doing data entry for share issues. I went on holiday and when I came back there was no job. The holiday was good though!

First job in advertising/ marketing? I worked for British

Gas in marketing. I spent eight years there in various positions and was the first person in direct marketing on the team.

Best job? Other than this one,

it would be the first five years at Grey in Malaysia. I joined in 1997 with the mandate to build a DM and interactive company with a blank piece of paper.

Perks of your current job?

I work for a company that produces some of the best technology around in laptops, tablets, phones, etc, so that’s an easy one. I’m typing this on a new X1 Carbon which is sheer class.

Worst job? The last couple of

years at Grey. For anyone who was there they would know why.

Marketing professionals you admire? In the area of social

media I’ve got tremendous respect for Jamshed at Intel. He is tremendously passionate and knowledgeable with a genuine interest in improving the social media industry.

Best career advice you’ve been given? When I left the agency in

Edinburgh, the MD told me that I couldn’t fail – if it didn’t work out and I came back then at least I’d had the balls to try and if it worked, then the sky’s the limit.

Why a career in marketing?

Because I failed the auditions for drama school and a wise father pointed me in this direction instead.

If you weren’t in marketing, what would you be? Refer

back to previous answer. If not marketing now and if I was good enough – then writing.

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JOB SHUFFLE Coca-Cola’s ASEAN director of integrated marketing communications, Leonardo O’Grady, has taken on a new role with the company in the midst of finding his replacement at the time of publishing. O’Grady is taking on a similar role for Coca-Cola’s North West Europe and Nordics markets. He is based in London and reports to Lucie Austin, marketing director of North West Europe and the Nordics. Previously, O’Grady led communications strategies for the ASEAN region for Coca-Cola.

Bharad Ramesh, head of trading and partnerships for Southeast Asia at VivaKi, left the agency after more than a year in the role. Both he and Starcom MediaVest Group confirmed the move to Marketing.

In his role, he was tasked to build a trading culture within the organisation, contributing to the local teams’ capability. He has since launched his own company called eMVC, which helps clients maximise media value.

Prashant Agarwal, senior vice-president of marketing at DBS Bank, has left the role after one year.

When contacted by Marketing, DBS declined to comment on a replacement for him. He has taken up a new role as director of EDGE (Group Innovation) at AIA. In his role, he will focus on the communications agenda in AIA’s innovation team across Singapore and Hong Kong.

Derrick Koh, head of communications for Asia Pacific at Lenovo, left the role, with

his duties to be taken over by communications manager for Asia Pacific, Stephanie Shi. Confirmed by a spokesperson for Lenovo, Koh has been in Lenovo’s communications team since 2007.

He helped manage seven regional clusters in Asia Pacific and Latin America.

Vaasu S Gavarasana, head of business marketing in APAC, has left Yahoo. He took on the role late last year. He was responsible for B2B marketing, including industry outreach programmes aimed at strengthening Yahoo’s position within the marketing and advertising community. He reported to Nitin Mathur, senior director of marketing at Yahoo Asia Pacific. His replacement has yet to be named.

Basil Chua, head of StarHub’s Media Network, left the role after two years at the company.

No replacement has been made at this point.

Chua had been tasked to grow the partnerships with leading Pay-TV networks, advertisers and agencies. StarHub Media Network provides marketing communication solutions targeting diverse Singapore audiences across its Pay-TV viewers, mobile and digital users.

Burson-Marsteller (BM) announced the regional managing director of public affairs and government communications, Allison Lim, is taking on the role of Singapore market leader. She is taking over the duties of former market leader and CEO Barkha Patel. The latter

exits after less than a year in the role. Before Patel’s appointment, BM did not have a market leader for its Singapore practice for nearly two years.

Group chief executive of BBH Gwyn Jones is leaving the company at the end of the year after 27 years at the agency. In a press release, Jones stated he would be pursuing interests outside the field of advertising. Neil Munn, the current chief operating officer of BBH Group, is replacing Jones.

Munn has been with BBH for a decade.

Ryan Lim, cofounder of local digital agency Blugrapes, left the company to lead his own shop named QED Consulting. QED Consulting is a consulting firm that aims to bridge the art of business with the science of digital to help businesses grow. It specialises in digital consulting for clients and will also provide training sessions for companies looking to enable their staff with better digital skills.

Commercialize TV (CTV) appointed Laura Gordon head of sales in Asia Pacific to lead the company’s aggressive foray into the digital video curation sphere. She is tasked to create premium advertising solutions for the markets in the region with a particular focus on China.

JWT Vietnam appointed Steve Clay executive creative director.

Clay is based in Vietnam. In his new role, Clay reports to Saby Mishra, the CEO of JWT Vietnam.

Clay’s remit is the Vietnam market.

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LAST WORD

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WHAT NOT TO DO WHEN CLIENTS STEAL YOUR IDEAS What should you do to a client that invites you for a pitch, listens to your ideas, takes the presentation, gives the business to an unheard-of agency, then pays it a piddly amount to execute the ideas you presented? Bodhisatwa Dasgupta, creative director at Grey Worldwide, Delhi, makes his stand.

“You should never, ever call the client to find out why he has done what he has.”

Nothing whatsoever, if you happen to be in advertising. You should smile the entire thing off with a shrug of your shoulder. You should say: “Ha! That’s my idea up there. So what if nobody knows about it!”

You should not write nasty comments on the films you originally wrote, naming yourself as “Anonymous”, “Mother------” or “GoDie”.

You should never, ever call the client to find out why he has done what he has. And does he have no conscience? And absolutely no respect for the creative process?

Doing that spoils the chances of him calling your agency for another pitch a few months down the road when they’re in desperate need for some really fresh game-changing, award-winning, mind-numbing 360 ideas for a 10%-off brief.

So you pour yourself a puddle of the most expensive whiskey that has set up home in your bar, smoke a cigarette, curse him a bit, curse your fate more, tell yourself, “hey, s--- happens”, drown yourself in a bowl of spicy curry, go to bed and forget about the whole damn episode.

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When what you should be doing is fixing the system, changing it. This warped system of constant pitches that protect a client, but the leave the agency vulnerable to the theft of intellectual property rights.

What you should be doing is making clients sign a non-disclosure agreement before you pitch. So what happens in that conference room stays in that conference room. They make us sign one after all. It’s only fair.

What you should be doing is charging a pitch fee. Many agencies do that, and they’re the happier for it, if not richer. Charging a pitch fee indicates two things. One, that the client is really looking for a new agency. Two, even if the client decides to run with your ideas and doesn’t hand the account to you, you’ve still got something slightly significant in the bargain.

Lastly, what you should do if the client steals your idea is get very, very angry. Because ideas are really all we have.

Take that away, and what are we left with? Nothing.

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5/9/2014 6:22:48 PM

LOYALTY AGENCY OF THE YEAR THE LOYALTY ENGAGEMENT AWARDS