What BTS V Coca Cola ad tells us about branding in HK

World's most handsome man and whatever? Yes please. The ambassador campaign started in March, then now tagging into the FIFA World Cup 2026 craze in June.

First, three cheers for V (Kim Tae-hyung), a rare REAL idol featured in an ad—when was the last time you saw a real celebrity in Hong Kong? Mine was 野生捕獲 Chow Yun-fat 2012 near The Center, Central, then the tunnel domination of V's Samsung ad back in 2017.

HK is now a tiny, unimportant market for most established brands; only brands big enough can afford branding, aka splurging a fortune to use REAL celebrity, to boast ostensible, surface-level data metrics (e.g., exposure/attention of commuters—although everyone except the management doubts if they once look at the ad instead of their own mobile).

That's why only industry giants do BRANDING in HK—they do it for the entire Asia, then let HK get some crumble bits—buy a few tram or MTR panels, ask agency to create one social media campaign, put the game QR code inside POSMs or physical store... if time is allowed, liaise some KOLs or entertainment group to produce a "collab" video. That's it.

So what should marketers who understand the HK market do when launching a new product? Coca Cola HK showed us:

1. OOH x Fan Economy if you've got the 💵

V's OOH outside HK's most iconic advertising spot, SOGO Causeway Bay.

2. Social Media + Giveaways is a MUST. No interaction = No conversion.

Don't miss Threads or X (Twitter)

QR code "games" to drive conversion

Incentives is always important for Hong Kong people, especially for F&B

3. PR is always essential since there ain't many proper HK media houses anymore, so the readers are pretty loyal. Normally you also need to buy paid ads or dark posts.