5 Minutes with… Stan Lim
Before finding his way into the world of digital creativity, Stan Lim had tried everything from being a steak chef to a security guard. But with a degree in fine art, the allure of a creative career was too much to resist and polyglot Stan got his start at AKQA, before joining indie Formul8. Then, he joined Upper Storey, the agency that would go on to be acquired as Isobar Singapore.
From there he went onto become CCO for Isobar Singapore and then chief experience officer for dentsu’s creative business, giving him a grounding in evolving technologies and a truly diverse creative expertise.
These days he applies his strategic creative mind to leading both creative and experience practices across Dentsu Creative Singapore as CCO, working on clients like Toyota, Intel, CapitaLand, Ocean Network Express, and Coca-Cola.
LBB’s Esther Lew caught up with Stan to find out more about his journey and what it means for an agency to behave as if it’s come from the future.
LBB> Can you tell us about your background and how you became a chief creative officer at Dentsu Creative?
Stan> It’s wonderfully messy.
Before landing a gig as a digital creative 18 years ago, I had temporary jobs being a steak chef, a waiter at a Chinese restaurant, and even a security guard. Starting in digital was like stepping into a whirlwind. It moves fast and I found myself thrown into many loosely defined roles with little precedent. I spent most days figuring out how to create digitally driven campaigns, building consumer-centric apps, experiential activations and tech-enabled retail stores.
I struggled with how different each role was when all I saw around me were focused creative archetypes that I could never be. I could never be the flamboyant ad creative, the hype beast designer, the deep intellectual poet. Years later, I realised that I didn’t have to. There is so much joy standing at the intersection, absorbing everything, and creating new things.
It happened to be exactly what Dentsu Creative needed for modern creativity today.
LBB> What inspires you and your creative team, and how do you approach the ideation process?
Stan> Solving big, meaningful problems with provocative ideas. That really gets us going.
To do that, we developed a new process that will help us bring the best of experience design together with big brand thinking. What happens when you apply design thinking methodology to generate powerful and inspiring ideas?
Dentsu Lightning was born to help us get to the right ideas before we try to get the ideas right. We identify frustrations, uncover provocations, form diverse teams, ideate in sprints, get early builds, and then pivot our thinking. We no longer hide away for weeks at a time to get an idea perfect before springing a big reveal to the clients.
We love it, the clients love it. Our ideas have never been better.
LBB> How does Dentsu Creative stay on top of emerging creative trends and technologies, and incorporate them into your work?
Stan> One of the spirit animals of Dentsu Creative is the Kitsune Fox. It has the ability to look into the future to guide what we do today. Our teams have turned that into a goal to be an agency from the future. It simply means that we put in the hard yards early to figure out solutions for the near future.
So, our practice leads read widely and constantly meet up with leading partners, discuss potential applications and set up small experiments for our teams. Some work well, some don’t. But in the process, we get good ahead of time.
When trends become mainstream and the right briefs land, we are ready to invent the future.
LBB> How does Dentsu Creative ensure that the creative work aligns with clients' business objectives and messaging?
Stan> While big ideas are important to us, we spend a lot of time uncovering the big problem to solve first.
Our best work looks past the initial brief to figure out the underlying business or societal issues that are holding our client’s growth back. This uncovers human truths and unmet needs. A perfect springboard for impactful ideas. All we need to do from there is make sure the right and best talents work on it.
LBB> Can you share some examples of particularly challenging briefs you've received and how you approached them creatively?
Stan> We received a really memorable brief from a client, CapitaLand, who manages some of Asia’s largest retail malls as part of their portfolio. The pandemic saw a sharp dip in footfall and they were looking for a way to help their mall tenants continue to market effectively.
We knew back then that most people were feeling emotionally isolated. So instead of just another online promotion, we created a virtual influencer named Rae. Rae was created to be imperfect. She openly shares her vulnerabilities and how she overcomes self-doubts. This resonated with how most consumers were feeling and she soon became a gateway to homebound consumers for retail mall tenants. This helped with business continuity.
When the pandemic settled, CapitaLand’s brick-and-mortar retail business had leapfrogged competitors in virtualisation efforts two years ahead of the Metaverse. Through Rae, they also gained an engaged community of a million followers and found themselves owning the IP to one of Asia’s top rising influencers.
LBB> How do you foster collaboration and teamwork within the creative department and with other departments in the agency?
Stan> Creativity is everyone’s superpower and responsibility at Dentsu Creative. No one has a monopoly on it. So, we huddle early and build on each other’s ideas frequently. We are tough on the work but kind to each other. We have technologists introducing partners to producers, producers urging the creatives to push executions further, and creatives helping strategy sharpen their narrative.
That has been the signature culture in our office. It’s great for collaboration. So when a piece of creative work gets delivered, it truly is the sum of everyone’s efforts.
LBB> How does Dentsu Creative prioritize diversity, equity, and inclusion in its creative work and the agency culture?
Stan> I mentioned earlier that we love finding big problems to solve. A huge part of it includes understanding how both business and sustainability challenges overlap. This ensures we always have a sustainable lens to the ideas and solutions we create when it presents itself as a growth opportunity for our clients.
Our diverse team of creatives then break these big problems down into actionable goals, help reframe perceived problems, create new value, and finally design sustainable solutions and impactful campaigns to introduce better ways to think and live.
LBB> How do you measure the success of creative work, and what metrics do you use to evaluate its effectiveness?
Stan> The best of creativity creates all forms of new value in the world.
The most powerful of ideas create new entertainment values, cultural values, societal values, and economical values. The world literally progresses on the idea that we can always do better.
So, beyond the usual performance metrics and award trophies, we like to look at the emotional reactions from consumers, new cultural conversations being sparked, surging interests beyond the ad world and any tangible link to increased growth for our clients.
LBB> Can you discuss any exciting projects or initiatives that Dentsu Creative has in the works?
Stan> We started the year winning a significant pitch with a formidable challenge: To deeply strengthen communal bonds based on embracing diversity, equity and inclusion.
Our response led with a rousing anthemic message and includes partnering with Cannes-winning film directors, tier-one content creators and the use of virtual identities to deliver our messages across campaign, entertainment and experiential channels. The work is brewing and we will be pouring our hearts into it.
LBB> How do you see the advertising industry evolving in the coming years, and what opportunities and challenges do you anticipate for Dentsu Creative?
Stan> As the world becomes more divided and increasingly digital, we are going to encounter widespread disruption, complexity and fragmentation.
More than ever, businesses are going to need new ways to appeal to consumers emotionally. I personally think marketeers will start to shift their focus from chasing after minute marketing optimisations to making genuine connections with communities.
They will need agency partners who can figure out how to garner growth through sustainable practices, navigate digital complexity with ease, and generate bold ideas that can inspire the world. Dentsu Creative is well placed to get them thereby helping brands create new culture, help shape societies and invent a better future.
