WORKS
|
Strike 1 uplifted +1.8× bar frequency.
|
Strike 2 recruited +89% brand affinity across CRM.
|
Strike 3 increased home consumption by 2.1 times..
|
Strike 4 grew brand engagement by +457%.
|
Referrals remained key to volume: MGM made up 30% of all new opt-ins.
|
Average Guinness consumption per week among top-value drinkers rose by 1.9×.
| Strike 1 uplifted +1.8× bar frequency. | Strike 2 recruited +89% brand affinity across CRM. | Strike 3 increased home consumption by 2.1 times.. | Strike 4 grew brand engagement by +457%. | Referrals remained key to volume: MGM made up 30% of all new opt-ins. | Average Guinness consumption per week among top-value drinkers rose by 1.9×.
|
Four DMA Malaysia awards—including Bronze for Direct CRM Campaign
|
Merit for High Volume CRM.
|
A shortlisting for Cultural Insight at Ogilvy APAC.
|
Then a Silver for Digital Campaign for Strike Four.
| Four DMA Malaysia awards—including Bronze for Direct CRM Campaign | Merit for High Volume CRM. | A shortlisting for Cultural Insight at Ogilvy APAC. | Then a Silver for Digital Campaign for Strike Four.
Business-Driven & Tech Leadership Campaign
The B‑2 Spirit 4.0:
The Duo-Bunkers 4x4x4 Stealth.
Between 2005 and 2007, Guinness flew into a blackout. Above-the-line firepower was dead—no TV, no radio, no billboards.
In 1.0, the B‑2 “One‑Upmanship Stealth” defended Guinness’s core by building an underground inner circle that held volume despite a 50% price surge. In 2.0, “The Cyber Bunker” flipped the battlefield—recruiting 40,000 new drinkers via digital trials and delivering the brand’s first post-blackout growth. In 3.0, “The Duo‑Bunkers” broke six new drinking terrains. It proved that Guinness could justify a price of RM23 per bottle, driving 42% of total volume and increasing weekly consumption by 1.7 times.
But by 2008, the split had deepened: loyalists needed deeper emotional payoffs to justify the price; newbies wanted social currency, not just flavour. No single message could serve both. We needed multiplicity. Precision. Stealth at scale.
Mission Log
By 2008, Guinness was still operating in the dark. Three years under blackout conditions. No ATL. No promotions. No cover fire. Price had risen from RM11 to RM23 since 2005 — more than double. With each duty hike, loyalists paid more to believe. Newbies stayed away.
CRM became the only visible hand of Guinness. And it worked. The B2 1.0, 2.0, and 3.0 had protected both fronts. Loyalists felt seen, rewarded, and respected. Newbies were invited in — gently — with reasons to give it a try.
But the mission was growing harder. B2 3.0 had bought time — but not momentum. Rituals were no longer enough. Relevance alone was insufficient. Trial fatigue was rising. Awareness was thinning.
This time, the danger wasn’t cost, taste, or meaning.
A chilling truth: Guinness was… fading from their mind — and life.
The Doctrine
Under full blackout. Belief in Guinness hadn’t broken — but it was absent from their minds and lives. Among loyalists, Guinness Insider had held the line. Cultural strikes secured referrals, rewarded loyalty, and made Guinness feel earned. Among newbies, Guinness City continued to recruit — in secret. Guinness was still welcome but not remembered.
What I observed wasn’t rejection. The gap wasn’t economic — it was emotional. They didn’t feel Guinness in their current moves, vibes, or terrains. 82% dined out during key gatherings — CNY, Mid-Autumn, birthdays, Christmas.
My strategy: move Guinness into their territories. Among loyalists — expand emotional value. Open new avenues to drink Guinness with pride — not price. For newbies, match emotional value with vibe, not tradition.
The 4X4X4 Stealth.
Four precision strikes × Four new terrains × Four emotional belief systems.
All designed to grow Guinness at scale — and embed it deeper into new behaviour, memory, and meaning.
Loyalist B‑2 Strikes
Three new behaviours were activated to open new avenues to drink Guinness with new pride, built from new memories and meaning.
Belief was protected. Now, emotional value had to grow.
Strike One
Codename: St James Gate
Payload: The Keepers of Quality
A first-person graphic novel engineered to deepen belief in the Guinness pilgrimage — granting rare access to where it all began. Delivered private pride and elevated status to loyalists.
Brand affinity rose to 85%, weekly consumption surged by 1.8×, and each mailer averaged nine shares.
-
Crafted as a bilingual graphic novel mailer based on a loyalist's true journey to St. James's Gate.
Guided by Master Brewer Fergal Murray, the reader retraced the Guinness origin — Wicklow water, female hops, roasted barley, and 200-year-old yeast.
Entered the Tasting Panel chamber for private instruction in the Guinness Ritual — elbow lift, silence, and sip.
Final toast at Gravity Bar with Guinness Draught — not as a replacement for FES, but as an equal in prestige.
No comparisons. No discount. Just sacred knowledge passed down.
Repositioned the bar as a destination of honour.
Equipped loyalists with an insider experience they could share, revere, and pass on — like a rite of passage.Behavioural Terrain: From Kopitiam to Modern Pub
Belief System: From conceptual belief to justifiable values from superior ingredients
Strike Two
Codename: Dublin
Payload: The King of Taste
A first-person graphic novel extended to deepen and open a new appreciation of Guinness through new rituals of prestige into a gourmet taste expedition.
Brand affinity rose to 85%, weekly consumption surged by 1.8×, and each mailer averaged nine shares.
-
Crafted as a bilingual graphic novel mailer based on a loyalist’s true journey to tasting manual across festive tables and everyday feasts. Positioned Guinness Foreign Extra Stout and Draught as distinct signatures for different dishes and moments.
Guinness Foreign Extra Stout paired with Peking Duck, Braised Pork with Fatt Choy, Chilli Crab, Marmite Pork Ribs, Claypot Lamb Stew, Salted Egg Squid.
Guinness Draught matched with sambal ikan bilis, fried calamari, potato wedges, oyster omelette, bak kwa, and cheddar cheese cubes.Chef-endorsed insights explained how flavours are tied to ABV, sweetness, and finish.
Introduced the “Dish before Draft” ritual — a subtle upgrade for every banquet.
Framed Guinness as a global palate — 10 million pints a day — connecting local drinkers to a worldwide culture.
Included a Sprite pairing guide for local adaptation.Behavioural Terrain: From Kopitiam to All Types of Restaurants & Bars
Belief System: From solo taste value to unlimited taste values from infinite food pairing possibilities.
Strike Three
Codename: Father
Payload: The Torchbearer of Legacy
A printed movie script that repositioned the loyalist as a quiet patriarch — the unspoken head of the table. Drinking at home was reframed as a rite of honour, not rebellion.
+2.1× uplift in home consumption, 89% recall of Guinness as “a drink of honour”, and surge in father–son referrals.
-
Delivered as a limited-edition printed screenplay mailed to selected loyalists.
Cast the drinker as a hero who provides, sacrifices, and holds the family together — but never seeks applause.
Subtly wove in real-life pressures: ageing parents, career fatigue, fatherhood.
Introduced the “Final Scene” ritual — each toast a rewrite of what it means to carry belief.
Culminated in a CRM finale at the Guinness Tavern, styled like a film set.
Many brought fathers or sons — unprompted — closing the generational loop.Behavioural Terrain: From Kopitiam to Home
Belief System: From personal value to shared values of family legacy; from father to children.
Newbies B2 Strikes
A single stealth strike to embed Guinness into new cultural territories.
Belief had to be matched with a modern vibe, not an inherited tradition.
Strike Four
Codename: Global Nation
Payload: The St. Patrick's Day
Recast St. Patrick’s Day through a Malaysian lens. Converted resistance into curiosity and cultural play.
Gameplay surged +457.32%. Unique visitors up +123.7%. Malaysia staged its first fully localised Guinness St. Patrick’s Day.
-
Executed as a full-featured Flash microsite — when Flash was still in beta.
Built exclusively for CRM invites and peer-to-peer referrals.
No mass push. Only earned participation.
Five missions across Dublin, New York, London, Tokyo, and Toronto.
Each revealed global Guinness customs — from shamrock hunts and pinch games to green lantern lighting and Irish trivia — adapted for Malaysian culture.Drinkers completed quests, earned virtual collectables, and redeemed real-world Guinness premiums.
Participating bars staged ritual activations, including Malaysia’s first serving of Green Guinness — accessible only to those who completed the entire journey.One browser game. A few banner buys. One reintervention.
Guinness welcomes newbies into its all-time culture-loving global event, once unknown to Malaysians.Behavioural Terrain: From Bar visit to Hopping Global Sensational Events
Belief System: From exclusive value to emotionally resonant values among like-minded.
Mission Debrief
At a time when Guinness faced a belief gap deeper than price or taste, the B‑2 Spirit 4.0 struck with precision to reclaim relevance. Through four emotional belief systems, it shifted contexts rather than minds, transforming CRM from a focus on retention into a culture of retention.
Engagement soared with a 457% digital uplift, home consumption doubled, and bar frequency surged 1.8×. Loyalty was rekindled: 85% of respondents recalled Guinness as a “drink of honour,” while referrals fueled 30% of recruits.
Green Guinness launched nationwide, proving innovation thrives even under blackout conditions.
Against all odds—no ATL, no backend, no real-time systems—the campaign delivered a 1.9× rise in every loyalist’s weekly consumption.
Against all odds — with no mass media, no backend infrastructure, and no real-time support — the campaign still achieved a 1.9× spike in weekly consumption among top drinkers.
And it didn’t just deliver business results.
It earned respect and recognition across the industry and juries alike.
Four DMA Malaysia awards—including Bronze for Direct CRM Campaign, Merit for High Volume CRM, and a shortlisting for Cultural Insight at Ogilvy APAC—meant it stood shoulder to shoulder with the best in the region.
Then came the Silver for Digital Campaign — awarded not just for creativity, but for code. Proof that Strike Four’s digital engine delivered where no mass media could: technical limitations were not just worked around — they were conquered.
Which brings us to the heart of the stealth:
This was a war fought inside a browser window. No net. No second chances. Every click was a risk. Every scroll, a minefield.
Here’s how we defused all six.
-
Alcohol advertising was gagged. No TV. No print. No radio.
The microsite wasn’t a campaign support—it was the campaign.
It had to be the party, the parade, and the pub. All packed into a single browser tab. -
In 2008, bandwidth was slow, akin to dial-up.
A single image that was too large could cause the page to freeze.
Animations, transitions, scroll effects—high risk but essential to tell the story.Every asset was stripped to fighting weight—compressed, coded, and refined to its leanest form.
A thousand years of Irish lore reimagined as a smooth-scrolling digital ride. -
Internet Explorer 6 still ruled. HTML5 wasn’t real.
Nothing was rendered the same; CSS was unreliable.
Cross-browser compatibility was hand-coded, line by line.No React. No dev handoff. Just grit, hacks, and pixel-perfect defiance.
We built a 3D rollercoaster with Lego and fishing line—and made it glide. -
Smartphones had barely launched. No mobile-first mindset. Desktop was king.
Interactive mobile ads drew users to the microsite, but the entire experience was only available on desktop.
A bait-and-switch built on pure precision. -
The site wasn’t a static page—it was a living game. Quizzes, missions, leaderboards, prizes.
But “real-time” didn’t exist. No APIs, no Firebase, no backend frameworks.
Every logic flow was hard-coded. Every reaction is simulated.
Too many simultaneous clicks risked crashing the whole system.
Our developers provided live, round-the-clock support—patching bugs, monitoring spikes—to keep the illusion seamless. Behind the curtain? Streaming Netflix through a cassette deck. -
Even after engaging users, how do you get them to take action?
No Google Maps, no Waze to guide people to outlets.
We invented countdown vouchers coded with urgency and geo-data, pushing users to show up in person for a cold glass of Green Guinness.
Clicks turned to footsteps. Footsteps turned to pints.
Testimonial
// Nicki is committed to the brands she works on and has the 360-degree experience to add value to the strategy. I will miss working with Nicki: her sense of humour and tenacity for her craft made the experience enjoyable //
Selina Ang
Executive Director, OgilvyOne Malaysia
-
Bronze – Direct CRM Campaign, DMA Malaysia (Strike One: The Keepers of Quality)
Shortlist – Cultural Insight, Ogilvy APAC (Strike Two: The Kings of Taste)
Merit – High Volume CRM, DMA Malaysia (Strike THree: The Torchbearer of Legacy)
Silver – Digital Campaign, DMA Malaysia 2008 (Strike Four: The Guinness Nation)
What Comes Next
60+ global wins.
World’s No. 1 Direct Marketing Campaign.
4 “Best of the Best” titles.
Guinness held the No. 1 stout position in Malaysia for five consecutive years.
The client was honoured with Diageo Global’s Culture-First Leadership Award — the first time Asia had ever been recognised under blackout conditions.
Ogilvy Malaysia was rewarded with the Johnnie Walker and Heineken accounts — no pitch required.
It made Diageo the agency’s No. 1 billing client — surpassing both the national telco and airline.
My agency was named one of the Top 10 Agencies in the World — the only time it ever happened.
And it all started with a humble spark.
A low-budget CRM test.
No agency muscle. No fancy production budget.
Just a one-hour idea — handwritten, hand-drawn, photoshopped, and sent.
A flicker of cultural current became 8 global wins.
Lion Dance — the Father of the B‑2 Spirit.
Then came its Mother.
A group of die-hard fans. A ritual of belief.
A thunder strike of meaning became 16 global wins.
Guinness Heroes — the Mother of the B‑2 Spirit.
Together, they formed the B‑2 DNA.
Not a campaign. A creative system built from first principles.
A long-range leadership design — disguised as CRM.