But Cannes isn’t the only place picking up on Vietnam-derived creativity. Earlier this year, the BBC also selected BatesAsia’s Vinamilk spots for an upcoming programme on the world’s funniest ads. “I think the Vietnamese are just as funny as the Thais,” says David Smail, who is building Vietnam’s first BBDO office. “They don’t take life too seriously, they are excellent storytellers. They just don’t know how to turn the camera on themselves yet.”
But today’s local commercial breaks paint a rather dreary picture. Tue Nguyen, MD of BatesAsia Vietnam, describes most commercials as adaptations of foreign ads or cuddly, tear-jerking, feel-good ads. “Most clients still want safe ideas,” he says. “It takes a lot of pushing to get them to take chances.”
Smail agrees that clients still need help understanding the benefits of creativity. “I don’t think the industry has done a good job at making advertising seem sexy,” he says, “We aren’t giving clients enough work that will make them famous or make them feel good about their brands.”
Irwin Kelaart, GM and ECD of DDB Vietnam, thinks that as local industries grow more competitive, this will lead to a natural demand for more creative ways of communicating. “Branding will become more important as a way to differentiate and succeed,” he says.
Meanwhile the local talent pool is likewise, underexposed. “There is a lot of interest from locals,” says Kelaart. “A big challenge is to get them experienced and exposed, to catch up with industry standards elsewhere.” To speed the process, Kelaart is part of a group which organises monthly creative circles.
In Vietnam, as with most developing markets, expats usually take up senior positions at agencies, while being supported by locals. But this creates a problem when top management shuffles around “every two years”, as one source says. This lack of stability naturally affects the development of local staff. And while the market teems with foreign creatives, mostly award-winning veterans in their native countries, good local talents are in short supply and very high demand. “Everyone’s having a really hard time getting local talent,” says Smail. “There’s definitely a talent crunch. But I am optimistic that it can be found.”
Another problem, according to a local CD, is that most local talents “have learned how to make ads by doing Procter & Gamble or Unilever work, which are mostly saccharine and watered-down.”
As for industry initiatives, the local award scene has a long way to go as well. There is the Vietnam Advertising Awards organised by the 4As but, according to one source, “it is embarrassing to be seen in it”.
Clearly, creativity in Vietnam is at a nascent stage, but everyone Media spoke to appeared genuinely optimistic. “There is a tremendous amount of potential,” Smail says. “Given the right opportunities and nurturing, more can be found. I’ve never been in a country where the people embrace learning so much.”
Additional reporting by Long Li Yann
