As I depart Beijing as the Olympics comes to a close I’m reflecting on the changes that I’ve seen over the last three years since we set up our first mainland China office here.

The first thing other than the gradual westernization of the city is the sheer scale of new infrastructure Beijing is benefiting from. When we opened our office in the Chaoyang district my office window offered a panoramic of dusty building sites, cranes that had seen better days and a plethora of motorcycle cabs (see below) – by comparison I’m now greeted by a view of a Gucci shop the size of an entire western shopping centre/mall. A gleaming Ritz Carlton Hotel, and white gloved attendants opening doors and guiding drivers of black Rolls Royce Phantom’s. to parking spaces. My, how things change.

Continue reading "A Changing Experience"

For those of us who are North America based marketeers who strategize, design and develop components of communications campaigns that will be delivered via hand held mobile devices worldwide, (mobile phones in US terminology), it is important that we be sensitive to the fact that what is true in the US is not necessarily (and often not) true outside our borders.

Take Apple and the iPhone for example. In North America their impact has been significant given the convergence of iPhone capabilities with their coveted target market segment (Generation Y and Millenials). However, outside of US, things are very different.

Continue reading "Are you an iPhone snob?"

I had the pleasure to visit Taipei, Taiwan last month and was impressed by a beautiful, modern city that is buzzing with commerce and... experiential marketing. I stayed in a hotel that used to be a Holiday Inn, and really looked like any Hyatt or similar "huge atrium" hotel in any American city. As I ventured from my hotel, I encountered (in order) Outback Steakhouse, Starbucks, and IKEA. I had to walk around the corner and down an alley to experience the street markets so associated with Asian urban life.

On the sidewalk outside the IKEA, there was a day-long event marketing paint. Two spokesmodels in mini-skirts, go-go boots and sun visors stood on a small stage talking and gesturing to the stack of paint cans nearby. I don't speak Chinese, so I don't know what they were saying, but they were enthusiastic about it! I found it odd that they talked about paint for 10 hours but never once opened a can and painted anything or involved the audience. Big opportunity missed. This lack of interaction, plus the Austin Powers outfits (that weren't being played for camp) made the event seem kind of 70s. On the other hand, they drew a good crowd throughout the day. Not sure if they sold any paint.

One evening, I went to the Night Market, which is an amazing experience in itself. It was a cool night by Taipei standards -- about 80 degree F -- and we rode the clean, modern (and cheap) subway system to the stop right across from the largest Night Market in Taipei. On any given night, the night market is packed with all the local families who gather to socialize and eat at the stalls. Did I mention that it's really packed? You enter into the structure, which is open on all sides like the first floor of a parking garage, and the temperature immediately rises at least 15 degrees -- partly from the throngs of people, but mostly because of all the woks and stoves preparing food in stall after stall. Good food (if you know what to ask for) at prices affordable for local families on a daily basis.

We happened to be there on a night when there was another experiential marketing event going on in a small open space between the night market structure and the subway station. It was an event to publicize a new movie. There must have been over 10,000 people crowded in front of a temporary stage, with more people crowded on top of the night market (where I was when I took the photo) and on the train platform across the street. They projected short clips from the movie, and the PA system blasted loudly as the movie stars on stage spoke to the crowd. I didn't recognize any of the stars, but the crowd certainly did and they were passionate about their feelings. They waited in huge packs ('lines' isn't really the right word) to get autographs.

My visit was a great experience and I'm glad to see marketers around the world getting out and making face-to-face contact with their passionates!

Posted by Claudia Irving

AdWeek’s 2007 Annual Guide to Hispanic Marketing and Media shows that U.S. Hispanics are leading non-Hispanics in their usage of social networking sites. The report reveals that young, tech-savvy acculturated Latinos are surfing the web and utilizing several online media services more than non-Hispanics. This group of Latinos are currently leading the pack in music downloads, streaming video and the creation of personal websites. Some of the on-line players capitalizing on this burgeoning trend are bilingual, Latino-focused networking sites such as MiGente (www.migente.com), Vostu (www.vostu.com), and Quepasa (www.quepasa.com).

Continue reading "E-socializing…en Español"

Posted by Isabel Villegas

A few years ago, the big Latin music cross-over involved Spanish-speaking performers like Ricky Martin, Shakira and Marc Anthony making it big in the American market by singing in English. Today however, the strategy is shifting and we are seeing a different kind of cross-over. The new trend involves English-speaking artists like Wyclef Jean, Beyonce, Dr. Dre and Christina Aguilera crossing-over and capitalizing on the growing US Hispanic market by belting out a few tunes, and in some cases full albums, in Spanish!

Continue reading "Crossing-over...in English or Spanish?"

From something as simple as lion dance, kabuki drop, pressing a button to trigger a movement accompanied by a confetti gun and music, to more complex acts like using Shaolin kung fu monks to perform aerial acts, splitting an ice sculpture to unveil “something” within, a man flying down from a false ceiling to a flying car—the fascination of the Chinese audience on having a “wow” launch moment truly intrigues me. Since the day the China office opened, we have come up with more launch moment ideas than all of our team members had in our entire history of event experiences put together.

I remembered once when we pitched our umpteen opening moment to a client, and it was finally accepted after previous attempts that included ideas for raining pallets, a model of a building rising from a trap door, using a remote control inflatable flying rocket, and mixing of different liquids to trigger a reaction to symbolize unity. Result: a troop of 88 dragon drummers, occupying an area of approximately 160sqm.

Irrespective of the scale of the event — more often than not, the winning formula still hinges on how big and unique this “wow” moment is. In China it’s as much about “the moment” as it is about “the message”.

Rebecca Lim, General Manager China, Jack Morton Worldwide

One of the most fascinating aspects about marketing in China, to me, is the difference between the way logos are used here and in the US. Living in the US for most of my life, I’m used to seeing logos that stand out from the crowd, ones that are distinctive, leaving no room for trademark infringement lawsuits.

When I walk down the street in Beijing, I find myself doing double-takes for logos that are so similar to the global brands they mimic that it’s sometimes hard to tell the difference. Cheap-trick-for-names NEH-BUR King and STR Coffee have also helped themselves to colors and logo layouts that confuse for the real thing.

But the imitation isn’t limited to global brands. Chinese companies seem to mimic the logo of their local competitors. Two major banks, for instance, have logos that aren’t always easy to distinguish when you’re driving past. And maybe that’s the point.

Continue reading "It all looks the same, sort of."