The Benyan Tree Project: Stop HIV/AIDS-related Stigma in the API Communities

I’ve just learned that the annual increase of HIV infections in the US Asian & Pacific Islanders (API) communities is the fastest in the nation.

The Benyan Tree Project is a national social marketing campaign to stop HIV/AIDS-related stigma in the API communities. The program has released four public service announcememtnts (PSAs) featuring three major API stars:

Joan Chen, an award-winning actress, director, and producer
http://banyantreeproject.org/extras/joan_chen_welness_center.mov

Amy Hanaiali’I Gillom, a Hawaiian singer/songwriting legend
http://banyantreeproject.org/extras/amy_api_wellness_psa.mov

Jason Kyson Lee, actor from NBC's critically-acclaimed television drama Heroes
http://banyantreeproject.org/extras/James_welness_center.mov

http://banyantreeproject.org/extras/combined_welness_center.mov (combined spot)

The PSAs highlight the alarming increase of HIV infections in the US API communities; the importance of showing compassion to those living with HIV; and the need for APIs to get tested for HIV.

The PSAs were tailored to be regionally relevant for distribution across the US. Estimate of 200 million households will be reached by the spots in the coming 3 months. Through informing, teaching and setting a positive example, the Benyan Tree Project aims to stop the cycle of discrimination and silence, by eliminating barriers that delay or prevent access to HIV prevention and care services.

It is not an easy task, but I believe the Benyan Tree Project is on the right track.

Quizno’s Laundromat Spot Features An Asian-American Woman

To promote the chain’s Deli Favorites subs, Quizno launched its new "Laundromat" spot where an Asian-American woman grabs a $5 bill taped on the wall and eats it. The VO asks “If you’re gonna eat $5, shouldn’t you get your money worth?” Then, it goes on saying Quizno’s Deli Favorites sub is just $5. It gives you more meat than a $5 bill.

To see the Laundromat spot, go to http://www.quiznos.com/commercials/2008/tvspot5dollarsub.asp

Lewis Lazare criticizes on Chicago Sun-Times that the spot is an insult to Asian American. See http://www.suntimes.com/business/lazare/946162,CST-FIN-lew13.article. I personally do not see it that way.

Obviously the spot is dramatizing and meant to be funny. While I don’t typically like the humor, I – as an Asian American – do not find it offensive. The commercial works better in a boring environment setting – a Laundromat makes sense. Since many Laundromats around the country are owned by Asian, seeing an Asian face at the cashier is – to me – natural.

Yes, the commercial made the Asian-American woman look very dumb. But it doesn't try to say all Asian American are not smart. Imagine if the spot features an African American cashier at the Laundromat instead. That would look weird.

There are several other TV spots featuring South Asians in deli and gas stations. Why? For the very same reason: many delis are owned by South Asians.

Take it easy. The commercials are just trying to mirror the diversity of the society. We live in a melted pot. Be cautious, but not overly sensitive.

Presidential Election in Taiwan

I had dinner with my family in a Chinese restaurant tonight. I couldn't help but keep watching the TV. It was all about the presidential election in Taiwan and how people were celebrating on Ma Ying-Jeou's victory. I wasn't alone. Many of the patrons were more interested in the TV than the food.

As usual, I paid more attention on the commercial than the program itself. It was a satellite TV station I was watching. The program was 100% fed directly from Taiwan. The commercials were mixed – some local and some global. How could I tell?

HP's commercial featured their Compaq slim desktop, which is not available in the U.S. McDonld's offered their coffee at 50% off; I don't think we have the same discount here. In couple other commercials, celebrities were holding boxes of CIBA Vision's Focus Dailies written in Chinese.

I suspect these spots were not placed by the US office of the brands, but the office in Taiwan. They most likely were added value. Taiwanese marketers of course would not pay for such placement, but they might think more spots – regardless anywhere – was good for global brands like theirs; and so accepted the added value offer. They forgot the brands had different products, promotional offers and packages around the world. Though the audience does not mind – in fact, they are used to it, it could cause legal issues.

I am not saying overseas marketers should not accept such added value. They just need to be mindful about the creative placed around the world.

Lack of Data, Lot of Promise For Asian American Media

CNNMoney posted an article "Lack of Data, Lot of Promise For Asian American Media" on December 18, 2006. Many key players in the market, including media and agencies, were interviewed. Their opinions vary sharply. (The link no longer works. See below for complete story.)

The Asian American market is definitely growing, just not sure at what rate. There is no data to support. Only one TV station is on Nielsen. Less than 5% of the publications are audited.

More and more Asian American media outlets come out every month. Many of them are branches of mainstream, eg. MTV Chi, MTV K and MTV Desi; OnWheel’s Asian On Wheels.

Asian marketing is a fun place to be at now and in the coming years. Though the harvest time may not come very soon, it sure is promising. Those who stay long and overcome all the challenges and learn the process will be the big winners – both media and marketers, both product and personal growth.

Lack of Data, Lot of Promise For Asian-American Media
December 18, 2006: 10:04 AM EST

Dec. 18, 2006 (Multichannel News) -- Asked about the state of the Asian-American television advertising market, more than a dozen media and marketing executives provided sharply different opinions.

"Definitely flatline," answered Elcid Choi, executive vice president and director of new client development for the multicultural agency GlobalHue.

"Nominal growth," said Michael Sherman general manager of KTSF, a broadcast station in San Francisco that transmits foreign-language programming for Asians.

"Very strong growth," said Saul Gitlin, executive vice president of strategic marketing services at Kang & Lee, one of the larger Asian-American advertising agencies.

But no one suggested the market was shrinking.

The different opinions point to perhaps the biggest challenge facing the Asian-American media industry -- the dearth of data. Only one media outlet subscribes to Nielsen Media Research ratings. And no firm collects industry-wide information about how much brands are spending on television advertising.

Still, there is widespread agreement about the attractiveness and potential of the Asian-American market. In September, the University of Georgia's Selig Center for Economic Growth released a report estimating Asian-American buying power at $427 billion.

This represents an almost 60% jump since 2000. According to the Census Bureau, the Asian-American population is approximately 11.9 million. This represents a 20% increase between 2000 and 2004. Almost half have a bachelor's or graduate degree and a little under a fifth earn over $75,000 a year.

"It makes strong business sense to target Asian-Americans," said Joe Min, account manager for Toyota at Long Beach, Calif.-based Asian-American ad agency interTrend. The automotive industry apparently agrees and is an active advertiser in the market.

Chrysler just recently re-entered the Asian-American advertising market with a television campaign promoting its Sebring model. It is the first time Chrysler has advertised a new model simultaneously in the general and Asian-American markets. The campaign began in late November and will run through the first quarter of next year.

The buy concentrated on Los Angeles, New York and San Francisco through a mix of broadcast and pay television. The campaign actually consists of spots in three languages -- Chinese, Korean and then English for Indian-Americans. The creative is the same, albeit with different actors and voiceovers. English was used to reach out to Indians from all different regions.

According to Holly Scerbo communications manager for Chrysler Marketing, "The demographics make it attractive and challenging," Sherman agrees the market is very attractive. KTSF, which broadcasts Chinese-language programming in primetime, including local newscasts in Mandarin and Cantonese, is the only Asian station or network that subscribes to Nielsen. In primetime, it is often San Francisco's second most-watched foreign-language station, behind Univision but ahead of Telemundo.

Last year, following the January 2005 move to Nielsen, Sherman saw a big jump in advertising dollars. But this year has brought in little additional revenue. A little over half of the station's advertising comes from national accounts.

"Over time the advertising community has come on board, although not as much as I would have thought," said Sherman. "People's understanding of the market is not that great. A lot of our work goes into explaining the Asian market."

Partly, that is a reflection of the inherent complexity of the Asian-American market. The largest immigrant groups are from China, India and Korea. English-language competency varies from near universal for Indian immigrants to significantly less for Chinese immigrants.

Aside from KTSF, there are only a handful of local stations and no national broadcast network transmitting Asian programming full-time. The stations typically carry programming from several countries, with primetime going to the largest immigrant group in the area -- Chinese in San Francisco and Korean in Los Angeles.

In addition, there are a few dozen pay television networks that feature original-language programming imported from Asia. Two networks, AZN and ImaginAsian TV, air a significant amount of programming that is either in English or subtitled.

There are also three MTV Channels that have launched over the past two years: MTVK, for Korean-Americans; MTV Chi, targeting Chinese-Americans; and MTV Desi, for South Asian-Americans. The VJs speak primarily in English as they introduce Asian music videos.

National advertising on these stations and networks comes in a range of languages, including Cantonese, Mandarin, Korean and Tagalog, as well as English. Although there is no industry-wide breakdown, a majority of Asian-American advertising appears to be in foreign languages.

"We know that overall the majority of Asians are immigrants and show a preference for their own language," Gitlin said.

Most of the advertising on The Filipino Channel is in Tagalog and comes from local businesses. Western Union (NYSE:WU) (NYSE:FDC) and California utility PG & E have both placed commercials in Tagalog. "Over the last three years, mainstream advertisers have begun recognizing us," said Jun Del Rosario, a product manager of TFC's Manila-based parent company ABS-CBN.

The network has some 200,000 subscribers via cable systems and DirecTV. Thomas Tseng, co-founder and principal of multicultural market research firm New American Dimensions, argues there is too much emphasis on Asian-language media. "There is a slew of media reaching that immigrant but there aren't a lot of media reaching the American generation," he said. Tseng pointed to surveys his firm conducted this summer, which find a sharp drop in Asian-language fluency by the second generation.

"When you look at a lot of the in-language media they tend to reach an older demographic," said Thomas Pyun vice president of advertising sales at ImaginAsian Entertainment.

Bill Georges, senior vice president of marketing and sales at Comcast-owned (NASDAQ:CMCSA) AZN, recommends first-time advertisers in the Asian-American market begin with English-language ads. Not to reach young U.S.-born Asian-Americans, but to reach the largest number of viewers possible.

"For too many years we had advertisers believing they were doing 'Asian marketing' when what they were doing was Chinese marketing in San Francisco or Korean marketing in L.A.," he said. "The English-language is a way to aggregate the Asian audience." Georges projects his ad sales revenues will increase some 75% next year.

The large number of networks for a relatively small audience that is fragmented by language combined with modest demand from national brands and little ratings information means that advertising costs are comparatively low.

"Your production costs a lot of times outweigh the media outlets. You are spending $100,000 on a spot and spending $75,000 on media," said Global Hue's Choi. Spending more money to produce a commercial than to run it is practically unheard of in other markets.

While the lack of ratings is an oddity in the market, it apparently is not deterring committed advertisers.

"We take a holistic view of how we are reaching our audience," Honda manager of emerging markets advertising Barbara Ponce said. "If Nielsen isn't available, we will look at other metrics while not closing the door".

Kang & Lee's Gitlin said those brands that make investments now in Asian-American advertising will reap tangible benefits. "The future is very bright. By the time we hit 2010, it is just going to accelerate," said Gitlin. "Asian marketing is going to shift from being an option to being an imperative opportunity."


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ImaginAsian's "Big Tent" Approach

ImaginAsian Entertainment is the cover story of the Money section in today's USA Today.

Michael Hong, CEO of ImaginAsian, said that they are doing a big tent approach, trying to make the TV channel accessible to all Asians and non-Asians. I admire his ambition. Asian is a very much diversified group, yet we do share some similar culture and value. It is not easy to find the right programs to make everyone interested.

Right now, most Asian media are by ethnicity. Even for some pan-Asian stations like KTSF and KSCI, they have specific program/time slots for different ethnic groups.

Language is definitely the biggest challenge. Unlike Hispanic, Asians do not speak the same language. In fact, English is the common language among us as Bill Georges, SVP of AZN, once put it.

Being an Asian and one who work in the Asian advertising industry, I do looking forward to seeing more Asian entertainment options. Ten years ago, no one would think Univision and Telemundo would grow to its current size. When will we have our UniAsian and TeleAsia?

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Asian on TV

In the past few years, we see more and more Asian faces on screen. Some well known Asian artists include Jackie Chan, Jet Li, Lucy Liu, Sandra Oh, Daniel Kim, Yunjin Kim, to name just a few. But are the roles these Asian play in the movies really Asian?

Tony Award winner B.D. Wong plays a doctor on Sesame Street, Jurassic Park and Law & Order. In the interview with ABC 20/20 Hollywood Stereotypes, he said the image of Asian "pisses him off". He wants to be cute but Asians are not in Hollywood.

In Hollywood, Asians are either boring professional or kung fu experts. Yes, martial arts are part of the Asian culture. Yes, Asians accounts for 30% of the medical scientists in the US, and that 17% of physicians and surgeons are Asians. But that does not mean Asians are not cool.

I found the recent Alberto VO5 "Break the Mold" spot (see below) which features two Chinese rebellious teenagers run away from a strict school, captures very well what Asians really are. Asians will find this spot particularly interesting, no matter they like it or hate it. The spot should be very eye-catching to non-Asian as well. After all, it looks so different from the other commercials.

Some of the marketers are smart enough to share general market creative with their diversity AOR before production to see if it makes sense to apply the creative in multiple segments. In some cases, some additional shadow shooting with Asian talents will work. That could save a lot of production cost.

What marketers should also do is to make sure Asian talents are included in the general market media as well. After all, it is the minorities in the US that are the majority. 5% of the population is Asian and they represent $260 billion annual buying power. While many Asians consume Asian media, they don'’t live in a vacuum. They are reached by general market advertising as well. Keep that in mind, whether you do Asian marketing or general marketing.

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