Hot Steamy Buns...

You can never beat a simple idea executed well.  As a dad, I know that keeping my little girl Emma's bun dry and rash-free is just as important as making sure she gets a good sleep or eats all her dinner.  

I recently came across this simple but well-executed idea in my home town of Singapore.  When Huggies wanted to introduce its new Dry Comforts Lock and Breathe Diaper it created a simple and straight forward message: No More Steamy Buns (not an easy feat in this part of the world)...

Typically, trail packs are offered via out-of-home advertising channels, but Huggies wanted to relay their message and be creative about it. The promotional mechanic was also a reversal of the traditional trend of on-ground to online as opposed to promoting something online and then distributing on ground.

To promote the sample pack request, promotional staff passed out steaming hot lotus paste buns together with leaflets for three days at the busy junction of Singapore’s Chevron House - a haven for professional and office-based working mums in Singapore.

The initiative delivered over 13,000 microsite visitors with over 11,000 of these people requesting sample packs.

Can Design Create a Brand Experience?

Of course it can...great design builds the emotional connection and relevance that a consumer feels they have with a brand or product - and that is a strong influencer on purchase.  Check out the latest plane designs from Kulula-Air.com out of South Africa.  

The body of the plane contains a big “Flying 101”  Logo which is the theme of their brand campaign.  The rest of the plane is covered with details about the plane parts including arrows pointing to the aircraft’s registration, the black box and the “Loo (or mile-high initiation chamber).”

The copywriting is clever and fun highlighting the airline's approach to their business and the way they treat their consumers.

Coca-Cola Friendship Vending Machines

Coca-Cola have just launched their first ever Friendship Vending Machines.  The Machine made its debut in Argentina during the “El Dia del Amigo Festival” at the end of July.


So what exactly is a Friendship Vending Machine?  It's a giant vending machine that offers consumers a buy one get one free deal.  The cool thing is that it stands 11ft tall which means you are going to need at least 2 or 3 friends to help you reach the money slot.  After all the hard work, everyone gets to enjoy a refreshing experience.

What is Brand Activation?

People keep asking me where I find inspiration for great Brand Activation ideas and the simple answer is, I keep my eyes open and find inspiration in many places.  As I live, travel and work around Asia, I'm constantly coming across ideas that make you stop and go "wow".


One of these came across my desk this morning.


Puma have recently created a new piece of sustainable packaging that is arguably a game-changer in their category.  Who knows what the economics of the packaging look like, but for want of creating 'buzz', 'chat' and brand stickyness, ideas like this really do the job well.


Is this just packaging innovation, and if yes, what's it doing in the Glue Agency Blog?  To me, brand activation is the process of bringing a brand to life through the creation of a meaningful and relevant content rich brand experience.  Arguably, this innovation from Puma does just that - it reshapes the way consumers look at the brand through a meaningful and relevant (alot of people do care about the environment) content rich (CSR is a content rich platform for brands to talk to consumers) experience (if packaging wasn't an experience...it is now).