Insight
Listening to the city, most HKers are constantly juggling between long working hours, family and social responsibilities, resulting a fast-pace and highly pressured lifestyle. Furthermore, the living space in Hong Kong is extremely tight. As a result, enjoying quality time with their loved ones at a place that’s comfortable and cosy has become a luxury in Hong Kong. Increasingly people are spending more time outside than at home, and shopping malls have become the gathering places for the city, where people meet, socialise and get entertained.
Seeing this need from the city, Times Square reflected its role as the iconic shopping landmark in Hong Kong. In 2015, it wanted to go a step further to contribute better living experiences for people in Hong Kong, which has led to a long term strategic direction – THIS IS YOUR TIME. The brand believes its higher mission is to enrich HKers’ lives and promote cultural exchange. It is there for the city and its people.
Strategy
To create a memorable and enjoyable time for its visitors, OMD began by looking for the most heartfelt moments in one’s life. It discovered that home is where the heart is and the living room is often the place of all happenings, where family members gather to relax after a long day and share their feelings and love. This inspired the agency to leverage the shopping centre’s superior location and make Times Square the living room of the city, where everyone can visit with their loved ones to relax, to play, and most importantly, to create wonderful memories of their own.
Introducing the idea - “Times Square – the living room museum”. It strategically fuses the concept of “a living room” and “a museum”, to hosts various events and exhibitions for visitors. The agency developed three concepts to roll out the Living Room Museum, all for a betterment of society and culture.
1. Be a community ambassador – host art exhibitions and local events to create common experiences for HK community.
2. Be a cultural maker – become the city’s destination for innovation in festive celebrations and cultural transmission.
3. Be a world-class entertainer – build free theme park with popular activities to bring joy and laughter into people’s life.
Execution
To bring the three concepts to life, OMD transformed Times Square’s Open Piazza into a museum, to feature various arts, culture and events throughout the year.
Be a community ambassador – In Jan 2015, the Living Room Museum started off with a theme of Timeless – Memories of Hong Kong, where it presented the renowned photographer Dr. Leo K. K. Wong’s work, inviting people to go back in time to a Hong Kong that was blessed with harmony and happiness. Preserved in photographs, the past can be reacquainted, and more importantly, the present can be cherished and the future can be inspired.
Be a culture maker – In Feb, the agency turned the Living Room Museum into Lion Dance stage to celebrate Chinese New Year, creating a multi-dimensional cultural experience for visitors. It also celebrated International multi-disciplinary artist Gary Baseman’s iconic character Toby’s birthday, invited everyone to join the party – Happy Toby To You. The exhibition opened people’s minds and hearts to contemporary art and popular culture outside of Hong Kong.
Be a world-class entertainer – In March, it focused on the FUN elements and transformed the Living Room Museum into a bubbly gaming zone right in the heart of the city – The Playroom. People were invited to team up with their friends and a range of group activities. More recently, it also staged “Gundam Docks at Hong Kong II” to celebrate the 35th anniversary of BANDAI. Not only it entertained the GUNDAM fans, it also helped to engage visitors and enriched their shopping experience.
Results
Since the launch of the Living Room Museum, Times Square has brought many memorable and joyful moments to the people in Hong Kong. The campaign has gained tremendous awareness and engagement from the public.
• Attracted 19,200,943 visits;
• Facebook fans growth rate over 43%;
• Instagram followers increased by 27%;
The Living Room Museum connects people and creates experiences. It has become an avenue for people to gather, to experience, to learn and to sharing their love with families and friends.
• 97% of visitors enjoyed the Living Room Museum;
• Over 92% of visitors would like to visit the Living Room Museum again;
• 97% of visitors thought that the event should be held continuously in the future;
• Close to 90% of visitors agreed that Living Room Museum helped to enrich their experience and promote art and culture.
This huge success has translated into real business results. The additional footfall for 2015 has increased by 40%, which is the equivalent of 106,671 additional visitors daily. Most of all, the Living Room Museum has transformed Times Square from an iconic shopping landmark into THE living room of Hong Kong.