MCA’s Celia Yan Has Clients’ Creative Work and Campaign Effectiveness in Mind
Like most of the consultants at MCA, Celia Yan – business leader, China - first gained invaluable advertising and production expertise by working directly with brands and clients. For Celia, this consisted of roles at Wieden+Kennedy, TBWA, and Oglivy, as well as at some of the best known brands: Nike, Apple, and Coke. This has given Celia an insider’s understanding of the complex matrix of challenges faced by all actors in the production ecosystem.
When Celia joined MCA in 2016, she finally realised her desire to work as a consultant, noting that this role helped her to develop new skills and test existing ones, namely problem-solving, which she's readily flexing with MCA’s varied host of clients in China. She calls the work she does today “dynamic” and relishes the speed and interconnectedness of how things are done at MCA, whether that’s by working on multiple accounts simultaneously or working in tandem with other consultants to tackle the seemingly impossible.
One of MCA’s goals is to help clients get closer to net zero on their productions by 2025 and Celia has a detailed plan for how to make this happen in her region, ranging from the micro right through to the macro. This overarching approach demonstrates that a 360-vision is needed to accomplish such a big goal.
Today, LBB spoke to Celia about the lessons she learned from working with brands and agencies, how China’s digitisation influences production in the region, and her impressive plan to make every production greener.
LBB> We’d love to get to know you a bit! How did you first get into advertising and was this always the plan for you?
Celia> I started my advertising career in W+K agency. Nike was my client during that time, and it was a very inspirational experience. The blend of creativity and strategy fascinated me. My initial career direction was marketing or branding, so joining the agency was the first step. Over time, the ever-evolving nature of our industry surprises and excites me. It's my passion.
LBB> You previously worked at agencies and brand-side too. What are the top five main lessons that you learned in that time?
Celia> All these working experiences offer a comprehensive view of the advertising and marketing ecosystem.
Lesson number one: taking a multichannel approach to execution is critical in today’s digital world and leveraging innovative technologies can help agencies and brands to engage with the audiences.
Lesson two: understanding consumer insights can help connect with audiences on an emotion level, and today we need to provide content that has some value in people’s daily lives
Lesson three: think in terms of long-term strategy, brand growth, brand-building, and business outcomes.
Lesson four: safeguard brand integrity and maintain brand consistency and make sure that translates into the way content is produced
Lesson five: data utilisation and AI is exploding. Make sure that creativity and data work together in harmony for the most rewarding effective output.
LBB> And what kind of challenges did you see the brands and agencies face?
Celia> As technology and consumer behaviour evolves, and the business landscape shift, there are always new challenges:
I would say that interpreting and using data can be challenging. And we need to keep up with technology innovation and digital transformation. I think that clients are leading the charge with this, and many of the agency networks are trying to figure out how to retain revenue in a more streamlined environment where clients are moving back into control.
Then balancing short-term sales vs. long-term brand building and customer loyalty is a challenge. Measurement and attribution when multiple channels are involved, the ROI calculation of campaigns is very complex and we need to figure out how to make this simpler and more accurate.
Then of course we have clients are also expecting more for the same budget or less. As we move to using incredible technologies including Virtual Production, AI, and more automation to create assets, do better localisation, transcreation and re-use, agencies need to step up to show they have the ability to do this whilst being cost effective.
LBB> You’ve been with MCA since 2016. What first attracted you to the role?
Celia> I've always wanted to work in consulting, and MCA’s reputation was outstanding. This role was an opportunity for me to step into this new field. The blend of production cost, process analysis and client interaction interested me as well as supporting innovative new approaches to the execution. The challenges in this role also tested my problem-solving skills. And we have very good clients, like Mars, L'Oreal, Mondelez, Carlsberg, Ikea to name a few and I have had fun working on these projects.
LBB> How does working within a consultancy differ from your previous roles?
Celia> In MCA, I've been exposed to a wide variety of projects, clients, and industries. In my previous position in an agency, the focus was on one or two projects. Every day is dynamic, and it demands efficient time management. Working here and offering expert advice and solutions to clients has given me a lot of confidence and sense of accomplishment. In my previous agency, my influence was much less and there was little training. This role is a continuous learning journey compared to my previous job and the expectation now allows me to build relationships with various parties including client marketing and brand team, procurement team and their agencies. In my previous role, interactions were primarily internal. In MCA, I work with different consultants in China and across the world to address specific client needs. The consulting projects are more interesting and I had the chance to be on set with the shooting crew and clients. It is very fulfilling and fun.
LBB> And how does your past experience inform and help you with the business leader role you’re in today?
Celia> In my previous role as AD and PM, I developed strong client relationship management skills. Managing projects in TBWA and GoPro taught me about cross-functional communication and how to manage client expectations. Leading a team in previous agencies equipped me with the skills to motivate, guide, and manage a diverse team. To think strategically is another lesson I learned. Marketing campaigns need to be aligned with business goals. My previous work has given me the understanding of various industries and business challenges. When I work with MCA clients, I can tailor strategies and solutions. My previous project management skills help to keep MCA projects on track, manage resources efficiently, and meet deadlines. The adaptability mindset I gained in previous jobs ensures I keep learning in this fast-changing industry. All these past experiences and expertise help me to perform my role in MCA.
LBB> What kind of challenges do you love helping clients solve?
Celia> I would like to help clients achieve business success. I'm passionate about brand strategy, data analytics, and new production technologies. We help clients to address the challenges of saving on costs without sacrificing the creative quality and campaign impact. We also help them to optimise the production process. And clients want a dedicated consultant to work on their projects, who is the expert in production and understands their product and company culture. To find the proper consultant and carry out the projects seamlessly is rewarding. I can see the tangible results and the positive impact on the client's business. To offer innovative thinking and suggestions to clients shows that we are strategic partners to our clients in advertising production.
LBB> In the UK/US, we often hear that the way people shop in China is years ahead in terms of how integrated it is digitally. Can you talk a little bit about this and how this shapes what brands are looking for in terms of production.
Celia> The digitalisation has influenced brands' communication and production.
Brands expect quicker turnarounds for ad production. They expect advertising content to be versatile, optimized for mobile, desktop, social media, streaming platforms. We are using technology as well as anywhere, and clients are interested in creating immersive ad experiences like AR and VR to engage users.
We are expected to ensure the advertising production process be organized by data analytics: audience preferences, behaviors, and feedback. The produced content needs to be both relevant and effective. Data-driven decision-making is required.
Although AI is under the microscope because of transparency of origination, we are moving at light speed in its exploitation as well as automation meaning more cost-effective and high ROI production methods.
Brands look for engaging, shareable content and also prefer digital advertising methods that demonstrate lower carbon footprint.
LBB> One of MCA’s goals is targeting near ‘net zero’ options by 2025. Where along this journey are your accounts in your region?
Celia> Firstly, I am proud of the company’s ambitions in doing this, and of course partnering with AdNet Zero and Adgreen in helping to get there. So some of the key steps would be:
● Assess our company's current carbon footprint and clients.
● Hire an environmental consultant and use online tools.
● Identify major sources of emissions
● Define specific targets for China MCA by 2025. Check clients targets.
● Track our progress.
● Transit to LED lighting and energy-efficient appliances.
● Encourage turning off computers and other equipment when not in use.
● Consider switching to a green energy provider.
● Choose suppliers and products that have eco-friendly.
● Double-sided printing and e-documents.
● Implement a recycling program.
● Reduce waste and choose reusable items.
● Offer training sessions and workshops on sustainable practices.
● Join a sustainability network.
● The latest in green technologies or methods.
● Share our 'net zero' journey with clients
LBB> Can you please share a recent campaign or a piece of creative that you think is an example of great advertising from your region?
Celia> I have two great examples from China that received wide recognition. CocaCola’s Masterpiece AIGC creative video; it combined art with AI with Coke encouraging a digital artist to design based on coke bottle shape.
McDonald’s M treasury creative digital poster. McDonald’s food products were camouflaged as ancient treasures. The creative combines AIGC x UGC, and encourages users to share social content and create their own McDonald’s digital products.
