Author, ADA
How long was this in the works?
Fero Haizal Karim, Creative Director, ADA: We had been working on the Ramadan and Raya storyline since the beginning of this year. Initially, we had a different storyline where we wanted to position Boost as the brand that enables Choices for Malaysians – whether it be paying for groceries, online shopping, travel tickets and accommodations, and even paying bills that continues to be rewarding through the Boost Up loyalty.
However, due to the unforeseen COVID-19 pandemic, and ensuing Movement Control Order (MCO), we had to steer towards another direction and looked at what is workable in terms of a storyline, and still deliver the brand promise. All while keeping in mind what Boost had planned for the month of Ramadan and Raya, which was centered around Doing Good for 30 Days (30 Hari 30 Amalan) by highlighting different NGOs daily that users can donate to through the app. Boost also introduced e-Zakat, the first e-wallet to champion this online, and with social distancing being enforced, it was the perfect time to educate the market to go cashless, and reintroduce the Boost e-Duit Raya in a fun, jovial, but meaningful way.
Ungku Norliza Syazwan, Director of Product and Marketing, Boost: Boost typically starts crafting a Campaign couple of months earlier to ensure the ideas are well thought through and its relevance to the Brand positioning for both our Customers, Partners and Merchants. The same applies for our Ramadan & Raya Campaigns. If you recalled, since last year our Campaigns were all about providing Malaysians with “Choices”, which is what our Lifestyle App is all about. Boost is a complete Lifestyle e-wallet with a plethora of options whether paying at the groceries, shopping online, travelling tickets and accommodations, entertainment and even paying bills that continues to be rewarding through our Boost Up loyalty programme.
With this concept in mind, we followed through the umbrella campaign of providing Choices but we had to adapt it due to the unforeseen COVID-19 situation. It is still surrounding the idea of giving Malaysians Choices, but now innovatively offering these options, despite the very limited physical movement allowed during the MCO. We quickly steered and further anchored three main pillars : How do we help our Customers? How do we help our Merchants? And last but definitely not least, how do we help Malaysians as a whole? It took us about two weeks to ensure we deliver the Brand promise around these three focus areas by introducing these amazing features, among others:
- Doing Good for 30 Days (30 Hari 30 Amalan) highlighting a different NGO or charity organisation daily that users can donate to through Boost.
- The launch of e-Zakat in the Boost App, making Boost the first e-wallet to champion the cashless move from offline to online.
- Re-introducing Boost e-Duit Raya with fun and colourful digital Raya packets. We were preparing for further CMCO restrictions up to Syawal with social distancing being enforced. It was the perfect time to create some excitement amongst all the difficult news and create new yet meaningful ways of celebrating the festive season.
What changes did ADA and Boost have to make to the script while working on this remotely?
Fero Haizal Karim: The team had to adapt very quickly and brainstormed the new story within a short period of time. We looked at how digital behaviours were changing, and how users were adapting to the new normal – this was the perfect time to show Boost as the brand that champions what it has always stood for – the first in the homegrown brand that promotes Cashless Community/Digital Payment provider. We had daily huddles with the team, and once we landed on the idea of the storyline, we had to bring it up to the Boost marketing team who were then also excited to bring this to life.
Ungku Norliza Syazwan: The team had to adapt very quickly and brainstormed our version of the story within a short period of time. COVID-19 hit us in a manner that we never anticipated its impact on all of us and our daily lives. But Boost is a homegrown brand that is so used to disrupting the industry norms and we found ways to innovate and create efficiencies through these times.
We looked at how users’ digital behaviours were changing as well as how they were adapting to the new normal and sought to create relevant features in our app that rode on the strength of our cashless ecosystem that could fill the new voids created by the MCO and safe social distancing practices.
One of the biggest voids was the closeness of family and friends especially during Ramadan and Hari Raya. We also saw a gap in how Malaysians could help other local communities and charities during the on-going pandemic which coincides with the fasting month.
With all these in mind, we had a long discussion on how we could still create the same “Suasana Hari Raya” despite us being in a lockdown during Ramadan and Syawal. We wanted to bring back the cheer, the hope, the smile, the laugher and the spirit of Hari Raya although in a slightly different manner. That’s where we thought about the concept of “Raya Tetap Raya” where we can all still celebrate this special occasion with everyone no matter where you are.
We had daily huddles amongst the team, and we continued to refine the storyline a few times as we wanted to still remain sensitive towards the public in general. Eventually, the team came together and we created magic.
What were some of the challenges you faced?
Fero Haizal Karim: Timeline and feasibility of filming were a factor – we had to curate the music, the lyrics had to be written and understood by the market, looked for the perfect partner to execute this in a very strategic manner, and yet still bring out the TV-quality feel. When we finally got everyone together at the table (virtually, on Teams), everything just flowed smoothly from production to scripting, to offline, and even online. From the start to the end of the delivery, both the ADA and Boost teams worked together to deliver this piece of work that each of us are very proud of.
Ungku Norliza Syazwan: When there’s restrictions, there’s always room for creativity. Of course everything has its challenges and this Music Video is no different. From shooting techniques, timelines, the right song and tune, as well as the meaningful lyrics, because it was built from scratch.
But the Team made it really easy, and that is one of the Core Values that we at Boost and ADA hold dearly: Act Now. Once the initial concept and idea was agreed on, we had everyone together at the virtual table – we took all precautionary steps to ensure everyone was safe during the discussion, recording and filming of this music video via conference call, and no one fell sick, Praise to the Almighty.
Everything just flowed smoothly from production scripting, offline viewing and even online production. From the start to the end of the delivery, the ADA and Boost teams came together to deliver this piece of work that each and every one of us is very proud of. It’s definitely a different experience for all of us. We truly hope you enjoy the music video as much as we did filming it just for you.
Interview written by ADA
