Twitter's top 6 APAC brand campaigns in 2019

Twitter's brand strategy and creative teams—Next and ArtHouse—have curated a list of the six best brand campaigns that launched in Asia-Pacific this year.

The list includes awards for the best purpose-driven launch, best connection to culture, best brand voice, best use of creators, best digital to physical activation, and best way to fuel fans.

Alex Josephson, the head of Twitter's newly revamped brand strategy team Twitter Next, told Campaign that the most effective brands across APAC displayed a clear strategy as to when and how they activated on Twitter.

He explained that the most successful campaigns this year manifested in two types of situations: 1) When a brand was launching something new, like a new product, a new campaign message, or a new service, and 2) when a brand was trying to connect to what’s happening in culture, be it an event, an occasion, or a trend.

"The brands who are leveraging Twitter for these two types of initiatives are the brands that are maximising their performance on the platform," Josephson explained.

Moreover, the brands celebrated in this year’s end-of-year analysis also adhered to best practices such as a humanised tone of voice in their tweets; short, mobile-optimised video creative built for the Twitter timeline; and the use of participatory Twitter formats such as conversational ads, custom hashtag emojis, and live branded Twitter notifications or auto-response features, Josephson added.

So without further ado, the six most memorable brand launches of 2019 from the APAC region are:

1. Best Purpose Driven Launch

The brand that took a stand and connected to culture in a genuine, authentic way when launching something new

Brand: @OnePlus_IN
Country: India
Campaign: #OxygenOS Plant a Tree

To celebrate the 1,500th-day anniversary of its proprietary operating service Oxygen OS, mobile manufacturer OnePlus partnered with WWF India and Twitter India to launch a call-to-action across India – committing to plant a new tree in India for every Tweet with the hashtag #OxygenOS over a 24-hour period. OnePlus promoted this call-to-action across Twitter, leveraging conversational ad formats coupled with a custom emoji with the hashtag #Oxygen; along with promotion of the campaign across multiple “above the line” platforms including digital out-of-home signage in airports and even a full-page print ad in The Times of India. The campaign generated more than 27,000 tweets in 24 hours, representing a 15x increase in conversation about OnePlus on Twitter, and increasing positive sentiment for the brand on Twitter from an average of 18% to 77%.

Here's celebrating what breathes life in this world & into our products��

Join us as we team up with @wwfindia to celebrate 1500 days of #OxygenOS by planting a tree for every tweet.

Tweet with #OxygenOS to plant a tree.

— OnePlus India (@OnePlus_IN) September 12, 2019

2. Best Connection to Culture

The brand that was able to connect to a big cultural event and drive rich conversation during a launch

Brand: @Uber_India
Country: India
Campaign: #LoveMovesForward

Since a landmark judgment by the Supreme Court decriminalised homosexuality in India in September 2018, Twitter users in India have been active in conversations around equality. Using this insight, Uber launched a petition on Valentine’s Day to gather support for a Pride-friendly rainbow heart emoji. This resulted in 34,348 signatures for the petition on Change.org and 65% net positive sentiment increase pre/post campaign.

Let's celebrate our first Valentine's Day for all with a symbol everyone can embrace. It's time for an inclusive heart that celebrates the many shades of love. Sign the petition to help us get the Pride Heart emoji. #LoveMovesForward with every sign: https://t.co/Nh8WEhhXgu pic.twitter.com/TfU4WNTpfd

— Uber India (@Uber_India) February 12, 2019

3. Best Brand Voice

The brand that strategically leveraged its own Twitter voice during a launch

Brand: @sportsbetcomau
Country: Australia

Sportsbet’s Twitter bio best describes itself in a short phrase: Betting served with a healthy side of banter. As with some of the best brands on the platform, the account has a distinctive brand voice that "feels like a person who has strong opinions on topics true fans care about", Twitter said.

"With a brilliant reactive content strategy, it has mastered the technique of engaging in playful conversation and contemporary memes," Twitter added.

When you're a top #AFLDraft prospect and spot the Gold Coast talent scouts nearby... pic.twitter.com/25O8vz4SSY

— Sportsbet.com.au (@sportsbetcomau) November 27, 2019

4. Best Use of Creators

The brand that leveraged influencers and creators to spread the word during a launch in new and interesting ways

Brand: @oppo
Country: US, EMEA*
Campaign: OPPO Mobile World Congress (MWC) Innovation Event 2019

Oppo engaged a whole slew of Twitter's marketing tools to promote its event at Mobile World Congress that unveiled its 10x camera zoom technology and 5G tech, including a livestream on Periscope hosted by US tech content creator Jonathan Morrison, conversational ads, and influencer marketing.

The collaboration with Morrision and Twitter ArtHouse drew 8.7 million video views on the brand's #GetCloserWithOPPO event page, with the peak engagement rate for the campaign hitting 19.57%, and growing Oppo's follower base by nine times its average daily growth rate.

Checking out the introduction of the @oppo Innovation Event 2019! #GetCloserWithOPPO #ad pic.twitter.com/GuVbEpdUBf

— Jonathan Morrison ����‍♂️ (@tldtoday) February 23, 2019

5. Best Digital to Physical Activation 

The brand that converged digital and experiential to launch something new

Brand: @SpotifyID, @SpotifyThailand
Country: Indonesia, Thailand
Campaign: #SpotifyOnStage

Spotify wanted to drum up anticipation about its live concert series, ‘Spotify on Stage’, in Indonesia and Thailand, so it engaged with concert goers on Twitter in the run up to the event with a ‘Guess the Line Up’ conversation on Twitter, a Q&A with performers, and an event playlist. During the concert, there were interactive segments where the best tweets of the night were shown on-screen and discussed by the emcee. At both concerts, Spotify took over the Twitter timeline with First Views, Promoted Trends and Custom Emojis.

Lebih besar. Lebih meriah. Spotify On Stage bakal balik lagi! Jakarta, yakin udah siap? Jangan sampai kelewatan! https://t.co/zEYiEo48pm#SpotifyOnStageJKT2019 pic.twitter.com/TYgGMpBjus

— Spotify Indonesia (@SpotifyID) August 28, 2019

6. Best Way to Fuel Fans

The brand that was able to reward its most devoted fans with exclusive content to drive conversation and excitement on Twitter when launching something new

Brand: @XboxANZ
Country: Australia
Campaign: #XboxPAXAus

Xbox aimed to the most talked about brand on Twitter during Australian gaming event Penny Arcade Expo. The brand built the world’s first Twitter-powered gaming engine and gave fans a chance to win a trip to X019 in London and daily Game Pass Ultimate codes. Over the three days during PAX, fans would have a chance to earn points by completing challenges online and at the event in the ‘Xbox PAX Twitter Hunt’. By gamifying its platform engagement and creating experiences onsite to drive overall conversation around Xbox, @XboxANZ became the most Tweeted about brand during PAX, with mentions of @XboxANZ increasing by almost 300% year-on-year.

We've picked 5 Emojis to depict Rise of Nations: Extended Edition - Can you crack the code?

Reply using #XBOXPAXAUS with your guess to enter.
T&Cs: https://t.co/uWBj0zhv94 Privacy: https://t.co/kxaJN0ukYe pic.twitter.com/tTxemeZ7Qv

— Xbox ANZ (@XboxANZ) October 12, 2019