Marketers from DBS, Singapore government and Google share tips on topping the YouTube chart

The first was ‘making a song and dance about it’ which recognised that three of the top 10 were music ads and another two were music-themed. Secondly YouTube advised brands to feature ‘local heroes’ and praised McDonald’s use of local dialects. Thirdly, it said that brands should use YouTube for all ages and not just the young, while the final piece of advice was to think about a cliffhanger plot, as seen in DBS’s YouTube series.

Speaking to The Drum, Joanna Flint, country director for Google Singapore, said: “When we compare the ads featured in the first half of 2016 to the ones in the second half, we see local ads gaining popularity. This speaks of the industry’s continued success in creating made-for-web content and we continue to see great brands and creative work on YouTube.”

“With Singapore having the second highest mobile broadband penetration and continued growth in YouTube watch time, more brands are recognising that their audience is on YouTube and are extending their reach online to engage them. We have seen Singaporean brands large and small succeed in building brand awareness with YouTube ads from Starhub to DBS and even to traditional businesses in Singapore like Hai Sia Seafood and Wufang martial arts,” she added.

In lieu of increased digital video audiences, the Singapore Government has also been using the platform to get across key messages to the population. The Singapore government’s Ministry of Communications and Information (MCI) entered the chart at seven for《杂货店》The Provision Shop OST 有空记得约我 - The Freshman, a music video that accompanied a film about relationships in the multicultural country.

Karen Tan, senior director of public communications division at MCI, said: “Our online videos have seen strong and rising viewership over the years. This can be attributed to our efforts to offer fresh and innovative storytelling, even for public service messages, and being audience-centric in our marketing videos.

“How we allocate our media spend depends on our analysis of our target audience as it is important that we reach out to them effectively. We consciously shape our video content and formats with online audiences in mind, right from the start, even at the ideation stage. Even when we are producing for TV broadcasts, we usually consider how we can slice and repackage the content for greater sharing and amplification online,” she explained.

Another entry to the top ten for the second half of the year was banking brand DBS, which also took a storytelling strategy for its series of YouTube-only videos. The SPARKS series follows bankers as they deal with various work and personal situations and two of the episodes (episodes four and five) landed in the top 10, almost topping half a million views each.

According to Karen Ngui, managing director and head of group strategic marketing and communications at DBS Bank, the mini-series has generated over 42 million views across the episodes and trailers.

“DBS is moving to a new model of marketing whereby we produce content that creates conversations and experiences for our consumers. It involves a different form of storytelling, understanding what matters in life, and engaging users on social media with bite-sized pieces of shareable content inspired by genuine stories. As we continuously look to redefine banking, this is one of the our ways of disrupting the industry via digitally oriented content marketing - we are the first in the industry to produce Sparks, a mini-series on banking and bankers, and we hope that this will be a game changer."

Ngui said the move to digital in Singapore has helped to drive efficiencies, as well as driving up engagement around the brand in the region: "We have seen greater efficiencies from digital content marketing and storytelling, and this is definitely an area we are moving more into.”

DBS is releasing the sixth episode of the series soon on YouTube, spacing the content out in the same way a TV show would be scheduled.

Playlist of the Top 10 as on YouTube in Singapore H2 2016

1. StarHub - Majulah Moms

2. Universal Studios Singapore HHN6 | Be Engulfed by the Darkness Within

3. 吃饱没？(Eat Already?) MV

4. SPARKS – Mini-series: Episode 5

5. McDonald's Confirm Shiok TVC

6. SPARKS – Mini-series: Episode 4

7. 《杂货店》The Provision Shop OST | 有空记得约我 - The Freshman

8. iPhone 7 - Dive - Apple

9. McDonald's Taste Harmony

10. 《吃饱没?》预告片 - Eat Already? Trailer (Hokkien)