SECRET LIVES OF SINGAPOREANS
Issue #25 – Week commencing 6 March 2023
Authored with pride by Priya Veeriah and Ashley Lin
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”.
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
2
One thing that people in Singapore are talking about:
FIVE-CENT PLASTIC BAG CHARGE AT MOST SUPERMARKETS
Image Credits: CNA
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From 3rd July, consumers must pay at least 5 cents for each plastic bag when they shop from large supermarkets. This is part of the Resource Sustainability Bill aimed at reducing food waste and packaging in Singapore.
Sustainability-related initiatives often involve consumers having to change their behaviour from the status quo.
There were mixed reactions online. Some Singaporeans felt that this does not truly tackle packaging waste. Other commentators expressed that Singaporeans are already practising sustainability in their daily lives by reusing plastic bags to take out their trash.
To get consumers to support a new initiative, brands should first understand their pain points, daily challenges, and the changes that will be required.
As such, the fee was seen as a penalty for a sustainable action that people are already living by. Instead, people suggested providing biodegradable bags instead or investing in educating the public around recycling and trash separation.
From there, brands can then shape initiative-related communications around both the big, macro picture (why it’s important) and the small, personal one (what’s needed from whom, what’s in it for them).
*Source: Marketing Interactive
OGILVY 4 WHAT
SO WHAT
One thing people in Singapore are searching for:
CATHAY PACIFIC’S FREE TICKETS TO HONG KONG
Image Credits: Time Out Website
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In 2022, the Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) launched its "Hello Hong Kong” campaign with plans to give away 500,000 free plane tickets globally to encourage tourism in 2023.
Singaporeans love freebies – of course. The more generous, the better.
But what’s in it for brands to be this generous, and how can they extract maximum value from it?
As part of this, national carrier Cathay Pacific announced a giveaway titled "World of Winners" offering 12,500 free tickets to Hong Kong in return for answering some questions about the city. As a result, search volume in Singapore spiked over 50k in a single day.
The campaign proved to be an effective way to entice Singaporeans as all the tickets were allocated within 40 mins of the launch and the site saw more than 85,000 users trying to register.
1) Buzzworthiness that helps to reach not just current participants, but potential future customers as well.
2) Image-building when associated with the right partners.
3) The IKEA effect: People value something more when they have to work a little for it.
4) Freebies with benefits: In the case of HKTB, each ticket given away is likely to get winners to buy more tickets to travel in pairs or groups; and to spend at the destination.
*Source: Marketing Interactive
OGILVY 6
WHAT
SO WHAT
One thing in the news in Singapore:
BONDEE AND THE METAVERSE
Image Credits: Ah Boys To Men Facebook Page
OGILVY 7
Launched in mid-January 2023, Singapore-based social networking app, Bondee took the local community by storm with over 5 million downloads. The app was described as an “HDB simulation” that allows users to create their own avatar, decorate their own rooms, and visit their friends virtually. The app was mainly by many to design their avatars and saw reposts on Instagram stories. Unfortunately, despite its initial success, the app quickly died down amidst a credit-card scam scandal and users questioning its purpose. There was also no level of progression or follow-up, and the limiting functions eventually led to its decline very quickly.
Marketers will always be confronted with decisions to make on whether and how to jump onto the next big thing: Web3, the metaverse, and an endless litany of shiny new platforms.
Three things to consider when doing so:
1) Who does the new platform allow them to reach? The brand’s existing target audience? Or a new segment it is trying to penetrate?
2) What is the brand’s role on this platform? What value is it hoping to get that it can’t get elsewhere, and what can it offer users that they can’t get from others?
3) Does the brand intend to trendjack interest on a shortterm basis, or invest in the platform on a long-term basis?
OGILVY 8
WHAT
SO WHAT *Source: Marketing Interactive
Hungry for more? Talk to us at secretlivessg@ogilvy.com
