After many years, Singtel has finally found a new way to reconnect with Singaporeans
A new Chinese New Year Flavour
Other than being a network provider, the only other thing I know about Singtel is that: they make touching advertisements every year that rips your heart into pieces and stitches it back again with a happy ending.
And they are actually very consistent in doing so, until 2020.
Kudos to Consistency
Every year since 2018 Singtel has been churning out these kinds of emotional-storytelling ads for Chinese New Year, Christmas or for other occasions. Beyond that, they remain as the only few brand in Singapore that consistently releases an ad for Chinese New Year every year. Like me, many others have started to associate Chinese New Year together with Singtel’s ads. It’s almost starting to feel like Chinese New Year isn’t complete unless we’ve seen those emotional ads about family and connection.
Always a Sob Story
A network and telecommunication company attempts to connect with its audience by making advertisements on the topic of “connection”. Year after year when I thought to myself “that’s it” Singtel doesn’t have any more ideas up its sleeve for the topic of “connection”, I always seem to be proven wrong the very next year.
Don’t get me wrong I’m not saying that their ads are bad but it’s always the same sob flavour every year. The quintessential Singtel ad storyline goes like this:
1. Someone who doesn’t care about his family
2. Something happens
3. He/She reconnects with the family
4. Singtel Ending: XXX Connecting /Connected /Connection
It’s been the same storyline over years! Ads like these are great but beyond just tugging at my heartstrings, it doesn’t get me to sign up for a line with them or share this video with my friends and family. Their ads are great, it has its place and that is it. It always seems to be lacking something and the audience has a bigger appetite and we want more.
A New Flavour
After years of serving up the same flavour, I think Singtel is jaded too. The bottomline here is that: Singtel ads are great but I’m desperate to connect with something new. Not to my surprise in 2020, they yet again attempt with a new CNY ad for us. But this one stands out, it comes with a flavour unlike anything we have seen before.
This ad was a success! With a view count of 14 Million and more “His Grandfather’s Road” has topped all their previous ads so far. Obviously this ad veers off the norm of a sob story and it doesn’t leave you feeling heavy after watching. This one in fact is extremely light hearted and even induces a small chuckle from you. Chinese New Year is all about connecting with your loved relative and friends, it's a joyous occasion and this ad is definitely in stride with that!
Scroll through the comments sections and you’ll realise how well received it is. But beyond just humour and some light heartedness, what other else is there that keeps Singaporeans coming back for more?
Keeping it relatable
The characters in this story may seem odd at first but at a closer look they are actually a fragment of the stereotypes of typical Singaporean families in play.
1. Tiger Mum
2. Family only wearing auspicious colours during CNY
3. Family always skimping with discounts and savings
4. Mum always avoiding the sun
5. Mum always watching K drama
6. Children not good with their Mandarin mother tongue
Besides the typical characters they were also other familiar elements subtly inserted:
1. Singaporean Road Rage
2. The common saying of “Grandfather’s Road”
3. “KPO” a.k.a Nosy People taking photos and posting online
4. Fortune Cats in cars bringing in prosperity
5. Gold Ingots in cars bringing in wealth
Beyond that, they also featured the latest developments on the PMD situation in Singapore back in 2020 where PMD were banned and hence Food Delivery has to be done through alternative ways such as taking busses.
With all these familiar injects in play, its apparent that although this ad didn’t tug at our heart strings, it still struck a chord with us.
Clever Product Placements
Remember that time when you were watching your favourite K-drama and all of a sudden, you find yourself staring at a close-up view of a product in a slow pan? That is an example of a lousy product placement. It killed the mood of the show that they were building up the entire time and with you appalled at that very sight, you probably also swore at that brand under your breath. Product placements are all about strategies. It's an art of balancing the right amount of exposure and relevance. Too much of either would induce a knee jerk response from the viewer while the right ratios would make the scene smooth to follow through and leave you curious to know more.
Singtel does just that. With masterful planning, they skillfully inserted 2 instances of product placements that followed through smoothly with the story and left me curious to know more about it. (Did you catch it?)
2 Product Placements:
1. Singtel Dash
2. Singtel TV Go
Case Study: John Lewis
In UK there is a departmental store company called John Lewis that is as synonymous as Santa Claus. John Lewis has been producing great Christmas ads arching over a decade. Ever year end season their citizens would eagerly anticipates in bated breaths to see the new Christmas Ads. Some may say Christmas doesn’t start until they have seen those ads, other may say there is no Christmas without these ads. Check out one of their most popular ads below!
Case Study: KFC Japan
If you bring a bucket of KFC to a Christmas dinner in America (which is the home country of KFC), the hosts would slam the doors in your face. But in Japan, if you bring a bucket of KFC to celebrate Christmas, it would be a celebration and a joyous occasion. In short, Japan loves KFC and religiously celebrates Christmas annually eating KFC with their family.
But did you know that Japan traditionally isn’t a country that celebrates Christmas? With only 1% of citizens being Christians, Christmas is not widely known at all and definitely not a holiday. But in 1970 KFC redefined Christmas in Japan. Today, Christmas wouldn’t be complete without enjoying KFC together with your family for it has already been set in stone in Japan as a ritual.
This is all thanks to the fruits of good advertising. Over the years with consistent messages, Japan has associated KFC with a Christmas. The paragon of a successful marketing campaign is when the brand has become a cultural icon in the hearts of a consumer that during a certain season of the year people naturally think of them. To the Japanese, then they think of Christmas they naturally think of KFC, to them there is no Christmas without KFC.
Perhaps this is the end goal of Singtel; to have Singaporeans think of them naturally during every CNY season and hopefully sign up with them as well. Only time will reveal the end results.
Final Thoughts
In a nutshell, I personally feel that Singtel has finally served up an ad with the right flavours for Singapore. It may no longer be a sob story, but this new flavour speaks of familiarity that everyone can relate to. Beyond that it also takes into account real time developments and weaves it into the story, blurring the lines between reality and fiction and bringing the audiences together closer to the story.
With this new series, it indubitably engenders a different look and feel from previous CNY ads and other CNY ads at that time. In an era of digital media often there is just too much noise when so many brands are vying for your attention in the same timespan. With this one, Singtel really stole the spotlight. On another note, this type of content format may connect better with younger audiences as well as build on brand familiarity. CNY has always been an occasion to celebrate our connections with our family and friends and using it as a springboard for advertising messages couldn’t have been a better idea.
This ad saw a second part in 2021 titled “My GrandMother’s House”. Despite seeing this ad one year later, I didn’t feel disconnected to them at all.
I look forward to see the developing storyline of these 2 families trying to celebrate CNY again next year. I wonder what other real life issues and developments will they weave in next time. Seeing the familiar cast again in 2021, I can’t help but look back on the previous CNY.
Well, thank you Singtel for the emotional ads all these years, but I think this new storyline is what Singapore needs right now. Maybe taking it a step further, Singtel could also weave in cultural messages in their CNY ads talking about topics like: Visiting your grandparents more often and not only during CNY, food waste during CNY or even something on the cusp of the whole pandemic conversation: finding new ways to stay connected by bringing back old CNY traditions?
See you next year Singtel. May the yellow and red family fight again, staying disconnected with you until then.
