Exhibition advertises a creative streak
Features - July 20, 2006
Jonathan Dart, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
It was a scene that would raise eyebrows in any language or culture: Four Arab men laze around the Oval Office of the White House. One ties his camel to a desk while the others smoke their pipes in front of a belly dancer.
The advertisement was part of a series designed for a computer game, Risk, where players use their armies to vie for global supremacy.
Designed by the Saatchi & Saatchi agency in Singapore, the advertisement won the silver medal in the print division of the Asia Pacific Advertising Festival (Adfest), held in Thailand in March.
It's one of many pieces now on display at Bentara Budaya art showroom, in Palmerah, Central Jakarta, as part of an attempt to promote Adfest in Indonesia.
It is quite an ambitious exhibition for a number of reasons. First, it is rare that people would actually want to go out of their way for the privilege of viewing ads as works of art.
That irony would surely not be lost on the advertisers themselves, who spend much time and money devising ways to reach their target audience.
Second, Indonesia has traditionally struggled to compete with countries such as Japan and Malaysia at the annual Adfest competition.
No advertiser from this country has ever won a medal at Adfest, and on only one occasion has an Indonesia advertiser even been announced as a finalist.
There may be many reasons for this. According to Indonesian Association of Advertising Agencies (PPPI) chairman Narga Shakri Habib there is a difference between creative advertisements and an effective ad campaign.
"They say, a good creative ad is not necessarily good advertising," Narga said. "Some people make ads specifically to win awards, and then there's the ads that have an impact on people."
"We're looking to have ads in Indonesia that are able to appeal to people, and also are able to compete in the awards."
A simple look at some prominent billboards in Jakarta will show that effective marketing in Indonesia does not necessarily need to be creative in an arty sense.
Some local advertisements are totally direct with their message, such as the one authorized by the National Narcotics Body (BNN), which leaves little doubt as to the effects of drugs on young people.
The billboard shows twin shots of a young man, one dressed in a suit smiling, the other lying dead in a coffin. The banner underneath reads, "This high or that `high'?"
"In advertising, we're talking about communication, and every country has different segmentation, and their cultures are different," Nargo said. "Each country has a different way (of advertising), because we're trying to reach different segments and target audiences."
"Indonesian people are, of course, different to Thai people and Japanese."
But there are some signs that Indonesian advertisers are becoming more creative.
In this year's Young Lotus Awards, a section of Adfest for the "rising stars" of the industry, two junior Jakartan advertisers were selected as finalists: Capriana Natalia from David Marketing and Nico Owen from Lowe Worldwide Indonesia.
It's an important feat because, despite the obvious cultural differences that exist at a contest such as Adfest, the most successful advertisements have an appeal that transcends language and cultural barriers.
There were many advertisements in the campaign for Risk other than the spoof on an Arab White House. They include Indian troops marching through Tiananmen Square and an African Queen inspecting the British Royal Guard.
For Narga Shakri Habib, good humor and creativity are elements of advertising that are universal throughout the world, and are necessary to ensure that a product is able to reach a global market.
"If you look at all these ads, they have something in common -- they are all simple, [with] almost no wording," he said. "Basically, the idea is to keep it simple, with a single message."
"A good ad should be universal. For instance, no matter what region you are from, you look at this ad [for Risk] and you can understand it, no matter what language you speak."
With that in mind, Nargo said he has some ambitious goals for Indonesian advertisers.
"There are no Indonesian ads in this room yet," he said.
"Hopefully, next year we'll have something of our own to show off."
(The work of selected finalists in the Adfest competition is on display 10 a.m. - 6 p.m. daily through July 23 at Bentara Budaya art showroom, Jl. Palmerah Selatan 17, Palmerah, Central Jakarta.)
Features - July 20, 2006
Jonathan Dart, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
It was a scene that would raise eyebrows in any language or culture: Four Arab men laze around the Oval Office of the White House. One ties his camel to a desk while the others smoke their pipes in front of a belly dancer.
The advertisement was part of a series designed for a computer game, Risk, where players use their armies to vie for global supremacy.
Designed by the Saatchi & Saatchi agency in Singapore, the advertisement won the silver medal in the print division of the Asia Pacific Advertising Festival (Adfest), held in Thailand in March.
It's one of many pieces now on display at Bentara Budaya art showroom, in Palmerah, Central Jakarta, as part of an attempt to promote Adfest in Indonesia.
It is quite an ambitious exhibition for a number of reasons. First, it is rare that people would actually want to go out of their way for the privilege of viewing ads as works of art.
That irony would surely not be lost on the advertisers themselves, who spend much time and money devising ways to reach their target audience.
Second, Indonesia has traditionally struggled to compete with countries such as Japan and Malaysia at the annual Adfest competition.
No advertiser from this country has ever won a medal at Adfest, and on only one occasion has an Indonesia advertiser even been announced as a finalist.
There may be many reasons for this. According to Indonesian Association of Advertising Agencies (PPPI) chairman Narga Shakri Habib there is a difference between creative advertisements and an effective ad campaign.
"They say, a good creative ad is not necessarily good advertising," Narga said. "Some people make ads specifically to win awards, and then there's the ads that have an impact on people."
"We're looking to have ads in Indonesia that are able to appeal to people, and also are able to compete in the awards."
A simple look at some prominent billboards in Jakarta will show that effective marketing in Indonesia does not necessarily need to be creative in an arty sense.
Some local advertisements are totally direct with their message, such as the one authorized by the National Narcotics Body (BNN), which leaves little doubt as to the effects of drugs on young people.
The billboard shows twin shots of a young man, one dressed in a suit smiling, the other lying dead in a coffin. The banner underneath reads, "This high or that `high'?"
"In advertising, we're talking about communication, and every country has different segmentation, and their cultures are different," Nargo said. "Each country has a different way (of advertising), because we're trying to reach different segments and target audiences."
"Indonesian people are, of course, different to Thai people and Japanese."
But there are some signs that Indonesian advertisers are becoming more creative.
In this year's Young Lotus Awards, a section of Adfest for the "rising stars" of the industry, two junior Jakartan advertisers were selected as finalists: Capriana Natalia from David Marketing and Nico Owen from Lowe Worldwide Indonesia.
It's an important feat because, despite the obvious cultural differences that exist at a contest such as Adfest, the most successful advertisements have an appeal that transcends language and cultural barriers.
There were many advertisements in the campaign for Risk other than the spoof on an Arab White House. They include Indian troops marching through Tiananmen Square and an African Queen inspecting the British Royal Guard.
For Narga Shakri Habib, good humor and creativity are elements of advertising that are universal throughout the world, and are necessary to ensure that a product is able to reach a global market.
"If you look at all these ads, they have something in common -- they are all simple, [with] almost no wording," he said. "Basically, the idea is to keep it simple, with a single message."
"A good ad should be universal. For instance, no matter what region you are from, you look at this ad [for Risk] and you can understand it, no matter what language you speak."
With that in mind, Nargo said he has some ambitious goals for Indonesian advertisers.
"There are no Indonesian ads in this room yet," he said.
"Hopefully, next year we'll have something of our own to show off."
(The work of selected finalists in the Adfest competition is on display 10 a.m. - 6 p.m. daily through July 23 at Bentara Budaya art showroom, Jl. Palmerah Selatan 17, Palmerah, Central Jakarta.)
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