Heartwarmer Or Tear-Jerker? The Storyteller’s Dilemma

System1’s Singapore team tested some of Malaysia, China and Singapore’s advertisements released around Chinese New Year. From the nostalgic winner, to the downright bizarre but impactful, we saw an array of themes and approaches to the holiday season.  Here we’ll look at the most successful ad, the lowest ranking and one that broke the mould.

If you’d like to check out our top ten ranking ads from Chinese New Year, visit our FeelMore site.

F&N – Chinese New Year 2019

Fraser and Neave released the highest scoring advert of the holiday season. While it isn’t the most original concept, it undeniably fits with a holiday all about spending time with the ones you love. The overwhelming emotion felt by viewers is happiness, and most pick up on its nostalgic theme. Sometimes the simplest option is the most effective, and hey – if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.

Petronas’ advert didn’t make it to our leader board this year, but it’s not for the reason you might think. Its concept doesn’t differ too much from F&N’s, but their execution is worlds apart. The highly emotive storytelling means that most people felt sadness when watching the advert (although almost the same number felt happiness). While this means its potential to build long-term brand growth is weak, its Spike Score (used for measuring short-term impact) is significantly higher than F&N’s.

Lazada – “Slash” The Leng Chai!