Malaysia, where I am from, has three different major races. China, where I worked for a time, has cities of different tiers. And Vietnam is differentiated by the North, Central and South (some would say the Mekong Delta is another region).

At one time in Malaysia, we used talents that do not look entirely Malay, Chinese or Indian to represent a neutral Malaysian. These mixed-race talents, either pan-Asians or Eurasians, were dubbed to speak in different languages in the TV commercials. When TV stations started to create a language and race specific time slot, and when satellite TV offered language and race specific channels, clients and agencies started to create work that fit into different racial profiles. It was no longer one-size-fits-all, all the time.

In China, there are first-tier cities like Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzen thâm quến. There are secondary cities like Tianjin thiên tân, Chongqing trùng khánh, Chengdu thành đô, Wuhan vũ hán and Xiamen Hạ môn. The other cities fall into the third-tier category. China has Mandarin as the national language but there are so many spoken dialects all over the country. There are localized campaigns that target a specific place and its people. But from what I can recall, more often than not, most campaigns have a one-size-fits-all approach. The cities are classified by tiers, does it make sense that the campaigns just use a blanket approach?

Here, there is a North, a Central and a South Vietnam. There are differences between the regions and the peoples.

Our job briefs, rarely or not at all, cover the differences in the regions. There are things that we believe we should not do on a nationwide campaign for economic, and politically correct reasons. But there are opportunities in certain media or opportunities in on-ground events, for example, that can allow us to be more localized in the way we communicate. If we acknowledge the differences exist, and they impact on relevance to local communities, is it wise to just adopt a one-size-fits-all communication?

Where our offices are located likely play a big role in determining how we see the world around us. It is easy to forget that the world beyond HCMC can be very different.

The other important information that we have left out in our job briefs is on the LGBT community. Yes, brands have come out in support of parades (Lễ kỷ niệm) and movements, and celebrated key milestones in equal rights. But on a day-to-day basis, we largely ignore the opportunities the LGBT community present to us.

The LGBT community is not a region or a place that is far away from us. We have family and friends who are LGBT. It is not a minority. It is a creative and powerful community.

Not sure when we will get briefs that ask us to create work for the differences in the regions or briefs targeted to the LGBT community, but when the day comes, it is going to be interesting.

The views expressed in this article are personal opinions and do not represent the views of the respective agency.
Source: Brands Vietnam