Press Release
Sometimes, It’s Okay to Wear Socks and Sandals.
Matching socks and sandals is a universal fashion faux pas, but it is more severe in Thailand. They keep you warm and cold-free during winter, but we never merge them with sandals or flip-flops because it is confusing when you live in a country where the equator is only 15 degrees below. You are overly afraid to be unrelatable and thus conform to the locals. It is only natural to do so because we are all humans, but please do not apply this to marketing. Marketing localisation sounds nice if you do it precisely with the right amount, but can you compete with the Thais who know better, or will you be willing to look like any other Farangs who use an identical localisation strategy? This series of articles will make you embrace your foreign oddity or stick to what you might know best rather than only blindly applying what the natives have done successfully.
Volume#1: The Legend Thai Ads
The New Journey
YAY! Congratulations on being a new Thailand marketing manager or whichever position you need to flip a marketing situation for your brand in our country. The first that might come to mind to know more about our marketing landscape is through our infamous ads by visiting ‘Thai #Funny Commercials #1’ or ‘Tear-Jerker Commercials Create Internet Challenge’ on YouTube. You probably think, “I need to create one of these legacies for my brand during my marketing reign.” You are not wrong. We, Thai people, love these funny or tear-jerking ads. These kinds were and still are what we expect from brands, but the digital world has revolutionised its impact forever. If the same ads 10 years ago had been launched online today, it would not have had the same effect.
Pocari Sweat — a Japanese ad with the true Japanese aesthetics was one of the biggest virals in Thailand in 2022 (Source: Nawapol Thamrongrattanarit, a Thai director famous for his signature aesthetics)
Creative desensitisation is a pain for all marketers and advertisers, forcing us to be impossibly creative daily because someone (a lot, actually) is getting bored. This is a tip from someone who has seen Thai advertisers trapped in their successful patterns from our so-called legendary ads in the past. Do not let the fear of being unrelatable refrain you from projecting your original foreign thoughts to Thai audiences. They might be the new blueprints to reviving the timelessness our Thai ads used to be known for in the glory days.
Yes, you will probably look bizarre.
Yes, you are going to be notoriously remembered for your oddity.
But one thing is, your ads will be unforgettable in our little country, which is the foundation of marketing. Remember, Justin Bieber once pulled socks and sandals off!