STB, EDB launch unified brand to market Singapore worldwide

Singapore Tourism Board and the country’s Economic Development Board today unveiled a new joint brand, 'Passion Made possible', to promote Singapore as a destination across the globe.

The new brand, developed by Singapore creative shop The Secret Little Agency, will replace STB’s ‘Your Singapore’ campaign, which has been running since 2010. The new project goes beyond just promoting tourism to encompassing Singapore’s business strengths and local culture.

The sizeable marketing campaign includes an overall brand film, produced by The Prosecution Co. and TBWA/Singapore, but also a host of print and digital assets split between so-called ‘tribe films’ and ‘brand personality films’.

These will be rolled out across 15 markets globally between August and November, including Southeast Asia, Japan, China, Australia, Germany, the UK and US. Media partners such as BBC, CNN and WeChat and others will share the content.

The aim is to present Singapore as a vibrant, interesting and innovative place for all, said Lynette Pang, STB assistant chief executive, which has not been easy historically.

“More and more countries are branding themselves, and our biggest strength was also our weakness,” she told reporters at a press conference. “We are known for our safety, hygiene and the like, but we are also a very cultural and interesting place.”

To showcase this in an increasingly competitive market for tourism and investment, the partners have created seven ‘passion tribes’ for visitors to identify themselves with, based on their interest when visiting Singapore.

The first two videos, Foodie and Explorer, were released today, with the remaining five—Collector, Action Seeker, Culture Shaper, Socialiser and Progressor—to be rolled out over the next year.

In line with these tribes, the brand has created additional short films focused on Singaporeans and residents with compelling stories to tell about themselves and the country. Again, the first two were released today.

Pang said STB and EDB are looking to move people and businesses’ relationship with Singapore from “transactional to aspirational”.

Lionel Yeo, STB chief executive, said: “This brand articulates what we stand for as a country. It will allow us to build a deeper and more personal connection between Singapore and our fans and friends, even when they are not actively thinking about travel.”

Yeo declined to reveal the cost of the new brand and campaign, saying only that STB’s marketing budget would now primarily be used in support of the new brand. Tourism grew 13 percent in Singapore in 2016, bringing in SG$24.6 billion (US$18.05 billion).

“We are looking at this over a long period of time,” he said. “How long it will be is anyone’s guess, but we are committed.”

Following research conducted with close to 4,500 residents, industry stakeholders and international audiences, the Passion Made Possible brand was developed over the past 12 months, according to Beh Swan Gin, EDB chairman.

From a marketing standpoint, Beh said EDB “gets to ride on a lot of above-the-line investment from STB,” but that the new brand is also “focused on the businesses making a difference in Singapore”.

He said the two bodies attempted to launch a joint brand at the time of ‘Your Singapore’ in 2010, but were unsuccessful.

Passion Made Possible will also include experiential programmes, with STB curating more than 20 tours based on the passion tribes.