Kuala Lumpur, 14 April 2020 – Berjaya Sompo Insurance Berhad (“Berjaya Sompo”) today, launched a “#StayAtHome Colouring Contest” (“The Campaign”) as a way to ease anxiety, stress and boredom during the Movement Control Order (MCO) due to the COVID-19 outbreak. This unprecedented situation and social distancing have posed a drastic change from our normal lives where it forces all of us to adapt, stay resilient and get creative in order to stay positive while staying at home. According to a recent survey, 88 percent of Malaysians have developed high levels of anxiety[1] as a result of COVID-19 outbreak, therefore, Berjaya Sompo would like to help minimise the impact by encouraging creativity through colouring, which has a wide range of benefits in calming the mind[2]. It also brings us back to the simpler times of childhood where this activity can be done individually, in a group or as a family. The Campaign will end on 26th April 2020, and is open to all Malaysians of all ages.
In launching this Campaign, Berjaya Sompo has leveraged on its Sompo Holdings Asia resources, through a cross-country sharing initiative with Sompo Insurance Indonesia (“SII”) by repurposing and re-adapting the series of artwork that was created by the SII team in 2019 for this current “#StayAtHome Colouring Contest”. Mawarni Adam, Head of Brand, Marketing Communications and Customer Experience said, “At Berjaya Sompo, we are always looking for ways on how we can engage our target audience in a meaningful way, how we can work together with our marketing teams across the region and do some good along the way. This Campaign, I believe will achieve all of our objectives, as colouring is a simple and fun activity that is ageless and its benefits has been widely published in health articles and journals. I am also especially pleased with Berjaya Sompo’s collaboration with SII, as it shows how cross-country teams can share and maximise resources, foster innovations in order to build the brand and engage our audiences during times of crisis.”
Adding on to the health benefits of colouring, Robin Ding, Head of Health Underwriting for Berjaya Sompo said, “Similar to meditation, colouring has intellectual benefits that allow us to focus on the moment and switch off from other negative thoughts as a means of relaxation and a calming tool thus helping us reduce our anxiety level or bring about more mindfulness. According to a study[3], it can take you out of your present stresses and worries for even a few hours at a time, which can have an exceptionally recuperative effect”. Berjaya Sompo encourages everyone to stay healthy physically and mentally during MCO, through eating healthy, exercising and doing simple activities like colouring and to think of it as having something creative and colourful to show and display at home, office or on your social media at the end of the MCO.
The Campaign will be hosted on Berjaya Sompo’s Facebook page, where six (6) colouring sheets or templates featuring its mascot “Sompony” will be availed to the public. Participation is free and participants are free to choose their preferred template to colour on whether by printing it and using colour pencils, crayons and water colours or colouring it digitally. Ten winners will be selected to win RM100 worth of Grab vouchers each. The winners will be announced on Berjaya Sompo’s Facebook page on 28th April 2020. For more information about the Campaign, please visit: https://www.facebook.com/berjayasompoinsurance
[1] “How brands are surviving the COVID-19 crisis in Asia Pacific” a survey by Kantar APAC.
[2] “The Adult Coloring Book Phenomenon” a press release by American Art Therapy Association.
