Brands reminisce with ‘My Generasi'

VIRAL VIDEOS   DIGI   BMW   LEVI'S

Malaysia - A video entitled ‘My Generasi', which has been circulating on Facebook, has struck a chord not only with individuals but major brands such as Levi's, Digi, Maxis, Machines and BMW, who have also shared it on their Facebook pages. 

Having garnered over 900,000 views at press time, the video was produced by Reuben Kang and radio announcer Jin Lim, who have a passion for creating videos. The 6.41-minute long video shows a cast of grown-ups playing characters in primary school, essentially living the lives of Malaysian primary school students playing games like 'Batu Seremban' and interacting among one another.

The video, which was uploaded on 26 March, is now the number one most viewed video on YouTube Malaysia and number 12 most viewed video on YouTube worldwide.

Speaking to A+M, Limand Kang said they are overwhelmed by the response and that based on viewers' feedback, the reason it went viral was the memories it stirred among so many Malaysians. 

"We think it's mainly because all our viewers could relate to the video and reminisce the times when you don't need luxury item like an iPhone or an iPad to have fun. Life was simple back then," added Lim.

When asked what elements make a good viral video, Lim said it is important the video is easy for viewers to relate to, funny, worth sharing and not too hard-sell. 

"We always want to learn something from events we've witnessed or watched and share the joy with friends, families and close ones. So if I was a brand wanting to make a viral video, I would take that into consideration," Lim said, adding that a good example of this was the "Dear Malaysians" campaign by DiGi.

The video was also tweeted by Levi's Malaysia with the message "Before jeans, we wore short shorts in school! Check out this sweet vid by @JinnyBoy + walk down 90's nostalgia lane."

Joleyn Chin, marketing manager for Levi's brand Malaysia, said the brand was a big believer in engaging with its consumers on social media.

"For us, we don't intend for it to only be about shouting about our own products and news. At the heart of it we believe social media is about sharing. Although the video might not have been directly relevant to the Levi's Brand, watching it made us feel good, and that sense of nostalgia and warmth was what something we definitely felt was worth sharing with our community."

The video was also shared on BMW's Shorties page, the group's annual short film competition and Sashi Ambi, corporate communications manager, BMW Group Malaysia, said the act of sharing My Generasi was an extension of the BMW Shorties spirit in recognising Malaysian short film makers. "It is also a great voice for us to create meaningful conversations on film and fuel the interest further, " he added.

For DiGi, the video was shared both on its main ‘DiGi Telecommunications' and ‘Digi Youth's Facebook page. Prior to the video being uploaded onto Youtube, DiGi had had sneak previews of My Generasi through it being a contender for the DiGi WWWOW Internet For All Awards 2012.

According to Sulin Lau, head of marketing services in DiGi, "Despite the fact the event audience that day consisted of online innovators from very different fields and backgrounds - from bloggers to webpreneurs to NGOs, all of us (myself included) instantly fell in love with their unique take of what it's like to grow up as a Malaysian. And so we knew we'd be able to bring a smile to another 850,000+ people just by sharing the film among our Facebook and Twitter communities."

Last week YouTube launched a local version of its site in Malaysia. With the success of this video, A+M asked whther this would result in a Partner Program, which allows creators and producers to earn revenue off relevant advertisements that run against their original video content.

A Google spokesperson stated that plans are underway to roll out the programme in the country. However, he could not share more at this time.

On the video's success, "This really exemplifies one of the reasons why we launched YouTube Malaysia. We want to have even more of these success stories," the Google spokesperson added.

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