#MARKiesAwards 2021 spills: Ads need to be more thumb stopping than ever, says W/E + Partners

Founded this year, W/E + Partners was formed by Water Edge's former creative partner Andy Lee, and its client services director Michelle Tee. A fully integrated agency, W/E + Partners provides branding, advertising, and digital solutions across touchpoints that are relevant to the consumer journey. W/E + Partners also launched its biodiversity campaign, which created awareness on the topic of biodiversity, becoming a collective voice for the planet. With the campaign, the company managed to clinch the bronze award for Most Creative – Communications/Public Relations at MARKETING-INTERACTIVE's MARKies Awards 2021.

W/E + Partners' managing partner, Michelle Tee (pictured) told MARKETING-INTERACTIVE that it takes a combination of strong insight-led creative with the right channel and targeting to make for great marketing or advertising strategy today. "If it’s a branding campaign, then it is also a continuous, long-term commitment to help the brand create an emotional connection with its customers," she added. 

Tee shares more on the takeaways businesses can learn from the pandemic and the importance of digital communications. 

This interview is done as part of MARKETING-INTERACTIVE’s winners and finalists’ interview series for MARKies Awards 2021. To find out more about the awards, click here.

Tell us about the campaign you won and what was the most memorable aspect of the campaign for you?

Tee: We are happy to be working with MSIG on the biodiversity campaign and are proud to have won Bronze for “Most Creative – Communications/Public Relations”. The goal of the campaign is to create awareness on the topic of biodiversity so that we can all be a collective voice for the planet. The challenges are two-fold - to educate and engage consumers on a topic that is not easily understood; and to draw a connection between insurance and biodiversity. It was an enriching journey for us as while we are creating marketing content, we are also part of a meaningful mission in raising awareness to protect the environment.

What do you think makes for great marketing/advertising these days?

Tee: It takes a combination of strong insight-led creative with the right channel and targeting, which should ultimately drive business results.

If it’s a branding campaign, then it is also a continuous, long-term commitment to help the brand create an emotional connection with its customers.

There should also be a collaboration between the client and agency to derive data that offer sufficient insights into the target audience and the current landscape. The more we know, the more spot-on we can be in our communications.

What is one specific marketing/advertising trend you are looking forward to exploring and experimenting with in 2021?

Tee: Instead of jumping on the bandwagon, the technology employed should also be relevant to the target audience and objective. While Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn are still the main platforms delivering results if, given the opportunity, we would like to explore more of Telegram and TikTok to capture a wider audience.

What was one lesson learnt during the pandemic that all marketers/agencies can take away?

Tee: With the pandemic, things have become more agile. The way consumers are consuming information continues to evolve even as we speak. With social media and online platforms, digital communications have become a large part of what we do. But with more communications taking place online, consumers’ attention gets more divided.

Ads need to be clear and more thumb stopping than ever.

More than just delivering benefits, we ask ourselves "Are the products or services relevant to customers’ needs?" Priorities may change and customers may be looking out for other alternatives in the midst of a pandemic. We need to consider how we can be more relevant in our message as well as offerings. Rethinking how we interact, learn and play may very well stay beyond the pandemic.