Top 5 news stories the caused buzz among our Indonesian readers in 2021

This year saw a flurry of news in the marketing and advertising scene in Indonesia. Our readers were treated with stories of celebrity ambassadors, collaborations, the growth of new agencies, and insights from marketers on tips and tricks, as well as what to look out for in the coming year. 

Let's review the year to see the top five news stories that got our Indonesian readers talking:

1. Pepsi names BLACKPINK as APAC brand ambassadors

Pepsi jumped on the K-pop hype in January this year by naming BLACKPINK its Asia Pacific brand ambassadors. Pepsi worked with the K-pop girl group for its "Go all in for what you love" campaign to encourage Gen Z to be bold and push the boundaries of possibility when it comes to pursuing their passion in life. The campaign include an ad, co-produced by both parties, and a 360-degree marketing campaign that was launched alongside to raise brand awareness through various media platforms. 

2. Popeyes names new APAC marketing lead

Another story that got readers hooked was when Tanushri Rastogi, Burger King Indonesia's brand and media lead, joined Popeyes as marketing lead for Asia Pacific; reporting to Asia Pacific GM Benjamin Klitus. Rastogi most recently spent nearly four years at Burger King Indonesia, a franchisee of Restaurant Brands International (RBI). RBI also manages the Popeyes and Tim Hortons franchises.

At Burger King, she worked closely with the RBI Asia Pacific teams. Rastogi told MARKETING-INTERACTIVE then: "I enjoyed working with them and they were looking for someone to lead marketing in Asia Pacific for Popeyes as they have expansion plans." RBI needed someone who had the experience of building a brand that was growing its store count rapidly. At the same time, Rastogi was also personally looking for a regional role as she had worked for local markets across Indonesia and India.

3. Indonesian Flock Creative Network teams up with SG indie GERMS 

Next in the list, Indonesian Flock Creative Network (FCN) and GERMS Creative Capital (GCC), headquartered in Singapore, combined forces in June to launch an experience design and development studio called SURGE Interactive. With an eye on the fast-growing Southeast Asia market, where the Internet economy is expected to grow to around US$300billion by 2025, SURGE is primed to serve the region with localised insights and expertise, said both parties then in a press statement to MARKETING-INTERACTIVE. The partnership brings the best in digital expertise from both agencies to offer a new form of digital service in line with the growth of the Southeast Asia market. Specialised offerings include customer experience strategy, experience design and development, as well as business analytics and optimisation.  

4. Ex-DDB Indonesia heads form Bailey|Capel

News of managing partners John Bailey and Brian Capel forming Bailey|Capel in October also got our Indonesian readers abuzz. The decision comes as it ceases the use of the DDB name in Indonesia. In a conversation with MARKETING-INTERACTIVE, both Bailey and Capel said then that they felt the idea of being a small, independent creative agency would breathe new life into the company. The idea to form Bailey|Capel came about as the duo shared a similar philosophy of people, product, and profit - in that order. "Find the right people, inspire and encourage them to explore and experiment and they will create great work for our clients and with that, the profits will come," they said.

5. McDonald's Asia Eugene Lee on marketing BTS meals

Finally, making the list is MARKETING-INTERACTIVE's interview with Eugene Lee, now Asia CMO at McDonald's, who shared some insights on the marketing strategy behind the BTS meals - which were met with resounding success across the globe. Despite the meal needing no additional effort to drum up hype, McDonald's still invested in localised media activations in Asia to spread the word. Needless to say, McDonald's did not require the same amount of media investment for the BTS meal, as compared to other marketing campaigns in Asia.

"Due to the organic hype and power of word of mouth, we only needed to spend 30% to 40% of our usual campaign media budgets to garner the same impact," Lee had then told MARKETING-INTERACTIVE. He also shared how the BTS meal, which was originally slated for release in the US only, eventually made its global tour.

Photo courtesy: 123RF

Related articles:
McDonald's Asia Eugene Lee on marketing BTS meal with 40% of usual media spend
McDonald's upsizes Eugene Lee's role to Asia CMO
Pepsi names K-pop girl group BLACKPINK Asia brand ambassadors
Bailey|Capel formed by ex-DDB Indonesia heads, DDB Asia says client work handled by affiliates
Indonesian Flock Creative Network and SG indie GERMS join up for SURGE
Popeyes names APAC marketing lead amidst aggressive expansion plan