Since August 2018, we’ve been overseeing the day-to-day creative output for Mastercard in Southeast Asia. Here’s a snapshot of what we’ve been doing together with our teams.

Mastercard was about to be the first in Singapore to launch contactless debit and credit card payments on buses and trains. The only problem: prepaid fare cards. Commuters had been using them for decades, making them synonymous with public transport. How could we disrupt their monopoly and get commuters to switch to Mastercard?

So we launched the campaign, Life’s smoother when you tap & go with Mastercard. We wanted to show that the frictions and frustrations of commuting with a fare card would disappear when using Mastercard on the bus and train. But we couldn’t just say this to our audience. We wanted them to feel smoothness. So instead of making ads…we made songs. Working with local singer Sandra Riley Tang of The Sam Willows, we created a series of musical videos based on everyday commuter situations. In each, we showed how life’s smoother when you tap & go with Mastercard, to the tune of Sandra’s silky smooth vocals.

FILMS

Working with local singer Sandra Riley Tang of The Sam Willows, we created 3 songs, accompanied by music videos, based on everyday commuter situations. In each, we showed how life’s smoother when you tap & go with Mastercard, to the tune of Sandra’s silky smooth vocals.

We tapped our way into social media feeds

We targeted commuters with our videos on Facebook and Instagram during weekday rush hour, precisely when they were likely to feel the frictions of commuting with a pre paid fare card. But we didn’t stop there…

We took over train stations

Commuters found themselves surrounded by our campaign messages throughout the MRT stations they frequent. Each piece connected with them through the little frustrations they face daily, and showed them a smoother way with Mastercard.

We followed commuters on board trains

There are so many things commuters could be spending their time on instead of topping up their fare cards. We highlighted a few examples that were particularly relevant to passengers in the train cabin, and helped them imagine smoother journeys with Mastercard.

Bus commuters saw ads activated based on the crowd and weather

Crowds and rainy weather are worse when your fare card’s empty. And the rare occasion you have the bus to yourself is ruined as well. We connected with bus commuters through these all-too-common scenarios, and showed a smoother way with Mastercard.

We even made the gantry sexy

Staged and shot like Apple would its latest flagship product, we gave the humble MRT gantry sexy sheen in our print campaign key visual. And made it look as smooth as using Mastercard on the bus and train.

Most importantly, we got all of Singapore to tap & go on the bus and train

The campaign made an impact all across Singapore, with contactless payments on transit rising exponentially from month to month from X to X. It showed that our audience got our message. After all it was something commuters know all too well – Smoother journeys: priceless

Contactless payments is still a relatively new technology in Southeast Asia. In markets like Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia and Laos, the resistance is largely due to fear of fraud. We were tasked to create a series of videos that could cut through the markets, with the objective of educating consumers about the safety and convenience of using Mastercard.

ONLINE VIDEOS

We created 6 edutainment videos that highlighted 6 key safety and security features of Mastercard. These have been adapted across markets, as well as India.

For years, Mastercard has been running educational videos on their safety and security features. No different from their biggest competitor. In 2019, the focus was to demonstrate Mastercard’s commitment to safety and security when it comes to online payments. We suggested they try an empathy approach for cut through. Our insight? Everyone, no matter which culture or country you’re from, protects the things that matter to them in their own unique ways. Lucky charms, jade pendants, crystals, padlocks, salt. It’s protection money can’t buy, and it’s exactly the same protection that Mastercard can give when you shop online.

We conveyed this message through a series of films about Mastercard’s safety and security features, brought to life by settings and characters familiar to our audience in Southeast Asia. 

We collaborated with Jack Morton to develop the theme, Plug into the Pulse of Tomorrow, as well as the B2B communications for the festival. The objective was to build Mastercard’s credibility and presence at the festival, and shift the perception of Mastercard from not just a payments company, but to a tech company that specialises in payments. The content ran on Mastercard’s social platforms like LinkedIn and Twitter, and at the festival location itself.

Hype Reel: Plug Into the Pulse of Tomorrow

In 2018, contactless payments was enabled nationwide for Malaysia. Mastercard wanted to encourage everyone to start tapping and going with their cards, so we created a series of videos to show just how seamless and easy it is to use it.