Indonesia – The capacity of Thai commercials to tug at heartstrings in one moment and make viewers laugh out loud the next is what makes the advertising so unique. Many of them are tickling the funny bones not only of the locals, but also to the people of the region’s neighbouring countries.
Thai advertisements have established the industry benchmark for a successful ad in markets such as Indonesia, giving over-the-top, passionate, and outright humorous content that is only semi-aligned with any specific product.
This encouraged LinkAja, one of Indonesia’s most popular e-wallet apps, to produce communications that challenge said benchmark and galvanise Indonesians to be proud of what they can achieve with a little inspiration from their northern neighbours.
Rizky Wisnu, head creative of LinkAja, commented, “Indonesians tend to look to the outside world to gauge our successes, but we wanted to change that mindset. We wanted to make ourselves proud of what we have achieved, showcasing our technological capabilities matching and, in some cases, surpassing other super-apps in the region. The same should be said for our communications work.”
Teaming up with TJT Creative Lab (Tang Jai Tham), he added, “Their creative portfolio showcases the experience in engaging audiences from across the region. And we wanted to work with a team that could bring this to the table – their understanding and appreciation of cultural nuances was ideal for what we were looking for.”
Keeping the execution Thai in spirit, the films were shot in Bangkok with a full suite of Thai talent, crew from Vanilla Films, a sister company of Mum Films of Suthon Petchsuwan and directed by TJT’s very own Creative Director, ApiwatPattalarungkhan.
Irvine Prisilia, creative director of TJT Creative Lab, explained the approach, “As an Indonesian, living in Bangkok for the past 12 years, you learn to appreciate both cultures and how it impacts our lives. Therefore, whilst we wanted to deliver on LinkAja’s message – encouraging Indonesians to stand proud we saw an opportunity to break through the cluster. So, for their new campaign #Apa2Bisa (#EverythingCanDo) we leveraged the Thai methodology but celebrated the Indonesians.”
Prisilia added, “The success of this film proves once again that collaborations are both borderless and limitless, especially when you’ve got amazing clients like the team at LinkAja that appreciates and understands the creative process.”
