Johnnie Walker collaborates with BBH and Ogilvy to launch a 12 film campaign for the China market that inspires a generation to ‘Keep Walking’

January 13 2011, 9:02 am | BY Lynchy | No Comments

Diageo whisky brand Johnnie Walker has teamed up with BBH China and a 360 Degree team from Ogilvy Shanghai to launch the most ambitious brand campaign of its type in China and the most significant digital social media effort in the brand’s history in this market.

On January 5th 2011, Diageo launched a new campaign for its Johnnie Walker brand in China. Entitled “Yulu” or “Words of a Journey”, the campaign uses a documentary approach to tell the stories of 12 Chinese pioneers, chosen from the fields of business and the arts. The protagonists (including Pan Shiyi – SOHO international, Xu Bin- Artist, Wang Keqing – social activist and Wang Yiyang – fashion designer) reflect upon their life journeys against the backdrop of modern China.

The campaign is a departure from the traditional mainstream advertising approach that most brands adopt. Taking a much longer form approach and using a strong digital media element gives the campaign more depth and breadth and aims to spark a larger conversation on behalf of the brand.

“We think it’s truly unique and extremely timely for our brand in China. What could be more appropriate to a brand that is all about progress than to talk about some of China’s most progressive individuals. We are excited about this campaign as it allows us to communicate with Chinese consumers in a heart to heart way and co-opt them into our brand values,” said Ms. Foo Siew Ting, Regional Brand Director, Johnnie Walker.

“Too much advertising in China is simply aspirational depictions of made up lives. We wanted to do something much more true to the authentic nature of the brand by reflecting upon real people and their real stories and do it in a radically different format,” said Johnnie Tan, Executive Creative Director, BBH China.

“Each film tells the unique story of one person, where they came from, how they got to where they are today and what it is that inspires them to do what it is they do. Our hope is that these stories will inspire people to reflect upon and tell their own stories,” said Mr. Jia Zhangke, Director.

To spark a nationwide cultural debate ahead of the release of the documentary series, Johnnie Walker seeded a bold social media campaign across 40+ digital platforms. Central to the success of the digital campaign was the involvement of Han Han, author of China’s most popular blog and one of Time magazine’s ‘most influential figures’. His series of videos for Johnnie Walker’s blog and initiation of a discussion on whether dreams still exist in the lives of China’s often conflicted 80s generation caused the conversation to spread like wildfire across the web.

In the last two months alone, more than 100 respected Chinese bloggers and digital influencers, including media moguls, TV personalities, famed authors and cultural icons, participated in the online exchange and shared their dreams and what inspires them to “Keep Walking”.

Chris Reitermann, President, Ogilvy & Mather Group Shanghai, said, “Chinese consumers today are sophisticated, digitally savvy, and crave authenticity, engagement and provocative content. And there’s no better place to get people talking and sharing ideas about their real feelings than in the Chinese social media world. This campaign touched a chord with consumers and earned their attention because it inspired them to share their dreams and “Keep Walking” towards them.”

The campaign was launched on national television in China on January 5, 2011 with a 3-minute commercial featuring the story of Mr. Pan Shiyi, CEO of SOHO International. The other 11 documentaries were revealed on the brand website immediately after. Targeting the 80s generation between the ages of 25-35, Johnnie Walker’s new TVC and digital campaign will run nationwide until March 2011.

View all the videos at: http://johnniewalker.tudou.com/yulujihua/

Sina Blog: http://johnniewalker.blog.sina.com.cn/bbs.php

Tudou: http://johnniewalker.tudou.com/yulujihua/

Douban: http://www.douban.com/minisite/yulujihua/

Sina Weibo (Chinese Twitter): http://t.sina.com.cn/johnniewalkerchina

Johnnie Walker Credits:

Siew-Ting Foo

Cathy Guo

Lawrence Law

Cindy Lim

Ogilvy Group/Shanghai Credits:

360 Digital Engagement Planning: Keen Yim, Vivian Tu, Maggie Luo, Lance Wang