KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA – This Ramadan, MBCS, the media-fuelled creative content practice under the IPG Mediabrands umbrella is teaming up with Malaysian streaming app sooka for a campaign designed to tackle an all too familiar Ramadan reality: doomscrolling.
Titled sooka Ramadan – Buat Puasa Tak Terasa (Ease Your Fasting Struggles), the initiative seeks to shift digital consumption patterns by offering an engaging alternative to mindless scrolling. Recognizing that social media usage spikes during key moments of the fasting day – before and after Sahur, lunchtime, pre-iftar, and post-Terawih; this campaign presents sooka as a meaningful escape from habitual doomscrolling, making fasting a smoother experience.
“While every other brand is serving ads around typical festive themes, they don’t actually talk about helping people through a difficult fast,” says Kevin Le, Executive Creative Director at MBCS. “We understand that doomscrolling peaks during Ramadan and happens at key times. We see this as the perfect time to explore sooka as a useful distraction. We understand your struggle, and sooka can help you through this.”
Unlike traditional Ramadan advertising focusing on emotional family issues and food-based ads, the campaign tackles the often-overlooked issue of excessive social media consumption. Instead of simply adding to the noise on social platforms, the campaign aims to provide a compelling alternative.
Le adds, “the Ramadan-themed messages and sooka clips are specifically designed to encourage viewers to shift their focus from mindless scrolling to immersive and fulfilling content on sooka. It’s also our first foray into YouTube Shorts, getting our viewers to go from vertical to horizontal viewing. By acknowledging and addressing the unique challenges of Ramadan, we hope to not only help you through your fast but introduce you to a truly valuable service.”
