Mystery solved: Lazada's CMO claims vague OOH ads which took SG by surprise

Last week, Singaporeans awoke to a series of rather interesting out of home (OOH) ads located at various MRT stations and bus stops around the country. At the MRT stations, the ads posed statements, encouraging public transport users to queue up with the statement they agree with the most. 

The statements were comparison statements, often pitting one Singaporean favourite over the other. For example, a set of ads showcased the statements "Nasi lemak is more satisfying than chicken rice" on one side of the MRT door, followed by "Chicken rice is more flavourful than nasi lemak" on the opposite door.

Don't miss: Interview: Lazada's CMO on the haunted CCTV footage that was actually an ad 

Another set of ads featured statements which said, "Atas coffee is the real deal compared to kopi" and "Kopi is more sophisticated compared to atas coffee". 

Interestingly, the mysterious ads featured no branding or alluded to the company behind them up until a major reveal on 9 October.

 In conversation with MARKETING-INTERACTIVE, Lazada Singapore came forward to stake its claim on the mysterious ads, stating that it was part of its "Lazada - always the better price" campaign.

The campaign aims to drive the messaging of lowest price guaranteed and that shoppers need not compare when prices on Lazada are always the best, Marcus Chew, chief marketing officer of Lazada told MARKETING-INTERACTIVE. 

"From 3 to 8 October, the unbranded ads were a deliberate attempt to cut through the clutter and make a bold statement, making commuters discuss these statements with friends both online and offline," said Chew. 

As Chew had hoped, the ads did garner online attention. "It's been positive so far with lots of captures on social media such as Instagram stories, as well as fun debates and online chatter and speculations about what these statements are meant for," he added. 

When asked how the idea came about, Chew explained that Lazada wanted to tap into hyperlocal musings by everyday Singaporeans.

"Singaporeans are known to compare many things in life, from schools, grades, relationships, career, finances and housing. We are chronic over-comparers. This often leads to a lot of unnecessary stress," said Chew.

"Lazada's brand role is to let shoppers know that over-comparing many things in life may not yield any answers, especially when it comes to shopping as there's no need to compare when Lazada has the better price," he added. 

The second phase of the campaign, held from 9 to 16 October, saw the statements cancelled out in pink, with the Lazada logo plastered over it. On the logo, it reads 'Still comparing? #EndComparison. When it comes to price, there's no need to compare. Shop on Lazada for always the better price' and a QR code which consumers could scan while waiting for their commute. 

"These ads will be layered on with our brand reveal, asking commuters to stop comparing. Commuters will be able to scan the QR code on the ad to be redirected to a site for SG$15 off with a minimum spend of SG$50," explained Chew.

This mysterious campaign comes after the brand's "[9.9 Mega Brands Sale] Scarily Good Deals" campaign in which the eCommerce platform took guerilla marketing to a scary level. 

The campaign started with a video posted on TikTok under the username @hoosi3ryourdaddyhuh during the Hungry Ghost Month in Singapore. The TikTok video featured CCTV footage of a corridor at a HDB block. While everything seemed normal at first, a blue package, which was located on top of a shoe rack, suddenly falls to the ground. Shadows were later seen walking along the corridor and the blue package was seen being dragged down the corridor by an unseen force. 

Following the "haunted" CCTV footage on TikTok, Lazada revealed a 9.9 microsite for daily voucher drops. As part of the customer journey, Lazada did not reveal the link to the microsite. Shoppers could find the microsite by searching 'Lazada package CCTV' on Google. 

In addition to vouchers, the microsite featured an extended version of the "haunted" CCTV footage to reveal that it wasn't a ghost, but its mascot Lazzie all along.

"The key here is to create a discussion among the community that extends beyond the sale. Here, our goal is to spark curiosity through attention-grabbing executions," said Chew in a previous interview with MARKETING-INTERACTIVE. 

"Instead of just being another sale season, the team aims to cut through the clutter of sale messaging to deliver content that sparks conversation and even the element of surprise. This is how we landed on a theme that could drive intrigue in order to give them a reason to switch to our sale," he added. 

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