How do you get the Chinese middle classes to fly your new Shanghai to Auckland route? This was the challenge facing Air New Zealand. To make matters worse, research showed that the Chinese knew very little about New Zealand. It also showed that they like new experiences, but are anxious about striking out to new places.

The solution? On a limited budget?

www.experiencesomethingnew.com It's worth looking at (though it's all in Chinese). It's a blogging site, featuring Chinese celebrities that have visited New Zealand, sharing their great experiences of the country (and the airline). It's a great way to get the message out to blogging crazy Chinese consumers, in a way presents New Zealand in a very positive light, and more importantly, overcomes all the barriers to travelling to and experiencing this great country.

Posted by Colin at 12:38 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

Hmmm... quite interesting. Top 3 brands in Asia: Nokia, Sony, Nestle.

Only 3 brands from the USA in the top 10, which surprised me: Colgate-Palmolive, Coca-Cola and 7-Eleven. (Though plenty in the top 100.)

The two biggest markets, China and India, showing a stonger presence of local brands (which makes sense if you think about it, they have the critical mass to build their own brands). In China this is particularly true: with local brands such as Mengniu, Haier, China Mobile, Lenovo and Nongfu Shan Quan making it into the top 20 brands.

Across the region, Heineken the leading brand in the beer category :))

The survey was conducted by Synovate for Media magazine. Nine markets were included: mainland China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, the Philippines, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, India and Indonesia. Synovate interviewed people aged 15 to 64 years old, with sample sizes per country of 500 (apart from China and India, where the sample was 750 across three and four top-tier cities respectively).

Posted by Colin at 11:38 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Every time I see it I like this idea, the iPod Generation: they're Insecure, Pressured, Over-taxed and Debt-ridden.

Young consumers in the UK are now reported to have an effective tax-burden of 48%, plus student debts, soaring mortgage costs and all in all, a pretty tough life. Gone are the care-free young years of the baby-boomers. That generation, now entering their 50's, are still "living the life of teenagers", while young people of today are writhing in angst. Is it really so? Take a look...

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2006/09/18/nipod18.xml

Posted by Colin at 06:56 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

It's 'Defeat Depression Week' here in Hong Kong... (well it made me laugh).

Reminds me of an airline that I flew in India once, which was having a 'Safety Month'. lol.

And restaurants that have 'specials'... shouldn't all the meals be special?

Seriously though, isn't it better to decide what you are good at, and deliver it consistently. Make it the very core of what you do, not an occasional add-on.

Posted by Colin at 11:56 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

This is very funny, and a great example of brand engagement...

Take a look at www.shaveeverywhere.com

Posted by Colin at 04:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)