The Campaign

To promote Singapore's traditional tours to the millennial generation, we decided to go the opposite route - use technology that appealed to our audience. At the time, Singapore Tourism Board was keen on using 360 VR 4D tech to promote Singapore experiences. We saw an opportunity there and decided to marry it with a truly traditional experience - a trishaw ride. It was a perfect match, as it elevated the usual VR experience from a stationary POV to one on a moving vehicle. It also enabled the experience to be living, breathing, and tactile. On the installation, we combined VR and a real trishaw in a 360 experience. The stories were brought to life through 4D effects like scents, mist, spatial sounds and vibrations. Best of all, the trishaw uncle served as storyteller, and brought you to places you can't find on Google, proving that tradition takes you further.

Creative Execution

The Trishaw 360 experience is made up of two components. The physical trishaw build, and the 360 content on the Oculus. We sourced for a real trishaw, and fitted it with 4D effects. A console in front of the passenger would emit breeze, mist, heat, and scents. A vibrating mechanism beneath the seat would create bumps. An Oculus headset was attached to view content. The 360 content was filmed on a moving trishaw, with a trishaw rider (Uncle Choo) serving as guide to hidden places. Along the way, we brought the experience to life through 4D effects. When travelling over pebble stone paths, the seat would vibrate. At a park, the smell of grass would be emitted. When a boy squirts a water pistol at you, mist would be felt. We set up the installation at travel shows. Visitors could get a tactile, sensorial feel of authentic Singapore.

Describe the success of the promotion with both client and consumer including some quantifiable results

When Trishaw 360 first launched at a Singapore travel show (TIC 2017), it was a hit, with Uncle Choo (the trishaw rider in the stories) proving to be a real charmer. It was well-received by visitors, who didn't just enjoy the tech for tech's sake, but also found the traditional trishaw experience and stories entertaining and eye-opening. It wasn't just for their parents or grandparents - it's an experience anyone can enjoy. Trishaw 360 showed that to promote tradition, it sometimes takes an intelligent use of technology. As of press time, Trishaw 360 and Uncle Choo have ridden on this success and embarked on an ongoing world tour, already wowing audiences in London, Frankfurt, Stockholm, and across the APAC region.

Explain why the method of promotion was most relevant to the product or service

Traditional tours are struggling to get attention from tourists, who're used to modern conveniences like Google Maps. Yet these tours are often the most interesting, with hidden places and best-kept secrets. Through the 4D VR Trishaw 360, we helped Singapore Tourism Board promote the traditional trishaw experience to a wider audience. It consists of a real trishaw and VR headset that come together in a tactile 360 experience. Stories are brought to life through scents, spatial sounds and vibrations. The charming trishaw guide uncovers hidden spots you can't find on Google, proving that tradition can take you further.

Our target audience were between the ages of 18 and 40, who were accustomed to using modern tech like Google Maps to discover places and create their travel itineraries, and did not consider traditional tours as part of their plans. Not only did we have to reach out to this specific group of consumers, we also had to promote a living, breathing, tactile experience to them. We decided to use what appealed to them - technology - to ironically promote a traditional trishaw ride, and also create meaningful engagement and interaction. At the same time, we wanted to drive consideration amongst our target audience to find out more about unique cultural tours on Singapore Tourism Board's website.