Secret Lives of Singaporeans issue #13: Cars, currency and concerts

SECRET LIVES OF SINGAPOREANS Issue #13 – Week commencing 1 Aug 2022 Authored with pride by Sarah Wong, Daniel Liu and Frederick Tong

OGILVY

Secret Lives of Singaporeans is an ongoing collection of marketer-friendly briefs on the fascinating people of the little red dot, by planners and PR consultants from the big red agency. It’s not “thought leadership”, it’s “inspiration to DO”.

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Each issue comprises • One thing people in Singapore are talking about • One thing people in Singapore are searching for • One thing that’s in the news in Singapore

OGILVY

One thing people in Singapore are talking about:

LIVE MUSIC IS BACK

Image Credits: Fever

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WHAT

OGILVY

Covid-19 might have put a damper on Singapore’s live music and nightlife scene, but fret not, it’s back with a vengeance.

After two long years, the music world has its sights set on our little island, coming back with a bang for the rest of 2022.

Major music acts such as Jackson Wang, Guns N’ Roses and Billie Eilish are just a few names that will be on Singapore soil in a couple of months. Despite the very real threat of Covid19 spreading, it seems Singaporeans have been kept away from the live concert experience for too long. Major music events such as ZoukOut and Formula One have also returned, with the latter hosting 92 live performances across nine stages.

With music back in full swing, Singapore will be playing host to some incredible acts for both locals and tourists from around the world. Perhaps this is the light of a very long tunnel for our nation, and clear sign that Singapore is on the mend of recovering from the effects of the pandemic.

In this second half of the year, not only will locals be flocking to see their favourite artists, so will tourists from far and wide. With a sudden surge of numbers in one place, brands have an opportunity to create multiple touchpoints with both existing and new audiences.

Many opportunities are born out of a live music experience – energy, creativity, excitement, connections, storytelling.

How might brands take advantage of the countless musical acts and complement the experience? Can they help concertgoers with • Transport?

• Getting in the mood (pre-gaming, post-event F&B)?

• Social currency?

SO WHAT Sources: CNA Lifestyle, Straits Times, Bloomberg

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OGILVY

One thing people in Singapore are searching for:

SGD AT ALL-TIME HIGH AGAINST RINGGIT

Image Credits: Unsplash

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WHAT

OGILVY

Amidst gripes about rising cost of living and upcoming tax hikes, here’s a sliver of news that Singaporeans will greet with a mixture of relief and glee: the Singapore dollar has hit an all-time high against the Malaysian ringgit. Again.

As of 3 August 2022, one dollar is worth 3.23 ringgit. This comfortably beats the previous high of 3.19. Merchants in Malaysia that accept SGD have capped the exchange rate, while some moneychangers in Singapore ran out of ringgit when the SGD surged earlier this year.

Expect more Singaporean opportunists to cross the Causeway for their shopping and dining, even (or perhaps especially) for essential items.

Retailers in Singapore aren’t likely to be able to compete with their Malaysian counterparts on pure pricing.

Can they dial up value-added benefits like convenience and speed? Can they time such communications for when people are less likely to have a few hours to devote to a Causeway hop?

SO WHAT Sources: Google Trends, ChannelNewsAsia, Mothership

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OGILVY

One thing in the news in Singapore:

ALTERNATIVE FUEL CARS

Image Credits: Unsplash.com

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WHAT COE prices ballooned to over S$100K, an increase of >36% since January, yet monthly sales of new cars continued to creep up as well. Do Singaporeans love cars so much they’ll buy them at any cost?

OGILVY

While that may be true for the rich and famous, the majority of buyers felt every bit of the price increase in a year when petrol costs shot up as well.

So what’s changing? The type of car Singaporeans are buying.

Starting for the first time in March 2022, monthly sales of alternative fuel cars (e.g., hybrid, electric, etc) outsold traditional petrol engines in Singapore.

2022 Monthly New Registration of Cars by Make

Alternative Fuels Tipping Point

Adoption of alternative fuel cars will only grow as Singapore accelerates past the tipping point.

And with more than ~1,700 alternative fuel cars added to the road every month, the number of daily reminders on the road will become more prominent every day.

At a broader level, could this be a hint for brands to show pragmatic Singaporeans that sustainable = affordable?

SO WHAT Sources: LTA, sgcarmart.com, tradingeconomics.com

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Hungry for more?

Talk to us at secretlivessg@ogilvy.com