PR > Practices & Specialisms

JOYFUL RUBBER DUCK

HARBOUR CITY ESTATES LIMITED, Hong Kong / HARBOUR CITY ESTATES LIMITED / 2014

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Overview

Credits

OVERVIEW

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Harbour City is the largest and leading shopping mall in Hong Kong with over HK$30Billion of sales, dominating 7% of total sales in Hong Kong in 2012. How to surpass ourselves and always remain “One Step Ahead” are our challenges.

In 2013, we organized “The Rubber Duck Joy to the World” campaign to deliver “WOW” experiences and innovative surprises achieving phenomenal breakthrough in branding awareness and sales.

We exhibited the classic masterpiece of Dutch artist Florentjin Hofman – a 16.5M-tall gigantic inflatable “Rubber Duck” in Greater China for the very first time near Harbour City with the iconic Hong Kong backdrop of Victoria Harbour from 2 May – 9 June. Rubber Duck has toured to over 13 cities internationally and this 39-day exhibition was the longest.

“Rubber Duck” provided joyful interruption and drew positive responses to the public which led to a business growth of 16.3% and marketing impact (over US$4.8 Million media exposure) to Harbour City. Phenomenal extensive media exposure ranged from local to international media, e.g. CCTV (China), CNN, CNBC, etc. Also, the project has received 14 awards so far which affirmed its success.

With our creativity, strategic PR planning (integrating both traditional and new media) and excellent execution, we repackaged and localized the project with new and innovative elements which created the most impactful buzz ever.

The exhibition served as an invaluable platform and put Harbour City and Hong Kong on the world map. It contributed a PR breakthrough and achieved a new level of engagement and our goal.

ClientBriefOrObjective

Goals and Objectives:

- To maintain our brand mission of bringing joyful experiences and innovative surprises beyond shopping to the public

- To apply our world-class local execution to an international project to put Harbour City and Hong Kong on the world map in terms of marketing excellence

- To leverage our unique strengths and position Harbour City from a leading mall to a “must-visit” landmark representing Hong Kong

Target Audience:

From local to tourists; from rich & famous to general public; from niche to all walks of life

Effectiveness

(I) Media Publicity

The exhibition promoted Harbour City from local, regional to international by creating an influential worldwide topic. It contributed a PR breakthrough, putting Harbour City and Hong Kong into the world map.

Traditional Media:

- Total media values: over US$4.8 Million (excluding TV, Online and Mentioning)

- 31 Newspaper Front Page Cover Highlights; 15 Magazine Covers

- Global coverage: CCTV, CNN, CNBC etc…

New Media:

- 359 International news clippings (across 55 Countries and Cities over 7 Continents)

- Over 140,000 related posts in our Facebook & Instagram

- WeChat: 600,000 times download of Rubber Duck emoticon

- Sina Weibo: over 8.6 million times of mentioning

Awarded 14 marketing awards, being recognised locally and around the region, including 2 GOLD in 2013 ICSC Asia Pacific Shopping Center Awards.

(II) Business Impact

Sales (Surpassed our target of 15% growth)

- Overall sales (May) increased 16.3%, F&B sales increased 28%

Execution

1) A 7-stage media plan generated publicity and sustained momentum by creating curiosity and excitement:

Pre-Event Publicity (Countdown):

23 March (1.5 month) - Send out the pre-event press release in China & H.K. and generated buzz

21 April (10 Days) - FIRST water testing at the dock

25 April (7 Days) - Artist’s FIRST appearance at press conference

30 April (2 Days) - Photo Release of the creative association with Asian star Andy Lau and DUCK to start the media coverage

During the course Publicity:

2 May - Opening Ceremony

Mid May - Online platforms closely monitored Rubber Duck’s updates

9 June (Last Day) - Farewell Party

2) We personified the Rubber Duck to proactively engage audiences and entice emotional attachment

3) Turn crisis into opportunity

Unexpected incidents occurred (deflation & maintenance) and our appropriate reactions turned the crisis to opportunity and gained another phase of positive publicity

Relevancy

Being “One Step Ahead” is the core marketing strategy of Harbour City, and we strive to deliver “WOW” experiences time and again.

Market situation and Challenges:

- We face keen competition from rivals. Malls and brands in Hong Kong have all been increasingly innovative in launching mega events.

- With shoppers being more global-minded, their demand for retail experience continues to rise.

- Being perceived as marketing lead, we strive to surpass our success and curate an event with global appeal with innovative surprises

Strategy

Rubber Duck has toured to over 13 cities, we contributed our creativity, strategic PR planning and execution excellence to stage this mega art exhibition and build buzz like never before:

- Strategically place the installation in Hong Kong's iconic Victoria Harbour

- Extended the exhibition from “sea” to “land” with “3D Art Installation” near the giant Rubber Duck and “Rubber Duck Photo Exhibition” at our art gallery and created “Rubber Duck” inspired menu

- Strategically held the exhibition in “low season” period to arouse more focused attention to our project. May is also a Month of Art in Hong Kong when signature events like Art Basel is held, which further made our Rubber Duck a part of art explosion in Hong Kong

- Implemented our own 360 degree integrated media strategy to maintain the momentum of this 39-day exhibition, via traditional media, PR events, online/offline activities, crossover with celebrities

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