Finding the real Singapore: how research helped everyday Singaporeans quit smoking

In order to understand the modern Singaporean, Ogilvy & Mather, aided by Flamingo International, started the Invisible Lives project.

Finding the real Singapore: how research helped everyday Singaporeans quit smoking

Sonal NarainOgilvy Singapore

Singapore is derided for many things – a stentorian government, draconian laws, restricted freedom of speech and expression – but what wins the contest for 'most popular topic for derision' is a purported 'lack of soul'. While, in post-Lee Kuan Yew Singapore, many of these stereotypes are being challenged, there is one aspect in which the 'lack of soul' remains unchanged: advertising.

Advertising in Singapore is highly codified and formulaic; typically it features a 'pan-Asian face' and a lifestyle shot in a resort-style condo. It...

Not a subscriber?

Schedule your live demo with our team today

WARC helps you to plan, create and deliver more effective marketing

  • Prove your case and back-up your idea

  • Get expert guidance on strategic challenges

  • Tackle current and emerging marketing themes

We’re long-term subscribers to WARC and it’s a tool we use extensively. We use it to source case studies and best practice for the purposes of internal training, as well as for putting persuasive cases to clients. In compiling a recent case for long-term, sustained investment in brand, we were able to support key marketing principles with numerous case studies sourced from WARC. It helped bring what could have been a relatively dry deck to life with recognisable brand successes from across a broad number of categories. It’s incredibly efficient to have such a wealth of insight in one place.

Insights Team
Bray Leino

You’re in good company

We work with 80% of Forbes' most valuable brands* and 80% of the world's top top-of-the-class agencies.

* Top 10 brands