Thinking out of the box

CREATIVE ADVERTISING

Print ads need to stand out to catch readers’ attention

A PASTE-ON bookmark, an oversized ang pow-like envelope (picture) and a ribbon tied around this newspaper.

These are some examples of how Today advertisers have thought out of the box over the years or — as Mr Philip Koh, managing director of MediaCorp Press, put it — “out of the traditional box-shaped ads”. He said that creative buys like these make a brand and its products or services more noticeable.

According to Mr Arthur Sung, general manager of Starcom Singapore, it is important for print ads to stand out now that readers are becoming more time-starved. This is more so for categories that have little product differentiation and face heavy competition from others in the trade, such as mineral water and shampoos.

“In this day and age, a killer message is insufficient. One needs to have eye-catching message-delivery tactics, too,” he said.

For instance, PHD Singapore’s managing director Ms Pat Lim recalled how an electronics brand once concentrated its ad spend in only one newspaper on a single day and bought out every ad in it. “This was not a creative execution per se but I thought it was creative in how the brand chose not to spend its money in several media. Instead, it made a huge splash in one medium so that readers would see nothing but their ads for that one day!”

That was what HP Singapore did in this paper in 2003. In fact, Today also turned the paper into a broadsheet for the day and used HP’s corporate blue in the masthead.

But getting more creative in print ads need not always be about using fanciful artwork or exploring new territories. Sometimes, it can be as simple — and even cost-effective — as deciding whether to run an ad in full colour or black and white.

“Colour is only one way to pull people in but it will not be effective if the creative message is not clear and desirable. If the creative idea works stronger in a black and white ad, then pursue it and save money on media costs,” Mr Robert Doswell, managing director of Ogilvy RedCard, told Today.

He should know. His agency was behind an innovative series of small, black and white ads for budget airline Jetstar Asia. The idea sounds incongruous at first: Placing ads in the classifieds pages, and in the pet grooming and car accessories categories. Besides being what Mr Doswell described as “a very strong example of an advertisement that we rolled out at the lowest end of the cost scale”, the Jetstar Asia ad campaign caught a lot of attention.

In this case, it was not the artwork or the ad size but the clever ad copy that did the job. For instance, the Jetstar Asia ad in the car accessories section read: “Fly Jetstar Asia to Manila for $99 or buy a tyre”. Said Mr Doswell: “The Jetstar Asia concept worked off the surrounding content rather than being driven by a colour image.”

But MediaCorp Press’ Mr Koh said that it can be tough for ad agencies to keep coming up with new creative ad ideas at times. Also, there are limits to work within, such as ensuring that the creative buy is inserted into or attached to the newspaper in time for it to be delivered to homes.

Added PHD’s Ms Lim: “Cost and, to some extent, the lack of technology, are huge considerations in Singapore.”

For Mr Doswell of Ogilvy RedCard, it is media censorship here that can potentially restrict the media buyer’s creativity. “However, there is always a way around this problem,” he said, citing the example of his agency’s tongue-in-cheek ad for Durex condoms. This showed two balloon-like figures constructed from condoms in a suggestive position.

“If this safe but playful sex education ad can run, then there is always a way for any brand to play within the guidelines.”

From TODAY, Impact – Tuesday, 19-May-2009

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