In the information age of today, attracting and retaining the attention of the consumer has become the marketer’s number one goal. Brands want to be able to build an identity that is memorable and relatable. myVillage understands that the key to achieving this is continuous online and offline engagement.
Through a purpose-driven strategy developed alongside Consulus, myVillage is able to implement interactive marketing campaigns that help build a unique and distinctive brand experience for its customers.
Strategic Business Design
In a place like Serangoon Gardens, where its residents hold dear many vivid memories of the good old days, remembering and celebrating the heritage of the neighbourhood is a key element in myVillage’s brand strategy. Various marquee events are held every year, together with frequent community-centric events that offer more than just a run-of-the-mill shopping experience.
myVillage’s strategy of going “off the beaten track” and separating itself from other mainstream malls sees many unconventional occasions and events take place, like Father’s Day celebrations and rooftop yoga classes. This  strategy helps to deliver unique, easy to remember experiences to its customers.
Paramount Night is an annual event held in March on the rooftop of myVillage, through which the mall celebrates the memory of Paramount Theatre in the 1950s, upon which the mall now sits.
Paramount Night 2013 was the venue of the first public screening of ‘Wreck It Ralph’, an animated film that drew hundreds of families to myVillage.
Interactive Marketing Campaigns
Organised by Consulus and supported by events management vendors, interactive events like Paramount Night deliver unique brand experiences to the public that become distinctive marquee events.
Father’s Day 2013 saw father and child pairs compete and record the fastest times round a race track. This remote-controlled race set out to honour the contribution of the paternal role in the family unit and step away from the usual hype surrounding mother’s day.
Marketing the event took place weeks before the launch through social media, building anticipation and awareness through Facebook, Twitter and Electronic Direct Mailers.
myVillage celebrates Father’s Day 2013 by organising a 9-day long remote-controlled car racing competition, rewarding the fastest 3 pairs of father-child teams with cash prizes and tenant giveaways. All design collaterals were done by Consulus.
myVillage’s Christmas Light-Up sees hundreds of Villagers come together to mark the start of the festive season with a symbolic light-up led by the mall developers, Chye Lee & Sons. This event has become a yearly tradition for the mall.
Certified yoga instructors, Yoga Seeds, conduct classes for members of the public on the rooftop of myVillage.
Integrated Online Presence
Taking advantage of Instagram’s integration with Facebook, photography contests were conducted across platforms to simultaneously create buzz and interact with the shoppers. Tenant promotions are also being featured on Instagram to build up a sense of lifestyle around myVillage.
Rapid Response Campaigns were also used to capitalise on current events to develop a relationship with the customers. Using social media, myVillage was able to conceptualise and execute a campaign in 24 hours, which encouraged the community to put on masks during the haze. Participants received a small reward if they uploaded shots of themselves with masks in and around myVillage.
Campaign posters used for Instagram and Facebook contests.
Rewarding The Fans
Being a community mall outside of the major shopping districts, one of the challenges of myVillage was ensuring a consistent influx of shoppers. By making available the myVillage loyalty program through iOS and Android devices, we were able to maintain a positive mind share to the most enthusiastic customers, and also to be able to interact with them on the go.
Tenant promotions, loyalty rewards and a complete directory listing with table reservation capabilities are some features of the myVillage mobile phone app.
Services
Engaging with the customer also requires an understanding of the context that they operate in. Serangoon Garden has a long documented history of limited parking, and myVillage have initiated a valet service to help those who choose to park at myVillage.
A shuttle bus service on weekdays also runs so that lunch time road traffic can be alleviated while improving the lunch time mall traffic.
Besides a valet parking service on weekends, myVillage’s very own shuttle bus brings in customers from the surrounding estates like Tai Seng and Ang Mo Kio right to myVillage’s door step.
Consulus, in conjunction with myVillage, has pushed the envelope of what a mall can mean to people and will continue to do so in the years to come.
