DBS takes the stage with branded stand-up comedy effort

DBS Singapore created its very own branded stand-up comedy session called “DBS Presents THE FUNNY IN MONEY” to push for further adoption of its PayLah! app.“DBS Presents THE FUNNY IN MONEY” is a part of an overarching concept to bring about the humour of a cashless landscape to people. In December 2017, the bank launched a series of campaigns with the three comedy greats – Hossan Leong, Pam Oei and Fakkah Fuzz. Leong fronted the PayLah! campaign on over 500 taxis in Singapore, while Oei led the creatives for PayNow. Meanwhile, Fuzz fronted Scan to Pay.This culminated in its one-day only comedy show of the year, where DBS present learnings gathered along its journey to encourage the adoption of cashless payment. The bank worked in collaboration with TSLA and PPURPOSE for the campaign.The comedy session was primarily targeted at the young adults segment, who are well-primed to make the transition towards a cashless way of life.In a conversation with Marketing, Lim Bee Bee, head of marketing, Consumer Banking Group Singapore, DBS Bank said the comedy was chosen to ensure that consumers could relate to the message that the bank was trying to put across. Lim added that it was always clear that it might take some time for consumers to break out of ingrained habits, and so the bank wanted to use humour to “connect, engage and advocate".“What you see in “DBS Presents THE FUNNY IN MONEY” is the culmination of us eschewing traditional marketing models and the use of payment jargon, in order to influence this desired change in consumer perception and behaviour,” she said.“We wanted to address the topic of money in a smart yet personal way, as well as help Singaporeans understand the Smart Nation agenda,” she said. The programme also stemmed from the observation that, with multiple mobile wallets and different digital payment platforms now available in the market, banks need to help consumers understand concisely how these things work.