The Brief
Steelcase wanted to strengthen its brand and digital presence in the APAC region, putting the company as a leader in workplace solutions in the new hybrid era. The purpose of our collaboration was to develop a regional social media strategy: build awareness, drive engagement, and support sales initiatives through social media strategies, content, and campaigns in APAC. Our team worked on the digital presence of Steelcase in the region, including organic content, paid media planning and management, campaign execution, creative production, and performance reporting.
The Objective
Establish a consistent brand presence for Steelcase across APAC digital platforms by creating relevant content for this region while staying aligned with the global brand voice.
The Solution
DBL provided comprehensive digital marketing and content creation services for Steelcase APAC, including regional social media strategy, content development (visuals, videos, GIFs, articles), campaign execution, performance tracking, and market analysis. This involved working on various product lines, campaigns like “Work Better,” and managing their presence across multiple platforms like Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, as well as WeChat.
Strategic Framework
- Developed comprehensive regional social media strategies for Instagram (B2C brand narrative), Facebook (research insights), LinkedIn (B2B decision makers), and WeChat (China awareness + conversion), each customised to audience type and content role specifically.
- Built “Bible Documents” to define tone of voice, creative principles, and localisation guidelines across APAC markets.
- Aligned content with the See-Think-Do-Care funnel to address awareness, engagement, conversion, and retention.
Content Creation for Regional Social Media Strategy
- Asset Repurposing & Creative Innovation: Beyond localisation, we improved existing global assets by transforming static imagery into engaging, soial media formats such as GIFs, carousels, and videos. We applied a mix of illustration, text, and 3D design to create content that felt fresh and relevant to APAC audiences, while keeping the brand identity. This approach extended the use of global assets, increased efficiency, and delivered more engaging content across key channels.
- Original Creative Development: In addition to producing 2D illustrations, 3D animations and bespoke campaign visuals, we also developed net-new assets to fill critical content gaps in the marketing strategy. This included organising and running our own shoots to capture product use across different markets and audiences, from gaming setups showing ergonomic chair design, to office with boosted professional features. By making the creatives reflect diverse user needs and product USPs, we ensured resonance across multiple audience segments while keeping a unified brand identity.
Paid Media Management
- Oversaw an ongoing paid media investment of approximately HKD 1.8M annually across Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and WeChat, covering creative, optimisation, and reporting.
- Delivered advertising strategies driven by performance, with KPIs focused on follower growth, engagement %, reach, CTR, CPC, and lead generation.
Campaigns & Launches as part of our localised marketing strategy
- Work Better campaign:
- Multi-channel push with dedicated creative budget. Subsequently delivered 2D animations, 3D hero videos, and narrative around hybrid work informed by research.
- Media planning and creative execution focused on awareness, engagement, and consideration.
- Tactics: in-feed video, Stories, static information visuals, insight visuals, as well as direct lead forms.
- Target audiences: B2B large companies (Corporate/HR), B2B2C (Architects & Designers), and B2C (audiences looking for sustainable furnitures)
- Traffic directed to existing Steelcase landing pages (research content, webinars).
- Instagram APAC launch:
- Developed launch content, including Worklife Centre imagery, product renderings, and brand intro posts
- Combined organic growth with targeted boosts. Trial of an “automatic audience” to boost growth, creating 356% increase in followers within 10 months.
- WeChat boost:
- Revamped Steelcase’s WeChat presence with new banners, interesting content topics, as well as improved article layouts.
- Introduced hashtag functions for discoverability and aligned UX with leading competitors like Herman Miller and Haworth.
- Improved awareness and conversion through integration with mini-programs.
- Paid media pilots: e.g., “The Desk Note” campaign, driving event registrations through custom creatives.
Video campaigns
"Work Better" GIFs
LinkedIn Lead Generation Ad Visuals
Key Takeaways for Steelcase’s Regional Social Media Strategy
- Integrated approach drives impact: A balance of BAU management, paid media investment, and hero campaigns built a constant presence and market credibility.
- Creative variety matters: Blending animations, 3D design, stop-motion, and custom shoots ensured content was both engaging and relevant to this market.
- Localised narrative is critical: Tailoring product USPs to audience segments (e.g. gaming vs office ergonomics) made content connects more deeply across markets.
- Paid + organic synergy works: Strategic boosts leading to an overall 356% Instagram follower increase in under a year.
- Platform-native execution delivers: From WeChat in China to LinkedIn B2B targeting, aligning creative and media with platform strengths maximises performance.
About Steelcase
Steelcase is a global leader in office furniture, workplace solutions, and design innovation. With over a century of expertise, the brand creates products and services that help people work better – whether in offices, classrooms, or at home.
Their portfolio includes ergonomic seating, collaborative furniture, and technology-enabled solutions designed to enhance productivity and well-being in work environments across more than 80 countries.
