GMP's lift ghost ad whips up media frenzy

The story was first leaked to Singaporean media by three amateur ghostbusters who were searching for leads on their paranormal discovery.

The ‘Raffles Place Ghost’ video soon gained viral appeal as thousands rushed to download the video and online discussions began on blogs and forums to verify the video’s authenticity.

Two days later, the video’s notoriety was complete as two popular Chinese gossip dailies, the Shin Min Wanbao and Lianhe Wanbao, gave front cover space to the paranormal sighting while online hits grew to  over 160,000.

GMP, a recruitment and HR consultancy, finally claimed ownership for the video on Labour Day, as Josh Goh, manager for corporate services at the consultancy, attributed the viral video to be part of a marketing drive to raise its profile. The idea was to expose the local workforce to the “many dangers of working late” in a tongue-in-cheek manner.

He said: “We firmly believe in and advocate work-life harmony. By surrounding the campaign elements around the idea of ‘No one should work late’, we want to remind people that the right career is about the right challenges, prospects, benefits and hours - one that allows you to enjoy your work and become more productive; hence reducing the number of late nights.”

Developed by McCann Erickson Singapore, the campaign also made the prime time news slot and, according to Goh, recruitment figures are “definitely on the up”.

Farrokh Madon, ECD at McCann Singapore, said: “It’s a fantastic example of how a big idea can magnify a small advertising budget.