Campaign Asia

NetBooster Asia operations sold to France's Artefact

The acquiring company intends to challenge both GAFA (Google, Apple, Facebook, and Amazon) dominance and major consultancies.

Y&R Beijing transfers mainstay Dell account to Wunderman

Around half of Y&R Beijing's 50-odd staff have been moved into Wunderman Beijing as part of a global consolidation of the Dell account.

Isobar China Group reorganises to stress consultancy approach

In a move that appears to be an attempt to ward off consultancies, the group will establish four cross-agency functions: client servicing, specialist, product development and business support.

Mercedes-Benz offends China with Instagram post

The automaker becomes the latest brand to trip into a political controversy, by quoting the Dalai Lama.

Neymar Jr named global brand ambassador for TCL

The move is the latest in the Chinese consumer electronics brand's series of sports sponsorships.

Johan Vakidis returns to adland as Publicis China CCO

Sheena Jeng will stay on as China chairwoman.

Huawei turns cell towers into photo perches in Kenya

A campaign with a landscape photographer and the country's top telco, Safaricom, put a new twist on the 'rooftopping' trend, producing impressive images and earned-media coverage.

Graham Fink to depart Ogilvy China

Ogilvy China will not be refilling Fink's chief creative officer position.

ComScore to dissolve China unit, lay off team of 9

China is "not a corporate priority for Comscore at this stage".

Dentsu Aegis Network combines Merkle and &c in China

The move brings together complementary strengths in performance marketing.

AdMaster creates four new business divisions

AdMaster forms new Jingshuo Technology Group in response to growing product matrix.

BlueDigital gains torque with Porsche in China

For the first time a single PR agency will be responsible for the whole Porsche product line-up and all related sports events.

Video: The significance of Singles Day 2018 for Alibaba

Why China's carnival of consumption may be at a turning point

How 6-year-olds in a Guangxi kindergarten re-interpreted Chevrolet's logo

Chevrolet's logo looked like a red cross, a crucifix or a sanitary napkin to many adults in China. A group of (much) younger ‘consumers’ helped change that.

Old ads come back to haunt Didi Hitch following rape-murder cases

Angry Chinese netizens have dredged up past ads for the ride-sharing service, which are filled with sexual innuendo that seems foreboding in retrospect.

Photos: MMA Smarties Awards 2018, China edition

Uniqlo China continues its winning streak at the Smarties Awards, the key annual event of the Mobile Marketing Association held this year on 13 Sept in Shanghai's Xintiandi.

Ikea, Nike, BMW, Marriott: Chinese consumers find you less relevant now

Prophet's 2018 China Brand Relevance Index shows Chinese brands raising their relevance due to innovation, not just pricing.

Photos: M&CSaatchiSpencer Hong Kong opens for business

The newly-minted M&CSaatchiSpencer threw a launch party on 30 Aug at the Naked Hub Sheung Wan in Hong Kong.

Pride campaign: Everyone's connected to someone LGBTQ

Wunderman's 10th-anniversary campaign for the longest-running LGBTQ event in China highlights a rainbow-coloured Chinese number 10 (十) hidden in Chinese surnames.

CPRFHK to PRHK: Public-relations association rebrands

Group changes from 'CPRFHK' to 'PRHK', and has a new logo in "modular geometric shapes".

World Cup ROI not a major concern for Chinese smartphone maker Vivo

The Chinese smartphone maker, which kicked off its 2018 Russia World Cup branding blitz last night in Beijing, says it is in the game for the long haul.

How a sugarcane-juice brand in Thailand went for 'love (buy) at first sight'

While practical reasons often prevent beverage brands from trying daring packaging concepts, Rai Mai Jon chose a design meant to get attention online.

Photos: 2016 Greater China Agency of the Year Awards night

The 2016 Agency of the Year Awards for Greater China were presented last night at the Hyatt on the Bund in Shanghai.

Watch: Car chat with creative hot-shop Jimmy+Amber

SHANGHAI - It has been almost three months since Jimmy Lam (林俊明) settled down at Leo Digital Network (利欧数字网络) as its new group chief creative officer, while co-launching 'Jimmy+Amber' with Amber Liu under the same network. Campaign asks the duo, on their way to the airport for an annual retreat, how things are working out.

5 Campaigns that rocked China in 2016

Have a look at work that pushed advertising boundaries in China over the past year.

Campaign China's top brand missteps from 2016

Here's a look at the top five eyebrow-raising marketing-related incidents from China in 2016.

DMA: A practical guide to China's data and analytics scene

Takeaways from Campaign Asia-Pacific's DMA conference yesterday in Shanghai to sort the help from the hype.

Programmatic conflict in China: iPinYou's point of view on PDB and RTB

The CEO and co-founder of iPinYou, Grace Huang, lists three rebuttals why being involved in both PDB and RTB is not a "conflict".

Pedigree 'Feed the Good': How one idea is being interpreted around the world

It took Pedigree and BBDO more than a year to find the tagline. This is what happened to it next.

OMD tackles payment pains with Hong Kong e-commerce firm

An alliance between OMD and Fusion gives clients exclusive access to the latter's e-tailing technologies.

'NewCo' pieces North Asia team together

Masako Wakana will take the lead for 'Newco' in Japan, the latest in a drip-feed of ‘NewCo’ country market appointments.

Ex-DDB CEO to lead 'hyperbundled' MullenLowe in China

A restructure of operations integrates creative with MullenLowe Profero’s digital function.

What HK publishers can learn from Vietnam's programmatic space

IPG Mediabrands' Hong Kong ‎CEO talks about the "blue-ocean" opportunities for programmatic.

Criteo gives up on Chinese domestic market

Since the end of May, the retargeting-focused tech company has pivoted towards its 'export' business.

Former Flamingo Shanghai heads start a new 'Chapter'

New venture Inner Chapter wants to "upend the workings of China's marketing-insights industry".

Chinese tourists' top hotel brands, travel apps and search terms

TOP OF THE CHARTS: Analysis of mobile data shows that Airbnb is not much of a threat when it comes to Chinese outbound tourism.

VS Media to team up with Beautiful Destinations on China travel content

The move represents VS Media's transition to the 'MCN 2.0' era.

DigitalWorks 2018: Takeaways, photos, and results

This is an archive of our live updates from yesterday's DigitalWorks in Shanghai, an interactive Chinese-language training workshop for China’s rising stars in the media industry.

Keith Ho joins DDB HK after just two months at Dentsu

DDB has also promoted Irene Tsui to co-managing partner.

Danny Chan returns to advertising with DDB China

The top creative spot for DDB China Group will be filled by Danny Chan, who returns to a creative role after founding a startup.

China’s food brands deal with indigestion overseas

Chinese food companies still need much nutritional support before they can get overseas consumers to take a bite of their branded food products—for now.

Taiwan approves same-sex marriage; maybe these ads helped pave the way

Following yesterday's historic decision, we look back at brands that have embraced LGBT themes in their advertising.

Who moved my cheese? Chinese consumers did

SECTOR STUDY: China may be one of the hardest markets across the globe in which to sell cheese directly, but sneaking the product into other foodstuffs is making it more palatable.

Programmatic conflict in China: Sociomantic points out kickback problem

Ivan Zhou from Sociomantic advocates for a 'right to audit' clause in programmatic contracts.

How can staid German brands act more Chinese?

Process-oriented German brands may need to be more pliable to 'Chinese ways' of managing team structures, media relations and culture clashes, according to a recent survey.

A gay adman reacts to Taiwan's same-sex marriage ruling

A creative director at Leo Burnett Hong Kong, who happens to be gay, reacts to Taiwan's legalisation of same-sex marriage.

The logic behind Havas' JV with China's GIMC

Karl Wu, Greater China CEO, explains why Havas Group decided to partner with GIMC rather than pursuing an acquisition.

Omnicom Media Group China hires Gavin Hu as CIO

Hu will forge closer partnerships with key media, particularly Baidu, Alibaba and Tencent.

Marks & Spencer's ill-omened ending in China began a decade ago

BRAND HEALTH CHECK: 10 years after it launched, Marks & Spencer finally retreated from China in January this year. What went wrong?

AdMaster, Miaozhen sign with Tencent to fight ad fraud

Both firms will tap into Tencent’s database to identify mobile device IDs and behaviorial data to then detect patterns of invalid traffic.

Edible insects are crawling to a plate near you, but don't cringe

SECTOR STUDY: Shock value aside, there may be more marketing mileage in the bug-food market than you might think.

WPP China CEO Bessie Lee resigns

Lee will dedicate all her time to her startup venture, as GroupM's Patrick Xu assumes her duties in a dual role

Leo Digital Network confirms leaders of creative shop Match

Four additional partners have been revealed following last week's hiring of longtime McCann China chairman Tomaz Mok.

United has 'destroyed' its brand among furious Chinese

China consumers are unlikely to forget the manhandling incident anytime soon.

Who are the final 50 in our China Digital A-List 2017?

This year's annual tribute to China’s digital leaders includes 11 'enablers', 12 'dreamers' and 27 'doers'.

Tomaz Mok quits McCann China to focus on own hot shop

McCann's Greater China boss said Tomaz Mok "honourably retired" after an outstanding 36-year career.

Programmatic conflict in China: Fugetech weighs in

FugeTech's founder and CEO, Wei Guo, says by now, the China market has accepted that conflicts of interest exist in programmatic. The remaining problems are reach and opacity.

Programmatic conflict in China: Hdtmedia's viewpoint on being a DSPAN

Clarence Zheng, CEO and founder of Hdtmedia, feels his company plays more of a 'stock broker' role than that of a real-estate agent that also owns property.

Third digital-marketing group joins the fray in Hong Kong

The Hong Kong Management Association (HKMA) has established the Digital Marketing Community (DMC).

CCTV's Muji claims denounced by Shanghai Quarantine Bureau

The plot has taken a twist with assertions of the opposite from both Muji and Shanghai authorities.

Hong Kong jewellery giant looks to Japan to offset losses at home

Chow Tai Fook, the largest jewellery retailer in Hong Kong, is shifting its focus to Japan as the number of visitors from mainland China plummets at home.

Brands nervously await CCTV's 'name and shame' night

A look at which industries and brands may find themselves in defensive mode come Wednesday night, and how they should react.

The 'She-conomy': Chinese women under 30 are remaking the market

What does the emancipation of an entire generation of Chinese women in the new economy mean for brands?

PHD China wins Huawei media account in four-way pitch

Win covers media strategy and buying for traditional media.

Boutique creative agency partakes of Kraft Heinz China

After two rounds against multinational agencies Havas and Leagas Delaney, a local hot shop came out on top.

Joox: We don't believe in conversion through audio ads

A music-streaming service that doesn't like the sound of audio ads? Joox explains why it's playing a markedly different tune from Spotify.

Starbucks China enables social gifting via WeChat to brew up sales

WeChat's 846 million users can pay for a Starbucks digital gift card through the app's Wallet function.

Exclusive: Cheil wins China Unicom account in 11-way pitch

JWT Beijing was the incumbent agency from 2013 to 2016.

DDB China's Richard Tan gives way to Danny Mok

Mok is still on gardening leave from his Leo Burnett role for another 10 days, and took time to look ahead to his new gig at DDB.

Secret weapons in China's luxury ecommerce: A mobile number and a ribboned box

Clued-in online retailers in China use every aspect of the experience to telegraph luxury to demanding buyers. And domestic companies are better at it than those from the west.

Impasse with Tsai government puts brakes on Uber in Taiwan

The ride-sharing firm will halt its Taiwan service as of 10 February.

'Economic patriotism': China’s bank brands strongest in world

America's Wells Fargo loses its status as the world’s most valuable banking brand to China's ICBC.

Alibaba to sponsor Olympics until 2028

Alibaba will become the games' official e-commerce and cloud services sponsor.

Mashable partners with Tencent to launch in China

The two companies have partnered to translate Mashable content into Chinese.

Wieden+Kennedy names new Shanghai ECD as Yang Yeo departs

Yeo, ECD since 2014, has returned to Singapore.

Richard Lee departs PepsiCo after 19 years

Veteran marketer says he will "pursue new passions".

Coca-Cola's China media moves from Publicis to DAN

Dentsu Aegis Network will set up a dedicated in-house team, the Dentsu Coca-Cola Community (DCCC).

Marketing to China? Look for non-obvious trends

In a market that's come of age, consumers are forging their own ideas of what it means to be Chinese, according to panellists at yesterday's MarketingPulse conference.

Volkswagen China's Paul Hu: Rethinking the meaning of media efficiency

As PHD takes over from MediaCom following a procurement-led pitch, Volkswagen China, like many brands, is grappling with how to make sure it gets the most out of its media spend.

JWT China creates CEO role, fills it from McCann

Carter Chow (周世雄), previously chief marketing officer for Greater China at McCann Worldgroup, starts at JWT in the new year.

Marketers in China to face new legal readings of consumer data

CHINA INNOVATION 2016: With the fast pace of technology and business models in China, we can expect novel legal questions to be asked of marketers in future.

Innovation starts with the letter 'C', not 'I'

CHINA INNOVATION 2016: A roundtable discussion co-hosted with Miaozhen last week touched on the sources of innovative ideas, the abilities of AI, the validity of data and whether consumers even know what they want.

Breaking the internet, Chinese style

CHINA INNOVATION 2016: How brands are tapping China’s unique influencer marketing environment.

The ‘new order’ of virtual reality

CHINA INNOVATION 2016: Peddling products in thin air may be the future reality of marketing in China.

Alibaba's 11.11 GMV up 32% this year; major takeaways from a mega-sale

Everyone knows Alibaba raked in nearly US$18 billion. But beyond numbers, what can we learn from Singles Day this year?

What should China make of Trump's anti-China rhetoric?

China insiders comment on how Trump won, and share their views on the possible impact of his aggressively anti-China stance.

Programmatic breaks a fresh trail in China

CHINA INNOVATION 2015: Limited data exchange and the lack of neutrality delays ‘good innovation’.

Japanese Cannes winners: grand vision sets design apart

While 2016 has not been a stellar year for Asia-Pacific at Cannes, Japan has a number of reasons to be proud.

UK advertising independents to woo more Chinese money

China newbies like The Beyond Collective, London Advertising, VCCP, and Feref are sussing out new business opportunities in the mainland.

Fosun establishes in-house brand management unit for fashion clients

The Chinese investment conglomerate has set up a pure play operation company to serve fashion brands with ambitions in Greater China.

Mindshare China fills cup with more Master Kong drinks

Following a pitch, reportedly against Carat China and Blue449 China, Mindshare increases its remit from two to 13 brands.

PHD Singapore MD moves to Carat China as CEO

Wan-Gyn Ang is the new CEO of Carat China, filling a post that has been vacant for more than eight months.

How Baidu went all out for its Spring Gala red-packet sponsorship

Baidu's daily active user (DAU) count grew 87% over eight days.

Three mainland Chinese brands with fresh approaches to CNY marketing

We highlight three domestic Chinese brands utilising technology, nostalgia, and humour to their advantage.

China Duty Free expands M&C Saatchi Spencer's remit to another airport

Another CDF subsidiary, Duty Zero, at the Hong Kong International Airport, is an existing client.

What happened behind the scenes of the Dolce & Gabbana China fiasco

Hear from the model in the videos that led to the cancellation of D&G's 'The Great Show', and the experiential agency behind the doomed Shanghai production.

Bertilla Teo and Michael Lee to be Greater China co-CEOs at Publicis Groupe

The group also names an APAC MD for Publicis Sapient.

'What is Peppa?' trailer injects much Chineseness into British cartoon

The Chinese internet has oinked in approval for a Peppa Pig ad that is half a movie trailer and half a sponsor promo for China Mobile.

China execs want their CEOs to speak out—way more than UK and US

CEOs and founders in China do not speak out enough, according to communications and marketing executives in a new survey from Weber Shandwick.

Claudine Kwek joins Omnicom from WPP

Her job scope as COO will cover Omnicom Media Group China's media agencies, OMD and PHD, as well as the group’s data and analytics division, Annalect.

MAC Cosmetics launches first interactive experience centre in Shanghai

The centre was the result of six months of research to understand GenZ's makeup purchase behaviour in China.

In China, 'information cocoons' eclipse 'the big idea'

Taking a life of its own, Chinese-style marketing has followed neither existing textbooks nor tenets of ad gurus like David Ogilvy and George Lois.

Huawei 5G ad taunts Berlin with 'dog shit' jeer, and Germans actually agree

A Huawei ad at Berlin's Tegel airport taps Germans' desire for order and cleanliness to make a point.

Singles Day hits US$30.8 billion record as Alibaba goes 'all-in'

What brands won the day, and what we learned.

Nestlé consolidates media buying in China with Mindshare

Mindshare China expands scope of work beyond Wyeth and the Nestlé core portfolio.

We Are Social opens shop in Hong Kong

The Hong Kong head has been setting up the agency's 13th office since July.

Singles Day: MNCs evolve e-commerce KPIs in China—just not fast enough

Ahead of Singles Day, many multinational brands find themselves still trying to keep up with the omnichannel footprints of Alibaba and JD.

Innovation in content marketing doesn't happen by chance in China

Effective content marketing takes a concerted effort, according to speakers at Campaign's third China Innovation summit yesterday in Guangzhou.

Publicis finalises Digitas rebranding in China

Digitas China waited six months to remove the "LBi" from its former name, in order to make sure localisation and office renovation were in place.

Confrontation at WPP China offices caught on video

A public altercation yesterday at the WPP Campus in Shanghai, apparently over a payment issue involving GroupM, has been escalated to the local police.

Digitas hires Wavemaker digital lead to drive its Hong Kong office

Antony Yiu replaces David Paysant, the outgoing MD of Digitas Hong Kong.

Tencent consolidates ad ops into a new business line

The move, under an overall reorganisation, signifies an intention to generate more revenue from advertising properties.

Starcom China races off with BMW for a second time

News of Starcom's retainer follows that of Juice Network being named as creative agency in July.

PHD Hong Kong hires HSBC account lead from Danone

Nadeem Amin will be managing partner for PHD's dedicated HSBC ASP unit.

China Sports Lottery hires 4A agency for the first time

Scope of work includes integrated planning and strategising on branding, communications and media.

Electronics and auto brands lead digital transformation in China

Only 7% of Chinese brands are generating more than half their revenues from new businesses, according to Accenture research.

KOLs capture less than a tenth of HK video-viewing time

Video content put out by KOLs and brands doesn't command as much viewer attention in Hong Kong as you might think, according to Wave III of Omnicom Media Group’s video landscape report.

YouTube: Creators and brands wrestle for control of content

Campaign caught up with YouTube's marketing director at its first FanFest for Greater China, held in Hong Kong last month.

Hylink launches China tourism-focused subsidiary in US

The Beijing-based agency decided to formally enter the space due to a desire "to increase mutual understanding between global citizens".

Mailman takes US$15 million stake in European sports consultancy

China-based agency claims its purchase of a European firm is a "first of its kind" deal.

KFC Hong Kong campaign draws comparisons to Burger King work from Brazil

A tale of two campaigns by Ogilvy & Mather, from different fast-food clients and different continents, but both featuring photo-personalised papers.

Daniel Zhang to succeed Jack Ma in 2019 as Alibaba chairman

Alibaba to exchange its reliance on Jack Ma's personal brand with "the next level of corporate governance".

TBWA China opens an internal technology lab

Q Lab will work with its own clients in addition to those of TBWA.

Watch: The lowdown on the Marriott-Alibaba joint venture

Marriott's Craig Smith on reaching half a billion Chinese travelers.

Monster Energy goes cageside with One Championship in MMA tag team

If mixed martial arts can mature in Asia in the next two years, commercial sponsors can reap the benefits as well.

PHD China fills two newly-created senior management roles

Sandy Tan and Ian Dolan join the agency's China management team.

100 Most: When parody leads to IPO (probably)

Hong Kong media property is turning tongue-in-cheek irreverence into a financial milestone.

Wieden+Kennedy Shanghai scoops Ikea creative account from BBH

Remit includes national integrated campaigns and store openings, as well as digital, social and retail communications.

Jimmy Kuo replaces Dominic Ng as CEO of Vizeum China

The new CEO comes over from Carat to replace Dominic Ng, who is leaving to pursue personal projects, according to the agency.

Alibaba Group chooses MediaCom as overseas media agency

The remit covers strategy and buying for Tmall World, Alibaba Cloud, Dingtalk, Lazada, and Taobao International.

Havas Beijing wins China Telecom’s traditional offline media business

The scope of work involves media strategy, execution, and performance evaluation for a period of two years.

Asia Miles CEO: Loyalty points should not be virtual currency

Stephen Wong discusses all the sticking points about your Asia Miles points with Campaign Asia.

Publicis, VCCP named winners in Cathay Pacific's first pitch in 25 years

The airline has chosen the winner of its creative, media and social assignments, an account reportedly worth US$100 million.

PHD retains Unilever business across Greater China region

Industry sees the account retention as a surprise given Mindshare's planning stronghold on the client globally.

Tencent exec questions validity of Baidu's AI-glasses Cannes win

A senior Tencent executive has contested Baidu's Silver Lion in the Pharma category at Cannes, highlighting an AI arms race between the internet rivals.

Why 'China's hunkiest grandpa' is Reebok's new face

Being old yet muscular helps, but the brand says the octogenarian embodies the Chinese zeal for self-improvement and overcoming limitations.

China to Airbnb: New Chinese name is 'ugly-sounding', like 'a filthy love hotel'

Airbnb says its Chinese name 'Ài Bǐ Yíng' is designed to be easier to pronounce, but netizens find it corny, antiquated or worse.

Puma appoints Y&R as AOR for China

Y&R China won the business via competitive tender against five other agencies.

52 favoured merchants get to play with Tmall's cat

Tmall joined forces with 52 brands this year to launch a series of ads for Singles Day 2017. All had to use the silhouette of the head of Tmall's cat mascot.

Y&R to brands: Stop obsessing over demographics

Y&R has launched a psychographic segmentation tool in a bid to purge Chinese adland of what it calls outdated demographic targeting.

Best spaces to work: Elephant Parade Beijing

There are no elephants in this office, but the spirit of the world's largest terrestrial mammal is shown in the spacious curvature of the bamboo-heavy design.

Agencies aim to provoke with altered US currency

With dead emperors covering dead presidents, Shenzhen agencies seek clients who are ready to 'Take over America', and make a statement about their city's creative community.

Yo, Yau! Carlsberg aims to tap HK craft-beer cravings

Carlsberg partnered with Brooklyn Brewery to create HK YAU, a craft beer brand brewed in and exclusive to Hong Kong.

Today is 'Chinese Brands Day', because China says so

To celebrate the day, officially decreed by China's State Council, we look at some long-enduring brands you might not have heard of before.

Miaozhen takes minority stake in tech firm MaLogic

The partners plan to develop face-recognition technology to enable 'complete tracking' of a consumer's online-to-offline purchase journey.

WPP China in talks to sell stake to Alibaba, CMC, Tencent deal may be a post-Sorrell 'tidying up': Analyst

Sources estimate the stake at hand to be roughly 20% of WPP China, valued at between US$2 billion and US$2.5 billion.

Alibaba buys minority stake in Focus Media to engage with shoppers on the move

Alibaba Group acquired a minority 6.62% interest in China’s Focus Media and plans to take another 5% share in the Shanghai-based firm within the next 12 months.

Hong Kong first market in Asia to house Publicis agencies under one roof

"There was no collaboration in my first week", chuckled Publicis Hong Kong CEO Tom Kao in our exclusive interview, sharing his plans for the unification of the group's 13 sub-agencies.

Hylink files for arbitration against Qoros in China

Hylink Digital's Shanghai branch has applied for arbitration of an advertising-fee dispute involving more than RMB100 million (US$15 million).

Arsenal and 30 agencies ensnared in alleged BYD fraudulent misrepresentation case

More than 30 domestic ad agencies are crying foul after Chinese electric-car brand BYD indirectly absolved itself of payment obligations for RMB1.1 billion worth of ad production fees.

Tencent's advertising revenue reaches 17% of total as WeChat nears a billion users

Overall third-quarter revenue hit US$9.83 billion, up 61% year-on-year.

Chinese appliance brand on the hook for US$12 million in refunds as France wins World Cup

Vatti and its franchisees must pay consumers some RMB79 million (US$11.8 million) in reimbursements after Les Bleus claimed the World Cup crown last night.

Overseas consumers will not be a priority for WeChat Pay

It will not be possible for foreigners, except in Hong Kong and Malaysia, to use WeChat Pay local-currency wallets in the near term, as the payment brand is prioritising Chinese outbound tourists.

Singles Day: Big questions and predictions for China's huge online shopping festival

Ahead of Alibaba's massive ecommerce—sorry, we mean 'new retail'—event Saturday, we gather forecasts on what will consumers buy, how JD.com will counter and what numbers we can expect to see.

Singles Day: 'Olympics of commerce' resets rules for agencies

After this year, 11.11 will replace Chinese New Year as the biggest date circled on the agency calendars.

The (more than) 24 hours of Singles Day: Reports from Alibaba's epicentre

Reports filed liveblog style from Shanghai for the ninth 11.11 Global Shopping Festival, covering from the countdown Friday night all the way through to the end at 12 am Sunday morning.

Singles Day: For fashion KOLs, the riches are in the niches

While every industry imaginable will get involved in Singles Day, the fashion industry is at the heart of the event. Which Weibo KOLs can deliver?

Xiaomi's poor IPO may have little bearing on its consumer brand equity

Is Xiaomi a smartphone brand? Is it a hardware ecosystem incubator? Is it an internet company? Confused investors did not buy into Xiaomi's narrative, but its intangible brand equity remains, experts posit.

Discontent with airlines more manageable than other industries

To understand the impact of flight delays on airline choices, Linkfluence looked at 11,100 conversations on social media in China.

Guess to be first global brand to digitise stores with Alibaba's FashionAI

The duo show off the system's capabilities, such as personalised recommendations based on prior Taobao/Tmall purchases, in a concept store in Hong Kong.

Alibaba revenue up 61% as it sees early results from 'new retail'

What Alibaba calls 'core commerce' contributed 72% to its total revenue in the quarter ended 30 September.

Chinese consumers numb about ecommerce festivals, except 11.11

Enthusiasm has sagged in the face of "too many" e-commerce sales events, according to Nielsen China, except for one.

PHD Hong Kong announces leadership change

The agency has named a new leader as Ray Wong steps down from his post as CEO after almost 27 years of service with Omnicom Group.

Do Hong Kong advertisers treat digital as the 'poor cousin'?

New adspend report shows a rise for TV, sparking a rant by one prominent digital mogul.

Legal complaint filed in connection with confrontation at GroupM offices

A dispute that resulted in a public argument outside WPP's Shanghai offices last October has now led to an official civil complaint.

China's Top 100 Brands: Chanel the most wanted—again

The luxury company plays by its own distinct rules when it comes to marketing. Elsewhere in China's Top 100 Brands chart, Apple slips a few spots, while Uber plummets down the list.

Didi Chuxing rides high in China while OTAs incur consumer wrath

We saw much longer strides in brand perception as a result of an intentional focus on service. The opposite is true for local losers, even if their drops are not as dramatic.

Huawei vaults upward in brand ranking

Huawei has taken over from Xiaomi as the top Chinese brand across APAC.

Dentsu launches cross-border unit to serve Japan and China

Dentsu China Xover Center (CXC for short, and pronounced 'C by C') will launch on 1 June.

'Is it expensive?': Sellers not pleased by price-comparison tool for China digital ads

A tool that lays out hidden markups of digital media buying and potential arbitrage in China has caused a stir following its release last month.

Jerry Clode on setting up The Solution for smaller brands

New shop takes Resonance China's ex research lead back to New Zealand.

Updated: 'RedEye' fraud op suspected to exploit digital ad industry in China

An ad-fraud network is reaping as much as RMB20 million (US$3 million) per day, and fraud-detection measures have failed to detect it, according to verification company Adbug.

Plant-based milks aren't a thing in Hong Kong, so Oatly made up a Chinese character for them

The invented pictogram is not a brand name; the Swedish company intends it as a conceptual signifier for plant-based milks. And it already shows signs of catching on.

BrandZ says Huawei is strongest Chinese brand outside China, but why?

Telecom and smartphone maker ranks No. 1 in brand power despite its struggles.

WPP China names CEO for Kinetic and GroupM OOH unit

The company appoints Cary Huang to a dual role.

Insisting on using only celebs is like "gambling" in your KOL strategy

Caught the influencer influenza? We take stock of the contagious KOL industry in China and determine how effective the spread really is.

To post-90s Chinese, luxury is no longer for rich people

An Ogilvy study says to make luxury matter to the post-90s generation of young Chinese, brands have to change six marketing rules.

FAW-VW hands China media duties to local sales house

Winner in FAW-Volkswagen pitch unseats MediaCom, claims account is worth RMB2 billion (US$298 million) in billings.

Mailman wins La Liga, hires Asia VP, opens Singapore office

Bima Said, formerly of DAZN Group, will head Mailman's regional ops out of Indonesia.

Marketers, time for you to get 'GGWP' and other esports slang

How can esports 'n00bs' (newbies) get in on the marketing action, so they can later say to themselves GGWP ('good game, well played')?

Uncle Martian, what an awfully familiar logo you have!

On World Intellectual Property Day, we take a look at China, where the law surrounding IP infringement increasingly has teeth.

Wunderman Thompson unveils China leadership; Bryce Whitwam to depart

JWT male executives win out and a Wunderman man was culled in the agency's first post-merger shakeup at the sub-region level.

Brands are relying less on agencies to manage KOLs in China

R3 whitepaper finds marketers in China can no longer only rely on agencies to select and launch KOL campaigns.

Amazon to withdraw from China's local e-commerce marketplace

Competition from Alibaba and JD proved too costly for Amazon China's domestic retail business, say industry experts.

MRC and CMAC to audit three China measurement services

AdMaster's TrackMaster, Miaozhen's AdMonitor, and Nielsen's Digital Ad Ratings will get audited themselves, but some observers don't expect much short-term impact.

Video adspend to overtake TV in China by 2021: eMarketer

Video is the fastest growing ad format within digital in China.

At work versus at play, Hongkongers are different animals, digitally speaking

Google-sponsored research revealed disparities between perception and practice among both consumers and corporations.

Vacant Y&R China CEO position filled after almost two years

The Shanghai shop's managing director is promoted to the national role.

R/GA Shanghai hires new MD and ECD after leadership hiatus

The two key appointments are Sook Ping Chow and Terence Leong.

'If it ain't broke...' mindset slows Hong Kong's digital marketing scene

A culture of ‘being obedient to your boss’, fear and complacency are fundamental barriers, according to a new report from the HKDMA and PwC.

Joint CEOs to succeed Jesse Lin at McCann Worldgroup Greater China

The co-CEOs, from McCann China and MRM//McCann China, will be promoted at the end of the year.

Club Med China picks Spark Foundry

Spark Foundry’s scope of work includes SEM, SEO, programmatic and social media on an account estimated to be worth US$10 million in billings.

P&G China: Irrational KPIs, close-mindedness leading to ad fraud

For the first time, P&G's China brand guardian openly expresses an unsparing attitude toward the opaque market.

Alibaba Group appoints Blue 449 for media planning in China

Scope covers media planning, but not buying, over traditional and digital channels for Alibaba's major properties.

Vizeum replaces China CEO with hire from Mediacom

Dominic Ng takes over from Terrence Yung.

McCann planner joins DDB China as CSO

DDB Group China has a new chief strategy officer on board today: Laura Liang (梁婷婷).

Why do some Chinese KOLs spur buzz but have no commercial impact?

Because posts containing only a combination of hashtags can be quite meaningless.

Dalian Wanda Group starts global comms and branding offensive

H+K will be covering overall brand building as well as specific in-market communications projects for Dalian Wanda Group.

McSuicide? Twitter hoax affects McDonald's Hong Kong

McDonald's Hong Kong received worldwide publicity over the weekend due to a Twitter squatter making cryptic posts about suicide, kidnap and romantic rejection.

Obituary: Paul Lau

The head of Mindshare Guangzhou has died at the age of 45.

What's that jumble of Chinese characters at the World Cup?

Your comprehensive guide to the official and unofficial Chinese sponsors on display at the World Cup — and what their presence says about China's long-term football ambitions.

China's top mobile-friendly brands

Chinese consumers find Apple, WeChat, and Baidu to be their most mobile-friendly brands. Why?

Isobar formalises commerce practice globally

More than 1,000 existing commerce specialists will be roped into the global Isobar Commerce practice.

'Be careful when talking about Tibet': Tool aims to help brands avoid hot water

Social-management platform Kawo wants to help ease the angst of brand managers who worry about posts running afoul of China's ever-shifting list of banned topics.

China's top 100 brands for 2018

Car Inc, Ikea, Oreo, and iQiyi shoot through the ranks while Dumex is down in the dumps as it drops 159 spots.

China's top local brands

Chinese consumers declare Alibaba, Haier and Huawei their favourite local brands. What's behind their appeal?

Havas China creative CEO steps down

Donald Chan will most likely be venturing into the startup space.

New Amnet HK GM touts 'people-based marketing'

Recently appointed Jeremy Lo explains how Amnet is enticing local advertisers from direct buys into private marketplaces (PMP) and programmatic guaranteed (PG) deals.

How GSK used Alibaba data to reach a new nasal-spray buyer

Only one-tenth of China's allergy sufferers will choose a nasal spray versus antihistamines or decongestants. Here's how Mediacom and GSK sniffed out a solution.

Robin8 acquires HK-based influencer platform Launchpilots

Launchpilots will add its 25,000 millennial influencers on Facebook, Instagram, Weibo and Wechat into Robin8's search engine and marketplace.

Apple in China: When lucky number 8 doesn't guarantee prosperity

BRAND HEALTH CHECK: China observers weigh on on whether the iPhone 8/X can appreciably improve Apple's fortunes in China.

Former McCann China CEO resurfaces to oversee Edelman

Jesse Lin takes on key regional role vacated by David Brain in May this year.

Feeding China's value-obsessed, data-hungry shopping travellers

Price-sensitive Chinese shoppers dig out microscopic levels of information while planning overseas shopping expeditions. Here's what one retail-village operator learned about what it needed to provide.

26 companies to co-test MMA China's open-source SDK

The Chinese are such heavy users of the mobile internet that a SDK is even more important in such an ad environment.

Saatchi & Saatchi unleashes monsters into ad world

Saatchi & Saatchi has waged a symbolic attack on negative factors in advertising such as pitch wars, scams, dwindling client trust and an overall drop in creativity by creating personalised avatars of every top boss in the agency's management. Each 'monster' embodies a facet of the person with their own 'one-word equity' nicknames. Be warned: the agency is also threatening a 'Monsters Attack' on the public in the form of a mobile app--an invitation for ad folks to highlight their individuality.

DATA POINTS: Lifestyles of the 'over-55s' in China

It's hard to overemphasise how important it is for marketers to take notice of over-55 consumers in China, who have strong spending power as well as strong influence on younger consumers. According to Mintel research, the group is increasingly diverse, and old assumptions about the demographic do not hold. Companies must disregard their preconceptions and gain deeper insight into the needs of the various groups within this age segment.

How to play in China's social-media landscape in 2014: CIC

MAINLAND CHINA - China's social-media robot has been growing heads, arms and legs for the past six years. Kantar's CIC has issued its latest graphic representation of that evolution, considered one of the authoritative references in the industry.

Princess Cruises' first China campaign sails off as cruise travel moves upstream

SHANGHAI - Princess Cruises, the world's third-largest cruise liner, has kicked off a McCann-led campaign that goes beyond the pure-luxury approach of conventional advertising in the sector in order to promote the company's first-ever China season.

HK consumer watchdog reveals EOS lip balm contains prohibited plasticiser

HONG KONG - The local consumer council has tested and found a sample of EOS lip balm contains DEHP, a type of phthalate plasticiser, the use of which is prohibited in cosmetics in China, Taiwan and Europe.

Former Acxiom head Allen Xu named OgilvyOne MD in Shanghai

SHANGHAI - The former head of Acxiom, Allen Xu (徐飚), has been named managing director of OgilvyOne Shanghai. He succeeds Billboard Kwok (郭德榜), who departed from the agency to pursue a career as an independent consultant.

VML China acquires Teein, fills hole in social media capability

SHANGHAI - VML, part of the Y&R network, has acquired Teein (帖易), one of China's pioneer social-media agencies.

China lacks jeans 'culture'? Levi's declares otherwise

SHANGHAI - In the first piece of work for China since Levi’s shifted its account from Wieden+Kennedy to FCB globally this February, the brand attempts to persuade Chinese people to adopt the jeans brand as the de rigueur outfit for daily life.

No 'bull': Energy drink makes its ambitions clear

BRAND LAUNCH: From its name to its direct slogan to its raunchy marketing, Blu makes it clear that it intends to take market share from dominant brand Red Bull.

MediaCom's Michael Zhang to head GroupM's China strategy

SHANGHAI - After more than eight years as head of MediaCom China, Michael Zhang (pictured) will be stepping into a new CSO role with GroupM China from 1 October onwards.

Barron’s Asia to debut in October with five advertisers

HONG KONG - Barron's has opted for a purely digital edition for its Asia launch and secured five advertisers before its 15 October debut.

Premium auto marques fall back on gimmicks

SECTOR STUDY: Once dominated by three top German brands, China’s luxury car market grows increasingly competitive, forcing marketers to get inventive to woo buyers with ‘difference’.

TV to fall below 50% of adspend in China: GroupM

SHANGHAI - According to GroupM's 2015 China media forecast, television's share of advertising expenditure will drop below 50 per cent for the first time. Meanwhile online ad growth will slow (having reached scale last year), out-of-home will be increasingly digitised and radio is regaining favour as car ownership rises.

Saatchi & Saatchi wins Sands China's 10-way pitch

SHANGHAI - After a fiercely competitive pitch, an enormous team from Saatchi & Saatchi has beaten out final-round competitors Grey and Ogilvy to win the Sands China creative account for mainland China, Hong Kong and Macao.

Recheck your digital strategy: Top 1000 Brands China Breakfast Briefing

SHANGHAI - Following the release of Asia's Top 1000 Brands study, Campaign Asia-Pacific hosted a half-day conference yesterday morning to review the findings and dig deeper into the strategies of successful brands.

Wildfire rebrands to ActSocial, shifts focus to 'influencer CRM'

SHANGHAI - Wildfire (星星火), a China-based social marketing company often confused with Wildfire Interactive (a division of Google), will now be trading under a new name, ActSocial.

Industry reacts to Hong Kong protests

HONG KONG - While some brands curtail marketing activities in light of the ongoing 'Occupy Central' protests, a group of 50 advertising and media workers has taken out an ad condemning violent police tactics. Here, we present a wide range of opinions on the short- and long-term industry impacts of the movement.

Three-way pitch for Cheesecake Factory underway ahead of China entry

HONG KONG - Cheil, McCann and Publicis are vying for a slice of the cake in The Cheesecake Factory's first creative pitch in Asia.

'Innovation' and 'invention' have been mixed up: Finch

SPIKES ASIA - Invention is the first iteration of something. Innovation is a way of doing things differently. And understanding the difference is crucial to success, according to Emad Tahtouh, director of applied technology at Finch.

Storytelling principles in a highly connected world: Facebook

SPIKES ASIA - In the final presentation at Spikes Asia 2014, Sarah Bennison, Facebook's APAC head of content marketing, looked at shifts in communication and storytelling principles in this changed world where millions of people are "connecting to one another like never before".

Is Japan so exotic it cannot be understood? Hakuhodo decodes

SPIKES ASIA - Have you struggled to understand why Japan has produced so many world-renowned campaigns? Yoshi Matsuura, holding a dual role as senior strategic planning director at TBWA Hakuhodo and senior R&D director at Hakuhodo, revealed the secrets of Japanese creativity.

Holograms, 'freedom declarations' drive Adidas NEO campaign

SHANGHAI - In its first piece of work for Adidas NEO since taking over from Isobar, independent agency Arkr Digital has tried to form an intersection of technology and fashion using holographic projections and dual-screen interactions.

Pineapple on a bicycle: SunnyHills comes to Hong Kong

HONG KONG - SunnyHills, known for specialising in only one product—the pineapple cake—opened its first Hong Kong store in Central yesterday with a premium version of the pastry to cater to picky local eaters.

ZenithOptimedia Greater China president Steven Chang heads to Tencent

BEIJING - Tencent has hired Steven Chang from ZenithOptimedia Greater China to be its corporate vice president in charge of online media advertising sales. Industry insiders assessed the move as a ploy to bypass media agencies and upsell proprietary media solutions directly to advertisers.

Turn partners with Rudi Leung to form spinoff agency Turn+

HONG KONG - The new venture spinning off from the independent communication agency Turn will commence operations from mid-October onwards after Rudi Leung, who left his position as general manager of Social@Ogilvy in August, settles in.

Is Apple losing its first-mover advantage?

SHANGHAI - With the announcement of its first ‘phablet’, a smartwatch and mobile payments, Apple has just played catch-up on three major products that competitors have already launched.

China’s global ambitions: If brands can make it here, can they make it anywhere?

In August, Campaign hosted the Brand China Roundtable to bring together leaders and decision makers at young and old Chinese brands to discuss the challenges and opportunities they face as their products and names cross over to the global stage. Here’s some insights from that conversation.

Top 1000 Brands Breakfast Briefing 2014, Shanghai

Top marketers gathered to review Campaign Asia-Pacific's Top 1000 Brands study at a half-day conference in Shanghai yesterday. Please see the related-article link at the bottom of the page for additional details.

Digital marketing for a more personal brand

ASIA's TOP 1000 BRANDS: Simon Pestridge, VP of marketing for Nike Greater China, talks about reaching the country’s ambitious consumers. In this Q&A, he also discusses the company’s ambitious plans with a digital-first objective.

Nestle China: Simplicity and scale

ASIA's TOP 1000 BRANDS: Q&A with Paolo Mercado Head of Marketing & Consumer Communication, Nestle China about attracting and keeping consumer loyalty in this fast paced market.

The future belongs to the 'chief marketing technologist': Tencent Mind Conference

GUANGZHOU - A new marketing order is imminent, one ruled not by the CEO or CMO but by someone who understands the value of capital markets as well as technology and can apply that to marketing: the CMT (chief marketing technologist).

PHD wins Hong Kong Jockey Club tender from OMD

HONG KONG - PHD has won a major piece of new business: a two-year retainer-based account for the Hong Kong Jockey Club (HKJC), which OMD had held for the past four years.

MEC tipped to win Chow Sang Sang digital account from Hylink

SHANGHAI - Jewellery brand Chow Sang Sang has reportedly appointed MEC Interaction to handle its digital media duties (including search but excluding social media) following a five-agency pitch last month.

Leo Burnett consolidates Asia Pacific and Greater China regions

SHANGHAI / SINGAPORE - Jarek Ziebinski is stepping up to chairman and CEO of consolidated Leo Burnett operations across Greater China and Asia Pacific as Eddie Booth retires after 15 years with the agency.

FAW-Volkswagen reviews media agency in China

BEIJING - FAW-Volkswagen (FAW-VW) is conducting a local media review despite incumbent agency MediaCom extending its global relationship with Volkswagen Group back in April.

Tony Chen resigns from GroupM

SHANGHAI - Less than four months after his promotion at GroupM China/Taiwan, Tony Chen (陈建豪) (pictured), has resigned from his position as chief digital officer to spend time with his new family and to pursue a new direction in his career.

Bacardi to work with FCB for global China-led project

Bacardi has appointed FCB to handle a global project out of China following a three-agency pitch.

Eric Weng joins Carat China from Wunderman as MD of client solutions

SHANGHAI - Eric Weng, as the new managing director of client solutions at Carat China, will be responsible for developing customised data and technology solutions after leaving a parallel role at Wunderman, where he stayed for less than six months.

Brand China Roundtable, Beijing

In association with BBC World News, bbc.com and The Hoffman Agency, a diverse group of professionals shared their thoughts with Campaign Asia Pacific on what Chinese brands need to do to succeed beyond their home turf. Please see the related-article link at the bottom of the page for additional details.

An inside look at Samsung's Hong Kong strategies

ASIA's TOP 1000 BRANDS: Samsung held its number-one status across APAC for the third year in a row and had a strong showing in Hong Kong. In this Q&A, Samsung’s CMO Lawrence Chow comments on what it takes to win over consumers in this highly competitive, tech-loving market.

Watsons' heritage of service and innovation

ASIA's TOP 1000 BRANDS: Watsons took the 10 spot in Hong Kong’s ranking. In this Q&A, Jacqueline Cheung, the brand's marketing controller, shares lessons the company has learned about winning trust with local consumers.

The next big 'Thin': Oreo seeks appetite beyond kids and moms

SHANGHAI - When both consumer research and net revenue showed that Chinese customers considered the Oreo brand to be kid stuff, Mondelez and its roster of agencies set out to do to the cookie like what Apple did to the smartphone: boost its appeal by making it sleeker.

Princess by day, mermaid by night: Proya splurges on Zhang Ziyi TVC

SHANGHAI - In a campaign entitled 'Charm comes from the deep', Zhang Ziyi is portrayed as both a princess and a mermaid, which the brand claims correlates to the dual product benefits of the Proya Aqua Series she's endorsing.

Tempo appoints e-commerce and digital marketing agency in China

SHANGHAI - Tissue brand Tempo has appointed WE Commerce as online sales agency and sister agency WE Digital as digital agency in China.

New Culture, WPP, Leo Group rank top in APAC acquisitions

ASIA PACIFIC - While it comes as no surprise that WPP leads the global M&A league with 18 investments this year, most of the top acquisitions in Asia to date have come from Chinese holding companies, representing a true 'paradigm shift', according to R3.

Shangri-La rebrands Traders for 'A new Jeneration'

HONG KONG - Shangri-La has rebranded its Traders Hotels network to Hotel Jen, and is promoting it with all kinds of permutations of the virtual persona, ‘Jen', that the hotel is named after.

China's shoppers lead world in willingness to buy online: Nielsen

SHANGHAI - China is the leader in e-commerce maturity around the world with a higher percentage of actual buying versus online browsing, according to a new study from Nielsen.

VML IM2.0 wins Crayola China account from OgilvyOne

SHANGHAI - Crayola (绘儿乐) switches its retainer-based digital marketing and e-commerce agency in China.

Chinese brands outpace global peers on mobile plans

SHANGHAI - A fifth of Chinese marketers have a well-integrated mobile strategy in place, compared with only 4 per cent of global counterparts, although many are still focusing on short-term tactics, according to a World Federation of Advertisers (WFA) survey conducted among 21 key Chinese advertisers in conjunction with PHD and OMD in China.

Chris Maier moves to ZenithOptimedia China from Millward Brown

SHANGHAI - Last Friday was Chris Maier's last day at Millward Brown as he moves to ZenithOptimedia as the head of research and analytics for China.

Lowe China, Dentsu Japan, Forsman & Bodenfors Sweden win at Ad Stars 2014

BUSAN - This year's Ad Stars 2014 saw 12,591 entries from 62 countries, with one keyword summing up the similarity between the three Grand Prix of the Year co-winners: automotive.

Emen Chong leaves Agenda to lead Tribal Shanghai

SHANGHAI - DDB China Group has appointed Emen Chong (张怡敏) as general manager of Tribal Worldwide Shanghai. Prior to this, she was client service director and head of account management at Agenda China.

Bubble-popping versus burlesque: Perrier's first China ad invites liberation of another kind

SHANGHAI - Perrier is inviting mainland consumers to "open up and refresh themselves" in a virtual bubble-popping game in the brand's first campaign in China.

BBDO Hong Kong wins US$15m MetLife creative account

HONG KONG - MetLife awarded BBDO with its Hong Kong creative duties two weeks ago. The agency will share the account with sister agency Proximity, which won the insurer's digital duties at the start of 2014.

Derek Kwok leaves Yoyi Digital for Google China

BEIJING - Derek Kwok (郭志明) has taken a newly created role as Google's head of programmatic-buyer relations in Greater China after leaving his COO job at Yoyi Digital in June.

Lowe China confirms departure of Norman Tan to JWT

SHANGHAI - Lowe China has confirmed the departure of Norman Tan, vice chairman and chief creative officer, who is set to take up a creative leadership role at JWT to replace Yang Yeo.

Leo Burnett loses Coca-Cola account to McCann in China

SHANGHAI - Coca-Cola China has moved its creative business out of Leo Burnett and into McCann, according to reliable sources.

Mondelez holds internal 'Digital Day' to brush up on tech knowledge

Mondelez's 'digital day', held in Shanghai on 27 May, is now in its sixth edition since its beginnings in 2009. The purpose was to get the marketing department to "freshen up" their minds to the revolutionary digital landscape; to inspire marketing ideas by introducing success stories from industry pioneers; and to move to the forefront of technology. This year's theme 'Back to Origin' delivers the message that marketers should insist on focusing on the fundamentals in today's changing world by staying close to the consumer, said Rasheed Zhao, associate marketing director for IMC, Digital & Media at Mondelez China. The whole-day event consists of two main sessions: speeches from Baidu, Dentsu, Tencent Mind, Meitu Inc, LeTV, Google, AdMaster, and subsequent tech presentations by the same guests.

UnionPay invests in first TVC for 10th-anniversary in Hong Kong and Macau

HONG KONG / MACAU - UnionPay's 10th-anniversary campaign marks the first time the Chinese payment network has invested in producing a TVC for airing during prime-time slots on local television channels in these two markets.

Has Madame Tussauds gone mad with a hyper-real version of an unreal cat?

Madame Tussauds Hong Kong said hello to a new Hello Kitty wax figurine yesterday as the museum's newest A-list "celebrity". The world’s most famous kitten, with her trademark frothy pink style, took four months to 'waxify' at a cost of US$232,250 (HK$1.8 million). The Madame Tussauds team worked with Sanrio Wave Hong Kong to ensure "total accuracy" of the icon. The attraction is known for sculpting realistic versions of real people, so this new addition boggles our minds a bit (sociologist Umberto Eco's term “the authentic fake” comes to mind). Yet we cannot dispute the hold the innocuous feline has over the psyches of many children, not to mention child-like adults (kidults), so we won't bet against it drawing crowds.

DATA POINTS: FMCG marketers in China can no longer just ride a category wave

Three key trends affecting China’s FMCG market have emerged from the third wave of Bain & Company and Kantar Worldpanel's study on the shopping behaviour of 40,000 Chinese households: Continuing deceleration across sectors and all city tiers, fewer store visits to offline retailers as online commerce booms, and foreign brands’ loss of aggregate share to Chinese brands. The research used an unconventional approach that assigned research participants with barcode scanners to determine what they actually purchased, as opposed to what they said they had purchased. Detailed analysis of 26 categories spanning the four largest consumer-goods sectors: Personal care, home care, beverage and packaged food, which account for more than 80 per cent of China’s FMCG market in value is presented.

Chinese agencies move from ideas to creation

From product development to shouldering business risks, ad agencies are upping their game to forge new sources of revenue.

Ramond Yiu swaps Roadshow Media for Metro Broadcast in Hong Kong

HONG KONG - Ramond Yiu has returned to local commercial radio station Metro Broadcast, after a gap of almost 14 years, as chief marketing and sales officer.

Dutch duo to drive from Shanghai to Rotterdam using only Chinese brands

SHANGHAI - Chinese brands including BYD, Huawei and Lenovo are backing an epic road trip that aims to raise the profile of Made-in-China products abroad.

Q&A: Hdtmedia on the supply-side vs. demand-side debate

SHANGHAI - A month after the launch of Hdtmedia's supply-side platform (SSP) on 26 June, its largest publisher partners have seen the prices of their media impressions rise 30 per cent, according to CEO Clarence Zheng（郑斌）, who holds the view that an SSP is more valuable than a DSP.

Cynthia Zhu joins FCB from DDB as head of strategy for Greater China

SHANGHAI - Cynthia Zhu (祝慧), taking on her third new job in the same number of years, has been brought on board at FCB as head of strategy for Greater China.

TBWA’s digital arm hires Saatchi's Jason Cheng to replace Douglas Lin

SHANGHAI - Jason Cheng (郑龙匡) has been named general manager of TBWA’s Digital Arts Network (DAN) Shanghai.

Q&A: Dentsu China CEO on DAN's ambitions, being 'seed-oriented' and innovation

SHANGHAI - It's not often that a journalist's cynicism gets slowly pecked away by a composed Japanese CEO despite to-and-fro language translation. But that's what happened in this exclusive interview with Moto Yamagishi (山岸纪宽), CEO of Dentsu China & North Asia, who is rumoured to be the next Dentsu Aegis Network China honcho.

Generation 'Xi': Marketing in China's 'youth-conomy'

SHANGHAI - The belief that the length of a generation is defined by ten-year spans is making less sense in China as technological and societal changes take place every five or even three years, setting the stage for 'Generation Xi' (习世代)—youths growing up in the current Xi Jinping era, and altering marketing principles along with it.

Taipan campaign stars rebel with a cause: snowy mooncake

HONG KONG - In Taipan's 25-anniversary campaign, the mooncake brand has decided to stop creating friendly rifts between consumers who munch on traditional mooncakes and those who eat the snowskin variety.

Weibo World Cup: Real-time branding 'goal' of the day

On Weibo during the 2014 FIFA World Cup, brands are responsible for their own social-media scores, and Chinese netizens need only enjoy (or disprove of) the brands' reactions to the daily matches. Campaign Asia-Pacific will keep our eyes online and pick out examples of brands that stand out for being quick on their feet, until the final game on 13 July.

GroupM's Eve Lo resurfaces at Isobar China as brand strategy head

SHANGHAI - Eve Lo, former chief knowledge officer of GroupM China, has been named principal of brand strategy at Isobar China to lead and build the agency's new brand consulting division, effective this week.

Rudi Leung to quit Social@Ogilvy HK; Fergus Hay fills Thomas Crampton's APAC role

HONG KONG - Rudi Leung is set to depart from Social@Ogilvy Hong Kong come August, while Fergus Hay has relocated from Chicago to take up the regional role previously held by Thomas Crampton.

SMG China secures priority access to Tencent behavioural data as part of MOU

SHANGHAI - Starcom MediaVest Group (SMG) China and Tencent have formed a strategic deal that will see the two companies working together on data-analysis and prioritised ad rollouts—marking the first time a media agency has partnered with a powerful mainland internet concern.

Vizeum China bags AXA Tianping after 8-month, 5-round pitch

SHANGHAI - Vizeum China has won the full media planning and buying business of AXA Tianping following a competitive pitch involving Mindshare, Havas Media, and five local agencies.

How to advertise a casino without saying the word

MACAU - Last week's numbers from the Macau Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau (GICB) showed gross casino gaming revenues in June fell 3.7 per cent—the first drop in five years. Yet marketers wishing to get back on a winning streak face a challenge in China's prohibition against gambling promotion.

BMW China switches from Interone to im2.0 for digital creative, Hylink to Carat for digital media

BEIJING - Following competitive pitches that started in February, BMW China is tipped to be moving its digital media duties from incumbent Hylink to Carat, while Interone, formerly handling creative work for BMW-owned Mini, has lost out to im2.0.

The boy who walks upside down, and other Samsung China beneficiaries

BEIJING - Samsung China’s new corporate branding campaign features a boy (Yuhong Yan 颜玉宏 from Yangzhou) suffering from poliomyelitis walking upside down for three hours on his hands to primary school every day, until the electronics brand helped to pay for a wheelchair as his new form of transport.

Arlene Ang on turning OMD China into a 'no-line' agency

SHANGHAI - Arlene Ang succeeded reclusive OMD China CEO SiewPing Lim earlier this year in February. In this exclusive video interview with Campaign Asia-Pacific, she explains her plans to transform the way OMD operates to be more digital-forward, and why she wants 750 staff to hedge their bets against digital obscurity in the future with some help from venture capitalists.

DATA POINTS: How to touch the unmoved Chinese shopper

Today’s Chinese shoppers need something that goes beyond the transactional task of buying, according to a collaborative report by TBWA China, The Integer Group China and Shanghai-based research agency Jigsaw International called ‘Checkout China’. The four shopper archetypes identified in the report reflect how most shoppers are no longer motivated solely by rational drivers like value and convenience, but have higher requirements on the experience and enjoyment of shopping—even in a hypermarket setting. The in-depth report reveals the different stimuli behind purchase decisions in the FMCG category by looking through the lens of the brand, the shopper, and the retailer. The report is based on more than 20 interviews with chiefs of major international and local brands as well as the biggest retailers across China. Additionally, the companies carried out statistical market segmentation research covering 900 consumers after a preliminary qualitative market exploration in tier-one and tier-two cities.

Okamoto: A social marketer's wet dream

A selection of some particularly witty creative work as part of Okamoto's year-long 80th-anniversary campaign in China

Razorfish China names James Chiu to assume Endy Fung's ECD role

SHANGHAI - James Chiu (赵孟灏), former SapientNitro Europe lead, has moved to China to oversee Razorfish’s creative team out of the agency’s Shanghai office.

Okamoto turns restrictions to social advantage in China

SHANGHAI - Strict regulations around 'intimate' products in China have spurred Japanese condom manufacturer Okamoto to move to the forefront of social marketing, where it entertains netizens with copy filled with sexual puns.

'Director of parenting': The modern Chinese mother's new role

SHANGHAI - This past year has provided several reasons for marketers to adjust their previous perceptions of Chinese mothers as women of the post-'90s and -'80s generations reach child-bearing age. Along with China's latest relaxation of its one-child policy, this will only help drive the maternity-products and babycare industries.

BMW China creative account going up for pitch; Leo Burnett on alert

BEIJING - The full BMW traditional creative account in China is going up for pitch, covering all above-the-line advertising, below-the-line events and CRM work but excluding digital duties.

Lowe China takes two Leungs aboard Unilever team

SHANGHAI - Louisa Leung (ex-Ogilvy) and Oscar Leung (ex-BBDO) joined Lowe China in June as business director and group creative director, respectively. Both will work mainly on the agency’s Unilever account.

MEC Hong Kong gets Zuji account while inappropriate Mandela ad gets pulled

HONG KONG - Zuji has awarded MEC its integrated media planning and buying business on the same day the online travel agency was told to pull a three-column advertisement showing Nelson Mandela.

Edward Bell looks to FCB's orange-juice roots to revamp agency model

SHANGHAI - Three months into the job, FCB Greater China CEO Edward Bell gets grilled about his vision to differentiate the smallish agency by a disruption to its traditional business model, inspired by nothing less than orange juice. Bell talks to Campaign Asia-Pacific in this exclusive video interview.

Photos: Apple Daily's first 'Digital Creative Awards' in Hong Kong

Apple Daily gave out awards to its advertisers and their agencies for the first time Tuesday, aiming to honour creative excellence in the realm of digital advertising. Winners included Sony, H&M, MEC, Maxim's, Maxus, Wyeth, OMD, Airwave, Ocean Park, MediaCom, Citibank, Estée Lauder, Hong Kong Jockey Club, Canon, Mindshare and TBWA. Judges were Anthony Fung from CUHK, Keith Ho from Grey HK, Dr. Royce Yuen from APRAIS Greater China, Rudi Leung from Social@Ogilvy HK and Spencer Wong from McCann HK.

Mindshare's Paul Lau heads to FansTang as new China president

BEIJING - FansTang has ushered in a celebrity of a different sort to its executive team, by hiring Paul Lau, a decorated digital business strategist, as the new president of its China operations.

CASE STUDY: How Colgate-Palmolive won Myanmar’s first ever Cannes Lion

Colgate Palmolive’s ‘Education for Packaging’ campaign, conceived by Red Fuse Communications Hong Kong together with Y&R Yangon, has won Myanmar’s first-ever Cannes Lion awards.

Yang Yeo to quit JWT for Wieden+Kennedy Shanghai

SHANGHAI - After seven years with JWT, Yang Yeo (杨耀淙) will be leaving the network to take on the ECD role with independent shop Wieden+Kennedy in August.

CTBC Bank entrusts McCann Taiwan after pitch with Bates CHI&David

TAIPEI - McCann Worldgroup has been awarded a three-year contract for CTBC Bank (中國信託商業銀行), one of Taiwan’s largest consumer and commercial banks, after a competitive pitch with incumbent Bates CHI&David （我是大衛廣告）that was called since February.

Arkr Digital takes over Starbucks China social-media account from JWT

SHANGHAI - Starbucks China seems to have dialled down its social-media marketing recently, leading incumbent agency JWT to resign from the business last month in favour of other clients "willing to invest in more interesting digital work", according to industry sources.

Digital360China: It's not about digital marketing, but marketing in a digital world

SHANGHAI - Visionaries at yesterday's Digital360China conference once again demonstrated how the digital world demands that marketing practitioners not only be digitally savvy but also effectively adopt and adapt.

Market Place by Jasons engages same-name celebrity for 'creative food plating'

HONG KONG - Upmarket grocer Market Place by Jasons is inviting fans of local actor Jason Chan (陳智燊) to illustrate themes of self-achievement, family, friends and love by mimicking the celebrity's 'creative food-plating' in a new campaign.

Will Coke's song-lyric bottles outdo last summer's nicknames?

SHANGHAI - Coca-Cola's latest summer campaign in China, again plays with the brand's iconic bottle packaging as the launchpad for both shareability and saleability.

Photos: China's Digital A-List gala

The 100-odd digiterati at the celebration of the inaugural China's Digital A-List painted the town red as Campaign Asia-Pacific honoured the mainland digital advertising and marketing industry elites last night in Shanghai. View the complete list at thealist.campaignasia.com.

Chinese marketers in dire need of 'digital engagement' KPIs: R3/AdMaster

Many marketers in China are voicing concerns regarding the inadequacy of current KPIs for the evaluation of digital marketing. Just 17 per cent of 200 marketers surveyed by third-party firms R3 and AdMaster believe that the current indicators meet expectations. Most are satisfied with their search and video activities but are unhappy about real-time bidding and social-networking services. Too many digital KPIs are unrelated to actual consumer engagement, according to the research, with too much emphasis placed on cost-per-click and time viewed rather than campaign takeout and changing behaviour.

Ciacia Hu leaves Isobar for Cheil OpenTide as creative partner

SHANGHAI - Ciacia Hu (胡惠华) has officially joined Cheil OpenTide (杰爾鵬泰) as creative partner after more than eight years at Isobar China as creative director.

The 'truth' behind the scenes of 'Omnipub': Fred & Farid parody

Creative Shanghai-Paris-based boutique Fred & Farid has created a parody video of the "epic" failure of the merger between Omnicom and Publicis. We are taking it very seriously.

Photos: 43rd IAA World Congress in Beijing

1300 delegates from 45 countries participated in the 43rd IAA World Congress, held from 8 through 10 May at the China National Convention Centre (CNCC) in Beijing. The International Advertising Association (IAA) and China Advertising Association (CAA) issued 'The Beijing Declaration', which promotes an "honorable and socially responsible" advertising industry now and in the future, at the conclusion of the congress.

OMD China starts internal fund to link budding entrepreneurs with VCs

SHANGHAI - OMD China employees may be getting the title 'serial entrepreneur' on their namecards if their ideas, backed by the new OMD Innovation Fund (创新基金OIF), come to fruition in the marketplace.

Citizen Watches awards McCann Shanghai creative duties

SHANGHAI - McCann's client portfolio now includes Japanese watch brand Citizen after it won a pitch that was called in late February.

Alimama to debut ad trading and bidding with five video sites

HANGZHOU - In June, Alibaba Group will start allowing Taobao and Tmall merchants to bid in real-time for display advertising space within popular online video websites through the company’s Alimama online advertising exchange.

A Chinese manufacturing firm building a new digital holding company?

SHENZHEN - Leo Group, an A-share listed company, has made a dual-acquisition: Arkr Group and Amber Communications. Nothing surprising there, except when you notice that the acquirer is a garden-machinery manufacturer.

Yunnan Baiyao breaks into digital marketing with Arkr Digital

KUNMING - Yunnan Baiyao, a 112-year-old Chinese herbal medicine brand, has approached Arkr Digital to ramp up the company's digital marketing presence using a reverse consumer-to-business (C2B) model.

Hublot makes FIFA-themed watch, sponsors Guangzhou Evergrande

BEIJING - Swiss luxury watchmaker Hublot has unveiled an official watch for the FIFA World Cup, in the yellow and green colours of host nation Brazil, while also putting its brand behind Chinese team Guangzhou Evergrande.

TBWA and DDB await outcome of Tsingtao Beer pitch

SHANGHAI - Incumbent agencies TBWA and DDB are awaiting results of the creative pitch that Tsingtao beer (青岛啤酒) called in early April.

Michael Lee talks about IAA China honour

BEIJING - Saatchi & Saatchi Greater China CEO Michael Lee took home the award for outstanding contribution to the advertising industry in China at the 43rd International Advertising Association (IAA) World Congress, making him the only Chinese winner (alongside Miles Young and Serge Dumont).

BrandZ: Tencent knocks Chinese state-owned firms off their perch

BEIJING - Google has displaced Apple at the top of this year's BrandZ ranking, released today. But the more interesting story comes from China, where Tencent has emerged as the world's fastest-growing brand.

Daylight and Alchemy appointed as partners for zombie obstacle race

HONG KONG - Daylight Partnership and Alchemy Partnership have been appointed as the sponsorship and marketing partners, respectively, for Action X, organiser of the Asia-wide zombie obstacle race called 'Run For Your Lives' (RFYL).

Adsfactor and comScore team up for TV-like metrics for online video

HONG KONG - The two digital players pitch catch-up efforts to provide measurements in Hong Kong for online video using Internet Gross Rating Points (iGRPs).

E-commerce intelligence agency Clavis Insight opens in China

SHANGHAI - Clavis Insight, specialising in online store audits and retailer analytics for consumer-packaged-goods manufacturers, has opened its first office in China.

DFS to shake off 'duty-free' image with rebranding to luxury-travel retailer

HONG KONG / OKINAWA - DFS Group (DFS) yesterday renamed its only stand-alone duty-free store in Japan from 'DFS Galleria' to 'T Galleria by DFS'—the latest in a global rebranding campaign that will change the identity of stores in Hawaii, Hong Kong, Macau, Singapore, Guam and Saipan.

Twelve Tong moves from Saatchi & Saatchi Shanghai to DDB as VP

SHANGHAI - Twelve Tong (唐睿) has been charged with leading DDB China's new business expansion after leaving Saatchi & Saatchi.

A wild frontier: How to play the Chinese mobile-game market

SHENZHEN - Why are Chinese gamers spending so much money on avatar upgrades and virtual weapons? The middle kingdom's mobile-game market is moving towards a more sophisticated state of play in 2014, so developer-brands wishing to unlock the next level of success must figure out how and why Chinese gamers differ from their western counterparts.

Peter Shen of Isobar China joins Cheil OpenTide as CCO

BEIJING - Peter Shen has turned up as the new chief creative officer of Cheil OpenTide Greater China, having been the top creative mind at rival agency Isobar since 2004.

To catch up with consumers, industry must erase old thinking: IAA World Congress

BEIJING - The consensus at the 43rd annual International Advertising Association World Congress was that the evolution of advertising goes well beyond the impact of 'shiny new technology', requiring companies to innovate and break out of outmoded thinking patterns.

IAA World Congress: Sorrell talks POG, China and disintermediation

BEIJING - WPP chief Sir Martin Sorrell took the stage this morning at the 43rd IAA World Congress here this morning, where he managed to address issues in addition to the dissolution of the Publicis-Omnicom merger.

180China establishes digital arm RITMOT with Taoist slant

SHANGHAI - Independent creative shop 180China has consolidated its digital teams to establish RITMOT, an acronym for 'reversal is the movement of [the] Tao', as a separate digital business.

SiewPing Lim to resurface as Zenith China CEO

SHANGHAI - SiewPing Lim will join Zenith China as CEO mid-month in June after resigning from her role at OMD in January.

Zenith China hires Mindshare luxury head Jonathan Romano as LVMH lead

SHANGHAI - Jonathan Romano has joined Zenith as its general manager to lead the LVMH account after five years at Mindshare Sydney and Shanghai.

Career mistresses, and the truth about women holding up half the sky in China

GREATER CHINA - Wifely or motherly obligations take a back seat to financial independence in China, where accelerated changes in attitudes among women demand that marketers work to understand them in order to create brand experiences that build affinity, according to research by Starcom MediaVest Group.

LG promotes TV with 'curvature cuisine' gimmick in Hong Kong

HONG KONG - LG has emphasised the features of its high-end curved OLED TV, launched in the city in October 2013, with a HK$1-million brand experience that involves the curvature of food.

Ford showcases branded interactivity at Beijing Auto Show 2014

While most car brands at this year's Beijing Auto Show relied on the tried-and-tested model of automobiles and 'booth babes', Ford stood out (along with Volkswagen). The automaker chose to highlight its brand attributes with interactive displays, developed and delivered by its experiential agency Imagination, that gave traction to its positioning as a technology-led as well as family-oriented brand.

Lincoln sets tone of prestige at Beijing Auto Show 2014

At the Beijing Auto Show that kicked off during the weekend, Lincoln unveiled its MKX Concept, a sport utility vehicle that is styled after "intense study" of the Chinese luxury market over the past three years. The automaker's booth, engineered by Imagination, offered a gated brand environment emphasizing exclusivity and prestige.

McCann Taiwan takes first place at 2013 LongXi NOVA grand finals

The 2013 LongXi NOVA grand finals was held at the Shanghai International Studies University in Shanghai in March. Tracy Jheng and Ethan Chan from McCann Taiwan took the first place, while the Saatchi & Saatchi HK team of Kenneth Foo and Adeline Siow came in second in the 17-team competition. These two teams will be sent on a study tour of international advertising festivals with HdtMedia covering the costs. The third, fourth and fifth places went to Yilun Liu and Yuwen Tang of E-link Guangzhou; Freddie Du and Mary Tso of Wu’s Advertising Taiwan; and Mio Pang and Kai Fung Chan from DraftFCB Hong Kong (before it closed down). The competition is divided into six sub-regions including Hong Kong, Taiwan, East China (Shanghai), South China (Guangzhou), North China (Beijing) and Southwest China (Chongqing), and is only open to entrants who are 30 years old or below. This year's ‘cross-branding’ brief saw two brands assigned to each team: MTee, Okamoto, Dulux and Ovaltine. The panel of judges included Amber Liu (jury president) from Amber Communications; Miranda Shing from The Right Side; John Yang from Bremen Digital Taiwan; Hwee Chong Chan from Grey Beijing; Liu Yiping from Z+; Professor Tang Le from Fudan University; Kevin Wang from VML im2.0; Aaron Zhang from Arkr Group; Albert Lin (creative consultant); and Professor Gu Mingyi from Shanghai International Studies University.

Coca-Cola China launches creative cost-intelligence exercise

SHANGHAI - The procurement division of Coca-Cola China has sent a request for information (RFI) last week to 13 agencies in China to detail rates for specific creative deliverables.

Digital Jungle and Circul8 join forces for Sino-Australian synergy

BEIJING - Digital Jungle (赛美特集团) and Circul8's strategic partnership will see the two agencies work together to serve brands wanting to market to Chinese consumers living in Australia or vice versa.

Tiffany's APAC marketing head: Passionate about the blue box

THE FACE BEHIND THE BRAND: Tiffany’s Erica Kerner talks about the connection between the iconic brand and feelings of celebration.

Jason White leaves W+K Shanghai for Beats By Dre

SHANGHAI - Today is Jason White's last day as managing director at Wieden+Kennedy Shanghai, as he makes his way to Los Angeles next Monday for a job with Beats by Dre, Campaign Asia-Pacific has confirmed.

The nuances of social data analytics in China: Soshio

With millions of conversations happening across multiple platforms, social-media networks are an essential source of information for market research departments and product managers. Michael Smith, CMO and co-founder of Soshio (a social-media analytics provider with focus on the Chinese market) talks about the challenges of analysing social data from sometimes unreliable Chinese netizens.

Tim Doherty replaces Peter Shen as Isobar China chief creative officer

SHANGHAI - After being with Isobar for 10 years, chief creative officer Peter Shen will depart the agency in May to pursue personal endeavours and will be replaced by Tim Doherty.

BesTV and Tenthavenue join forces on digital OOH in China

SHANGHAI - BesTV New Media and Tenthavenue will establish a new company, Bestenth, to enter the digital out-of-home advertising market in China by 1 July.

Starcom secures US$20-million AIA media account from UM in Hong Kong

HONG KONG - Starcom will handle all media planning and buying duties for the AIA brand after a three-way pitch that involved Maxus and incumbent Universal McCann (UM).

Lincoln enters Chinese luxury car market with customised push

BEIJING - Newcomer Lincoln will enter the Chinese market later this year with a service that allows buyers to make customised versions of its models.

What beauty brands do that turns women on and off

SHANGHAI - At the 2012 Asian Marketing Effectiveness Festival, Dave McCaughan from McCann dished out advice on how beauty brands can make themselves more alluring to women.

CASE STUDY: Red Bull Soapbox Race stirs up comedy and crashes in Taiwan

While it's not quite the fast and furious F1 Grand Prix, the Red Bull Soapbox Race is still an international racing event—the wacky version. In September 2013, it landed in Taiwan for the first time. Back then, there was virtually zero awareness of the race in the market and a typical Taiwanese mindset did not embrace DIY culture, which is necessary for building a soapbox racer.

Renren gathers 10 organisations to set up youth-marketing alliance in China

BEIJING – Ten organisations, including social-networking site Renren and a variety of agency, media and research outfits, have entered into a marketing alliance for the development and optimisation of youth-marketing strategies.

McCann Erickson Beijing cuts creative staff

BEIJING - McCann Erickson (ME) Beijing has reduced to a 'skeletal' staff servicing key globally-aligned accounts after a prolonged slack in demand for traditional creative-agency services, Campaign Asia-Pacific has confirmed with multiple former staff members whose contracts were terminated in March.

Get at least 5% of your China sales online: GroupM Interaction

CHINA - With the inexorable shift to online shopping in China, GroupM Interaction's 2014 Digital Playbook advises brands to get at least 5 per cent of their China sales online.

ProEXPO named agency-of-record for Actions Semiconductor in China

ZHUHAI - ProEXPO has been named the public relations agency-of-record for Actions Semiconductor, one of China's fabless semiconductor companies that provide system-on-a-chip (SoC) solutions for portable consumer electronic devices.

Esther Yang named Razorfish's new China CEO, confirming leak

SHANGHAI / HONG KONG – Razorfish China has officially confirmed the promotion of Esther Yang to a newly-created CEO position.

Dutch agency Energize shuts Shanghai office after five years

SHANGHAI - Campaign Asia-Pacific has confirmed that Dutch agency Energize closed down its only China office last month.

CASE STUDY: How Crocs reinforced its kids' business in China

Some adults may have declared the rubbery footwear to be clunky and ugly, but at least pre-schoolers still like the cute clogs, and the company is embarking on a cradle strategy to reinforce its kids business.

Jeffrey Yu resigns from Publicis Greater China for consultant role

GREATER CHINA - Jeffrey Yu, who joined Publicis as the Greater China CEO in February 2012, has resigned from the agency but will continue to work as a consultant to key clients across Asia, Campaign Asia-Pacific has confirmed.

VivaKi China fills MD role with Google hire after one-year hunt

BEIJING - David Chen will drive adoption of VivaKi's products, technology and partnerships across Publicis Groupe agencies in the Chinese market, filling the managing director role that has been left vacant since May 2013.

Wellcome plays heritage card in annual branding blast; ParknShop touts low prices

HONG KONG - Wellcome's latest branding blast plays up its 69-year heritage by taking viewers on a romantic trip through time. It lands one week after competitor ParknShop's price-driven campaign.

Master Kong, Apple are China's 'best' brands: GfK/Serviceplan

GfK (market and consumer insights firm) and Serviceplan (a communications-solutions company) have set up what they claim to be the first brand ranking in China that takes a comprehensive view of the worth of a brand, evaluating it based on both emotional and behavioural dimensions. The report is based on computer-assisted survey of 4,000 individuals, representative of tier-1 through tier-3 cities, in October 2013. This ranking is an extension of an 11-year-old model from Germany.

WeChat still lags Weibo for brand recall, not a good marketing tool—yet

SHANGHAI - While WeChat has gained exposure for its fast penetration in China and beyond, it is still yet to be truly entrenched as a dominant digital marketing tool, according to studies from marketing consultancy R3 and research advisory firm Forrester.

Fan Bingbing embarrasses L'Oréal with illogical Weibo post

SHANGHAI – Actress and L'Oréal endorser Fan Bingbing posted frizzy-hair photos on her Weibo account just before the weekend. Unfortunately, hair wasn't the only thing going haywire, as the posts implied a logical fallacy that social-media users quickly pounced on, leaving the brand red-faced.

AdMaster quantifies the value of 'viewable impressions' with new measurement metric

CHINA - AdMaster has initiated the use of 'viewable impressions' in China as an indicator of digital advertising effectiveness.

Saatchi & Saatchi names first shopper-marketing chief in Greater China

HONG KONG - Richard Nicoll has taken on the newly-created role of CSMO (chief shopper marketing officer) of Saatchi & Saatchi in Greater China after the agency got rid of internal silos last year.

Absolut Vodka hosts party in a disused Hong Kong factory warehouse

A party on 21 March celebrated Absolut's first ArtBeat project, curated by conceptual artist Jay Forster and DJ duo Daft Pink and presented by Hong Kong-based brand activation agencies BrandRapport and BrandBeat. Absolut has strong brand positioning in the art space, but its agencies wanted to create something that brought that down to a local level in Hong Kong.

Imagination Hong Kong grabs another senior hire from MCI

HONG KONG - Imagination has appointed Min Liu as general manager for its Hong Kong and Macau offices.

CNBC parades new presenter in ad campaign for revamped Asia programming

HONG KONG / SINGAPORE - CNBC will add two shows and a fresh presenter line-up next Monday (31 March), with an outdoor advertising campaign supporting the new programming grid.

'Wipe away' air pollution with World Wildlife Fund’s 'Blue Sky' app

BEIJING - WWF has launched an app ahead of Earth Hour on 29 March that allows users to turn photos of polluted grey skies into clear blue ones with a simple finger wipe.

Charlie Newbery joins Red Fuse in Hong Kong from Starcom in Dubai

HONG KONG - Charlie Newbery is the new Asia head of media for Red Fuse Communications, which was set up by WPP in 2012 as a dedicated agency serving Colgate-Palmolive.

Sinomax breaks Guinness record for the world's largest pillow

GUANGZHOU - Bedding brand Sinomax has created the world’s largest pillow as part of a World Sleep Day gimmick that is a prelude to its 11th anniversary campaign this year.

Three questions for BMW on the future of automobile retail in China

SHANGHAI - Boris Weletzky, head of future retail at BMW China, tells Campaign Asia-Pacific what the brand's 'Future Retail' marketing concept entails.

Leagas Delaney secures global Penfolds brief

SHANGHAI / LONDON - Leagas Delaney has won the global creative account for Australian brand Penfolds, part of the Treasury Wine Estates (TWE) stable, after a closed-door competitive pitch.

Saatchi & Saatchi hires from Publicis, Coca-Cola, AdPeople for newly-created Greater China roles

Saatchi & Saatchi has added three new key leadership positions at its offices across Greater China with Antoni D’Esterre, Linda Kovarik and Paul Lin. All three, meant to synergise the agency's international client-base, report directly to Michael Lee, CEO of Saatchi & Saatchi, Greater China.

From geek to chic? General Electric accelerates B2B2C strategy in China

SHANGHAI – General Electric knows that business decision-makers are not emotionless geeks, so the company doesn't treat them that way in its marketing. In fact, as the company's China marketing lead explains in this exclusive interview, B2B does not mean 'boring to boring', and GE is taking its B2B2C approach even further.

Nikon, OzMilko, BreadTalk deal with fallout from CCTV criticism

BEIJING - The CCTV's '3.15' programme has made it a point to expose at least one electronics brand each year, and this year Nikon came under fire in the show, which aired Saturday evening. Australian dairy firm OzMilko and Singaporean bakery BreadTalk also received scrutiny.

Online finance, e-commerce players at risk in China's '3.15' exposé

BEIJING - Tomorrow's World Consumer Rights Day, referred to as '3.15' in China, is deemed a dangerous day for brands, simply because an annual TV exposé (unfair or otherwise) could affect how 1.3 billion consumers view them. Signs point strongly to online finance and e-commerce as industries that may be unhappy come tomorrow evening, according to sources.

Mobile-only Taobao sale highlights fight for future mobile supremacy in China

MAINLAND CHINA - Taobao Marketplace's 24-hour sale, set for tomorrow, is riding on the scorching m-commerce wave as Chinese shoppers increasingly use mobile devices instead of PCs to shop—and as rivals Alibaba and Tencent vie to capture as much of that activity as possible.

Draftfcb simplifies agency name to FCB in global change

NEW YORK / SINGAPORE - Draftfcb will reconnect with the heritage of Foote, Cone & Belding and drop the 'Draft' part of its name seven years after the two agencies merged.

Angie Wong returns to Leo Burnett Shanghai as GM after DDB stint

SHANGHAI - Angie Wong has taken over from Alvin Yim as the general manager of Leo Burnett Shanghai.

Q&A: Philip Kotler on marketing myopia and 'one-P' CMOs

BEIJING - Philip Kotler, considered 'the father of modern marketing', reminds Campaign Asia-Pacific about the basics of the 4Ps.

Sun Art extends grocery-share lead on Wal-Mart and Carrefour in China

SHANGHAI - According to CTR's latest Kantar Worldpanel data, Western retailers are struggling to gain share against the Sun Art Group, which has seen strong growth driven by the opening of 50 new Auchan and RT-Mart stores during 2013.

China’s digital-advertising market to trump TV in 2014: Magna/UM

MAINLAND CHINA - The third-biggest ad market on earth will become the second by 2015, with its digital adspend for the first time projected to exceed TV this coming year, according to Magna Global's report in partnership with UM China.

Boutique agency to answer advertising briefs via WeChat pitch system

SHANGHAI - A six-month-old digital agency focused on luxury clients has launched a WeChat-enabled service that the agency believes will shorten the cumbersome pitching process.

Francis Wee leaves Ogilvy & Mather Shanghai ECD post

SHANGHAI - Francis Wee (黄培兴, pictured) has resigned from his role as Shanghai creative head after two years due to personal reasons.

PHOTOS: Brands react to Sochi Olympic rings glitch with satire

A glitch preventing the fifth Olympic ring lighting up at the Sochi Olympics opening ceremony on 7 February caused a sequential reaction of ambush marketing on Chinese social media. Brands produced their own 'fifth ring' in satire of the pivotal moment on their respective Sina Weibo channels, together with punchy copy.

O&M calls Angel Chen's successor at OgilvyOne China a 'major coup' from Netherlands

SHANGHAI - Jacco Ter Schegget, outgoing president of Tribal Worldwide Europe cum co-CEO of DDB & Tribal Amsterdam, will be the new president of OgilvyOne China come April.

Eddie Wong moves from DraftFCB to Innocean as China CCO

SHANGHAI - Eddie Wong has been appointed as Innocean's chief creative officer in China with effect from mid-March following his impending departure from Draftfcb China, where he is national executive creative director.

180China hires two senior digital directors

BEIJING - Independent creative shop 180China has appointed Gregory Wu (吴坤桂) as vice president of digital marketing and Kenrick Tjiputra as digital creative director.

Isobar acquires Verawom in China for its 'grassroots' social capability

SHANGHAI - Isobar's acquisition today of Verawom (维拉沃姆), one of China's social-creative companies, will add a culturally relevant dimension to the digital capabilities for the Dentsu Aegis Network agency.

Draftfcb's international team solidified after Sebastien Desclée's appointment

SINGAPORE/NEW YORK - On the heels of joining the agency in December 2013, Sebastien Desclée, president of Draftfcb International, has wasted no time in naming his leadership team.

What's the ROI of happiness? PepsiCo's annual CNY blast

SHANGHAI - Apart from banking on the visceral distinction between fizzy rivals Coca-Cola and PepsiCo, the latter has tried to articulate differentiation by packaging its 'Bring happiness home 2014' campaign in a performance-with-purpose objective.

Samsonite regional leader prefers the realistic approach

THE FACE BEHIND THE BRAND: Samsonite’s Ramesh Tainwala is a straight-talker who believes in localisation and allowing the products to speak for themselves.

From the horse's mouth: Predictions for prosperous marketing in 2014

HONG KONG - With the Year of the Wooden Horse just a trot away, brands and agencies alike take a bet on predictions that may gallop toward marketing nirvana (or not) in 2014.

Razorfish appoints Anne Davis to serve MNC clients from Hong Kong

HONG KONG - Razorfish has appointed Anne Davis as senior vice president, head of multinational clients, a newly created role that expands her remit to the US.

Dennis Owen coming to Hong Kong for Cathay Pacific

HONG KONG - Dennis Owen, Cathay Pacific's head of marketing from the US, is tipped to replace Alastair Bullock on a two-year secondment at the airline's Asian headquarters.

British Airways flies three Chinese to London while promoting WeChat presence

BEIJING - British Airways (BA) has lured its existing 350,000 Sina Weibo followers to the airline’s newly launched presence on WeChat with three roundtrip tickets between China and London.

VML IM2.0 expands to Guangzhou

GUANGZHOU - VML IM2.0 has expanded to Guangzhou, adding to existing operations in Beijing and Shanghai.

Ben Tsang moves from McCann Hong Kong to Hdtmedia Shanghai

SHANGHAI - Benjamin Tsang (曾品良), most recently vice president of business development at McCann Worldgroup (麦肯世界集团) in Hong Kong, has joined Hdtmedia (互动通) as its senior vice president of sales and marketing.

TBWA captures Lee Jeans account from Ogilvy in China

HONG KONG - TBWA has been assigned by Lee Jeans to lead its 125th anniversary campaign in China, standing out from a multi-agency pitch that includes incumbent Ogilvy Shanghai.

The predicament of Asia’s young singletons

Unmarried consumers, having different lifestyle needs from their coupled-up counterparts, face unique stresses but that means opportunity for brands to get to know in intimate detail.

Gome's talking box helps Chinese send verbal love to parents

BEIJING - Thanks to a Chinese New Year campaign for Chinese electronics retailer Gome, created by JWT, some empty-nesters will be receiving something extra along with a gift from their children this season.

Draftfcb China hires new CEO from Ogilvy, plans new direction

SHANGHAI - Draftfcb has hired Edward Bell, Ogilvy & Mather's group head of planning and strategy, to helm its Greater China operations as CEO.

Challenger toothpaste brand contends with Colgate, Crest and Darlie in China

"Even if life gives you a hundred reasons to cry, you should find one reason to smile," according to a tear-jerker line from a micromovie by local toothpaste brand Zhonghua (中华牙膏), which is trying to score points with younger consumers in the oral-hygiene category.

ZenithOptimedia China promotes Steven Chang to president; Mykim Chikli to CEO

SHANGHAI - In a triple-promotion at ZenithOptimedia, Steven Chang, current Greater China CEO, will take on the newly created role of president while Mykim Chikli, current COO, has been elevated to China CEO.

McCann tipped to pick up Wyeth Nutrition brief for Greater China

HONG KONG & SHANGHAI - Wyeth Nutrition, following a final three-way pitch against undisclosed competitors, has decided that McCann should handle its creative business in Greater China.

Carat China wins RMB350 million Chang’an Suzuki media account

BEIJING - Carat has won the media planning and buying business for Chang’an Suzuki (重庆长安铃木汽车) after a month-long competitive pitch against Dentsu, Publicis and smaller media brokers.

China Huiyuan Juice appoints Ogilvy & Mather and MEC

BEIJING - China Huiyuan Juice (汇源果汁) has designated Ogilvy & Mather (O&M) to carry out its 2014 integrated marketing communication initiatives.

Dongfeng Peugeot-Citroën awards RMB 1-billion media business to OMD

WUHAN - DPCA (Dongfeng Peugeot Citroën Automobile) has reverted to OMD after having tried the services of GroupM’s Midas for two years in China.

PHOTOS: A visit to Heilongjiang province, northeastern China

Heilongjiang is worlds apart from fast-paced Shanghai and Beijing, but represents the future for both domestic and MNC brands in China. This gallery contains photos taken by this reporter and also GroupM's Shan Hai Jin. The reporter was a guest on one of GroupM's on-the-ground fieldwork trips for a proprietary research project covering tier-one to -four cities in China. Please see the related-article link at the bottom of the page for detailed observations from the trip and the research.

House News takes a page from Huffington Post to juice monetisation

HONG KONG - House News, which takes a more opinionated angle to news as compared to other local platforms, is ready to harness its popularity to draw local advertisers.

Pepsi to pitch China media business; OMD not taking part

SHANGHAI - Pepsi is calling a pitch for its media business in China, but incumbent OMD will decline the invitation due to 'differences' with the client, Campaign Asia-Pacific has learned.

Leagas Delaney wins Tencent security account after four-way pitch

SHANGHAI - Leagas Delaney, competing with Ogilvy, Cheil, and Glow & Circulate Advertising in an invitation-only pitch, has won the creative business for Tencent's new mobile-security product.

Gordon Domlija takes on new role as CSO in MediaCom China

SHANGHAI - MediaCom has placed Gordon Domlija in a newly created role of chief strategy officer, responsible for development of strategic services across all of the agency's three China offices (Shanghai, Beijing and Guangzhou).

Saatchi & Saatchi snatches 'sizable' Volkswagen business from DDB Guoan in China

BEIJING - Volkswagen Group Import Company Limited (VGIC) has chosen Saatchi & Saatchi as its agency-of-record for four imported vehicles, reducing the account of incumbent DDB Guoan.

Garnier to exit China; suffers same fate as Revlon

SHANGHAI - L'Oreal Group has decisively struck off Garnier from its brand portfolio in China, citing a prolonged sales slump.

Dentsu Greater China formalises communication-planning unit

BEIJING - It is hard to sweat the details if you don't have the big picture. That is why Dentsu has launched a new service to provide a top-down approach to planning and research for both existing and potential clients in China.

Arkr brings Vitamine under its fold

SHANGHAI - Arkr Digital (氩氪互动) and Vitamine (维他命社会化) merge under the banner of Arkr Group after more than six months of negotiations.

DATA POINTS: Two-thirds of China consumers satisfied with 'Double-11' day

AdMaster has released a report based on the sales success and consumer experiences during the 2013 Double-Eleven Festival in China. Nearly two-thirds of consumers were more satisfied with this year's annual shopping spree than in 2012. Logistics services especially exceeded expectations after consumers spent an average of RMB1,600 (about US$260) on clothing, electronics, household appliances and personal care goods. Nearly 20 per cent chose to place orders on brands' official e-stores.

Marketing in China's lower-tiers: A visit to Heilongjiang

HARBIN & QIQIHAR - For our last China-related story of 2013, let us transport you to Heilongjiang (黑龙江), aptly known for its ice festivals and cold winter months. Lower-tier cities in this province are one of the mainland's many battlegrounds for local brands determined to protect their home turf against multinational brands whose market-shares are stagnating in upper-tier cities.

Howell Wong moves from Cheil Singapore to JWT Hong Kong

HONG KONG - Howell Wong (pictured) has joined JWT as head of digital after serving as regional digital director for Cheil Worldwide for only one year.

Dentsu Media Palette appoints first-ever Chinese CEO

BEIJING - Yiming Wang (王一鸣) is the first Chinese native to be appointed as CEO of Dentsu Media Palette China--a newly created position.

Beyond boring: B2B marketers inch toward storytelling

SHANGHAI – B2B audiences are made up of human beings, although you wouldn't know it by looking at most marketing directed towards them. Now, more folks are asking why B2B marketing shouldn't use the same storytelling tools proven to work in the B2C space.

BlueFocus acquires majority stake in We Are Social

BEIJING – BlueFocus Communication Group’s 82.8 per cent stake in We Are Social gives the company a new footprint outside China.

Kantar Media acquires Singapore-based FishEye Analytics

SINGAPORE - Kantar Media said its deal to buy FishEye Analytics will benefit clients in Asia-Pacific with strengthened language expertise and social media analytics.

GolinHarris and Magic Group combine PR muscle in China

BEIJING - GolinHarris has formed a strategic partnership with Magic Group to combine expertise in consumer, corporate, healthcare and digital communications for new and existing clients in China.

Grey tipped to net Xiaomi's Chinese New Year assignment

BEIJING - Grey's Beijing office has taken charge of a Chinese New Year project for smartphone maker Xiaomi without a pitch, according to sources.

Q&A: Lee Kum Kee on the 'glocalisation' of oyster sauce

HONG KONG - Linda Ho (何婉霞), executive vice president of global marketing at Lee Kum Kee (李錦記), in an exclusive interview with Campaign Asia-Pacific, explains the brand's '100-1=0' quality management philosophy.

Minute Maid adds spots of 'sunshine' to grey Shanghai haze

On 7 December, as Shanghai's poor air quality went literally off the charts, Coca-Cola's Minute Maid brand sent reps to the Bund, Jing An Temple and other populated places with giant bouquets of balloons. The teams gave away the orange balloons and bottles of juice to brighten up the day as the orange-level haze alert remained in effect. The entire campaign took 24 hours from concept to execution by Saatchi & Saatchi Shanghai.

The North Face emphasises spirit of exploration with Jimmy Chin

SHANGHAI - The North Face's most recent campaign for China, entitled ‘The Next Explorer’, veers away from the brand's traditional product-led communications.

Kingston re-enacts true story, immortalises widow's memories in a flash drive

HSIN-CHU - An emotional mini-film by Kingston attempts to inject warmth into a data-storage device by retelling a story about a memory, with the product appearing for only two seconds.

Q&A with Cheil China’s John Kim & Brian Nam

BEIJING – Few people outside of Seoul are aware that Cheil is a Korean word (pronounced as [Tse-il] that means ‘Number 1’ (第一 in Chinese)). Likewise, and few other non-Korean foreign publications have had the opportunity to talk to the usually media-shy Korean agency's management.

Nike's 'Let the run tell you why' print visuals in Greater China

Please see the related-article link at the bottom of the page for videos from this campaign.

Tencent Video woos advertisers with promise of 'bolder' product placement

BEIJING - Tencent showcased an ambitious slate of original productions and programming interactivity to advertisers in the first presentation of a three-city tour here yesterday. The company gathered media-agency heads, motion-picture houses, consulting firms, film producers, scriptwriters and actors to convince advertisers of the potential popularity and branding viability of 140 local offerings planned for 2014. The elaborate sales pitch imitated the format of cable-TV upfronts.

DATA POINTS: Defining China's emerging middle class

The "middle class" is America's favorite socioeconomic group, as well as China's. But the class-defining criteria are as different as cheese and butter. In the US, eight income-led factors define middle class, while in China, according to a ZenithOptimedia study, "middle class" is more of an attitudinal thing. For example, spending habits in the mainland are for outward-facing badges of success versus money spent on private education and kitchen refittings in the West.

Nike uses hero archetypes to get Chinese into running

SHANGHAI - The Shanghai International Marathon refused 74-year-old Grandpa Sun entry into its race this coming Sunday as he's "too old", but a vignette from Nike's latest 'Let the run tell you why' campaign reveals how the elderly brand-endorser managed to run anyway.

Fonterra turns Anchor milk from B2B product to consumer-facing brand in China

SHANGHAI - A large-scale integrated ‘We are parents too’ campaign by Tribal Worldwide has kicked off the official China launch of Fonterra's dairy brand Anchor, which the company previously supplied mainly to airlines, hotels and restaurants.

DMG Media grabs TCL business from Charm Advertising

BEIJING - DMG Media beat out strong competition to win a pitch for TCL's entertainment marketing business from incumbent agency Charm Advertising, also the client's CCTV-related media buyer.

Betterway scandal comes to close in China; Publicis moves forward with rebuilt agency

SHANGHAI - Publicis Groupe has reached an out-of-court financial settlement with the co-founder of its field-marketing agency Betterway after a drawn-out corruption probe that began when internal Publicis auditors raided the agency's offices in February 2012.

Asia says: ‘Make mine a single malt’

SECTOR STUDY: Changing consumer habits have slowed whisky sales in some markets but prestige brands are gaining ground on single malt and higher-end blended whiskies.

Advertising industry representative of national 'soft power': China 4As

HANGZHOU - Last week's annual China 4A event featured an apparent government-led agenda that advocated the catch-up growth of domestic advertising firms and promoted public service advertisements for social benefit.

Unicef enlists KymeChow to urge parents to stop depriving kids of play time

HONG KONG - Kids need time to play and shouldn't have to work quite so hard if they're to grow up healthy, says Unicef's city-wide multimedia campaign.

GroupM names new China CEO

SHANGHAI - GroupM China has appointed Patrick Xu (徐俊) as its new chief executive officer effective March 2014, replacing Bessie Lee (李倩玲) who moved to WPP earlier this year.

Four agencies in scuffle for Wyeth's Greater China creative business

SHANGHAI - Wyeth Nutrition is staging a pitch for its Greater China creative contract, with presentations taking place within the next two weeks, according to sources.

BBH Shanghai scoops Harbin Beer account from JWT

SHANGHAI - AB InBev handed creative duties for its Harbin Beer account to BBH last Thursday.

Grey's ex-GM Bernard Wong assumes MD role for Cheil Shanghai

SHANGHAI - Bernard Wong (黄英豪), who began his advertising career with Grey 16 years ago, has departed the agency to assume the role of managing director for Cheil Shanghai, citing technology as one of the reasons.

Angela Hsu opens AH&A to offer bespoke consulting in China

SHANGHAI - Following a 10-year stint running M&C Saatchi China, the last part as CEO, Angela Hsu has founded AH&A with Robert Phelps, who was chief strategy officer at the 4A agency.

Weekly wrapup: Durex's safe sex win and Hyundai's unsafe driving fail

ASIA-PACIFIC - Durex manages to advertise its products with a lighthearted social media campaign that will have you giggling and reminiscing while Hyundai's frantic denials convince no one. Also this week's top stories feature media wins and Google's Eric Schmidt plus some welcome distractions to get you to the weekend quicker.

MEC China hires Kristian Bengtsson Lee from Denmark

SHANGHAI - MEC China has appointed Kristian Bengtsson Lee from Denmark as communication planning director—a new role for the media agency.

Lintas China ex-CEO Andy Xu resurfaces at internet portal ifeng.com

BEIJING - The Former CEO of Lintas, Andy Xu (徐进), has picked the role of vice president of ifeng.com, an internet brand under Phoenix New Media, from the "dozen job offers" he received since September.

Waldorf Astoria introduces Olga Kurylenko as face of global campaign

SHANGHAI - China is the only market in Asia Pacific where the multimillion-dollar media plan for Waldorf Astoria's new global advertising campaign is executed.

Raymond Tao quits Ogilvy & Mather China after 20 years

BEIJING - Raymond Tao, president of Ogilvy & Mather Advertising China, will leave the agency at the end of November after a 20-year career.

Fender hires Ruder Finn to hit higher digital note in China

BEIJING - Fender has appointed Ruder Finn Innovation Studios (RFI) to manage all of the musical-instrument brand's Chinese social-media platforms, as well as provide digital communication strategies to increase Fender’s brand awareness in China.

IHG tackles falling hotel occupancy with WeChat campaign decoding Chinese dialects

SHANGHAI - To drive "more heads in beds", hotel chain IHG has launched an incentivised game based on the various dialects spoken in China using WeChat's voice recognition and news feed functionalities.

Michael Chiay joins Imagination Greater China after 5-year MCI stint

SHANGHAI - Imagination has created a new role of Greater China managing director and filled it with Michael Chiay (pictured), who reported for duty today.

Wunderman Shanghai hires CRM expert Philia Li from RAPP/DDB

SHANGHAI - Wunderman has appointed Philila Li (李静) to the newly created role of data and analytics director for China.

Engine Group acquires Shanghai-based digital agency FlipScript

SHANGHAI - Engine has acquired FlipScript in China, and folded it into a social and digital micro-network with two of its other agencies, Deep Focus in New York and Jam in London.

Zoomlion case exposes 'black PR' as BlueFocus denies accusations

BEIJING - BlueFocus has responded to rumours that it paid reporter Chen Yongzhou to write articles critical of Chinese manufacturer Zoomlion.

Comfort taps into 'selfie' photo trend to sell fabric softener in China

BEIJING - Unilever fabric softener brand Comfort has cooperated with 'Face Gossip', a mobile app, to create a new game that automatically 'calculates' the brightness level of clothes worn in full-length self-portraits.

Leagas Delaney Shanghai named creative agency for WeChat Pay

SHANGHAI - Leagas Delaney has won creative duties for WeChat Pay, Tencent's new mobile-payment system.

H-Line Ogilvy to formulate digital PR strategy for IMAX in China

BEIJING - H-Line Ogilvy will be responsible for the digital marketing and communications duties for IMAX Corporation for the forthcoming year.

US moderate-tier hotel brand Fairfield makes first Asia entry via India

BANGALORE - American hospitality chain Marriott International has brought its Fairfield hotel brand to Asia with the opening of its Bengaluru property in South India. Nepal and Indonesia are next in the pipeline, while possibilities in China and South Korea are being explored.

The touchy task of monetising over-the-top content: CASBAA Convention

HONG KONG - Friendly tension ensued this morning between two over-the-top (OTT) content providers and two traditional pay-TV providers on the topic of money, with YouTube getting some of the flak during a morning session on day three of the CASBAA convention.

Luis Alberto da Rosa succeeds Michael Xia at Y&R Guangzhou

GUANGZHOU - Luis Alberto da Rosa (pictured) will take over leadership of Y&R Guangzhou from chief executive Michael Xia, who is stepping down to pursue marketing and business-consulting roles outside of the agency.

Dongfeng Peugeot-Citroën’s media business up for pitch in China

WUHAN - Dongfeng Peugeot Citroën has begun a review of its China media planning and buying business, currently handled by GroupM's Midas unit.

Government-backed Chinese Red Cross pays price for credibility crisis

SICHUAN - The Red Cross Society of China is still suffering from a credibility crisis, as the public puts its trust in community-led NGOs such as the One Foundation, initiated by movie star Jet Li.

Mobile adspend jumps threefold in Hong Kong: Admango

HONG KONG - Total mobile adspend grew 3.2 times in the first quarter, with half of the top spenders not having invested in the same period last year, reported Admango.

Yahoo launches first online outlet in Hong Kong

HONG KONG - Yahoo's launch of its first online outlet in the city, which offers discounts of up to 40 per cent from an alliance of brands including Lenovo and Franc Franc, is aimed at meeting the needs of local price warriors.

James Procter leaves TBWA Hong Kong to return to Australia

HONG KONG - After less than eight months at TBWA Hong Kong, James Procter is leaving his executive creative director role to return to Australia for personal reasons.

Weber Shandwick replaces BlueCurrent as Montblanc's PR agency

SHANGHAI - Montblanc has appointed Weber Shandwick as its new China public relations agency, displacing previous partner BlueCurrent.

Q&A: How Coke's 'Content 2020' strategy will fizz up in China

SHANGHAI - Because remarkable content has surpassed the traditional 30-second TV ad as the most valuable currency when it comes to brand love, Coca-Cola has adopted its 'Content 2020' initiative, and Amy Chen is the person responsible for deploying it in China.

Q&A: AB InBev's Vivian Yeh on digitally marketing beer brands in China

SHANGHAI - Vivian Yeh, the Asia-Pacific director of digital marketing behind Anheuser-Busch InBev's acclaimed Belgian-Brazilian beer, shares some insights into her job.

Advertising by aesthetic clinics runs afoul of Taiwan law

TAIPEI - Advertising by a number of aesthetic clinics in Taiwan has come under fire for touting discounts, a violation of Taiwan's Medical Care Act.

One2free campaign 'funifies' Hong Kong into a virtual playground

HONG KONG - CSL’s mass market brand one2free has launched a long-term mobile campaign to create a kind of alternate Hong Kong where people can escape the pressures of daily life.

Chongqing has highest online-video penetration among lower-tiers: Maxus

CHINA - Cities and counties in Chongqing have the nation's highest penetration rate in terms of online video viewership; at 88.7 per cent, the municipality ranks first among China's lower-tier markets, according to findings by Maxus.

Chinese marketers increasingly using procurement teams for PR agency negotiations: R3

BEIJING - With more pressure on ROI and costs, marketers are increasingly using their procurement teams to negotiate PR agency terms, according to a study by R3 that looked at 212 client-agency relationships in China.

Crisis management dealbreaker for global chief communications officers

GLOBAL - Chief communications officers in Asia feel inadequatley equipped to deal with reputation threats in the form of social media crises, according to a new study by executive search firm Spencer Stuart and Weber Shandwick.

PROFILE: Creative planner inspired by Mandarin

Saurabh Sharma says planners are just creative people who cannot draw, and that learning a language not only helps convey ideas, but offers endless insights into a culture.

CAMPAIGN SPOTLIGHT: Overbranded banks, financial thought leadership, the 'trust deficit'

HONG KONG - Gratuitous, self-defeating and annoying overbranding by banks is aggravating the loss of trust from customers, but developing thought leadership may buck the trend while at the same time social-media marketing is slowly catching on in the highly regulated financial services industry, according to speakers at Campaign's Finance Spotlight conference Thursday in Hong Kong.

Family of kiwifruits raise abandoned human baby in Zespri mobile gaming app

SHANGHAI - A mobile branded-content gaming app for Zespri, a New Zealand kiwifruit brand, has been released based on Zynga findings that young urban Chinese women are the new hardcore gamers.

From digital long-tail effects to 'corrupted' talent in China: DigitalMediaWorks highlights

SHANGHAI - At the second DigitalMediaWorks, taking place today in Shanghai, China's digital experts explored five questions on the minds of both digital natives and migrants in the country.

Weber Shandwick jumps on the globalisation bandwagon of Chinese firms

BEIJING - Weber Shandwick has followed in the footsteps of four other PR agencies and has launched a practice aimed at helping China-based multinationals take their brands global.

INTERVIEW: Elisabetta Canali on managing a heritage luxury male apparel brand

Campaign Asia-Pacific met up with Elisabetta Canali, global communications director of male luxury fashion brand, Canali. She tells us what it’s like heading the communications for a third-generation family business and working for a male fashion brand as a woman.

Taobao lets Shanghai GM 'cheque out' wishlist data for a Regal launch

CHINA - To increase test drives of its newly launched Buick Regal model, Shanghai General Motors (SGM) has embarked on a first-of-its-kind initiative that uses Taobao data about items in consumer wishlists to create personalised advertising.

Desmond Chan and Keith Ho take over Danny Mok's duties at Grey Hong Kong

HONG KONG - Following last month's departure of CEO Danny Mok, Grey Hong Kong is promoting both Desmond Chan (pictured left) and Keith Ho (right).

Joy Lu moves from Wunderman to Y&R for Danone account in China

SHANGHAI - Joy Lu (pictured) has been appointed as the brand team leader for the Danone portfolio at Y&R Shanghai, moving on from her old role as business director for the Nokia account at Wunderman.

Audi-branded auto magazine launches inaugural Hong Kong edition

HONG KONG - Audi has launched the local bilingual edition of its branded magazine, which is meant to be more than just an elaborate brochure.

Ogilvy PR makes regional leadership promotions

ASIA-PACIFIC - Ogilvy Public Relations (Ogilvy PR) reshuffles three senior positions within its Asia-Pacific management team after appointing Scott Kronick as regional president and CEO. All new roles take effect in January.

Q&A: TBWA's Jean-Marie Dru on how China gets the maths of advertising wrong

SHANGHAI - Jean-Marie Dru, chairman of  TBWA Worldwide, who has touted his agency's 'disruption' methodology for more than a decade, says the approach is more relevant than ever in China's formulaic market.

Q&A: Mary Kay is not a cult, and China loves direct sellers

CHINA - KK Chua (pictured), the Asia-Pacific president of Mary Kay, speaks about how China sales have surpassed the direct-selling brand's home market. Salesforce motivation, not founder-worship, is key.

Clement Tsang moves from Performics China to Brandscreen

SHANGHAI - Clement Tsang (pictured) has joined Brandscreen as its Greater China managing director after departing ZenithOptimedia last month.

McCann chief creative officer Martin Lee leaves after one year

SHANGHAI - Martin Lee, chief creative officer at Mccann Worldgroup in Shanghai for the past 12 months, departed the agency earlier in September.

David Ko, Angelo Umali found firm to generate digital 'Daylight'

HONG KONG - David Ko, who had a good innings at his previous gig as the Asia-Pacific leader for Waggener Edstrom, has founded a digital marketing consultancy that wants to woo daring clients, since large conglomerate agencies "just don't do edgy work because they want to be safe and not screw up".

Alvin Foo joins Omnicom Media Group's mobile division from Google China

SHANGHAI - Alvin Foo (pictured) has been appointed the head of Airwave China, the mobile marketing division of Omnicom Media Group (OMG).

Hong Kong discussion forum launches first TV campaign

HONG KONG - To stand out in a competitive space, Discuss.com.hk is running its first television commercials and has roped in local comic artist Li Chi Tak (利志達) for print, outdoor and digital ads.

Hotmob wants to place ads on smartphone lock screens

HONG KONG - Advertisers have a new option to capture eyeballs every time consumers unlock their smartphone screens with the first such ad format in the city, launched by Hotmob.

HongKongers sleep at Ikea by invitation; Chinese at will

HONG KONG - Ikea organised the city's first-ever 'Sleeptober' event last weekend at a Tsuen Wan hotel ballroom, following similar events in other parts of the world including Taiwan, Australia, UK, and France.

UK digital agency Precedent expands into Hong Kong

HONG KONG - Precedent, a UK independent digital agency, has opened its seventh global office in the city to deliver specialist services to the higher education sector.

Landmark seeks to calibrate shoppers to 4-in-1 luxury retail proposition

HONG KONG - Eleven agencies—namely 3 Screens, Carat, DraftFCB, FleishmanHillard, iProspect, Isobar, Omnicom Media Group, Pentagram, PHD, Tribal and SCMP Marketing Solutions—all had a hand in a new number-focused branding campaign for Hong Kong's Landmark shopping centres.

Cheil wins creative mandate for CITIC Capital's Hefei retail property

BEIJING - After a month-long pitch, Cheil China has gained its first commercial real estate client: CITIC Capital's ID Mall project in Hefei, the capital of Anhui province.

Initiative Taiwan beats two agencies to Storck's first media task

TAIPEI - Storck, a German confectionary and sweets producer, has awarded its media planning and buying duties to Initiative.

AdMaster trumps CIC to build social listening platform for P&G

SHANGHAI - Procter & Gamble has tasked AdMaster to lead the development of a social-media listening centre (SLC) after two "intense" rounds of a pitch involving CIC.

Starcom wins AB InBev in China from MediaCom

SHANGHAI - Anheuser-Busch InBev has picked Starcom MediaVest Group to handle media planning and buying duties in China after a review that included incumbent agency MediaCom.

China’s moneyed classes want 'soul', not showiness: TBWA & Rhizome

SHANGHAI - Among the upper echelons of China’s moneyed classes, there is clear demand for a move away from ostentation and toward "far more soulful" luxury consumption, according to a joint whitepaper from TBWA\Luxury Arts China and Rhizome, a research partner of Fudan University’s Business Anthropology Center.

Former Nielsen executives start consultancy to address 'servicing gap'

GREATER CHINA - Former Nielsen colleagues Jeff Stewart and Christophe Cazes have co-founded a market information consultancy, Asia Market Development (AMD), to offer an alternative approach to the "inflexible solutions by larger global firms that aren’t designed for the demand and speed of this market".

Q&A: Canon's Vincent Cheung on why smartphones cannot replace compact cameras

Vincent Cheung (pictured), general manager and senior director of consumer imaging & information group at Canon Hong Kong, tells Campaign Asia-Pacific how each and every marketing move he makes is an educated decision.

KF Lee of Aegis Media China tipped to move up to a chairman role

GREATER CHINA - Senior industry sources have disclosed to Campaign Asia-Pacific that KF Lee, Greater China CEO of Aegis Media, is tipped to be elevated to the position of chairman to give way to a new China CEO.

Adidas's China MD Colin Currie spreads his footprint

THE FACE BEHIND THE BRAND: The competitive sports shoe market fits nicely for the adidas Greater China MD.

Tom Group wins Amway outdoor business in China from Kinetic and VivaKi

MAINLAND CHINA - Tom Group has been named Amway's outdoor-branding agency in China after a two-month pitch against Kinetic and VivaKi.

Tricia Weener replaces Rose Leng at HSBC Asia Pacific

HONG KONG - Tricia Weener (pictured) has relocated from the United Kingdom to lead marketing campaign strategies and communications activities for HSBC's Asia Pacific commercial banking business.

Q&A: Mondeléz's Cindy Chen on Chinese memes, snacking needs and why Oreos are golden in China

SHANGHAI - Cindy Chen (pictured), head of biscuits, media and consumer engagement at Mondeléz China, talks to Campaign Asia-Pacific about her active involvement in the new branding for the company.

Nike 'knits' trainers from scratch with outdoor stunt in Shanghai

SHANGHAI - For the launch of Nike's new Free Flyknit shoes, Wieden+Kennedy Shanghai launched an outdoor stunt that highlighted the lightweight feature of the product.

AshleyMadison.com is not shy about seeking potential adulterers in Hong Kong

HONG KONG - One might expect a business that explicitly promotes marital infidelity to take a subtle approach to marketing, but AshleyMadison founder Noel Biderman, who brings his website for people seeking affairs to Hong Kong this week, takes quite the opposite tack.

China in transition: Marketers swing towards mobile

While there are still barriers to mobile marketing in China, brands are at last realising the potential payoffs are too big to ignore.

Ogilvy PR captures China Fortune Land Development from local agency

BEIJING - Ogilvy PR has won a new property account, China Fortune Land Development, a company that invests primarily in industrial parks.

China to see adspend growth above 10 per cent for next two years: GroupM

MAINLAND CHINA - GroupM is projecting ad spending in China to increase by 10.7 per cent this year compared to 2012 to reach US$70 billion (RMB 430 billion). The company also predicted that spending in 2014 is expected to grow by 11.8 per cent to US$78 billion (RMB 480 billion).

Proximity takes over Mars' digital AOR business in China from Agenda

BEIJING - Mars has appointed Proximity as its digital agency-of-record in China, and terminated the relationship with incumbent Agenda.

Ruder Finn opts for partnership with S&W Public Relations in China instead of opening office

CHENGDU - Ruder Finn has signed an agreement with S&W Public Relations to expand its presence into the central and western provinces of China.

Shawn Hiltz exits Dow Jones to join Info-Nation as CEO

HONG KONG - Dow Jones' Asia Pacific vice president of marketing Shawn Hiltz (pictured), has moved from the mega media outlet to a startup courting the wealthy.

Millward Brown launches first automatic Chinese text-analysis tool for social-media research

BEIJING - The need for swift and accurate processing of a huge amount of feedback from consumers has become imperative for market researchers, and this has led Millward Brown, in conjunction with Eucita, to come up the first text-analysis tool adapted for Chinese-speaking regions.

CASE STUDY: In-taxi campaign yields better attitudes toward blood donation in China

SHANGHAI - More than 80 per cent of taxi passengers in a recent Touchmedia survey say they have adopted a more positive attitude toward blood donation, as a result of a year-long campaign run by the Shanghai Blood Management Office and the Shanghai Blood Centre.

Agricultural Bank of China picks OpenTide as digital AOR

BEIJING - OpenTide China has been selected as digital agency-of-record for Agricultural Bank of China (ABC) on an annual retainer basis.

Scott Kronick to lead Ogilvy PR in Asia as Steve Dahllof retires

BEIJING - Steve Dahllof, president & CEO of Ogilvy PR Asia-Pacific, will be succeeded by Scott Kronick, the agency’s current president for North Asia, after he retires at the end of 2013.

Meilin Wong Sandberg leaves Waggener Edstrom

SINGAPORE - Meilin Wong Sandberg (pictured), Waggener Edstrom's former head of business development and marketing, is said to be making a move to take up an undisclosed in-house role later this year.

Absolut heralds small swirls of vodka education for Chinese drinkers

SHANGHAI - In the nascent vodka market in China, building a brand is about educating consumers on how to mix and consume vodka, aspects the Swedish brand Absolut has been focusing on with all of its ATL executions in digital as well as BTL events for the past three years.

CBN's sombre TVC promises ethical business journalism to Chinese society

SHANGHAI - A sharp and poignant TVC by China Business News (CBN) portrays the degradation of values in Chinese society and pledges ethical commitment in its financial and economics media coverage.

Chinese consumers love tablets, and 39% are willing to click ads

SHANGHAI - Chinese consumers are choosing tablets as their most preferred device for watching online videos and reading digital magazines, according to research jointly initiated by Millward Brown, GroupM Interaction, Miaozhen Systems, Modern Media and Funshion.

OMD retains China Telecom after five-way pitch

BEIJING - After a pitch with four local and 4A competitors, OMD is understood to have retained the traditional media business for China Telecom.

Domestic Chinese brands thriving as MNCs scale back

Foreign multinational companies are investing less in advertising in the country as returns prove to be lower than anticipated.

Theresa Loo leaves MEC to rejoin Ogilvy & Mather in China

BEIJING - Theresa Loo (pictured) returns to Ogilvy to take up a training role after leaving her last job as MEC's director of strategic planning, analytics and insight.

XM Asia acquires Designercity in Hong Kong for its 'digital ethos'

HONG KONG - XM Asia Pacific is continuing its expansion in the region with the acquisition of a majority stake in local digital consultancy Designercity, for an undisclosed sum.

Mobile marketing at a snail's pace in China despite ample opportunities

BEIJING - As the 'great migration' from traditional PC usage to mobile devices intensifies in China, marketers have every incentive to tap into an extensive rural and urban customer base. So why are they so slow to the game?

China's online advertising market surges 27.4%: iResearch

MAINLAND CHINA - Online advertising revenue reached US$3.8 billion (RMB23.26 billion) in Q2 2013, up 17.4 per cent compared with Q1 and 27.4 per cent versus Q2 2012, according to iResearch.

Fonterra fallout contaminates New Zealand brand as well

AUCKLAND - Fonterra’s tainted whey crisis is also New Zealand’s dairy crisis, and opens up a window of opportunity for brands from contending countries to capitalise on the situation.

DDB China hires two senior planning directors from TBWA and Grey

NORTH CHINA - Cynthia Zhu has left TBWA to join DDB Guoan as executive planning director while Grey's Diana Ying has moved to DDB Group Shanghai as planning director.

McCann Health re-enters Hong Kong market with Arowana as first client

HONG KONG - McCann Health has joined forces with local health communications agency TT Healthcare to create TT McCann Health, marking McCann's re-entry into the healthcare market after it closed that particular arm in August 2009.

Leo Burnett Hong Kong loses decade-long client Kowloon Dairy to Alchemy

HONG KONG - Kowloon Dairy has ended its business relationship with Leo Burnett and passed creative duties to local independent agency Alchemy.

Asian palates thirst for craft brews

SECTOR STUDY: As beer consumption rises in Asia and tastes grow increasingly refined, consumers have started to look for more niche products with a stronger flavour profile.

Agile Property contracts OMD as media agency in China

GUANGZHOU - OMD is understood to have acquired the media communications business of Agile Property Holdings, worth RMB280 million in monitored media ad spend, including media proposal, price negotiation and buying.

Uni-President's herbal tea campaign says 'let intuition be your guide'

SHANGHAI - To promote its new brand of herbal tea drinks called Zhi Jue (Intuition), Uni-President has advised consumers to let intuition guide and "naturally awaken the body".

Ogilvy HK creative duo Simon Handford & Sandy Chan tipped to have quit

HONG KONG - Simon Handford and Sandy Chan, joint executive creative directors at Ogilvy & Mather, are understood to have tendered their resignations in mid July.

Snap Mobile waives production costs for HTML5 rich-media ad formats

HONG KONG - Snap Mobile is trying to break down the barriers of using HTML5-based rich-media mobile ads for brands by waiving all production charges that typically cost between HK$20,000 and HK$50,000.

Manchester City attracts Hays and Gain Capital as sponsors

HONG KONG - Four teams from the English Premier League have visited Hong Kong in the past week, generating a flurry of sponsorship news.

Q&A with Alvin Chiang, the only Cyber Lions jury member from China

Campaign Asia-Pacific recently caught up in Beijing with Alvin Chiang, chief marketing officer at Renren, who talks about his experience as the only Chinese juror on the Cannes Cyber Lions jury last month and where China's creative community stands against the international competition.

Angel Chen reported to have resigned from OgilvyOne China after 13 years

BEIJING - Angel Chen, president of OgilvyOne China and 13-year-veteran of the agency, is understood to have submitted her resignation.

Multinational brands decrease Hong Kong adspend: admanGo

HONG KONG - Multinational advertisers such as P&G, GSK and Canon have significantly cut down their ad budgets in June, according to admanGo’s latest monthly data.

Proximity Live China adds Christian Dior and Coutts to client lineup

SHANGHAI - Proximity Live will provide integrated branding and creative communications services for luxury brands Christian Dior and Coutts in China, according to multiple sources.

Domyos combines hip hop and tai chi to spark new fitness craze

SHANGHAI - French fitness brand Domyos has merged western hip-hop dance with the tai-chi form of martial arts to create a 'Taichiphop' campaign for the summer.

Jeff Ma leaves TBWA for Tsingtao beer

SHANGHAI - Jeff Ma, former chief marketing officer of TBWA Greater China, has joined Tsingtao Beer as the deputy GM of brand management.

Facebook fans to pick inaugural budget flight destination for HK Express

HONG KONG - In the run-up to the transformation of Hong Kong Express Airways (HK Express) into a low-fare airline by October 2013, a Facebook campaign has been launched for consumers to pick one of eight cities for the airline's debut budget flight.

Saatchi & Saatchi Shanghai takes over Cadbury Choclairs account from Ogilvy

SHANGHAI - Following a four-way pitch for the Cadbury Choclairs account, Saatchi & Saatchi is understood to have edged out incumbent agency Ogilvy & Mather.

Alchemy seeks credit for AIA's new brand positioning

HONG KONG - Alchemy Asia has criticised TBWA for being 'misleading' regarding the respective roles of the two agencies in the development of AIA's new brand positioning as 'The Real Life Company'.

Nike struggles in China: Temporary shift in brand loyalty, or long-term loss of faith?

SHANGHAI - Nike may be the sporting goods market leader in China, with a 12.1 per cent market share as of 2012, but it is losing customers to Adidas and facing unsold inventory.

JWT Beijing bags luxury cashmere clothing brand Erdos 1436

BEIJING - JWT has won the creative business of high-end luxury brand 1436, named for the type of cashmere used to make its clothes, under the Inner Mongolia-based Erdos Group.

InSkin Media wants brands to focus on engagement, not accidental clicks

HONG KONG - InSkin Media, a London-based ad tech company, has launched in the territory, with Angeline Lodhia leading the charge.

UPDATED: Haier adds UM Beijing to agency pool

BEIJING - Appliance giant Haier has selected UM as one of its media agencies in China, with estimated billings of US$1.5 million.

Time Out magazine 'loses' cell phone in Shanghai guerrilla campaign

SHANGHAI - Energy BBDO has created a guerrilla marketing stunt to promote the local version of the internationally renowned listing magazine Time Out by purposely 'losing' a cell phone.

More than 50,000 express purchase intent for Coca-Cola's nicknamed bottles in China

SHANGHAI - One month after the above-the-line nationwide launch of Coca-Cola's 'nickname' campaign, social listening tools found more than 50,000 consumers expressing purchase intent on Sina Weibo, Tencent Weibo, and Renren.

Optimedia tipped to have won Fiat account from GDAD

SHANGHAI - Optimedia has won Fiat's media account after a competitive pitch that started in May, according to sources close to the pitch.

Definition of 'cool' in China goes beyond being anti-establishment: TBWA

SHANGHAI - In a new study, TBWA said that while young people still define 'cool’ as being individualistic, the term has taken on more wholesome connotations than the subversive attitude that often characterises the term in Western popular culture.

Chanel renews global WPP partnership with new venture 'PLUS'

GLOBAL - After an in-depth global media review, Chanel has decided to renew its collaboration with WPP through a new and dedicated venture called 'PLUS'.

CASE STUDY: How Nestlé developed a sweet treat in a bitterly tough category

Being heavily outspent by competition in the ice cream category, Nestlé still managed to create impact for its BenNaNa campaign.

Tencent's online video head resigns

BEIJING - Liu Chunning, general manager of Tencent's online video department, resigned on Monday and will be replaced by VP Sun Zhonghuai.

Starcom MediaVest China hires Vivian Zhu from Razorfish San Francisco

SHANGHAI - Vivian Zhu (pictured) from Razorfish's San Francisco office, has been hired as managing director of SMG China's digital & data analytics operations.

CASE STUDY: How Volvo CE made a game out of construction machinery

Using a grassroots approach to sing the praises of construction workers was a strong hook for media and the general public that increased Volvo CE’s share of voice in the China market.

CASE STUDY: How Viagra got on top of sexual taboos in China

Erectile dysfunction (ED), a common sexual problem suffered by men, is an awkward topic, especially in China where the topic of sex, let alone impotence, is rarely discussed openly.

JWT wins China Auto Rental account from WE Marketing

BEIJING - JWT will take on branding and communication tasks for China Auto Rental Holdings, which just signed David Beckham in his first non-sports endorsement deal since retiring from his career as a soccer player.

AdMaster signs annual contract for Unilever's ad monitoring

SHANGHAI - AdMaster will be the exclusive third-party agency handling the monitoring, evaluation and optimisation of Unilever's advertising, after defeating competitor Miaozhen Systems in a pitch.

PR agencies morphing to keep their share of the pot: PR360Asia

HONG KONG - At the opening panel at this morning's PR360Asia invitation-only conference, 'grappling' was the word of the day as panelists discussed how best to redefine PR in order to stay in business.

H+K 'wrangling' business away from digital agencies with social-PR offering

SHANGHAI - As one part of an effort to expand its digital practice in China, Hill+Knowlton Strategies has launched its 'Social PR Lab' as a formal offering to swing marketing dollars towards the organisation.

Mark Liversidge to part ways with CSL

HONG KONG - CSL will be parting ways with its chief marketing officer Mark Liversidge (pictured), who had served in the role since May 2010.

Q&A: ATV's China president, Teddy Pu

Teddy Pu, Asia Televison's China president, tells Campaign Asia-Pacific how the concept of 'co-opetition' (竞合) is playing out in the television industry.

Cheil to branch out from monogamous Samsung relationship in China

GREATER CHINA - Aaron Lau, president of Cheil Greater China, tells Campaign Asia-Pacific in an exclusive interview why he feels more qualified nowadays to pitch the agency to finicky Chinese clients, banking on its past fidelity to long-term mainstay client Samsung.

Shui On Land to consult BBH China on branding for The Hub

SHANGHAI - BBH China has been hired as brand strategy consultancy for The Hub, part of the property portfolio of Shui On Land, the Hong Kong developer behind Xintiandi.

M&A activity between China and US to increase in advertising, digital media sectors: Manatt

GREATER CHINA - Despite divergent expectations from the US and China in terms of merger-and-acquisition activity, deal-making in the advertising and digital-media sectors will increase over the next 12 months, according to law firm Manatt, Phelps & Phillips.

JWT wins back US$40m China Unicom account from Dentsu

BEIJING - JWT has been hired to develop the brand strategy for China Unicom, replacing incumbent agency Dentsu.

AXA campaign introduces coverage for counselling

HONG KONG - Publicis' campaign for AXA focuses on the benefit of psychological care, differentiating the brand from its competitors which usually place importance on the functional aspects of insurance plans.

CASE STUDY: How Tempo romanticised toilet paper

HONG KONG - This is a case about the launch of a toilet paper in a saturated and mature market and the straightforward but creative campaign that helped it seize market share from its established competitor.

DirectAsia aims to banish boring insurance advertising with help of Robin Hood

HONG KONG - Online insurance company DirectAsia.com reckons it has shaken up the industry's safe and stagnant advertising models with the adoption of Robin Hood as its cartoon spokesperson.

Cadillac SRX launches third wave of Route 66 ad campaign amid recall

SHANGHAI - A new TV and print campaign to promote the 2013 Cadillac SRX has been launched in China days after GM recalled more than 2,600 affected vehicles due to an issue with wheel nuts.

Fluid starts up second InvestHK project

HONG KONG - Fluid has created a microsite for InvestHK, its second project for the client, after a multi-agency pitch involving 14 agencies including Designercity, Ogilvy, and StartJG in May.

Leo Burnett Shanghai promotes Stefan Petzinger and Alvin Yim

SHANGHAI - Leo Burnett Shanghai has named Stefan Petzinger, former general manager in charge of multinational clients, as managing director.

Greenpeace uses a double entendre to campaign about saving paper

Environmental organisation Greenpeace commissioned Saatchi & Saatchi for the creative execution of its "Paper Cuts Life" campaign, which brought to attention how the large demand for paper is not only an important driving force behind deforestation but also indirectly leading certain animals to the brink of extinction.

Beiersdorf's campaign uses Kai Ko as star for Nivea Men in China

SHANGHAI - Skincare brand Beiersdorf has launched a nationwide advertising campaign in Greater China for Nivea Men that stars Taiwanese actor Ke Zhendong, also known as Kai Ko.

SUV sales gain momentum in China

The market share of sports utility vehicles, particularly Chinese brands, is surging as ads promoting a culture of freedom and rugged individualism take hold.

ZenithOptimedia obtains Belle shoe account from incumbent Mindshare

SHENZHEN - ZenithOptimedia has been appointed as media agency for Belle International, a women's shoe retailer offering a number of footwear brands, including Teenmix, Tata, Staccato, Senda, Basto, JipiJapa, Millie’s, Joy & Peace and Mirabell.

GSK awards duties for Physiogel to JWT Hong Kong

HONG KONG - GSK has expanded its relationship with JWT Hong Kong, awarding it full creative duties duties for Physiogel after a project done last year.

DMG beats out Raynet Ogilvy for Xi'an-Janssen Pharmaceuticals

BEIJING - DMG Media has won the consolidated business of Xi'an-Janssen Pharmaceuticals following a lengthy and process-driven pitch against Raynet Ogilvy, which concluded last week.

MediaCom Beijing wins Oppo's digital business

BEIJING - MediaCom has secured the digital AOR role for Oppo after a pitch process that involved Neo@Ogilvy and incumbent Nim Digital.

DATA POINTS: Analysis of Shanghai Auto Show 2013

The Shanghai Auto Show 2013 in April was attended by more than 800,000 people, after which marketing consultancy Globeone teamed up with research agency CBC to measure the show's impact. The most important issue, according to the 316 visitors surveyed, was technology for better safety. Chinese car manufacturers have also been working hard to step up their game, and that effort is paying off in a market with more than 200 million prospective first-time car buyers for Chery and Great Wall Motors.

Adidas sees 40 per cent uplift in sales from first-ever women's campaign

SHANGHAI - Adidas' share of sales from women's products gained 40 per cent growth from its first-ever standalone advertising blast targeting females three months ago.

CASE STUDY: How Wahaha made inroads with 'liquid bread'

Chinese beverage giant Wahaha has made slight inroads to popularise a niche Russian-beverage by sponsoring a national singing contest for veteran artistes.

Logitech G appoints Labbrand for digital strategy in China

SHANGHAI - Logitech has selected Labbrand to handle overall brand management for its sub-brand created specifically for gaming.

Tencent tops Facebook for first time in BrandZ rankings

BEIJING - Tencent ranks 21st, with a value of US$27.2 billion, in Millward Brown's eighth annual BrandZ rankings, surpassing Facebook (31) for the first time.

CASE STUDY: How Starbucks used the Chinese almanac to draw sales

Starbucks has protected its market share by using the characteristics of the Chinese almanac in a complementary way, demonstrating how it is applying business to local culture.

Wellcome goes down memory lane in 68th anniversary campaign

HONG KONG - Wellcome Supermarket is celebrating its 68th anniversary by recalling local comedy trio Wong Cho Lam, Louis Yuen and Johnson Lee to front another TVC for the auspicious occasion.

China Mobile tipped to call creative pitch

SHANGHAI - China Mobile has called a pitch for a portion of its domestic creative account, with a number of agencies understood to be participating this week.

Pixel Media appointed as advertising rep for three women-focused verticals

HONG KONG - Pixel Media has been appointed as the exclusive advertising sales representative for three vertical content websites in Hong Kong focused on women, on behalf of advertisers such as Bare Minerals, Dior, La Prairie, Laneige, Estee Lauder, Tudor, Coach, Club Monaco and Cartier.

Iron Man 3 China-only product placement branded as 'abrupt' and 'amusing'

MAINLAND CHINA - Four extra minutes in the China-only cut of Iron Man 3 include product placement shots for a Yili milk drink, which Chinese movie-goers have deemed amusing.

Samsonite employs Korean charm to introduce casual Red brand in Hong Kong

HONG KONG - Samsonite Red, a sub-brand of the luggage-maker, has selected Korean pop-star Song Joong-ki as brand ambassador to capture the attention of local 'fashion-geeks' as part of a long-term push to expand its image and product portfolio beyond suitcases.

CASE STUDY: How Lenovo gained traction with marathon-marketing in China

MAINLAND CHINA - Lenovo has tried to expand the user base of its smartphones with the help of sports marketing, specifically in marathons.

Chevrolet SUV ad contains 'Fu Manchu' reference: Racist?

CHINA - Responding to Chevrolet's "Original Reborn" commercial soundtrack containing lyrics that many deem racist, General Motors China spokesman You Jia has apologised and said the brand will be reviewing its advertising approval processes.

Chinese shoppers twice as likely to buy online than global counterparts: PwC

MAINLAND CHINA - Chinese consumers have adopted the Internet as a retail channel much faster than their global counterparts, according to PwC.

Wrangler's geotargeted app cements positioning as road companion

HONG KONG - Wrangler has launched a mobile app to match its positioning as a brand 'with an instinctive nature for adventure and discovery'.

China's marketers to spend RMB 23 million on digital in 2013: R3/AdMaster

SHANGHAI - China’s marketers are expected to spend an average of 38 per cent more on digital marketing this year than they did last year, according to a survey by R3 and AdMaster.

Tetra Pak China appoints UM in five-way pitch

SHANGHAI - UM China has been appointed by food packaging giant Tetra Pak China as its agency for media planning and buying, after winning the account in April.

M&C Saatchi ceases creative operations in Hong Kong

HONG KONG - As M&C Saatchi's office in Hong Kong becomes less and less significant in terms of revenue contribution, its core creative and account departments have been closed after a run of 18 years in the territory.

TBWA hires Milo Chao from DDB as chief strategy officer

SHANGHAI - Milo Chao is the new chief strategy officer for TBWA China after quitting his job as head of strategic planning for Greater China at DDB.

Foreign carmakers create sub-brands specifically for China

SHANGHAI - Responding to the government’s call, automotive joint ventures have in recent years introduced a series of China-only marques, with the practice continuing this year at the 2013 Shanghai Motor Show.

UM's Cary Huang promoted to new role as CEO of IPG Mediabrands China

SHANGHAI - IPG Mediabrands has created a new role for Cary Huang, currently CEO of UM China, to enable him to take a leadership position at the holding-company level.

SOPA panel: Seeing brands as publishers and content producers

HONG KONG - A panel presented yesterday by SOPA (the Society of Publishers in Asia), in cooperation with Campaign Asia-Pacific, focused on the changing dynamics between brands and media owners.

Why brands have to woo the same consumers they once bought: Energize

SHANGHAI - Brands could sit back and relax behind 'pester power' campaigns in the past, but thanks to the attention-deficit era now, they need to actually walk the talk and earn their keep, according to Klaas Weima, founder of creative agency Energize.

JWT Hong Kong adds newly acquired Samsonite sub-brands to Asia portfolio

HONG KONG - Samsonite has handed JWT regional duties for its newly acquired Hartmann and High Sierra sub-brands, which will be launched in Asia in the third quarter of this year.

Carter Chow joins McCann Shanghai from Y&R; replaces Carol Lam

SHANGHAI - Carter Chow will be the new managing director of McCann Shanghai as he replaces Carol Lam, who bade farewell to the agency last August to head to Saatchi & Saatchi.

CASE STUDY: How fashionable fossils boosted Sanlitun shopper traffic 40 per cent

Extra-large dinosaurs brought Swire Properties mammoth returns in its ‘Let’s play XXL’ activation campaign, which combined mobile and outdoor creativity to engage customers in one of Beijing's trendiest shopping districts during a peak shopping season.

RT-Mart may trump Walmart to be China's power retailer of the future: Kantar

MAINLAND CHINA - Taiwan-based retailer RT-Mart is challenging international giant Walmart's position in the country, according to consumer packaged goods manufacturers surveyed in a Kantar Retail report.

More lower-tier consumers skip PCs, laptops and use mobiles to access internet: GroupM

GREATER CHINA - The typical development path of internet use in upper-tier markets—from PCs to laptops to mobiles—is being circumvented by lower-tier consumers who go straight to smartphones and form a sizable base for marketers to reach, according to GroupM research.

From Singles' Day to 'Tianmao Day': how China successfully commercialised another holiday

MAINLAND CHINA - Online retailers on Tmall and Taobao were certainly not feeling lonely on Singles' Day last Sunday, 11 November—said by some to be the loneliest day in the calendar as it is denoted by 1,1,1,1.

Will Harris to leave Nokia, following relocation of its APAC HQ to Beijing

ASIA-PACIFIC: Finnish mobile manufacturer Nokia relocated its Asia-Pacific headquarters from Singapore to Beijing at the start of the year, but Will Harris, Nokia's head of marketing for Southeast Asia and Asia-Pacific, has decided to return to the UK.

Photos: Spotify extends brand presence offline with Dear Jane gig

Spotify, with its advertising partner Pixels, held an inaugural 'Spotify Acoustics' event on 20 August in Central, Hong Kong, featuring local band Dear Jane. Attended by more than 90 people from clients, brands and agencies, the trade-only event was meant to showcase the latest Spotify offerings from the HK market in an offline performance.

How Chinese consumers interact with online video advertising

SHANGHAI - New research takes a close look at how Chinese consumers interact with online video advertising, raising questions on "getting it right".

Greater China, condensed: Toms being a brand of its word, Sohu-iQiyi fight, more

The theme for this Monday's roundup can be summed up in two words: promises and pledges.

The colloquial language quirks of a new Chinese generation

CHINA - An Ogilvy and Webinsight report focused on the habits of a new and enigmatic consumer segment they call the "post-millennial generation" reveals how the colloquial language these young people use should give marketers a clue to their strong sense of individuality.

Get a grip on your data, your consumers, your clients

HONG KONG - An intimate breakfast briefing around Asia’s Top 1000 Brands (the second in a series of three) this morning examined how brands can stay abreast of changing consumer behaviour, with observations from companies including Sony, Fuji Xerox, HSBC, Calvin Klein and Pizza Hut.

Greater China, condensed: Airbnb, Carat, Tianjin effects, more

The theme in this week's roundup can be summed up in one word: pressure. See how Airbnb, Carat, China Automobile Dealers and Chinese marketers in general are reacting to various stresses in the market.

HKTVmall's massive campaign brings puns to all MTR stations

HONG KONG - See all the 51 creative visuals in HKTVmall's mega trackside-advertising campaign in Hong Kong's MTR system covering more than 3,000 JCDecaux ad locations. Click the related-article link below for more details on this campaign.

Top 1000 Brands: Remarks from today's China forum

Campaign brings you comments on branding in China from Nielsen, Ping An, Philips and Wyeth Nutrition, participants in the Asia's Top 1000 Brands Forum taking place today in Shanghai.

Coca-Cola China calls pitch for Minute Maid Pulpy

SHANGHAI - The Coca-Cola Company has started a creative pitch for Minute Maid Pulpy, which rivals the parent brand in terms of sales volume in China.

Personalised OOH: Precision targeting comes to China Post screens

SHANGHAI - China's official postal service has deployed a comprehensive upgrade of its 20,000 outdoor smartscreens with new facial recognition capability, mobile interactivity, data management and campaign optimisation features.

HKTVmall blankets MTR stations with punny humour

HONG KONG - HKTVmall has executed a takeover of trackside advertising in Hong Kong's MTR system, covering more than 3,000 JCDecaux ad locations in 51 stations with brightly coloured ads that present visual puns based on the names of the stations and the online retailer's products.

Roundup: Recent Greater China happenings

A roundup of recent goings-on in Greater China: Birger Linke returns, Michael Jordan loses to Qiaodan, Alibaba accepts counterfeit reports in English and Oreo Flute Wafers makes a move on the 'sweet munching market'.

More than one-fifth of Chinese to buy a car within next year: MNI

BEIJING - The proportion of respondents in the monthly MNI China Auto Purchase Sentiment Report planning to buy a car rose this month to the highest level since the series began in March 2012.

Exclusive survey: Brands want more from KOLs in China

CHINA - The exclusive results of research undertaken by Totem Media, in partnership with Campaign Asia-Pacific, provide a peek into the usually secretive use of KOLs (key opinion leaders) in China.

Labbrand lures Jerry Clode back to Shanghai

SHANGHAI - Jerry Clode, a semiotician and cultural expert, has passed on a global role in London to take the job of research director at Labbrand Shanghai.

Wyeth's centennial campaign traces evolution of Chinese parenting

SHANGHAI - Wyeth Nutrition is marking its centennial in China with a focus on the changes in contemporary parenting lifestyles, based on true tales.

Tujia co-founder: We're not the 'Airbnb of China'

HONG KONG - Speaking at yesterday's Converge tech conference, Melissa Yang, co-founder and CTO of Beijing-based holiday rental site Tujia, explained why her well-funded startup should not be seen as a clone of Airbnb.

Innovation in China: Hotter than the US?

HONG KONG - At this morning's Converge tech conference, co-organised by the Wall Street Journal and f.ounders, Dr. Kai-Fu Lee, chairman and CEO of Innovation Works, gave his perspectives on the potentially loaded question: Is innovation in China hotter than the US?

Maxus hires Russell Boyman as head of trading for North Asia

SHANGHAI - Russell Boyman has joined Maxus as head of trading for North Asia, directly reporting to Annie Hsiao, Maxus China president, and Simon Porter, head of trading for Asia Pacific.

Inside the Chinese millennial's mind

BEIJING - Millennials in China create a massive online record of their preferences, lifestyle and attitudes every single day on social platforms. So why do brands still have a hard time figuring them out?

This gigantic Clarins bottle took a year to materialise

HONG KONG - A nine-metre tall Clarins bottle erected at the departures hall in the Hong Kong International Airport is the tallest product display ever fabricated in the area.

The air-purifier brand that projected crying children onto plumes of factory pollution

The behind-the-scenes story of a Cannes-winning campaign that took on a politically charged issue in China.

Cityplaza facelift includes logo, 'Live happy' campaign, giant ball pit

HONG KONG - Cityplaza, the largest shopping mall on Hong Kong Island, has unveiled a rebranding campaign called 'Live Happy' following the completion of a HK$100 million renovation in 2014.

'You can, you up': Words of warning for marketers courting China's millennials

BEIJING - 'You can, you up', a curious Chinglish catchphrase uttered frequently by millennials in China, carries a warning for older marketers targeting the youth segment, participants at a youth-marketing conference here this week heard.

Real Madrid capitalises on China popularity with official Tmall store

GUANGZHOU - Real Madrid launched its official online shop yesterday on Alibaba's Tmall Global platform, the latest football team to do so after Arsenal, Tottenham Hotspur, and FC Bayern Munich.

Maxus plucks OMD's Yinling Lin to be Shanghai GM

SHANGHAI - Yinling Lin (林燕灵) has joined Maxus Shanghai as general manager for the agency's international business unit.

Unilever to stem China losses with sweeping Alibaba partnership

HANGZHOU - Unilever has formed an exclusive strategic partnership with Alibaba Group on a range of ecommerce initiatives to boost the consumer-goods maker's sales in China.

Lamplight rethinks effect of Asian vernaculars on social analytics

HONG KONG - Mandy Chi's Instagram post mentioning her eye capillaries bursting halfway through a Cathay Pacific flight is one example of a negative post associated with a brand on social media. But there is a wider range of sentiment that Lamplight, a new social data analytics company, is trying to help marketers understand.

Got exam? Keep calm, sing K-pop and eat a walnut

SHANGHAI - People don’t usually think about nuts all that much, let alone what sets them apart. So when Grey's client the California Walnut Commission (CWC) wanted to distinguish walnuts from nutty competitors such as almonds and peanuts, the agency found a defining characteristic of walnuts and added a K-pop crunch to it.

L'Oréal pulls off illusion of V-shaped face for Chinese girls

SHANGHAI - L'Oréal has indulged in the Chinese woman's quest for the perfect V-shaped face and choreographed it to push its hair salon products.

An independent creative's view of crowdsourcing and agency roles

SHANGHAI - Since the evolution of corporate crowdsourcing in the mid-2000s, the method has started to gain legitimacy for advertisers in the creative process. Here, we hear from an independent creator who is based in China but has lent his ideas to global campaigns.

Saatchi & Saatchi's top creative in Beijing joins DDB Guoan

BEIJING - DDB China Group has appointed Ng Tian It as its new chief creative officer for its Beijing office, DDB Guoan.

Cannes 2015 photos: Mcgarrybowen 'mission'

Mcgarrybowen's 'Mission Cannes' Party, an asteroids-themed one, took place on 24 June at the Chateau de la Castre. All photos credited to Eric Bonté of 1000images.

Per Pedersen on 'solve-vertising' and the need for micro creative councils

HONG KONG - Fresh from Cannes, Grey's deputy worldwide chief creative officer Per Pedersen told Campaign Asia-Pacific in this exclusive video why 'solve-vertising' is not just another annoying buzzword, and how he intends to raise Grey's level of creativity in Asia.

Trading places in Greater China: Goh, Marinus, Besson, King, Zhang, Ou, Traazil, Liu and more

Here is a roundup of this week's major people moves in advertising, marketing, media and digital in Greater China. Please let us know if we missed anyone.

Leo Burnett hires Ogilvy digital director as Hong Kong CEO

HONG KONG - Alex Lee has been appointed as chief executive officer for Leo Burnett Hong Kong, leaving Ogilvy & Mather, where he was regional digital director for Asia-Pacific.

Wolf Blass challenges China's formal perception of wine

SHANGHAI - Wolf Blass’ first large-scale marketing campaign in China aims to challenge the way consumers think about wine as a formal-dining beverage and to promote more casual drinking.

Jeremy Craigen's ambition as global CCO at Innocean

GLOBAL - Jeremy Craigen, the new global chief creative officer of Innocean Worldwide, tells Campaign Asia-Pacific in this exclusive interview that his goal is to change the perception of the agency from that of a Korean company with outposts around the world to that of an international firm with roots in Korea.

Cannes 2015 photos: Official closing gala

Cannes Lions delegates mark the end of another memorable year on the Riviera with a final beach party on Saturday 27 June.

Cannes 2015 photos: Teads/BeetTV party

Teads' party, in partnership with BeetTV, on Le Yacht Hemilea at #N21 Jetée Albert Edouard Nord on 25 June.

Cannes 2015 photos: McCann 'Cannes Is For Lovers' party

McCann Worldgroup’s beach party, with an amorous French theme "Cannes est pour les amoureux", at Plage C Beach on Thursday 25 June.

Cannes 2015 photos: JWT beach cocktails

The J. Walter Thompson cocktails at the C Beach on Friday 26 June.

Cannes 2015 photos: Isobar Sundowner Drinks

Isobar's Sundowner Drinks at the Dentsu Aegis Beach House on 25 June

Cannes 2015: Photos from the Campaign global party

Campaign's very own global party at the Carlton Beach on 24 June

Cannes 2015 photos: ZenithOptimedia reception

ZenithOptimedia's drinks reception at the terrace of Majestic Barriere Hotel on Wednesday 24 June.

Cannes 2015 photos: Lions Innovation After-Party

The Innovation Lions After-Party at the Cannes Connect rooftop bar on Friday 26 June

Cannes 2015 photos: Havas party

Havas' party, featuring BETC Pop & KCPK (and Ironman), at the Le Grand Hôtel on 25 June.

Cannes 2015: KBS on being the David that attacks Goliath agencies

CANNES - In a one-to-one video chat along the Croisette last week, Guy Hayward, global CEO of Kirshenbaum (KBS) tells Campaign Asia-Pacific why creativity may be in danger of vanishing from Cannes, and the attack strategy of the David-like agency against the big networks.

Cannes 2015: Bacardi on the shifting focus of Cannes Lions

CANNES - Michael J Dolan, CEO of Bacardi, talks to Jenny Chan of Campaign Asia-Pacific on how the focus of the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity has changed to encompass more technology.

Cannes 2015: Exclusive interview with Baidu 'chopstick brothers'

CANNES - Baidu's 'Smart Chopsticks' was the sole China champion at Lions Innovations 2015 (and one of only four APAC winners). Xin Yu Fan (樊昕宇) and Guan Chun Wang (汪冠春), who gave themselves the nickname of 'chopstick brothers', received the award on behalf of Baidu and granted an exclusive, dual-language interview to Campaign Asia-Pacific.

Cannes 2015: Wain Choi on 'Look at me' versus vanity work

CANNES - In a one-to-one video chat along the Croisette last week, Cheil's global vice president and executive creative director Wain Choi spent some time with Campaign Asia-Pacific recounting the thinking behind the award-bagging 'Look at me' work, and more.

Cannes 2015: Should Cyber and Mobile Lions be combined?

CANNES - In a one-to-one video chat along the Croisette last week, MediaMonks CEO Victor Knaap tells Campaign Asia-Pacific why the Cyber and Mobile Lions should be one category and why a TVC director should not have a different status from a digital production director.

Cannes 2015 photos: MassiveMusic & MediaMonks party

The annual MassiveMusic & MediaMonks Cannes Party, with the theme ‘You're ammmmazing’, was held at the Riviera Terrace of Palais des Festivals on 24 June. All photos credited to Marty Marn Photography.

Cannes 2015 photos: P.I.G/Tantor/TA Prod poolside party

A trio of production houses, P.I.G. / Tantor Films / TA Prod, co-organised a poolside BBQ party on 24 June at a private villa.

Cannes 2015 photos: Young Lions party hosted by SODA

The Young Lions Party, the rowdier sibling of the Cannes Lions Opening Gala, sponsored by SODA (Society Of Digital Agencies), took place at the Cannes Connect Bar on 22 June.

Cannes 2015 photos: xAd yacht cocktail

The xAd cocktail party at the Port de Cannes, featuring DJ Ms. Kittin, on 22 June.

Cannes 2015 photos: Cheil's Night party

Cheil's hosted its Night at the Plage du Vegaluna on 23 June.

Cannes 2015: Cyber Lions jury insights from Jean Lin

CANNES - Jean Lin, global CEO of Isobar as well as Cyber Lions jury president, delved a little deeper into how the Cyber judges came to their final decisions on this year’s Lion-worthy work among 3,738 entries from 64 countries. She shares her post-judging impressions with Campaign Asia-Pacific in this exclusive video chat.

Cannes 2015: Anna Chitty on judging for Media Lions

CANNES - Anna Chitty, managing director of PHD China, was on the Media Lions jury that looked over 3179 entries from 73 countries together. She shares her post-judging impressions with Campaign Asia-Pacific in this exclusive video chat.

Cannes 2015: Delia Liu on judging for Mobile Lions

CANNES - Delia Liu, chief creative strategy officer at WizAd China, was on the Mobile Lions jury which looked over 1,246 entries from 57 countries together. She shares her post-judging impressions with Campaign Asia-Pacific in this exclusive video chat (in Mandarin with key points translated below).

Cannes 2015: Joy and truth in advertising from FCB and Levi Strauss

CANNES - Edward Bell, CEO of FCB China, and Neil Pryde, VP of brand marketing for Levi Strauss, talk with Campaign Asia-Pacific's Jenny Chan about the great work they've seen this week.

Cannes 2015: Graham Fink on judging for Titanium & Integrated Lions

CANNES - Graham Fink, chief creative officer of Ogilvy & Mather China, was kept in a dark room having "sensible debates and intelligent conversation" about 374 entries from 55 countries to decide on the winner of the coveted Titanium and Integrated Lions. He shares his post-judging impressions with Campaign Asia-Pacific in this exclusive video chat.

Cannes 2015: Johnny Tan on judging for Design Lions

CANNES - Johnny Tan, chief creative officer of BBH China, was a member of the Design Lions jury (not to be confused with Product Design Lions) that looked over 2409 entries from 69 countries together. He shares his post-judging impressions with Campaign Asia-Pacific in this exclusive video chat.

Cannes 2015: Jimmy Lam on judging for Direct Lions

CANNES - Jimmy Lam, vice chairman and chief creative officer at DDB Group China, sat on the Direct Lions jury that pored over 2,813 entries from 71 countries together. He shares his post-judging impressions with Campaign Asia-Pacific in this exclusive video chat.

Cannes 2015: Kitty Lun on judging for Press Lions

CANNES - Kitty Lun, chairman and chief executive officer of Lowe China, sat on the Press Lions jury that pored over 4470 entries from 75 countries together. She shares her post-judging impressions with Campaign Asia-Pacific in this exclusive video chat.

Cannes 2015: The realities of installing beacons at scale

CANNES - Monica Ho, head of marketing infrastructure at xAd, tells Campaign Asia-Pacific what the problem with current beacon technology is, and how geo-targeting can be better applied to O2O commerce in markets like China.

Cheil adds international remit to Aaron Lau's Greater China role

HONG KONG - Cheil Worldwide has appointed Aaron Lau as president of international operations in addition to his role as Greater China president and CEO.

Bates CHI & Methinks hires group MD from Chrysler China

SHANGHAI - VP for marketing at Chrysler China, Daniel Ding, has joined Bates CHI & Methinks as group managing director, replacing Weixing Wang.

Publicis appoints its Nestle account lead as CEO in Beijing

BEIJING - Publicis Worldwide has named Chris Duffy, who has been heading the Nestle account based in Manila for the past year, as the agency’s new CEO for its Beijing operations.

Cannes 2015: Tomaz Mok on judging for Outdoor Lions

CANNES - Tomaz Mok, chairman and creative chief of McCann Erickson China, was kept busy last week judging 5,037 entries from 72 countries together with the Outdoor Lions jury.

Cannes 2015: Yanyan Yang on judging for Cyber Lions

CANNES - Yanyan Yang, creative director of Baidu, was kept busy last week judging 3,738 entries from 64 countries together with the Cyber Lions jury.

Cannes 2015: What do the award judges from China think? (UPDATED)

CANNES - The jury is out! Campaign China got hold of the China-based judges sitting on the Cannes Lions jury this year to share their impressions on camera.

Cannes 2015: MediaCom COO on pitch mania, China's performance in Media Lions

CANNES - In a one-to-one video chat along the Croisette, MediaCom Worldwide COO Toby Jenner tries to clear the cloud over the current spate of global pitches and discusses what system orchestration means for clients.

Cannes 2015: The gulf between healthcare R&D and marketing innovation

CANNES - In this one-to-one video chat along the Croisette, AstraZeneca's Asia director for respiratory, Peter Schweikert, talks to Campaign Asia-Pacific about why Cannes gave him new impetus and how the pharmaceutical industry's innovation in R&D needs to filter through to marketing and communications.

Cannes 2015: On the croisette with Durex global brand director Ukonwa Ojo

CANNES - In an one-to-one video interview on the Croisette, Ukonwa Ojo (the global brand director and head of global brand equity for Durex and KY at Reckitt Benckiser) tells Campaign Asia-Pacific about her reasons for attending Cannes and the thinking behind elevating the condom brand to a sexual wellbeing brand.

Cannes 2015 photos: Opening gala hosted by Innocean

The official Cannes Lions 2015 opening gala at Carlton Beach on 22 June, sponsored by Innocean.

Cannes 2015 photos: Lions Health closing gala

The Lions Health gala took place at Majestic Beach on 20 June.

Cannes 2015 photos: OMG's Toast To Cannes

Omnicom Media Group held its 'Toast To Cannes' party at the Carlton Hotel on 24 June.

Stephen Drummond returns to agency side after four years with Coke China

SHANGHAI - Coca-Cola marketer Stephen Drummond has returned to Y&R China, where he spent three years prior to joining the soft-drink giant in 2011.

Cannes 2015: WPP, DailyMail and Snapchat co-launch ‘Truffle Pig’

CANNES - "In advertising, you always have to find the truffles." That's the reasoning behind the name of Truffle Pig, a newly launched content marketing company established by three of the world’s biggest names in marketing, content and community: WPP, DailyMail and Snapchat.

Cannes 2015: The sensory science of colour, and why Adidas uses purple

CANNES - Colours used in a product or campaign can instantly engage or disengage your customer—in fact 85 per cent in one survey said colour was a primary reason why they made a purchase.

Cannes 2015: Yoyi Digital talks up 'Programmatic Plus'

CANNES - Roy Zhou, chief executive officer of Yoyi Digital, gave delegates a primer on 'Programmatic Plus' in China in light of Premier Li Keqiang's 'Internet Plus' plan unveiled on 5 March.

Nissan global marketing head: Agency-client ties can evolve faster

CANNES - Nissan's global head of marketing told panelists including the global leaders of OMD and TBWA on Tuesday that agencies and clients can evolve their relationships much more quickly than they have thus far to adjust to new consumer realities, especially in Asia.

Commercialize TV names China GM

BEIJING - Commercialize TV (CTV) has hired Liang Chen (陈亮) from You On Demand to be its new general manager for China.

Shanghai seizes chance to enhance 'soft power' with Expo Milano

MILAN - The city of Shanghai has embarked on its global branding push at the Expo Milano 2015 with an elusive aim to enhance its global soft power.

Trading places in Greater China: Weyman, Manggunio, Edwards, Sun, Liu and more

Here is a roundup of this week's major people moves in advertising, marketing, media and digital in Greater China. Please let us know if we missed anyone.

China breaks into 2015 Innovation Lions shortlist

GLOBAL - From a compact pool of 226 submissions for this year’s Innovation Lions, a shortlist of 34 has been revealed, with 12 entries from Asia Pacific and three from China (Baidu, Cheil and DDB) making it through to the final round of judging.

Leo Burnett Shanghai awarded Uni-President's instant-noodle account

SHANGHAI - Leo Burnett Shanghai has been appointed the creative AOR for Uni-President's Soup Daren (汤达人) business until 2016.

Will Tmall Box Office 'sabotage' Netflix's China launch?

SHANGHAI - What a difference three months makes. In March, Netflix's chief content officer Ted Sarandos told reporters in Shanghai that the US video-streaming service was pursuing a launch in China. Yesterday, Alibaba threw a spanner in the works.

Trading places in Greater China: Xu, Tang, Wong, Koo, Wu, Hirebet and more

Here is a roundup of the last few weeks' major people moves in advertising, marketing, media and digital in Greater China. Please let us know if we missed anyone.

IPG to discontinue Initiative brand in Hong Kong

HONG KONG - IPG Mediabrands Hong Kong has just announced the discontinuation of the Initiative agency brand in Hong Kong, with all existing staff to be consolidated within sister agency UM.

MediaCom China names ZenithOptimedia veteran as new CEO

SHANGHAI - MediaCom has appointed Rupert McPetrie, the outgoing head for Central and Eastern Europe at ZenithOptimedia, as the new CEO for China.

Bluefocus spends US$359 million on mobile ad platforms Madhouse and Domob

SHANGHAI - Bluefocus Communication Group will be acquiring smartphone ad platform Domob for US$288.1 million and investing US$71.2 million for a 54.77 per cent stake in mobile ad platform Madhouse.

Galaxy Entertainment Group's MTR "advertising domination"

As a major part of its mega campaign to promote the opening of Galaxy Macau’s lavish second phase extension, Galaxy Entertainment Group has bought outdoor ad space at two high-traffic MTR stations for maximal awareness. Giant posters equipped with audio, projection and 2D pop-up effects was luring commuters at Hong Kong station, while the entire exit area at Sheung Wan station connecting to Hong Kong-Macau Ferry Terminal was covered wall-to-wall with the same posters.

Coke's summer sequel: From nicknames to lyrics to...movie quotes

SHANGHAI - With the launch of the second sequel to its highly successful ‘Share-A-Coke’ summer campaign in China, Coca-Cola continues to weave itself into the most potent pop-culture trends—this time with movie quotes.

Trading places in Greater China: Wong, Tsai, Maxwell, Ji, Wu, Yim and more

Here is a roundup of the last few weeks' major people moves in advertising, marketing, media and digital in Greater China. Please let us know if we missed anyone.

Help us research the use of KOLs in China

How are brands using KOLs (key opinion leaders) in China? Surprisingly little research has been done on this issue, yet it is critical to digital in China. Totem Media is conducting a survey on this topic and would like participation from brands and agencies in China.

MediaCom tipped to win US$40 million Bank Of China business

BEIJING - MediaCom is tipped to have recently won the media business from the Bank of China (BOC), said to be worth US$40 million (RMB250 million) in billings.

Tencent inaugurates institute, espouses new '4M' theory

BEIJING - At the official inauguration of the Tencent Marketing Institute last Thursday, Kotler Marketing Group (KMG), Peking University and Tencent University jointly put forward the new 4M (Moment, Message, Me, Memory) marketing theory.

Attitudes or behaviour: Is marketing focused on the right goals?

SHANGHAI - A roundtable discussion presented here Friday by Campaign Asia-Pacific in association with FCB tackled the industry's undue focus on narrow communications and awareness goals, rather than business objectives.

Miniature Barbies invade China, starting at McDonald's

SHANGHAI - Mattel has thrown Barbie-themed parties in more than 500 McDonald’s restaurants across China—turning seven of those into full-fledged Barbie fantasy worlds—in order to showcase its Mini-Barbie product line, designed specially for the Chinese market.

Galaxy Macau changes focus from VIPs to mass market

MACAU - As it opens its massive second phase, Galaxy Macau, like its gambling peers in the city, is now more concerned with media penetration than niche marketing to high rollers, according to its new media agency PHD.

Wieden+Kennedy Shanghai names managing director

SHANGHAI - Wieden+Kennedy has named Bryan Tilson as managing director, more than a year after Beats by Dre lured former MD Jason White away and left a management-by-committee approach in place for the agency.

FutureBrand increases scope beyond brand consulting in Greater China

HONG KONG / SHANGHAI - FutureBrand has announced a pair of appointments in Greater China that, according to the firm, elevate its positioning from that of brand consultancy to that of end-to-end provider.

Harbin Beer crowdsources KTV posters via Renren with RMB90,000 bait

SHANGHAI - Renren's new creative crowdsourcing platform, competing against the likes of eYeka, is gathering the youth of China to perform creative tasks for well-known brands. Harbin Beer is the latest.

Trading places in Greater China: Law, Mizuno, Tsang, Thessman and more

Here is a roundup of this week's major people moves in advertising, marketing, media and digital in Greater China. Please let us know if we missed anyone.

Fred & Farid's bad boy of Franco-Chinese advertising

Frederic Raillard's irreverent manner and intolerance for advertising drivel have made him, along with his longtime creative partner-in-crime Farid Mokart, shine in an unforgiving new market.

Strategy has to be more than planning or 'message massaging': FCB China

SHANGHAI - As FCB repositions as a 'behaviour change specialist', newly hired head of strategy and planning Willy Wong (黄栩材), has a big task ahead of him.

GroupM launches new global agency brand, ESP Properties

HONG KONG - GroupM has expanded its sports and entertainment offering with the launch of new global agency brand, ESP.

Bel: Cheese isn't just for serious eats

HONG KONG - Bel may be a 150-year-old French cheese company, but advertising in local markets has been historically low-key. However the need to enter a new battlefield, the snack category, has changed things.

Wyeth's Illuma uses music for child-development via Spotify

HONG KONG - Seven or eight years ago, before the buzz of "content marketing" or branded playlists, Wyeth Nutrition used to give out CDs filled with music aimed at nurturing creativity in children.

Bates CHI&David picks up Volkswagen after pitch against DDB and TBWA

TAIPEI - Bates CHI&David has won Volkswagen’s creative business in Taiwan following one of the highest-profile pitches in the past six months.

Trading places in Greater China: Ng, Jiang, Chan, Wu, Ng, Tsang, Wong

Here is a roundup of this week's major people moves in advertising, marketing, media and digital in Greater China. Please let us know if we missed anyone.

Tiger Beer selects Publicis to lead creative in China

SHANGHAI - Tiger, the beer brand that originated in Singapore, has appointed Publicis Shanghai as its creative AOR for mainland China following a four-way pitch.

UPDATED: Innovation in China: Fixing mentality gaps and lingo clashes

SHANGHAI - As collaboration between brands and startups ramps up in China, intermediaries such as OMD, Starcom and Chinaccelerator are becoming official facilitators between entrepreneur-extraordinaires and major companies.

Nestlé China builds private trading desk via Mindshare and Miaozhen

BEIJING - Nestlé has worked with Mindshare and Miaozhen Systems to launch a private platform in China that allows programmatic trading of premium inventory with mainstream video publishers such as iQiyi, Sohu, Tencent and Youku.

Toms urges Chinese to lose shoes in philanthropic push

BEIJING - Toms, a US-based shoe brand known for its 'One for One' pledge, is kicking off a month-long brand-activation program in China that promises to help a child in need in exchange for naked-foot selfies.

Game developer Changyou strikes out at critics with humour

CHINA - China-based online game developer Changyou is promoting three new titles with a campaign that turns the tables on those who blame online games for making the people who play them antisocial.

Carat China parachutes in chief growth officer from Russia

SHANGHAI - Carat China has hired James May as chief growth officer. He joins from ADV Group in Russia.

Yi Li promoted to OgilvyOne China’s first chief data officer

BEIJING - Pledging to boost its data competence, OgilvyOne has named Yi Li (李怡) as its first chief data officer in China.

Will the third time be the charm for Rakuten in China?

SHANGHAI - Japanese ecommerce giant Rakuten is taking a third shot at the Chinese market through a new investment in online rebate specialist Fanli, following unsuccessful forays with online travel agent Ctrip and search leader Baidu.

Wunderman ships in first China planning lead from Seattle

SHANGHAI - Mark Miller (马尚仁) is settling in as the new head of planning for Wunderman China's roster of agencies: Wunderman, Agenda and AdPeople.

Midea engages DDB and McCann in China

SHANGHAI - After separate competitive pitches, DDB and McCann have clinched the creative business for Midea's air-conditioning and water-appliance units, respectively.

Chinese smartphone maker LeTV attacks Apple with parody ad, Hitler image

BEIJING - Chinese electronics maker LeTV has openly lashed out at Apple with a campaign involving an open letter to Apple, a two-hour speech criticising Apple, a video parody of Apple's '1984' ad and a cartoon image of Adolf Hitler wearing an Apple armband.

Trading places in Greater China: Wong, Zhu, Ramakrishnan, Lo, Boo, Ho, Sharp, Cheng

Keeping up with who is where doing what in the fast-changing markets of China, Hong Kong and Taiwan is an ongoing challenge. Here is a roundup of this week's major people moves in advertising, marketing, media and digital. Please let us know if we missed anyone.

What is the 'Chinese speed'? A documentary about business creativity

SHANGHAI - Many still believe that the West churns out creative business thinkers by a dozen per hundred, while China is largely a land of 'cheap and rough' makers and idea-less learners. A self-funded documentary tries to reverse-engineer that elitist view.

Digital360China: Is China's digital ecosystem 'fragile'?

SHANGHAI - Senior industry leaders at Campaign Asia-Pacific’s second Digital360China conference in Shanghai on 23 April expressed caution about the fragility of China’s digital landscape.

Photos: Digital360China summit and Digital A-List China

Campaign Asia-Pacific's Digital360China summit and Digital A-List China ceremony, both in their second year, brought together on 23 April more than 400 attendees from leading brands, agencies and media to debate trends in China's digital marketing industry and to see the members of the new A-List (thealist.campaignasia.com) receive their recognition.

Starcom Guangzhou retains Céstbon’s media account

GUANGZHOU - Starcom has once again been appointed by Céstbon to handle all media planning and buying duties in China, following a closed-door pitch.

Why is water wet? Fonterra helps mums answer curious kids

HONG KONG - Fonterra has developed a digitally led advertising campaign for its Anmum pediatric milk powder brand that elevates the product positioning from solving nutritional needs to enhancing cognitive functions.

Ogilvy China appoints ECDs to further talent-grooming goals

SHANGHAI - Ogilvy China has made senior creative changes under CCO Graham Fink in a move that the agency said reflects the specific needs of the market in terms of language ability, cultural knowledge and fostering of talent.

CASE STUDY: How TC Bank Taiwan made savings books less yawn-inducing

TAIWAN - Dwarfed by large, global banking players with big budgets, Ta Chong Bank (TC Bank for short), differentiated itself to win new customers simply by making an owned asset less boring.

Nielsen and Alibaba offer tool for ecommerce optimisation, evolution

SHANGHAI - Nielsen and Alibaba have jointly launched 'New Offer Advisor' (赚金石), a tool that aims to help online retailers not only evaluate their ecommerce performance but also identify 'white spaces'—areas where unmet consumer needs are ripe for new products.

Chinese car buyers rely less on status, rationality or desk research: Carat

SHANGHAI - Car ownership in China has been growing rapidly in recent years, partly due to decreasing prices and increasing affordability. In time for the 16th Shanghai Auto Show this week, Carat has released a report analysing the behaviourial changes that have occurred among Chinese car consumers, as well as the roles media plays in their decision-making processes.

Trading places in Greater China: Chen, Chiew, Ma, Lui, Tonetto, Chu, Nan, Vakidis, Leung

Keeping up with who is where doing what in the fast-changing markets of China, Hong Kong and Taiwan is an ongoing challenge. Here is a roundup of this week's major people moves in advertising, marketing, media and digital. Please let us know if we missed anyone.

Taking the 'Greek' out of programmatic relationships: Webinar highlights

HONG KONG - This morning's finale of Campaign Asia-Pacific's series of webcasts for the year, presented in association with Turn, investigated the key ingredients to optimise not just programmatic buying campaigns, but the whole brand-agency-technology relationship.

Sorting out the problematic from the programmatic: Webinar highlights

HONG KONG - The collision of technology and marketing led to a lively discussion about subjects including consumer acceptance of data-driven targeting and the role of agencies during a webinar hosted earlier today by Campaign Asia-Pacific in association with the Economist.

DMPs the connective tissue in marketing: Webinar highlights

HONG KONG - Part three of Campaign Asia-Pacific’s four-part webinar series, presented in conjunction with Turn, examined data-management platforms (DMP) and how the technology should best be implemented and used.

Hazardous? No. Honest? Hopefully

CHINA - Actress Jessica Alba is set to launch her Honest brand, a range of baby feeding products, shampoos, personal-care lines, vitamins, diapers and blankets, in China by the end of 2015.

Have luxury brands been erecting 'churches' in China?

CHINA - Is the luxury industry facing an identity crisis? Probably yes, if the industry doesn't adapt its marketing strategy to the new demands of Chinese consumers, according to participants in a panel discussion hosted by the French Chamber in Hong Kong yesterday.

Online banking: China's Internet giants turn financial upstarts

Access to big data and marketing on their owned assets will give Chinese internet kingpins an edge as they break into a newly approved online banking sector.

Asia leads global regions in marketer-agency integration: R3

ASIA - Asian marketers and their agencies led all other regions in a new R3 report on trends in integration, the Integration 40.

Trading places in Greater China: Annen, Chen, Tian, Chow, McCaughan, Liu, Wang, Cheng

Keeping up with who is where doing what in the fast-changing markets of China, Hong Kong and Taiwan is an ongoing challenge. Here is a roundup of this week's major people moves in advertising, marketing, media and digital.

Cheil China wins Xiabuxiabu hotpot chain

BEIJING - Xiabuxiabu, which operates a chain of hotpot restaurants in China, has warmed up to Cheil China in a competitive pitch for its integrated marketing communications business.

PHD Hong Kong hires digital lead from CIMB Malaysia

HONG KONG - CIMB Malaysia's director of internet strategies Karen Thong has relocated to Hong Kong to take on the role of head of digital for PHD.

The vanishing tree in China: illusion or reality?

SHANGHAI – Four Grade 10 students from Shanghai High School's International Division took on a metaphorical art project in their own campus, which is really one of the branches of WWF's campaign to raise awareness of forest protection in China.

VivaKi integrates anonymised Tencent data into its DMP

SHANGHAI – VivaKi has partnered with Tencent in the field of data management platform (DMP) solutions in an agreement that will allow the two companies to jointly develop big data analytics for cross-screen marketing.

Six burning questions about programmatic advertising in China

With more digital advertising dollars shifting to programmatic buying in China, sorting out confusing viewpoints about DSPs, DMPs, PDBs and such are becoming more important with each passing day. And despite the importance of having a technology-centric, data-driven advertising agenda, many advertisers still have many questions. In this series of infographics, iPinYou, an independent DSP in China, sheds some light on six common questions it hears frequently from clients.

KFC tickles Singaporeans with local touches

SINGAPORE - In its first work since taking over the quick-serve brand from Ren Partnership earlier this year, Ogilvy & Mather brings a lighthearted Singaporean touch to a campaign for KFC.

China to Tencent: WeChat Moments ads appear too frequently

Two months after WeChat coyly took wraps off its in-feed ads on Moments, we review Tencent's data from a survey of 6,215 Chinese users about their sentiment towards news-feed ads in general, including those on QQ and Sina Weibo. The bad news is that many people complain about ads appearing too frequently. On the bright side, many of the complaints focus on ads for low-quality or counterfeit products. Chinese consumers did not object to advertising that they found relevant and engaging. Note: The text on the graphics provided is in Chinese. Our captions (underneath the images) explain the graphics to those who don't read Chinese.

Chinese loyalty to Korean beauty brands yet to be proven despite K-Pop craze

SHANGHAI - How much of the Chinese craze for Korean pop culture actually spills over to beauty brand preferences and purchases? Not as much as you might think, according to a quantitative study by Nielsen.

Nils Andersson leaves Y&R China for parallel role at TBWA

SHANGHAI - Nils Andersson, Y&R China's president and chief creative officer, will be stepping down in the summer to join TBWA, also as president and CCO for Greater China.

Maxus China forms ‘Play’ content division for BoCom, Haier, Sakura

SHANGHAI - Maxus has chosen China to debut a new content division called 'Play', as the lines between creative and media continue to blur.

JD.com's Paipai and WPP's Kuvera to cooperate on m-commerce in China

BEIJING - Kuvera, a WPP company specialising in end-to-end e-commerce in China, and Paipai, a social commerce platform on mobile owned by JD.com, signed an agreement that allows each other high-level access to online retailing tools, client recommendations and advertising inventory.

OMD Taiwan wins Asia Pacific Telecom from Vizeum

TAIWAN - OMD has trumped Vizeum in a pitch initiated by Asia Pacific Telecom Group (APTG) for a new media agency-of-record in Taiwan.

Chinese ambivalence toward mobile ads: data from OMD

This selection of slides from OMD's Dive Mobile report provides a breakdown of what Chinese consumers think about mobile advertising. Please see the related-article link at the bottom of the page for an article discussing key takeaways from the report.

Trading places in Greater China: Mercado, Crandall, Chu, Yim, Cheung, Dingle

Keeping up with who is where doing what in the fast-changing markets of China, Hong Kong and Taiwan is an ongoing challenge. Here is a roundup of this week's major people moves in advertising, marketing, media and digital.

CASE STUDY: How Intel China fed on-demand native content to IT decision-makers

CHINA - Intel needed an agile and adaptive solution for content-creation needs across all channels. Combining real-time audience targeting, 'dynamic creative' and native ads in Intel's B2B marketing brought the brand increases in engagement and media efficiency.

WeChat coyly takes wraps off news-feed ads

BEIJING - Taking a belated cue from Facebook, WeChat announced on 21 Janaury that it is taking the wraps off long-rumoured advertisements inside 'Moments', the app's equivalent of Facebook's News Feed.

Tourism Australia calls digital pitch in China

SHANGHAI - Tourism Australia (TA) is seeking the services of a new digital agency in China in a pitch that will close on 7 April.

OMD report explains Chinese ambivalence toward mobile ads

SHANGHAI - Quantitative research from OMD China has found that attitudes toward mobile advertising are ambivalent, with 66 per cent of respondents finding such ads annoying, necessary and interesting—all at the same time.

Irish tourism board turns WeChat green for St. Patrick's Day

SHANGHAI - Tourism Ireland's quirky tradition of 'greening' famous buildings and landmarks in recognition of St. Patrick's Day has been extended to WeChat.

Peter Dingle moves from Intel to Nest; will focus on connecting brands and startups

HONG KONG - Former Intel marketer Peter Dingle has moved to Hong Kong startup incubator Nest, where he will work to gain traction with brands in Asia on behalf of startups.

Sophie Marceau lends French glamour to Chinese eyewear brand

SHANGHAI - Bolon, a mid-range Chinese eyewear brand, has chosen French actress Sophie Marceau as its brand ambassador in China.

Trading places, Greater China: Ngai, Lee, Vaswani, So, Wen

Keeping up with who is where doing what in the fast-changing markets of China, Hong Kong and Taiwan is an ongoing challenge. Here is a roundup of this week's major people moves in advertising, marketing, media and digital. Please let us know if we missed anyone.

Radica links up with SAS to offer 'approachable analytics' to HK marketers

HONG KONG - Radica Systems has collaborated with SAS to offer a more comprehensive Customer Relationship Management (CRM) solution by integrating SAS‘s technology capabilities in advanced analytics and Radica’s specialties in direct marketing.

Civilization bags Master Kong bottled-tea brands

SHANGHAI - Master Kong (KSF) shifts brand management and lead agency duties for five of its bottled-tea brands from Neo@Ogilvy China to Civilization.

How Twitter's new Hong Kong office will approach Chinese brands

HONG KONG - Yesterday's official announcement that Twitter has opened a sales office in Hong Kong received widespread coverage because of the office's proximity to a market where Twitter isn't even visible. Here, the company's sales director for emerging markets explains why it took Twitter so long to open here and how the platform aims to help Chinese brands reach global audiences.

Real Madrid is the most popular club in China...online

Mailman Group's Red Card 2015 indexed the engagement ratings of global football teams across China’s football-obsessed digital landscape. Real Madrid is the highest ranked club, narrowly beating Spanish rival FC Barcelona. The data assesses seven key performance metrics including social following and online buzz across China’s major networks such as Sina and Tencent Weibo, Netease, TMall, Weishi and WeChat. Key questions the report answers are: What new revenue streams have football clubs started creating this year? Which club drives the most sales on Tmall? And which European team or World Cup nation is most successful in China right now?

CASE STUDY: How DBS HK used data to reduce cost of acquisition

HONG KONG - DBS applied programmatic buying to its digital campaigns and achieved an average CPA (cost per acquisition) of 53 per cent less than the industry average by employing both third-party and internal CRM data.

Le spectacle! Opening of Fred & Farid Beijing

French independent digital creative agency Fred & Farid has opened a second office in China, in Beijing's Sanlitun district, one of the most trendy and dynamic areas of the city. "If Shanghai is the economic capital of China, Beijing is the political, intellectual and cultural capital of the country," according to the agency, which entered the market two years ago. Like FF's campaigns, the new office environs have that touch of French seduction.

McDonald's asks China to 'seize the day' by seizing pancakes

CHINA - The pancake is on us, but the breakfast is on you. McDonald's gave away two million bacon-and-egg pancake vouchers yesterday in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen. The promotion under the proposition of seizing the day '拿下今天，从早餐开始' is really a soft sell of its higher-margin breakfast items.

CNY recap: Paperless hongbaos, paper cuts with French twist, and more

GREATER CHINA - Judging from the number of sheep-like noises we made when we came across cool bits of marketing throughout the 15-day Chinese New Year celebration (which culminates today in the annual Lantern Festival ‘元宵节'), there were quite a few newsworthy and significant things to bleat about. Here's a few of our favourites.

Trading places, Greater China: Ma, Cruz, Potter, Soetanto, Gaywood, Lo and more

Keeping up with who is where doing what in the fast-changing markets of China, Hong Kong and Taiwan is an ongoing challenge. Here is a roundup of this week's major people moves in advertising, marketing, media and digital. Please let us know if we missed anyone.

Newcast Beijing wins Huawei's social account in seven-way pitch

BEIJING - Newcast Beijing has been appointed the social media agency for Huawei Device after an "intensive" seven-way pitch.

Dentsu Aegis Network brings umbrella investment unit into China

SHANGHAI - Dentsu Aegis Network has launched Amplifi, a division to bring together the group's investment management, media partnerships, programmatic buying and content capability under one umbrella, in China as part of a progressive global rollout.

The anatomy of Chinese customer loyalty

CHINA - Loyalty is a choice. Or is it? Recent research by Epsilon into Chinese spending attitudes provides a perspective on how faithfulness and devotion to a brand can be strengthened.

Give talent some space: Media360Summit

The media business is shooting itself in the foot by putting unreasonable demands on its employees, according to an industry lawyer.

Burberry finds Chinese-speaking markets hard to please

CHINA / HONG KONG - Rather than good fortune, Burberry's special-edition scarf for Chinese New Year has brought the brand grief not only in China, but also in Hong Kong.

Trading places: Last week's people moves within Greater China

Keeping up with 'who is where doing what now' in the fast-changing markets of China, Hong Kong and Taiwan is an ongoing challenge when the talent pool is never (ahem, satisfied with their pay) stable. Here is a roundup of the last week's major people moves in advertising, marketing, media and digital. Please let us know if we missed anyone.

China leads in 'owned-first' thinking: ZenithOptimedia

HONG KONG - As part of ZenithOptimedia's push for a new approach to media planning called ‘owned-first’, the agency has been busy training its planners. Campaign sat down with Frank Harrison (worldwide strategic resources director) and Nico Guiridlian (APAC managing director of international clients) after one of the training sessions.

Email marketing tips: Personalise without frightening, avoid the spam box

BEIJING / HONG KONG - Campaign sat down with Emarsys executives Stuart Barker (Hong Kong country manager) and Ofri Cohen (China general manager) and asked them to explain the insights and analytics that go on behind promotional emails—in plain English.

Trading places: January's people moves within Greater China

Keeping up with 'who is where doing what now' in the fast-changing markets of China, Hong Kong and Taiwan is an ongoing challenge when the talent pool is never (ahem, satisfied with their pay) stable. Here is a round-up of the last month's major people moves in advertising, marketing, media and digital. Please let us know if we missed anyone.

How an online liquor store in China boosted email-marketing revenue

CASE STUDY: Email marketing in China is difficult due to a lack of transparency in the filtering and blocking policies of China's largest ISPs. Here's how one brand worked with its email provider to keep up with the changes and secure a 20 percent increase in revenue.

OgilvyOne, Isobar and Razorfish lead the pack in China: Forrester

SHANGHAI - OgilvyOne takes the top spot in research by Forrester that examined how the eight most significant digital agencies in China stack up against one another in terms of strategy and execution capabilities.

Is your brand in the good books of China's super-rich?

SHANGHAI - The latest Hurun Research report details the brands of choice among Chinese luxury consumers in categories ranging from red wine to business jets to equestrian clubs.

UPDATED: Tencent’s Lau named Cannes Lions Media Person of the Year

BEIJING - Tencent’s SY Lau is the first Chinese company executive to be named Cannes Lions Media Person of the Year.

Frutips hits the goofy spot of Hong Kong teenagers

HONG KONG - More than 1.3 million organic views in 10 days for a YouTube video is a staggering number for the little market of Hong Kong—especially when you consider the target audience in this case is only one-seventh of the city's population.

Tech surpasses banks; China on par with MNCs: BrandZ 2015

BEIJING - Tencent and new entrant Alibaba have overtaken longtime leader China Mobile to claim the top two spots in the just-released fifth annual BrandZ ranking. But beyond the headline numbers, the story of the most valuable Chinese brands carries more nuances.

McCann puts Spencer Wong's name on its door in Hong Kong

HONG KONG - In a rare move, McCann Hong Kong will be renamed McCann & Spencer in recognition of its nine-year veteran CEO/CCO, Spencer Wong.

Hooters to rack up 30 new 'breastaurants' in Asia

HONG KONG - Puns and inappropriate plays on words are hard to resist when discussing Hooters, but the brand is quite serious about expanding in Asia, where success in Phuket has led the chain to plan 30 new locations over the next six years.

#Media360Summit: Twitter 'versus' Tencent

HONG KONG - The Media360Summit, the region's top event for leaders of the media industry, put two of the world's most-talked about media platforms on the same stage for a mostly friendly discussion of what makes each platform work and where each may be headed.

Chinese agencies selling to curious takers

Under pressure for growth, Chinese agencies are side-stepping the standard network model for some unexpected alternatives.

PepsiCo China courts crowdsourcers in 2015 CNY co-creation

BEIJING / SHANGHAI - This year's CNY blast from PepsiCo acknowledges that blockbuster-type commercials do not engage with the members of the post-90s generation as much as opportunities to express themselves through crowdsourced campaigns.

Drones take off in Taobao air freight test

BEIJING / SHANGHAI / GUANGZHOU - Alibaba Group's shopping website Taobao partnered with Chinese logistics company YTO Express in a one-off trial of drone technology to deliver ginger tea packets to 450 customers.

Danny Mok replaces Donald Chan as CEO of Leo Burnett China

SHANGHAI - Danny Mok (莫熙慈) is officially the new CEO of Leo Burnett's China operations as of tomorrow, after predecessor Donald Chan's (陈念端) departure.

PHD Hong Kong wins Audemars Piguet from Havas Media

HONG KONG - Swiss luxury watch brand Audemars Piguet is understood to have appointed PHD as its new media agency for the market.

Tempo moves business from ZenithOptimedia to PHD in Hong Kong

HONG KONG - Tempo is tipped to have switched its media business in the local market from ZenithOptimedia back to PHD after one year, veering away from a global alignment partly due to the acquisition of the tissue brand's parent company, SCA, by Vinda.

Too much structure obstructs: Ogilvy's Reitermann

SHANGHAI - Ogilvy & Mather's scale has led many employees to liken working there to being a cog in a wheel. Having been promoted to China CEO in September, Chris Reitermann delivers an update on how he has tried to change the agency's discipline-centric structure into client-specific teams, and weighed the advantages of being a "modern elephant".

Wellcome banks on deity-magician to work wonders for Chinese New Year

HONG KONG - Wellcome's celebrity dream-team of Bowie Wu (胡楓), Helena Law (羅蘭), Fred Cheng (鄭俊弘), Roger Kwok (郭晉安) and Joey Meng (萬綺雯), is conjuring up a supermarket-utopia for its Year Of the Ram campaign, where everyone is turned into a God Of Fortune.

Saatchi & Saatchi sets dogs and ghosts on staff to stem overwork

GUANGZHOU/HONG KONG - Agency types are known for burning the midnight oil (and often the 1 am, 2 am and 3 am oil as well). Concern about the morale and health effects of such late nights led Saatchi & Saatchi to champion an internal 'Bark you up at 6:45' movement.

Chinese cosmetics brand calls on star power for run at premium market

SHANGHAI - Director Wong Kar-wai's style of romantic fantasy is evident in a new campaign for Maysu, a brand that is in the mood for love from high-end cosmetics buyers.

Grey China creates CIO role for Saatchi & Saatchi's Oliver Xu

BEIJING - After 22 years in the advertising business in seven companies, Saatchi & Saatchi's Beijing group managing director Oliver Xu (徐宁) has moved on to Grey China.

China's internet finance brands take on big-four banks

MAINLAND CHINA - The country’s 'big four' banks (Bank of China, China Construction Bank, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, and Agricultural Bank of China) are losing their dominance in market share to internet finance brands like Alibaba's Yu’e Bao and Tencent's WeBank.

IPG Mediabrands HK appoints performance marketing leader

HONG KONG - IPG Mediabrands has appointed James Tagg as the director of performance marketing, overseeing digital and mobile initiatives for the agency group in Hong Kong.

Airwave China launches private programmatic platform for mobiles

SHANGHAI - Airwave, the mobile business unit of Omnicom Media Group, has unveiled the latest addition to China's mobile programmatic ecosystem: an enhanced buying platform for only premium inventory.

Neuschwansteiner: Beer named after castle courts exclusivity

HONG KONG - Restaurant group Fook Lam Moon (福臨門) has brought Neuschwansteiner Edelmärzen into the Cantonese market via its own gourmet product division, Fook Lam Moon Fine Foods.

Spotify partners with Pixels to reach Hong Kong advertisers

HONG KONG - FWD Insurance, Mercedes-Benz, one2free and McDonalds were the first advertisers in the market to sign onto Spotify running ad campaigns and branded playlists, and a new Pixels partnership aims to connect the music streaming service with more local brands.

Treasury Wine Estates hires strategic consultant for China market

SHANGHAI - Treasury Wine Estates (TWE) has engaged RTG Consulting as its strategic consultancy partner in China for services including qualitative and quantitative research, media and consumer auditing, and brand positioning development.

ZenithOptimedia agencies collect 20th Century Fox, Supor, CP Egg in China

BEIJING/SHANGHAI - Optimedia has won CP Egg and 20th Century Fox, while Zenith Shanghai has been assigned the traditional and digital media planning tasks for Supor without a pitch.

McGarryBowen China names CEO and CCO

SHANGHAI - Simone Tam and Jeffry Gamble, both previously from DDB, are starting their new appointments at McGarryBowen China effective tomorrow (6 January).

New rules for China’s brand ambassadors

As China moves to outlaw ridiculous celebrity endorsement claims, brands will need to learn new marketing tactics.

Serviceplan ends Leo Burnett's five-year grip on BMW China

BEIJING - Serviceplan China has won BMW's traditional creative business in an elaborate six-month pitch process, which signifies an end to Leo Burnett's five-year relationship with the challenging account.

Starcom MediaVest Group China helps startups cozy up to its clients

SHANGHAI - Starcom MediaVest Group (SMG) has struck a first-in-market partnership with Chinaccelerator, a mentorship-driven seed-funding program, to work together to connect tech startups with SMG clients in the mainland.

Metlife draws on Snoopy, WeChat, apps to heighten consumer awareness

GREATER CHINA - Metlife, which has traditionally offered insurance products through bancassurance arrangements, agent distributors, brokerage networks and telemarketing, now has an acute focus on selling directly to consumers via digital tactics and calling on its longtime canine ambassador, Snoopy, to bark up brand awareness.

Neil Stewart to leave Maxus for Facebook

SINGAPORE - Neil Stewart, global chief client officer at Maxus, is to leave the company in January for an APAC role at Facebook.

A velvet barber chair, a half-done haircut and a deranged Shanghai adventure

SHANGHAI - Heineken's year-end marketing drive seeks to distill its global positioning around adventure into something more raving for Chinese men.

McDonald's hijacks HKTV drama in industry-first spot

HONG KONG - Right after a shootout scene from the popular HKTV police drama Borderline (警界線), a McDonald's spokescharacter appears to disrupt the plot—in a newfangled method of product placement made possible with the flexibility of online broadcasting.

WE Group zeros in on marketing technology

BEIJING - WE Group has launched a fourth firm in China, WE Tech, as an independent company. Its purview is to serve clients beyond the parent company's roster and focus on the development of mobile, social and e-commerce applications and software.

Standard Chartered calls 14-agency digital pitch in China

SHANGHAI - Standard Chartered Bank (SCB) is tipped to have invited 14 agencies including Grey, Blue Digital, Arkr Group and Rice5 for a digital pitch.

Have a better name for Beefeater? VisitBritain asks Chinese to name UK attractions

BEIJING - A lot of tourism marketing campaigns are centralised to the B2B supply chain due to economies of scale, but VisitBritain's new campaign directly addresses Chinese consumers—appealing to their fascination with giving nicknames to everything.

Lowe China bags local OTC brand 999's creative business

SHENZHEN - Lowe China has won the creative duties for an over-the-counter medicine brand, China Resources Sanjiu Medical & Pharmaceutical, also known colloquially as 999.

Tony Chen resurfaces at Google China

BEIJING - Former GroupM executive Tony Chen has been appointed as vice president of sales for Google China in a widely expected move.

Pun control: Will wordplay suppression stifle Chinese creativity?

BEIJING - China's new anti-pun regulation, if strictly applied, may force copywriters to stay away from puns for TV advertising campaigns, but it is not likely to be the end of creativity as we know it.

Yue leaves Grey China, Lim is new Beijing creative chief

BEIJING - Yue Chee Guan, the national ECD of Grey Group China, left the agency on 28 November after a decade of service. Alvin Lim is the new creative chief for the Beijing office, while Attlee Ku remains in charge of Shanghai's creative operations.

The 11.11 Debrief: China's retail bonanza

Campaign Asia-Pacific presents a comprehensive, multi-faceted look at China's recent Single's Day, including infographics and expert opinions on the monumental sales figures, the surprising consumer behaviours and the conclusions about what it all means for brands.

What would Bruce Lee drink? Punchin’ Milk Tea or Kickin' Coffee

HONG KONG - What's Bruce Lee's favorite drink? Answer: Wah-taaaah! It's an old joke about the kungfu master's "war cry". Now Lee's daughter is updating the joke into a 'saleable liquid' concept.

Coke China seeks 'refreshing' ideas through crowdsourcing

GREATER CHINA - Joining Unilever, Hyundai and many other brands that have used crowdsourcing platform Eyeka to generate marketing inspiration, Coca-Cola is launching two contests in China with a total prize pool of more than US$36,000.

HKTV's online TV alternative starts strong, but will it last?

HONG KONG - Following the formal launch of the embattled Hong Kong Television Network (HKTV) on 19 November, more than 30 advertisers have confirmed bookings on the platform so far.

Jung von Matt/Tonghui wins Fujian Benz Automotive

BEIJING - Fujian Benz in China has appointed Jung von Matt/Tonghui as strategic and creative lead agency for the next two years.

One North Face jacket conquers parallel worlds

SHANGHAI - The North Face tells two stories of adventure and exploration at once in a new online video that delivers its 'Never stop exploring' message.

HK4A's present Hong Kong’s Kam Fan Awards

The 30th annual HK4A's Kam Fan Awards Presentation Gala, which took place Friday, included a Grand Prix and two Kam Fans for the Film & Promo/Activation categories, as well as nine golds, 18 silvers and 47 bronzes. This year’s Kam Fan Jury was led by Akira Kagami (executive advisor of Drill Inc Japan) with a panel consisting of Endy Fung (story barista of Storybusi Shanghai), Graham Kelly (former regional ECD of Isobar Asia Pacific), Allen Lee (group creative director of United Advertising Taiwan), Ted Lim (regional chief creative officer of Dentsu Aegis Network South-East Asia) and Stefan Schmidt (founder and creative director of dieckertschmidt Berlin).

The 8 flavours of Bruce Lee Instant Drinks

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Creative crosstalk: Five questions for three Greater China ECDs

Campaign Asia-Pacific asks a trio of ECDs from Cheil Hong Kong and OgilvyOne Shanghai some off-the-wall questions, leading to insights into their markets,the importance of achieving cultural relevance and the ingredients of virality.

'Oneisms' from One Show's first festival for Greater China

BEIJING - We couldn't go to New York, but this year the One Show came to us with its first-ever festival in China. Here we present highlights from some of the more interesting speakers who made the trip from the US.

Perfetti Van Melle consolidates media into Optimedia China

SHANGHAI - Optimedia, the incumbent media agency for Perfetti Van Melle, has retained the sweet-maker's traditional media planning and buying business in a four-way pitch, while also being awarded new digital duties for China.

Brand actions that drive consumers mad

HONG KONG - If consumers reward brands for being authentic, what do they punish them for? In other words, what brand behaviours are most likely to cause people to see red?

Alibaba softens stance on 'Double-Eleven' trademark battle

HANGZHOU - After the 'Double-Eleven' trademark issue triggered a three-week long war of words between e-commerce rivals, Alibaba Group CEO Jonathan Lu (陆兆禧) is now saying it is "always an open festival that belongs to all participants".

Wieden+Kennedy Shanghai confirms nine layoffs

SHANGHAI - Wieden+Kennedy laid off nine staffers last Friday, half as many as rumoured, Campaign Asia-Pacific has confirmed.

Brands, your social-media strategy may be deluded

SHANGHAI - Most brands are targeting an archetype of social-media users called self-affirmers that form only 12 per cent of the social-media population, according to a report by OMD China and IFOP Asia.

Anchor milk also 'comes out' after Tim Cook

SHANGHAI - When Apple CEO Tim Cook publicly came out at the end of October, saying he was “proud to be gay”, the buzz on China's social media platforms was overwhelming, and Anchor milk (安佳牛奶) jumped on the hot topic.

Clever or nuts? Animating walnuts for Chinese consumption

SHANGHAI - The interior of a walnut resembles a brain, and this campaign mirrors just that—how eating walnuts will make you brainy. But we still can't get our head around how the campaign approach shifts the category norm.

11.11 shopathon breaks record halfway through day

HANGZHOU - Consumers have spent more than RMB 35 billion (US$5.7 billion) over Alibaba Group’s e-commerce platforms as of 1 pm today, beating last year's total for the 11.11 shopping festival after just 13 hours.

3M takes command of its sales with 'shoppable' video

TAIWAN - See an adhesive hook you like? Click on it to buy it, in 3M's first 'shoppable video' which is aimed at shortening the path to purchase for its Command brand.

Y&R Guangzhou wins Biostime business

GUANGZHOU - Maternal and child nutrition brand Biostime has appointed Y&R as its creative agency, focusing on brand strategy and communications for its milk powder and probiotic products.

Alibaba opens up sales-related ecommerce data

SHANGHAI - For the first time, Alibaba opened up e-commerce data to third parties like AdMaster to help brands like P&G evaluate marketing effectiveness through the analysis of consumer navigation paths and shopping behaviour.

Niche but nice: A guide to China's up-and-coming social sites

CHINA - The two biggest platforms, WeChat and Weibo, get most of the attention in discussions about social media in China, but a growing number of supporting players represents the next wave of social.

The social elite: R3 report highlights nine APAC agencies

ASIA-PACIFIC - In a first of its kind, R3 has published 'Social 40', a report on the state of social media globally, along with profiles of the 40 most creative and effective agencies, including nine in Asia.

HSBC HK goes down video route, but still a practical route

HONG KONG - HSBC has launched a new thematic campaign centred around three short videos that take a soft-sell approach (at least by Hong Kong standards).

Behind the scenes of reducing traffic accidents... and making award judges cry

SHANGHAI - How does one get a haul of awards for a campaign without an actual client brief? We investigated the sequence of events behind Lowe China’s ‘Human traffic signs’ tear-jerker for Buick, among the most awarded pieces of Chinese creative this year.

CASE STUDY: Puma drives F1 sponsorship awareness without media spending

How Puma stood out among other sponsors of the 2014 Formula 1 Chinese Grand Prix, without spending on traditional media.

Behind the scenes: Adidas‬' World Cup 'war room' in China

SHANGHAI - How does a major brand run a real-time social-media effort tied to a huge sporting event? VML IM2.0 provides a look inside the Shanghai ‘war room’ that it claims won Adidas a social-media payoff three times greater than Nike during the 2014 World Cup.

Evelyn Wang heads to Optimedia Shanghai from Havas Media

SHANGHAI - Optimedia Shanghai has appointed Evelyn Wang (王琛豪) as deputy general manager after she spent nearly five years at Havas Media.

Ian Thubron to leave TBWA after a decade

HONG KONG / SHANGHAI - Campaign Asia-Pacific has confirmed the top APAC executive at TBWA will be leaving the agency in February to start his own advisory business.

Luxury brands of Chinese origin to rule the roost: Added Value

SHANGHAI - Selling luxury in China will require getting 'beyond bling' and connecting with the cultural zeitgeist of Chinese consumers, according to an Added Value report that looks at how luxury brands of Chinese origin are getting cultural innovation right.

Y&R appointed as AOR for Burger King China

SHANGHAI - Y&R Shanghai has been appointed to help Burger King (汉堡王) expand in the China market as the fast-food chain tries to recover from lingering effects of July's meat supplier scandal.

Programmatic buying no solution without data breakthrough

SHANGHAI - Precision targeting cannot happen in China without greater willingness to share data, experts said in a panel discussion organised by AdMaster yesterday.

MEC Hong Kong wins Regal Hotels' Greater China SEM duties

HONG KONG - MEC has been awarded the global search engine marketing business for Regal Hotels International as the client gets ready to build a new O2O travel loyalty platform.

Why Weibo isn't going big on social commerce

HONG KONG - Ken Hong, general manager of Weibo's strategy marketing, speaks to Campaign Asia-Pacific about why there is so little buzz about Weibo as a social commerce tool.

Standard Chartered HK: Sensible in banks, quirky online

HONG KONG - In line with its 'Good life' motto, Standard Chartered Bank of Hong Kong has launched a social-driven campaign that highlights relatively unknown shopping 'gems' in the city in an attempt to connect with a young audience.

Period pain got you down? Take an AR selfie with your sanitary pad

SHANGHAI - Leveraging the insight that periods, while a pain, also bring women together, JWT has created an augmented reality app that combines Chinese consumers’ love of technology, cute characters and selfies into a new branded platform for Sofy sanitary pads.

How Hong Kong's Apple Daily is withstanding Occupy Central fallout

HONG KONG - As the Occupy Central protests enter their 20th day, Apple Daily, a local publication with a strong pro-democratic slant, is enjoying ad support and appears to be withstanding harassment and attacks in both physical and virtual space.

Y&R beats three rivals for Li Ning creative account

SHANGHAI - Y&R has secured the creative business from Li Ning that used to be handled by Soho Square under Ogilvy & Mather.

Richard Lee's curious double-CMO role for Pepsi and Master Kong

SHANGHAI - In September, Richard Lee, PepsiCo's Greater China chief marketing officer, took on an additional role as CMO for Master Kong Beverages. In his trademark confident manner, Lee speaks out about the potential conflict of handling two of the largest beverage brands in China.

Pixel Media, Adsfactor and Snap Mobile merge to form Pixels in Hong Kong

HONG KONG - Pixel Media Group is restructuring into a multi-screen advertising firm by merging three business units (Pixel Media, Adsfactor and Snap Mobile) into a single entity capable of delivering across all platforms.

Y&R bags Old Navy in China amid launch criticism

SHANGHAI - Y&R is tipped to have taken on Old Navy's creative account around July after the opening of its first store in mainland China in March 2014.

MediaCom China hires head of insights from McDonald’s Malaysia

SHANGHAI - MediaCom China has appointed Saw Gin Toh as head of insights for China to oversee the existing insights team and work on the agency's strategic offering.

Will China buy into the 'Lincoln Way'?

SHANGHAI - Lincoln has only one chance to do it right in China, since it's the one of the last luxury automakers to enter the market.

Rejoice smooths the kinks in your hair...and your marriage?

HONG KONG - Maybe the course of true love never did run smooth, but Rejoice is inspiring lovers to keep their relationships going smoothly with a provocative online film about divorce.

CTBC Bank draws parallels between fishery client and own expansion

TAIWAN - CTBC's first branding commercial focuses on Lung Soon Ocean Group, a fishery that banks with the company, to illustrate how similar its overseas ambitions are.

Wong Cho Lam dresses up in drag... again, for MTR

HONG KONG - Hong Kong's favourite drag queen Wong Cho Lam (王祖藍) impersonates famous film star and singer Andy Lau as well as local household name Carol Cheng, all in the good name of public transport safety.

Alibaba inks data deal with Nielsen for O2O impetus

SHANGHAI - Alibaba and Nielsen will combine their data for the first time to provide an unified view of both the online and offline buying habits of Chinese consumers.

You want a marketing challenge, you got it in China: Adidas

SHANGHAI - Speaking at the 2012 Asian Marketing Effectiveness Festival with the same intensity of an athlete under highly rigorous training, Colin Currie, managing director of Adidas Greater China, laid out a game plan to win the sports marketing race in the mainland.

East vs West, good vs bad: Dissecting 'glocalisation' in branding

SHANGHAI - At the 2012 Asian Marketing Effectiveness Festival, Tom Doctoroff, Mythili Chandrasekar, and Jordan Price from JWT sat down with the agency's clients Leanne Cutts from Kraft Foods and Rex Wong from Anheuser-Busch InBev to ask how much gravitas the cultural gap between the East and West has on branding.

If cows can be pink, oceans can be purple: Isobar

SHANGHAI - At the 2012 Asian Marketing Effectiveness Festival, Jean Lin, CEO of Isobar Asia-Pacific, global chief strategy officer of Isobar Global and founder of wwwins Isobar Greater China, educated the audience on her vision of a "purple ocean" strategy.

A populist view on effectiveness: For the many, not the few

SHANGHAI - A sombre, inspiring discussion on populism and humanitarianism by Aline Santos, senior vice president of Unilever, and Tony Wright, chairman of Lowe + Partners, wrapped up the 2012 Asian Marketing Effectiveness Festival here today.

Ogilvy's 21st-century update of founder's advertising wisdom

SHANGHAI - On day two of the Asian Marketing Effectiveness Festival this morning, Ogilvy & Mather's global effectiveness director Tim Broadbent and China chief creative officer Graham Fink distilled the 1909-word long, 38-point treatise written by David Ogilvy four decades ago into tips that are still relevant today.

You want a marketing challenge, you got it in China: Adidas

SHANGHAI - Speaking at the 2012 Asian Marketing Effectiveness Festival with the same intensity of an athlete under highly rigorous training, Colin Currie, managing director of Adidas Greater China, laid out a game plan to win the sports marketing race in the mainland.

The evolution of advertising into participatory acts of social change

SHANGHAI - At the Asian Marketing Effectiveness Festival this morning, Nayantara Bali from Procter & Gamble Asia and Chris Thomas from BBDO & Proximity deconstruct how activation of the social self-schema in advertising is a salient attitude that both marketers and agencies should adopt.

Tablets not in a silo, but part of overall marketing mix: PHD

SHANGHAI - At the 2012 Asian Marketing Effectiveness Festival, Cheuk Chiang, Asia Pacific CEO of PHD, looked into the branding potential of tablets—what he called the first generation of the next generation of computing.

Technology to amplify reach of the world's oldest ad medium: Kinetic

SHANGHAI - In the opening address of the 2012 Asian Marketing Effectiveness Festival, Chris O'Donnell, Asia-Pacific CEO of Kinetic Worldwide, made some key predictions on how technology will transform the outdoor advertising business in the next decade.

Largest-ever Adidas marketing campaign continues globally

GLOBAL - Adidas has launched the latest chapter of its largest-ever 'Adidas is all in' campaign for its ClimaCool collection, leveraging the influence of prominent global celebrities including David Beckham and Katy Perry.

Tencent to integrate Weibo and Qzone to leverage online advertising

BEIJING – Chinese internet giant Tencent is integrating its microblog platform, Tencent Weibo, and its social networking service, Qzone, to form a "social marketing platform" that will “offer a complete solution to brand partners and users”.

Samsung gains popularity, e-commerce tops web searches : Experian Hitwise

HONG KONG - Facebook advertising and search marketing are the best tools for digital marketers, according to online intelligence firm Experian Hitwise's inaugural report analysing web search patterns in 2011.

Johnson’s Baby brings out the interior designer in Malaysian mums

KUALA LUMPUR - Johnson’s Baby is using social gaming to increase brand bonding with Malaysian mothers, especially first-time mums.

Brands set to be more playful with gamification in 2012: Millward Brown

SYDNEY - Brands are to become more playful with gamification mechanics in 2012, predicts research consultancy Millward Brown.

CASE STUDY: Tribal DDB Malaysia revs up buzz for Proton's Monte Carlo rally

Proton's 'Rallye to Monte-Carlo' campaign upped the Malaysian auto brand's image a notch before it entered the motorsports event for the first time this year.

Sega launches augmented reality app featuring Sonic the Hedgehog

SYDNEY - JWT Sydney and Sega have launched a multiplatform campaign based around an augmented reality app to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Sonic the Hedgehog.

Dongfeng-Yulon: Big ambitions for the SUV market in China

SHANGHAI - Dongfeng-Yulon president, Jack Hsin-Fa Wu, is taking an understated but firm approach to putting his brand on the global automotive stage.

Outage turns into outrage as Blackberry's reputation takes a hit

MUMBAI - Research In Motion's scattered silence over the four-day outage of some Blackberry applications has cast a shadow over its brand reputation in India, one of the few growth markets for the beleaguered smartphone maker.

SMRT dedicates space for mobile interaction with NFC tags, QR codes

SINGAPORE - Commuters can now interact with brands and services using their mobile phones in NFC-enabled outdoor spaces at 5 SMRT train stations.

Gen Y picks the internet over cars, dating, and partying

GLOBAL - The Internet is more important to Generation Y than dating, going out with friends, listening to music, or owning a car, according to a Cisco-commissioned survey.

MasterCard teams up with Wayne 'Buck' Shelford for Rugby World Cup in New Zealand

NEW ZEALAND - Rugby devotees will have the chance to get up close and personal with Kiwi rugby player Wayne 'Buck' Shelford as part of MasterCard's Rugby World Cup campaign.

Wunderman launches digital marketing arm ZAAZ in Asia-Pacific

SINGAPORE - Wunderman has launched the Asia-Pacific division of ZAAZ, a Seattle-based digital marketing agency, out of its Singapore office.

CASE STUDY: Kee Wah combines social altruism with social media success

HONG KONG - Kee Wah's social altruism campaign for this year's mid-autumn's festival catapulted its Facebook fanbase, with freebies of the charitable kind.

Tribal DDB widens Greater China footprint to Guangzhou

GUANGZHOU - Tribal DDB will launch the digital network’s first office in Guangzhou, complementing the group’s existing four offices in Greater China – Shanghai, Beijing, Hong Kong and Taipei.

'Networking after dark' opens agency doors for Spikes Asia 2011

SINGAPORE - On the second evening of Spikes Asia 2011, five agencies will open their doors for another night of networking opportunities.

FT woos broader readership with new branding campaign

ASIA PACIFIC - The Financial Times is launching a FT.com branding campaign today for beginners to the paper, with particular emphasis on Hong Kong and Singapore.

CASE STUDY: When Malaysian men rescued Angelina Jolie and saved the box office

Universal McCann Malaysia played on the primal instincts of testosterone-filled male moviegoers to get them to watch Salt.

Avon hires StartJG for a make-over of its cosmetics brands

ASIA-PACIFIC - Avon has given StartJG the creative business for its Avon Color and Simply Pretty cosmetics brands in Asia.

Anjali Rao quits CNN and enters partnership with The Media Village

ASIA-PACIFIC - CNN news anchor Anjali Rao has resigned from her post after six years to host new lifestyle programmes with production company The Media Village.

WaterAid appoints R/GA to redevelop its global digital presence

SINGAPORE - WaterAid, an international not-for-profit organisation, has appointed R/GA to redefine its overall global digital strategy and redevelop its online presence.

Watch: CES Asia 2016 highlights

SHANGHAI - The only two agencies exhibiting at CES Asia 2016—same two as last year—presented differing definitions of marketing innovation, with one focusing on data analytics that serve advertising and the other asserting that innovation should go beyond advertising.

Why 'Made In China' is getting more thumbs-ups: Research

CHINA - “Made in China” once meant cheap or copied. That’s changing, according to recent reports from OMD and McKinsey, as the perceived quality of domestic brands strengthens and home-grown brands earn loyalty for their responsiveness.

China’s thirst for functional beverages

SECTOR STUDY: A national health and wellness kick has spurred the rise of drinks with added benefits, which are perceived to be low in sugar and made with natural flavours.

Exclusive CES Asia video: Tech packaged for marketers' consideration

SHANGHAI - Dentsu Aegis Network (DAN) was one of two media agencies exhibiting marketable innovations at the inaugural CES Asia show that wrapped up yesterday after a three-day run. Campaign Asia-Pacific's Jenny Chan got a look at some technologies that might be of interest to marketers in this exclusive video report.

Watch: Coke on the breadth and limitations of marketing 'happiness'

Campaign Asia-Pacific talks to Coca-Cola's Shakir Moin (China VP and CMO) and Rodolfo Echeverria (VP of global creative, connections and digital) about the trigger for the brand's major strategic shift: millennials do not view 'happiness' as a lofty or idealistic concept anymore.

Saatchi & Saatchi China wins Porsche's creative and digital 10-way pitch

SHANGHAI - After a grueling four-month pitch against nine rival agencies including Leo Burnett, Wieden+Kennedy and WE Marketing, Saatchi & Saatchi Shanghai has emerged as Porsche's new agency for creative and digital marketing services in China.

Photos: Rise 2016 Marketing Track

Photos from Rise 2016's Marketing Track, held on 1 June at the Hong Kong Convention & Exhibition Centre

Exclusive: Just “a little artistic exaggeration” or raw racism?

HUNAN - An official response from Qiaobi (俏比) laundry detergent seems, at the very least, oblivious to the harsh, worldwide criticism heaped upon the company for its advertisement that shows a black man being washed into a fairer-skinned Chinese man.

Over-the-top TV provider shakes up HK market

Viu gains audience by offering popular content quickly and with Chinese subtitles.

Takeaways from Rise 2016's marketing track

Key points from onstage and off at yesterday's startup-oriented Rise 2016 conference in Hong Kong.

Dream Cruises chooses Leo Burnett for China brand launch

SHANGHAI - After a five-way competitive pitch against Fred & Farid, Mullen Lowe, Ogilvy & Mather and Wunderman, Leo Burnett will help launch Dream Cruises—billed as the first Asian luxury cruise line.

Cannes 2016: A cute complex can earn a nuts startup $100 million

Three Squirrels, one of only two Chinese startups speaking at the festival, revealed that super cuteness can be a superpower.

Practicology opens Hong Kong office, appoints Greater China head

UK-founded consultancy Practicology has launched in Hong Kong, its third Asia-Pacific office, to serve Chinese clients.

Disney working through Shanghai Resort teething period

The brand that Mickey built will have some work to do to counter online negativity about ticket prices and malfunctions during trial days.

Apple Pay to launch in Hong Kong via six banks this summer

Hong Kong is much slower than China in mobile payments thanks to the popularity of the Octopus card system, but the upcoming launch of Apple Pay in the city may shake up the situation.

UM Hong Kong wins regional media duties for VF Corporation

UM Hong Kong has been awarded the media business for VF Corporation in China, Hong Kong and South Korea following a closed-door pitch, reportedly against GroupM.

Cannes 2016: Chinese imitation explained through the eyes of Confucius

A talk at Cannes addressed why Westerners are known as better at innovation and the Chinese commonly seen as imitators.

Vince Viola named managing director of Addition+ Asia

The McCann veteran will head the programmatic company, tasked with product rollout and growth in the region.

Cannes 2016: Don't just think 'direct', think 'direct everywhere'

Campaign caught up with Richard Yu (游明仁), chief creative officer of ADK Taiwan, for his analysis on Taiwan's performance in the Direct Lions.

Cannes 2016: China at risk of becoming a "giant supermarket"

Campaign caught up with Peter Shen (沈翔), chief creative officer of Cheil PengTai China, for his analysis on China's performance in the Direct Lions.

Cannes 2016: We should laud true innovation versus "conceptual innovation"

Campaign caught up with Eric Cruz, executive creative cirector of AKQA Shanghai, for his analysis on Asia's performance in the new Digital Craft Lions, carved out of the craft categories from the Cyber and Mobile Lions.

Cannes 2016: Chinese design fixated on pleasing customers; no grand vision

Campaign caught up with Shen Yiwen (沈亿文), co-founder and chairperson of Jamewish Brand Consulting, for her analysis of China's performance in the Design Lions.

MediaMonks launches in Shanghai to tap into 'Chinese DNA'

Digital production company opens ninth international office in Shanghai after working with Chinese agencies out of Singapore since 2013.

China to require clear labels on paid search results

Government demands distinction between paid-for and organic search results after death related to bogus cancer treatment advertised on Baidu.

Why was mobile-manic Asia so conspicuously absent at Cannes?

Campaign caught up with Malcolm Poynton, this year’s Mobile Lions jury president and also global chief creative officer of Cheil Worldwide.

Wunderman's Conneen leaves after a decade, Schlickum to succeed

New leader comes from within WPP as Martin Conneen departs.

Tencent inks global-level partnership with Publicis

Latest deal with Publicis includes cultivating startups, investing in content and sharing behavioural data.

Photos: Campaign VIP beach party in Cannes

On Wednesday, Campaign hosted a VIP beach party at the Carlton in Cannes. Enjoy the special-occasion smiles from Kevin Costello, Atifa Silk, Claire Beale, Adrian Barrick, Cheuk Chiang, and watch out for the Campaign logo appearing in unexpected places. All photos (except one) taken by Campaign's Jenny Chan.

Video: WPP's Bessie Lee on downside of rushing to "hardcore advertising"

We spoke with WPP China CEO Bessie Lee at Cannes. Here she discusses how WeChat focused on improving user stickiness via good UX before getting harried about commercial monetisation.

Cannes 2016: Is your print work also able to start a conversation online?

Jury member Norman Tan on the Print & Publishing Lions

APAC CEO Tom Doctoroff leaves JWT

John Gutteridge steps up to regional role after leading the agency in Australia and New Zealand, as Tom Doctoroff exits.

SK-II's 'leftover women' lifts brand, purchase intent: YouGov

There has been much heated debate about SK-II’s 'leftover women' digital campaign (please see article link below) in China between the above-25s and below-25s. The latter group is indeed torn between trying to meet parental expectations to build a family, while at the same time wanting to marry for love. The above-25s have already chosen their path in life and feel less resonance with the campaign. YouGov's sampling data below shows results from the campaign launch two weeks ago. The metrics suggest that it is effective in brand lift as well as purchase consideration among current and former SK-II users as well as those of their key competitors. Overall, YouGov evaluates this campaign as definitively successful.

A.S. Watson melds CSR and marketing in 175th anniversary 'LOL' campaign

HONG KONG - The latest campaign activity for A.S. Watson as the group turns 175 years old is a large-scale volunteer visit to 1,750 elderly singletons across various districts of the city, and getting them to smile.

Trading places in Greater China: DDB's Ng, Linmon's Lu, Charm's Tsang and more

Here is a roundup of recent people moves in advertising, marketing, media and digital in Greater China that have not already been reported by Campaign. Please let us know if we missed anyone.

Agency creating only 5-second content launches in Greater China

HONG KONG/SHANGHAI - Yesterday (5 April) saw the launch of Five Seconds Worldwide, an agency that does exactly what its name suggests.

China marketers demanding more integration capabilities from agencies: R3

SHANGHAI - China's marketers are demanding more integration capabilities from their agency partners, according to the sixth wave of R3 and SCOPEN’s biennial Agency Scope study.

Trading places in Greater China: Yang, Cullen, Li, Kwan, Yim and more

Here is a roundup of recent people moves in advertising, marketing, media and digital in Greater China that have not already been reported by Campaign. Please let us know if we missed anyone.

How Indonesia is serving the impatient consumer

ON THE GROUND - INDONESIA: As Indonesians become more cash-rich but also more time-poor, behaviour change is opening up opportunities for change beyond online shopping.

Digital China Report: The dark side of digital marketing

Constantly evolving tech platforms and a practice of hitting digital campaign targets with false metrics have made online marketing in China a hairy business. Practices that have evolved in other markets to prevent ad fraud are often circumnavigated in this market.

Ogilvy launches LGBT employee network in Hong Kong

HONG KONG - Ogilvy & Mather (O&M) has launched an LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) employee network in the territory, called 'Ogilvy Pride'.

Shanghai loses one to New York as Zaim asks for bump-up

SHANGHAI - Carat China CEO Adil Zaim (郑亚迪) has confirmed rumours he has taken a new global role in the network's New York office, reporting to Euan Jarvie who is executive director of global clients.

Digital360China 2016: Injecting discipline into digital

SHANGHAi - With the novelty of digital marketing in China long gone, practical aspects of disciplined digital execution formed the key takeaways from Campaign Asia-Pacific's third-annual Digital360China conference here yesterday.

Ogilvy loses SmarTone to TBWA Hong Kong

HONG KONG - SmarTone has assigned TBWA Hong Kong to manage its through-the-line communications after a three-way pitch against incumbent Ogilvy and contender DDB.

AdMaster launches cross-device ID identification tool

SHANGHAI - China-based AdMaster has launched what it calls a localised cross-device marketing tool which it claims marries the merits of deterministic and probabilistic models.

Dentsu Aegis Network acquires Darwin Marketing in China

SHANGHAI - Dentsu Aegis Network (DAN) has acquired China-based Darwin Marketing (达闻营销) Limited and integrated the agency with its digital performance subsidiary iProspect (安布思沛).

Korean consumers: Less nationalistic, more value-conscious, very mobile-centric

ON THE GROUND - KOREA: Once referred to as the 'Republic of Samsung', Korea's famously patriotic consumer culture is waning somewhat. Today's consumers are mobile-centric, value-conscious, and eager to be entertained, our ongoing series finds.

Discovery content takes physical form in adventure park in China’s Moganshan

ZHEJIANG - Transforming a media property such as Discovery Channel into a physical resort is a licensing business in its own right and a move that holds undeniable marketing value for the media property itself.

Trading places in Greater China: Sciole, Liang, Sastre, Tsui, Ngan, Khor

Here is a roundup of recent people moves in advertising, marketing, media and digital in Greater China that have not already been reported by Campaign. Please let us know if we missed anyone.

Former Leo Burnett CEO Donald Chan named Havas China creative CEO

SHANGHAI - Havas China has appointed industry heavyweight Donald Chan (陈念端) as CEO of its creative operation, effective 28 March. Chan's last high-profile role was CEO of Leo Burnett China, a position he left over a year ago.

Synthesio and Brandwatch get high marks for social listening: Forrester

ASIA PACIFIC - According to Forrester's 30-criteria evaluation of enterprise social-listening platform providers, Synthesio and Brandwatch lead the pack, while Sysomos stumbles due to a lack of cohesiveness in its value proposition.

Chow Tai Fook faces fallout from deputy PR head's Occupy Central comments

HONG KONG - Jewellery retailer Chow Tai Fook is dealing with calls for a boycott today after one of its employees, who has since resigned, made inflammatory comments over the weekend regarding the Occupy Central protests.

Cucumber encumber? Selling Dettol bodywash with cucumber ice cream

HONG KONG - Does it sound far-out to use cucumber ice cream to promote a bodywash based on that vegetable? Read on.

McPR fail: McDonald's HK squanders trust with mishandling of bad-meat crisis

HONG KONG - Like its peers, McDonald's might be seen as a victim in the expired-meat saga that began last week in China. But in Hong Kong, the company violated several rules from the crisis-management playbook and will now have to rebuild its image following a "large withdrawal from the bank of trust", according to PR experts.

Tenthavenue relocates Claudine Kwek from Singapore to China

SHANGHAI - WPP-owned marketing services company Tenthavenue has relocated its APAC chief operating officer Claudine Kwek (郭美伶) to China as president of trading and investment.

US best at engaging with Chinese tourists; HK and Singapore, not so much

GLOBAL - Not all countries get it right with destination marketing to the Chinese. A Mailman report has found that many of the world's tourism boards fail to meet the demands of Chinese social-media users, and some even have fake engagement.

Watch: R2-D2's creator on why salesrobots, humanoids, and VPAs may be adland's Force

As the world awakens to the seventh episode of the Star Wars franchise today, Campaign Asia-Pacific revisits one of the series’ most beloved characters, R2-D2, and the technical wizard behind it.

Honestbee expands grocery service to Hong Kong

HONG KONG - After three months of operations in Singapore, tech startup Honestbee has launched its on-demand concierge grocery delivery service in Hong Kong, with Taiwan and Japan being next in line.

2016 China Digital A-List: nomination deadline TODAY!

Nominations for this year’s China Digital A-List are due today! Hurry to make sure your digital superstars make it on the list.

Chinese metal-forging firm led global M&A through February: R3

CHINA - Local manufacturing companies are leading global mergers and acquisitions in the latest R3 global M&A table.

Tencent OMG and Omnicom to co-develop data mining models

SHANGHAI - Tencent's online media group (OMG) has entered a new data partnership with Omnicom Media Group (also OMG)—already its sixth partnership in China involving data.

ZenithOptimedia's Steve King on transformation and a takeaway from Trump

MEDIA360 SUMMIT - In a fireside chat moderated by CNN anchor Kristie Lu Stout, ZenithOptimedia global CEO Steve King says transformation in the media-agency business means to simplify things, and reiterates that by drawing a parallel to Donald Trump's rhetoric.

Of bots, fraud and content: Media360Summit Academy

HONG KONG - Brand marketers and agency practitioners today have a multitude of opportunities for growth and creativity with digital tools, but serious thought about strategy and discipline in execution is required.

Thailand consumer trends: E-commerce ‘unstoppable’ as 4G rollout goes rural

ON THE GROUND - THAILAND: Mobile will be the catalyst for digital-focused communications and online retail—aided by a data sector in its infancy.

How will China's foreign content crackdown play out?

BEIJING - China's new rules restricting foreign companies and their joint ventures from publishing anything online without approval will apply from 10 March onwards. Industry insiders said they are studying the rules, but remain unfazed for now as the key question is how the rules will be enforced.

HK's PMQ marries design thinking and business acumen

HONG KONG - A former police quarters building now houses around 100 design and creative enterprises alongside shops and restaurants in a revitalised historical site in Hong Kong. The location's director talks about showcasing young designers, why a sense of design is vital for businesspeople, and the injustices the ad industry has done to creativity.

Graham Fink photographs derelict art in "wonderlands" of rubbish

Ogilvy China's Graham Fink, while indulging in his exploration of deserted buildings and rubbish dumps ("wonderlands" to him), has portrayed these derelict spots in haunting photos. His work appeared in a recent exhibition called Ballads of Shanghai at the Riflemaker Gallery in London. Speaking to Campaign UK, Fink described the photos, one of his many artistic hobbies, as "tiny little pieces of life, like stories that are still lingering on".

CNY not just for promotional tactics anymore: Prophet

GREATER CHINA - Chinese New Year is a surprisingly strong branding opportunity, not just a promotional tactic, according to survey results from brand consultancy Prophet.

Trust in China has rallied from last year’s drop: Edelman

SHANGHAI - China-specific results from the 2016 Edelman Trust Barometer reveal trust in government, businesses and NGOs at record highs since the survey began 16 years ago.

Jerry Clode joins Resonance China to offer 'Smart' research on strategy, naming

SHANGHAI - After a short stint at Labbrand, Jerry Clode has joined digital agency Resonance China as head of digital and social insight as well as director of Smart, a new bespoke research, strategy and naming offer.

Trading places in Greater China: Chen, Loo, Spear, Tang, Fai, Johansen, Liang

Here is a roundup of recent people moves in advertising, marketing, media and digital in Greater China that have not already been reported by Campaign. Please let us know if we missed anyone.

ReuterPR rebrands to Reuter Communications, hires BBDO's Cakebread

SHANGHAI - ReuterPR has rebranded to Reuter Communications to reflect its "evolution towards a more complete and integrated offering". The firm has also hired Nick Cakebread from BBDO Live China as its new managing partner.

World's first Simpsons store set for Sanlitun, not Springfield

BEIJING - The first Simpsons flagship store will not be in the US, but in Beijing’s Sanlitun district come March. The move follows a deal between Twentieth Century Fox Consumer Products (FCP) and Her-Chain Clothing last year,

Unionpay Smart forges DMP/DSP deal with Isobar China using payment data

SHANGHAI - UnionPay Smart, a subsidiary under the Chinese payment provider specialising in big-data applications, has launched a data deal with Isobar China that the two claim is the first crossover collaboration between the financial and marketing-communication industries.

Elon Musk: Hong Kong a 'beacon' city for electric vehicles

HONG KONG - While Elon Musk's appearance in Hong Kong yesterday yielded no new multi-million-dollar projects, the famous billionaire inventor and entrepreneur, appearing in his capacity as Tesla Motors CEO, lauded Hong Kong's supportive policies and announced a new Tesla store in Macau and a possible production factory in China.

Johnson & Johnson Baby appoints AKQA as China AOR

SHANGHAI - Johnson & Johnson has appointed AKQA as its digital agency of record to handle its baby products account in China.

DDB poaches Carol Lam from Saatchi & Saatchi to run Hong Kong office

HONG KONG - Carol Lam (林小琪) will become DDB's chief creative officer and managing director for Hong Kong starting 1 March, after running Saatchi & Saatchi's South China creative operations for the last three and a half years.

Jenny Chan 陳詠欣