#AOTYAwards 2020 highlight: AKIN

Taking home the gold for boutique agency of the year and independent agency of the year was AKIN - an agency that prides itself in designing future-proof, human-centric, marketing for the restless digital generation. The agency also bagged bronze in social media marketing agency of the year and the local hero award for digital agency of the year.

Positioned at the intersection of data, creative design and contemporary culture, its unique approach to marketing delivers real business impact. Leveraging on data and analysis, the agency believes in creating impactful marketing campaigns that help brands articulate their purpose through a deep understanding of consumer and cultural truths.

Product

In 2019, the agency reinforced its business positioning  in three distinct ways - to help brands build lasting relationships and build communities of advocates; using its brand consultancy arm to help businesses find resonance with their communities and relevance for the future economy; and through digital innovation and transformation, support sustainable business growth and brand longevity.

Based on the three enhanced value propositions, AKIN identified four strategic interventions.

• Integrated marketing
• Human brand methodology consultancy
• Digital community building
• Digital innovation and business transformation

People

To meet its business goals, the agency acquired new talents, increased interdisciplinary skillsets in the areas of research, events, content and production. It also amplified its core competencies in search, technology, experience and brand. The agency believes that investing in its people is the cornerstone of delivering true impact for clients and businesses.

To equip its people with both soft and hard skills to grow personally and professionally, AKIN ensures its employees have self-awareness across thinking and behavioural preferences to better foster cohesiveness, communication and team unity. It has individual coaching frameworks and wellness check-ins bi-weekly and “Share-Learn-Coach (SLC)” programmes and mentor connecting with external industry leaders.

It also creates ample opportunities for overseas exposure in satellite offices in Hong Kong, Indonesia, Thailand. Employees also have flexibility in their working hours and locations and are allowed to take the last Friday of every month off to pursue their passion or take some down time.

Moreover, AKIN has a dedicated resource set aside for team-building and cohesion. In 2019, it increased its welfare budget by 300% to cater for team-bonding. It also hosts monthly team bonding activities to unleash some friendly competition and quarterly out-of-office team-building events to foster teamwork.

Perspective

AKÏN’s vision has always been to build a world of human brands. In the endless pursuit for profit, it’s easy for businesses to lose their human touch. The agency believes that it is high time businesses prioritised building meaningful relationships over mindless marketing. Today’s consumers are not just another data point contributing to your bottom line — they want to be spoken to like the human beings they are.

Its KPIs are set beyond vanity metrics and hard data — after all, numbers are only meaningful when you can read the story they’re telling.  From developing an intuitive web platform for organic community growth to instilling better internet habits in Singaporeans, AKIN uses data to drive positive social behaviour.

At the end of the day, AKIN prides its work in uniting the science of data and technology with the art of human connection.