Bank of China splashes out on confidence vote for HK

<p>HONG KONG: The Bank of China (BOC) is running a major television </p><p>campaign, reinforcing its commitment and optimism towards the city </p><p>despite the worsening economy. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The series of three TV spots was launched as the BOC announced a merger </p><p>with nine sister units - the largest corporate consolidation in Hong </p><p>Kong's history - to create the second-largest bank in the city after </p><p>HSBC. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The campaign was developed by Saatchi & Saatchi after the agency took </p><p>the corporate image account from Grey in a recent pitch, which focused </p><p>on creative and strategic recommendations to position BOC as a leading </p><p>and contemporary banking institution. The media account also moved from </p><p>MediaCom to Zenith Media. However, Grey, which had been BOC's agency of </p><p>record for about five years, and MediaCom have retained the bank's </p><p>credit card assignment. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Saatchi's Hong Kong chief executive officer Laurie Kwong said: "BOC is </p><p>an established, reliable and trustworthy institution. But we're going a </p><p>step further to make people aware that it is also dynamic and </p><p>contemporary." </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The TVCs also attempt to restore people's confidence in Hong Kong by </p><p>encouraging them to think positive. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>One execution shows 10,000 chefs and a voiceover asks, "Is there room </p><p>for another one?" The camera zooms in on of the chefs, who answers: "I </p><p>need to create my specialty." In the same way, one in 14,000 graduates </p><p>says, "I'm more passionate than any of them", while an athlete comments, </p><p>"I only need to be 0.01 second faster to beat the world record." </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The final voiceover adds: "Opportunity is everywhere. For us, it's Hong </p><p>Kong" and the tagline, "Make every day an opportunity." </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The campaign differs from most other bank advertising, which tends to </p><p>focus on product offering. Francis Wee, Saatchi's Hong Kong executive </p><p>creative director, said: "It's about helping people cope with the tough </p><p>times; make them see the positive side of life." </p><p><BR><BR> </p>