Someone will pay for wet Wednesday
June 18 2010, 9:48 am | | 16 Comments
It’s been raining cats and dogs in Singapore over the last two days and the country is experiencing flash floods. Singapore has had more rain in the last two days than they’ve had over a whole month in June. 100mm of rain in 3 hours, 60% more than the average rainfall.
On Wednesday, Singapore’s most famous shopping district, Orchard Road, was completely flooded for the first time in history.
BBH thought it a good time to get a topical ad out for client – NTUC Income, Singapore’s largest insurer. The ad has sent Singapore into a twitter frenzy, with bloggers, journalists and even academics getting into a debate about the ads.
16 Comments
Good turnaround…..shame about the ads tho.
Love it
10:24. Cut the guys some slack, they only had a couple of hours to turn the ad around. And BBH in Asia is only a vestige of the mothership in London.They have the pretensions but none of the talent or the work. I’m sure they’re convinced this is mould-breaking in some way or the other.
Is there no end to such catastophe?
First the gulf of mexico oil spill, then flash floods kill 30 in south of france and now to top it all…..a couple of malls in singapore got flooded disrupting shopping for a few hours.
superb ad – love it. Being based in Singapore can say it would be easily the ad with the most cut through this month.
Cut them some slack? No need. It is a good ad in its own right. Well done. A good, and REAL ad out of Singapore. Wonders never cease.
Take THAT ‘printosaurus’ crowd. Let’s see you come up with something as intelligent, relevant and interesting. Ever. Yet alone in a short time frame.
I’m sure it will happen eventually, but only when ‘digital’ is wrested from the control of the reborn DM (shit-that-folds) crowd that are currently touting it as the answer to everything.
@5:52
“They have the pretensions but none of the talent or the work. I’m sure they’re convinced this is mould-breaking in some way or the other.”
Word.
10:24
Shame, not get past the interview then?
Shame about the ads… .? Cut them some slack?
Not quite sure if I get this…
They turnaround an ad, get it in the paper same day as the editorial, right next to the editorial: with a message from an insurance company that promises cover in just such an instance…….
…what in the ad/ a piece of communication is a shame?
Be great if you can give us the benefit of your talents in the next day – hey take 2 or 3 – longer than they had – to tell us what you would have done to make em better?
I’m actually interested to know, really – some tips to make em better please.
3:01, a very fair question, got your pad ready?
Ok, screw the picture, we all know what that had to be.
The real shame is the headline….the one they went with (and which probably the client wote) sounds like what you would put in the brief as the message to be delivered…there’s nothing arresting or inviting about it.
There’s no doubt this ad will; work in a positive way….but it could have been heaps better with a nicer headline.
If you want any more tips, that might cost you.
That said, the real breakthrough in this ad is the person who had the idea to capitalise on the flood, the client who said yeah let’s do it, the folks who got the materials out in time…..bottom line: creative team did not deliver an ad worthy of campaign brief asia pages.
They get an ad out in time. So what if it’s average? Must be a first for Singapore. or else, why all the fuss?
3:01
Fair question – and by your reply a telling answer.
So the picture is fine by you.
“There’s no doubt this ad will work in a positive way”
You appear to congratulate the people and client who pulled it together… As a ‘real breakthrough’
So after all those points: that leaves your startling insight that the ad is a shame because…..
It could have been ‘heaps better with a “nicer” headline. A ‘nicer’ headlines. Because the headline in there had the crime of being ‘the message to be delivered”
Do We want any more ‘ tips’?
Anyone? Want anymore of 310’s tips?
The headline is fine.
Singaporeans being Singaporeans, the first thing they think of when shit like this happens is…what the hell are the people in charge doing? how can this happen? someone needs to answer for this!
hence, “someone will pay” works just fine in this local context.
No, i’m not from BBH.
I thought it was a killer line, actually. Cheeky yet relevant double entendre… and certainly gets the attention of riled up Singaporeans.
310
No more tips?