Sentosa concludes creative and media pitch

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Sentosa Development Corporation (SDC) has appointed GOVT and UM as its creative and media agencies respectively. According to Gebiz, both appointments are for two years with the option to extend for another. Incumbent BBH and TBWA\ Singapore were eyeing the creative account while Mindshare Singapore and PHD were also vying for the media account, Gebiz said.

GOVT Singapore, Section and OLIVER will manage creative and digital duties. Under the consortium arrangement (pictured below), GOVT will undertake the role of strategic creative agency, and Section will take on digital and UI/UX duties, while OLIVER will oversee creative and production. Tim Chan, ECD and partner of GOVT Singapore, said it has a big task in front as the brand has consistently rolled out great pieces of work over the years. "And we can’t wait to get started alongside our partners Section and OLIVER," he said. Work will start on 1 August.

Mira Bharin, divisional director, marketing and guest experience, SDC, said that SDC will leverage on the agencies’ capabilities, including GOVT’s consortium comprising Section and Oliver. This will take place as it ramps up digital-first guest engagement and explore innovative media ideas across various guest touchpoints to give its guests a seamless online-to-offline journey. Bharin claims that these efforts are in line with SDC’s efforts to deliver the One-Sentosa Experience. Its move to leverage on the agencies is motivated by SDC's increasingly connected and technologically-savvy guests.

“We look forward to fruitful partnerships with GOVT and IPG Mediabrands, and would also like to take this opportunity to thank BBH Communications (Asia Pacific) for the team’s partnership and contributions in further elevating the Sentosa brand in the minds of our guests over the past three years,” Bharin said.

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Meanwhile, this marks UM's second term as Sentosa's media agency and the brand cited UM's strength of strategic and creative media activation ideas, and in-depth understanding of their business as key criteria to its decision making. Lishan Lim, client partner UM Singapore, said: “Winning new business in such a competitive landscape is always challenging, and retaining such a desirable and nationally significant client in Singapore even more so. It bears testament to the strong partnership we have in place, one which we treasure and will continue to grow."

Sentosa first called for a media pitch in 2020 and is tasking the agency to deliver innovative, digital-first in thinking media ideas and executions that are on-brand, on-brief and on-budget, for both domestic and international audience. The agency is also required to produce a consumer-centric approach by understanding consumer pain points and target the right customer with the right messages, to ensure positive customer experiences throughout the journey. The creative pitch was called in January this year, and the agency will handle creative production, social and digital duties.

Amidst the media pitch, Lynette Ang stepped down from her role as CMO. She first took on the role in January 2017, when SDC's marketing division was newly-formed. Months later in April this year, Sentosa split its marketing and experience team into two separate divisions: the marketing and guest experience division, and the business and experience development division. The new marketing and guest experience division is led by its former director, brand, marketing and communications, Mira Bharin, who has since been promoted to divisional director, marketing and guest experience.

Photo courtesy: 123RF

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