Are nightclubs the new ad space in Singapore?

It’s no news that brands in Singapore have a plethora of choices to choose from when it comes to advertising.

But imagine this – On a Friday night, Joe, tired and stressed out from a hectic week at work, puts on his best suit and tie and hits one of the hottest clubs in town. His only aim for the night: to have a good time.

As he enters into the club, he spots a digital kiosk where his friends are taking photos and videos of themselves, he then sits down for a drink at the table, and while waiting for drinks connects his handphone to the table to play a racing game. As the night draws on, Joe visits the washroom where he checks himself out in the mirror before going back out to join his friends.

Within the short period, Joe would have viewed more than six ads without even noticing it. While targeted advertising in Singapore is nothing new, targeted advertising in Singapore has lagged behind other avenues – such as digital advertising or traditional advertising by leaps and bounds.

Yet, with an increasingly mobile audience, targeted advertising shouldn’t have to play catch-up. In particular, nightclubs has never been considered as a prime advertising space, which is strange given that this is a venue concentrated with young, affluent consumers who have a similar taste of lifestyle products.

What’s more important for brands are that these consumers are willing to spend – evident from their expenditure at the club.

Take for example, in order to celebrate Magnum’s 25th anniversary, Magnum deployed a series of celebrations held across three prominent nightlife venues - 1Altitude, Club Kyo, and Dom Lounge enlisting the use of digital kiosks.

Guests were invited to take photos and videos capturing themselves and were also invited to interact with an advertisement by tapping on the screen, upon which reveals a congratulatory message and their well wishes to Magnum.

The results: Approximately 600 guests have attended the party at 1Altitude, and a total of 647 interactions were recorded, marking 97.28% of attendees who interacted with the photobooth. A total of 287 photos were taken and 51.56% of these photos were sent to guests’ emails. 97.28% of attendees interacted with the photobooth.

At Dom Lounge, 400 guests have attended and 243 interactions were recorded, marking 60.75% of these attendees “popped” the balloon. A total of 158 photos were taken and 79% of the attendees interacted with the photobooth.

At Club Kyo, 400 guests attended, 202 interactions were recorded, and 50.5% of attendees “popped” the balloon. 125 photos were taken and 68% of these photos were sent to guests’ emails. 62.5% of attendees interacted with the photobooth.

What fundamentally differentiates nightlife targeted advertising is that, it is a platform for brands to advertise unobtrusively, as advertising platforms can be integrated into the nightlife environment (using platforms such as tables, mirrors, ashtrays, and digital boards).

Although traditionally only opened to alcohol brands, nightclubs are now a perfect venue for lifestyle and consumer brands to connect with consumers when they are in an “off-work” mode, relaxed and receptive to messages.

These platforms give consumers a reason to approach advertising through embedding itself into functional platforms. It might be time for brands to think harder about nightlife targeted advertising.