issue 231 by Sledgehammer Communications (M) Sdn Bhd

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ISSUE 231 MID-NOV2018

AUDIENCE CONTENT COMMERCE

SEELAN PAUL CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, RIPPLE

ISSN 1985-5575

00231 9 771985

557001

KDN NO. PP15776/03/2013 (033405) RM3.50

MALAYSIAN CMO AWARDS WINNERS 2018 INSIDE

Thank You f Alvin Teoh – Executive Creative Director, Naga DDB Tribal Harnessing the ad industry for greater societal impact Ahmad Izham Omar (Dato) Chairman, Communications and Multimedia Content Forum of Malaysia (CMCF) A Wonderful Future?…… maybe.. Bala Pomaleh - CEO, IPG Mediabrands Malaysia Breaking the shackles to unleash media digital transformation Benedict Wong - CEO & CoFounder, ACE Media Network The Power of Micro in Influencer Marketing Chanchal Chakrabarti - CEO, GroupM Malaysia The elusive Malaysian talent Claudian Navin Stanislaus - Head of Advertising & Promotions, BABA’S It’s time for convergence in media regulations too. Dr. Karling Lee (Assoc. Prof.), INTI International University Here come the Gen Zs! Emir Shafri - Executive Creative Director, VMLY&R Championing a new type of workforce for the new economy Erin Hwang – GM of Sales, Star Media Radio Group Moving forward with Digital Radio Broadcasting Eugene Wong - Group Marketing Director, Sin Chew

Media Corporation Will algorithms run governments? Freddie Fernandez (Dato) CEO, Betarecs Sdn Bhd Are self-serving Associations healthy for growth? And other stuff… Ganesh Kumar Bangah - Executive Chairman, Commerce.Asia The Rise of the Growth Marketer Gary Tay - Digital Evangelist & CEO, Amphibia Digital I know its fake but I still choose to share it. Harish Subramaniam Venture Builder & CMO of Cranium Ventures Ltd. Everybody Pays Henry Tan - CEO Designate, Astro Help Malaysia Win Ho Kay Tat (Dato) - Group CEO & Publisher, The EDGE Media Group Bar political parties from owning media? Iris Chang - Country Marketing Head, Grab Malaysia Digital Safety - Whose Responsibility is it? Ishak Mohd Ishtiaq (Dato) Group CEO, IMI Media Group Digital: the end of Marketing or a new beginning? Jahabar Sadiq - Editor & Chief Executive, The Malaysian Insight Evolution of the national media landscape

Jason Ko - CEO, MYC! (Malaysia Youth Community) In the pursuit of Digital “Happy-ness” Joel Neoh - CEO & Founder, Fave Group Re-engineering Malaysia Johan Ishak - CEO, Media Prima Television Networks Opportunities beckon for Malaysia’s creative industry John D Chacko - President, International Advertising Association (IAA) Malaysia Billboard advertising now has new hope Khoo Kay Lye - President, Malaysian Association of Advertising a Filmmakers Key towards brighter film advertising industry Kingsley Warner - General Manager, Viu Malaysia Local content and production success stories Kiranjit Singh - Country Head, Ipsos Business Consulting Malaysia Let’s now subsidise superfast broadband in economically poor areas Kristian Lee - CEO, Naga DDB Tribal Malaysia Role in building Malaysia’s digital economy, by an ad guy Lai Shu Wei - VP, unifi Marketing & Operations It’s not only about what’s beyond, it’s also about what’s right here and right now. Linda Hassan - Senior VP of Marketing, Domino’s Pizza

Malaysia & Singapore Is the cost of Digital Marketing really cheaper? Malek Ali - Founder, BFM Create the right environment and let a thousand flowers bloom Mei Cheong - Group Head Marketing Communications, Indosat Ooredoo Driving a politically mature electorate with internet for all

for sharing Group Branding & Strategic Comms, Johor Corp Taking on the good fight – sovereignty of our collective data Patrick Grove - Co-Founder & CEO, Catcha Group Six ideas to make Malaysia leader of SEA digital revolution

Data

Philip Whittaker – CEO, ITPA/ CCO, Themed Attractions Resorts & Hotels Transforming the Malaysian Holiday Experience Prashant Kumar - Founder & Senior Partner, ENTROPIA Quick thoughts on planned RTM-Bernama merger Premesh Chandran - CoFounder & CEO, Malaysiakini Data, Technology, Power and Justice Ranbir Nanra (Dato) Importance of applying Spatial Intelligence & Analytics In Business Ranganathan Somanathan – CEO, OMG Malaysia & Singapore Talent Acceleration Program - developing future talent now

Mohamed Kadri Mohd Taib President, Malaysian Advertisers Association Brand sustainability in the world of Privacy

Security and fraud

elimination of

Mohd Adam Wee Abdullah - Group Chief Marketing Officer, CIMB

Nicky Lim - CEO, Dentsu Aegis Network Malaysia Digital Economy Stakes – will the Ministry come in as the bigger stakeholder?

Towards a vision of National

Norsiah Juriani Johari - VP

Salim Khubchandani – Founder, On-Target Marketing Solutions Malaysia Digital Transformation: time for brands to draw the line Santharuban T Sundaram VP of Marketing, Etika Group No capacity to assess digital ad impressions Serm Teck Choon President, Malaysian Digital

Association (MDA) Three wishes from MDA Srikanth Ramachandran Group CEO, Moving Walls Out-of-Home - Digital’s Final Frontier, Malaysia’s Leadership Opportunity Sue Ann Chew - Executive Chairman & Group MD, shopper360 Limited Story about my family and why I turned to Singapore VK Sailendra - Founder, Visual Retale Transforming Malaysia into a digital government: one step closer to reality Wing K. Lee - CEO, YTL Communications Connectivity+ is the new paradigm for a new Malaysia Yap Chee Weng - President Media Specialists Association & CEO dentsu X Malaysia Media and Technology: Friends or Foes? Respectfully,

NEW BOOK OUT SOON!

ISSUE 231/// MID-NOV2018 CREATIVE SURGE

COVER STORY

IDEAS: THE YELLOW COVERAGE FELLOW STORY (PART 2)

Two weeks ago, we talked about how Alvin Teoh, then CD at NagaDDB, came up with the idea of a Yellow Coverage Fellow to talk about DiGi’s coverage story. DiGi is a telco competing against larger and more established competitors. For most creatives, the story ends there and everybody goes back to have their Teh Tarik. However, we often forget that the client (ie the marketing head) has to sell the work internally (to the CEO and in some cases, the board of directors), and then- especially if it’s a new brand direction- to the rest of the staff. Most marketing departments spend their waking hours arranging for meetings, and trying to stay awake...

INFLUENCER MARKETING: MCDONALD’S MALAYSIA MARKETING DIRECTOR, EUGENE LEE EVENTS CALENDAR 16 NOVEMBER

MALAYSIAN CMO CONFERENCE & AWARDS 2018 28 JANUARY 2019

AUDIENCE // CONTENT //COMMERCE

MC2 AWARDS - IDEAS OASIS Regional CEO Professor Harmandar Singh ham@adoimagazine.com Content Officer Reena Sekaran reena@adoimagazine.com Business Development Manager Jarrod Sunil Solomon jarrod@adoimagazine.com Art Director / Designer Chemical Ali ali@adoimagazine.com Designer Lilna Marlina lilna@adoimagazine.com Events & Workshops Ruby Lim ruby@adoimagazine.com Web & Digital: Nurul Amira Ibrahim amira@adoimagazine.com Photography & Digital Imaging DL Studio No 7, Jalan PJU 3/50, Sunway Damansara 47810 Petaling Jaya, Selangor D.E. Malaysia Tel +603 7880 6380 / 6386, Email: studiodl@pd.jaring.my

MALAYSIAN CMO AWARDS WINNERS ANNOUNCED! After an intense judging session at the Sime Darby Convention Centre (SDCC), we are proud to announce the Malaysian CMO Awards 2018 winners. The judges studied over 70 final entries to select their choices across 30 categories. Winners will be honoured on November 16 at the Grand Ballroom of SDCC in an event officiated by YB Gobind Singh Deo...

Roving Photographer: Mccain Goh Contributors: Edward Ong, Alvin Teoh

CMO JUDGING

We all have our favourite influencers, we follow them on Instagram as they endorse various products. However, finding the best influencers for your brand isn’t as easy as it sounds. You can select influencers which have the most followers but if their content is not targeted to the right audience, it can shake a marketer’s confidence. In this series, MARKETING speaks to McDonald’s Malaysia Marketing Director, Eugene Lee on his thoughts on influencer marketing. McDonald’s is a household name, and the Golden Arches is one of the most recognisable logos in the world. Eugene Lee has been with McDonald’s Malaysia for more than eight years. He is in charge of all marketing communications...

FESTIVE CAMPAIGNS

NETWORK OF THE YEAR

Printer: Cetakrapi Sdn Bhd 22, Jalan Kepong, Taman Sri Ehsan, 52100 Kuala Lumpur Distribution: Spear Millennium Distribution Sdn Bhd E-1-5, Apartment AC4, Taman Sri Sentosa, Batu 6, Jalan Kelang Lama, 58000 Kuala Lumpur MPH Distributors Sdn Bhd (5048-A) Ground Floor Warehouse, Bangunan TH No. 5, Jalan Bersatu, Section 13/4 46200 Petaling Jaya Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia MARKETING magazine is published by Sledgehammer Communications (M) Sdn Bhd 22B, Jalan Tun Mohd Fuad Satu, Taman Tun Dr. Ismail, 60000 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Tel: 603-7726 2588 Fax: 603-7722 5712 www.marketingmagazine.com.my © All Rights Reserved By: Sledgehammer Communications (M) Sdn Bhd (289967-W) No part of this magazine may be reproduced in any form without prior permission in writing from the publisher. While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the information in this publication, the publisher assumes no responsibility for errors, omissions and/ or for any consequences of reliance upon information in this publication. The opinions expressed in this publication do not necessarily represent the views of the publisher or editor. Advertisements are the sole responsibility of the advertisers.

MARKETING magazine in now available in over 200 selected bookstores across the Klang Valley.

15 IDEAS FOR THE MOMENTS THAT MATTER The promotional marketing space is finally getting a much-needed recognition in the industry. This year some of the most prestigious advertising festivals have added new categories reflecting the rapidly changing business environment. Namely, D&AD debuted their first ever Experiential category; and Cannes introduced Brand Experience & Activation Lions and Creative eCommerce Lions under an all-encompassing brandnew Experience Track....

17 DEEPAVALI 2018 FAVOURITE ADVERTISEMENTS! Malaysia has made a name for itself when it comes to creating ads during the festive seasons. So, get your tissues and murukkus out as we bring you our favourite Deepavali ads that are rib tickling, thought provoking, meaningful and especially, Malaysian...

SYNERGISING DIGITAL MEDIA, BROADCAST AND COMMERCE It was bound to happen sooner than later. Marketing personalisation has taken on a new meaning with Media Prima’s RIPPLE. By being an audience focused digital media, broadcast and commerce company.

RIPPLE is rewriting the rules of engagement for marketers whose objectives are to focus on growth marketing with an added dimension of commercial returns...

“RIPPLE’S OFFERING OF BEING ABLE TO DELIVER AUDIENCE-LED CONTENT SPECIFIC TO RESPECTIVE SEGMENTS WOULD DEFINITELY GIVE AN EDGE FOR MARKETERS TO EXPLORE SEGMENTED MARKETING BASED ON LOCAL VERNACULAR INTEREST AND DRIVE BRAND RELEVANCE; SOMETHING WE WILL NOT BE ABLE TO ACHIEVE AS WELL ON LARGER SCALE PLATFORMS.” EILEEN HOOI - MANAGING DIRECTOR, PHD MALAYSIA

Seelan Paul - Chief Executive Officer, RIPPLE

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COVER STORY

When Media Prima Berhad (MPB) announced the transformation of its radio broadcast segment to an audience-focused company called RIPPLE, it sent more than ripples through the media ecosystem. This marked the beginning of how broadcast, digital and ecommerce are forming a complete loop to grow digital and consumer revenue with personalised content. By consolidating their traditional and digital assets under RIPPLE gives MPB the flexibility to connect with audiences on a more personal level and open new revenue opportunities.

RIPPLE includes four broadcast brands – Fly FM, Hot FM, One FM and Kool FM, a podcast platform – Ais Kacang, an e-commerce brand – SuperDeals, and seven digital brands – Dhia, Donna, Lunaria, The Laki, Likely, Chapters, and Wakeke.

NEW AUDIENCE-FOCUS DIGITAL MEDIA, BROAD AND COMMERCE COMPANY… HOW RIPPLE IS OFFERING DIFFERENT PERSONAS TO PROPEL AUDIENCEFOCUSED GROWTH MARKETING.

Each catering to a distinctive audience sub-set, giving cluster marketing opportunities for Malaysian advertisers by exploiting the gaps within current broadcast audiences. “One of our greatest strengths in broadcast is our ability to connect with listeners and our communities through our platforms. Over the years, we have successfully engaged with our audiences on-air, online and on-ground,” says Chief Executive Officer Seelan Paul, and the man leading this RIPPLE of opportunities.

RIPPLE is poised to drive growth, leveraging on the strength of its digital brands and massive reach to create new revenue opportunities and target new consumer groups. “Ultimately this will amplify our own e-commerce proposition for SuperDeals by offering the right deals for the right digital community,” “With 80% of Malaysians using the internet for more than 8 hours daily, it makes perfect sense to go with growth marketing strategies as Malaysian digital ad spend is slated to cross RM2 billion in two years,” Seelan continues, “RIPPLE has a weekly listenership of 5 million and a social media community of 10 million. When you break it down there are 7 clusters that allow advertisers to get closer to our audiences with meaningful content and reach.” They have been crystallised into 7 new digital brands. DHIA: For young adult Malay females 18-29 who live their lives to the fullest. DONNA: Eegant, inspiring and trustworthy for every Malay woman aged 30-44. LUNARIA: For teenage Malay girls 13-17 who love everything fun, fresh and creative with a twist. THE LAKI: The ultimate male 18-29 digital brand

“THE FUTURE IS ABOUT CONSUMER LED MEDIA SEGMENTATION FOR ANY PLATFORM. RADIO HAS BECOME MORE OF A STREAMING SERVICE ON THE GO, ANY PLACE ANY TIME.. THIS INITIATIVE BY RIPPLE TO STAY CLOSER TO THEIR CONSUMERS BY OFFERING RELEVANT CONTENT ON THE GO IS ENCOURAGING.” JAVED JAFRI REGIONAL COMMUNICATION CHANNEL MANAGER, UNILEVER.

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USED DCAST

COVER STORY

for millennials, while connecting the dots for bros. LIKELY: Empowers 18-29 year-old women to embrace their uniqueness through real stories voices and experiences. CHAPTERS: Chapters celebrate the 30-44 year-old Chinese-speaking audience through our community to inspire them to live their best lives. WAKEKE: Connects the 18-29 year-old Chinese speaking audience who live in the now, immersing in trends and pop culture.

Seelan Paul Chief Executive Officer RIPPLE

With a corporate ethos being a digitalfirst content and commerce company, Media Prima is now bringing all its content and marketing assets to support RIPPLE’s customization strategies.

“CONSUMERS ARE DIGITAL-SAVVY AND MANY BRANDS OUT THERE WISH TO SPEND THEIR A&P MORE ON DIGITAL. THIS IS A STRATEGIC MOVE BY MEDIA PRIMA ON TRANSFORMING THEIR RADIO BROADCAST ARMS INTO AN AUDIENCEFOCUSED COMPANY, RIPPLE. WITH MANY BRANDS FOR EACH VERTICAL I.E., BROADCAST, E-COMMERCE AND DIGITAL MEDIA UNDER THE GROUP, THEY HAVE A STRONG USP TO OFFER TO MANY BRANDS IN THE MARKET. I HOPE TO EXPERIENCE HYPER-PERSONALISATION WITH RIPPLE.” MUHAMAD ZAID HASMAN DIRECTOR OF DIGITAL, MCDONALD’S MALAYSIA

“This will optimise audience reach for marketers and drive engagement until e-commerce fulfillment. This is good news for all - from small SMEs to mass brand players as they can tailor their budgets to marketing objectives clearly. We’ve had fun and successes with Tony Roma’s and Kinohimitsu for starters, with more brands from diverse market categories talking to us now,” adds Seelan. Media Prima’s digital revenue increased to RM44.8 million for the first six months ending 30 June 2018 against RM14.9 million in the comparative period, driven by higher digital advertising revenue across all platforms. They currently rank third in the country in terms of digital reach and aim to increase digital revenue contribution to 8% by year-end, compared to the Group’s 3% target for 2017.

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NEWS

MEDIA PRIMA COMPUTER SYSTEMS HIJACKED, HACKERS WANT RM26 MILLION

The announcement follows on from Ogilvy PR boss Michael Frohlich being elevated to chief executive in February, after which he took the lead on a “radical restructure of the agency” to bring it all under a single P&L.

MEDIA STOCKS PLUMMET

BEING “RESPONSIBLE

SOMETIMES MEANS PISSING PEOPLE OFF. GOOD LEADERSHIP INVOLVES RESPONSIBILITY TO THE WELFARE OF THE GROUP

”

GENERAL (USA-RET) COLIN L. POWELL

Media Prima Bhd had a ransomware attack on Nov 8, locking out its computer systems. A report by the Edge Financial Daily said that the hackers demanded Media Prima pay 1,000 bitcoins to access its email system again. A bitcoin is a digital currency, with one bitcoin currently worth US$6,297.21 as at 11.50am on November 13 according to Google. This means that the attackers are demanding a ransom of RM26.42mil. When contacted, Media Prima did not confirm or deny whether there was a ransomware attack. It is not immediately known whether Media Prima’s data has been breached, and whether the media group would be suffering financial losses due to the ransomware attack.

UMNO TO LET GO OF UTUSAN MELAYU

COMMAND IS “LONELY. THE BUCK

”

STOPS AT THE TOP!

HARRY S. TRUMAN, 33RD PRESIDENT OF THE US.

Utusan Melayu (Malaysia) Bhd, the UMNO owned newspaper group is expected to have new owners soon. This will likely occur after its restructuring and staff voluntary separation scheme which will let go of some 750 employees. It will also close down its printing plant in Kuala Terengganu and five of its magazine titles and four digital magazines. The newspaper has for a long time now depended on government contracts to survive as newspaper readership plunged. This was before the last general election ushered in a new government and the whole scenario changed for the publication.

OGILVY OFFERS UK TEAM VOLUNTARY REDUNDANCY

WE HAVE A TAX “SYSTEM BASED ON

PHYSICAL PRESENCE, BUT WE NEED TO REFLECT ON DIGITAL PRESENCE. IF YOU COMPARE ALL BUSINESSES, 23% IS THE AVERAGE CORPORATE TAX RATE. FOR THE INTERNET, IT IS SOMETHING LIKE 9%!

”

EU ECONOMIC COMMISSIONER PIERRE MOSCOVICI

Staff at Ogilvy UK were offered voluntary redundancy lately as part of the agency’s restructuring drive. Employees were given November 2 as their deadline. If not many people take up the voluntary redundancy then chances are they will be forced to take compulsory ones. Ogilvy UK attributed the redundancies to its transformation strategy which has seen it dismantle sub-brands such as Ogilvy & Mather, Ogilvy One and Ogilvy Public Relations in order to reshape itself as one combined agency.

Media stocks are facing a harsh downturn as a sluggish stock market, low advertising interest and weak consumer spending has proved to be its comeuppance. A check on Bloomberg shows that the already-suffering media stocks listed on Bursa Malaysia Bhd have been battered over the past one year. Former media powerhouses like Utusan Melayu (M) Bhd, Star Media Group Bhd, Astro Malaysia Holdings Bhd, Media Prima Bhd and Berjaya Media Bhd have taken a beating with their share prices almost halved over the last 52 weeks. Adding to that, the market capitalisation of the five companies has also been decreasing over 50% within 12 months.

STUDY SHOWS CONSUMERS DISASSOCIATE WITH BRANDS PLACED IN NEGATIVE SCENARIOS

In a recent study on brand safety issues in the digital advertising marketplace, autonomous brand safety company CHEQ, together with IPG Mediabrands, BMW and a leading online entertainment platform today announced the results of an in depth media trial study called “The Brand Safety Effect”. Chief among the insights was that many consumers view brand unsafe ad placements as an intentional endorsement of the negative content. In addition, two-thirds of consumers who indicated high purchase intent for a specific brand were less likely to buy that brand after being exposed to an ad from the same company appearing alongside unsafe content. Many respondents felt that the negative ad placement was intentional.

IMPERIAL BLUE’S MEN WILL BE MEN AD IS BOTH HUMOUROUS AND RELATABLE ACROSS GENDERS

Seagram’s Imperial Blue ‘Men will be Men’ advertising campaign features real life elements in its situational advertising that is highly relatable. As advertising alcohol is not possible, the brand opted to do a slice of life piece picturing the modern day man in his bid to impress the opposite sex. The ‘Men will be men’ tagline is the brainchild of advertising big wigs Ogilvy & Mather. Seagram’s Imperial Blue was launched in 1997

ISSUE231MID-NOV2018

and targets male audiences in the 25 to 40 year old age bracket, with many of them being able to relate to the “Men will be Men” campaign. Laced with humour and irony, the advertisement depicts how the modern Indian man is constantly trying to impress the opposite sex as well as other men by virtue of his weakness for all things feminine, often landing up in embarrassing and unwanted situations.

GENTING MALAYSIA TO REVIEW ITS MARKETING BUDGET

COVER STORY NEWS

Lorraine was instrumental in securing the Heineken Malaysia account and prior to that she was head of integration at Astro. Capel also previously spent 11 years in GroupM Malaysia, where she held several senior roles, with her last being the managing director of Maxus Malaysia, now known as Wavemaker. Before GroupM, she led the Procter & Gamble business at Starcom.

COMMERCE.ASIA SETS RECORD FOR LARGEST EQUITY CROWDFUNDING

WHATSAPP TO PLACE ADS NEXT TO ITS STATUS FEATURE

Genting Malaysia Bhd (GENM) will review its marketing expenditure and cost structure to mitigate the impact of the increase in casino licensing fees and casino duties. In a filing with Bursa Malaysia, the company said it was assessing the full implications of the additional taxes on its operations and would take the “appropriate next course of action”, including the review. GENM said the Finance Ministry informed it today that the casino license fee would be raised from RM120 million to RM150 million per annum and the casino duties would be revised up to 35 per cent effective January 1, 2019.

DENTSU’S ISOBAR APPOINTS RONALD NG AS GLOBAL CHIEF CREATIVE OFFICER

Isobar has appointed Ronald Ng Executive Vice President and Global Chief Creative Officer. The newly-created role will be based in New York and he will report to Isobar Global CEO, Jean Lin. Ronald will be responsible for driving Isobar’s creative across Isobar’s 85 offices in 45 markets as well as driving Isobar’s position as an agency that delivers experience-led transformation through the creative use of digital. He was most recently Global Chief Creative Officer at Digitas. Prior to that, he worked at BBDO/Proximity in CCO and EVP/ECD roles in its Malaysia, New York and Singapore offices, elevating the Malaysia and Singapore offices to No. 13 (2008), No. 8 (2009) and No. 11 (2014) most awarded globally according to the Gunn and Won Reports.

LORRAINE CAPEL RESIGNS AS CEO OF CARAT MALAYSIA

According to an Economic Times report, the messaging service will feature ads next to its Status feature. WhatApp vice president Chris Daniels who was in New Delhi recently said the ads would provide a primary monetization mode for the company and give businesses a chance to reach people though no time frame was given for the change. WhatsApp Status was launched early last year as a knockoff of the Stories feature found in Instagram and Snapchat. The feature which has become even more popular than Snapchat allows you to add a combination of text, photos, and videos to your profile, which are encrypted in the same way as your messages.

Commerce DotAsia Ventures Sdn Bhd (Commerce. asia), an omnichannel ecosystem builder that invests into commerce enablers has set a new record for raising the Largest Equity Crowdfunding Round in Malaysia recognized by the Malaysian Book of Records. Some 92 Malaysian and international investors participated in the online fund raising exercise to invest into Commerce.asia through PitchIN, a licensed equity crowdfunding platform.

APOLOGY & CORRECTION We’d like to apologise to the Outdoor Advertising Association of Malaysia (OAAM) for quoting their President’s comments, from a previously published article in The Star, in our mid-October cover story for Issue#229. We also want to clarify that OOAM President Henry Low’s words that were used in the story were done without his prior consent and does not in any way endorse the cover story in which it was featured: “Media owners are now converting their static billboard sites to digital and the number of new digital outdoor players is on the rise.” We regret this error and apologise for any convenience caused to Henry, OAAM and all its members. We have since removed his words in the story from all our digital platforms, including our e-magazine. We also wish to apologise unconditionally to Leyard for misleading our readers to believe Henry Chai of OOHM is the sole distributor for Leyard in Malaysia in the same cover story. According to Leyard, OOHM never participated in the project, e.g. Genting, as implied in our story. We have since removed the statements in the story from all our digital platforms, including our e-magazine.

Carat Malaysia’s CEO, Lorraine Capel is saying goodbye to Carat Malaysia after two years. She was appointed CEO in Oct 2016 when she replaced Bala Pomaleh who joined IPG Mediabrands. Karan Tyagi, General Manager of Carat, will be overseeing operations in the interim.

Hambly yours, Prof Harmandar Singh aka Ham Publisher, MARKETING Magazine Malaysia.

CREATIVE SURGE

IDEAS: THE YELLOW COVERAGE FELLOW STORY (PART 2)

TWO weeks ago, we talked about how Alvin Teoh, then CD at NagaDDB, came up with the idea of a Yellow Coverage Fellow to talk about DiGi’s coverage story. DiGi is a telco competing against larger and more established competitors. For most creatives, the story ends there and everybody goes back to have their Teh Tarik. However, we often forget that the client (ie the marketing head) has to sell the work internally (to the CEO and in some cases, the board of directors), and then- especially if it’s a new brand direction- to the rest of the staff. Most marketing departments spend their waking hours arranging for meetings, and trying to stay awake during meetings. After presenting the creative work, comments are consolidated, streamlined and

emailed to the agency: “Great news! CEO loves the work with some very minor changes:

Replace the visual, headline, and body copy and we’re good to go!” This story is about how NagaDDB sold the Yellow

Coverage Fellow, and got the subsequent buy-in from internal audiences. Objective “So, you had like 3 or 4 creative options for the client?” I asked Alvin. “No, only one. This was it,” he said. “Do or die.” “And did the Chinese dude- the interim marketing head- like it?” “Yes. He basically said, ‘This is beyond what we expected. It’s too big for me to approve- I need to show it to our CEO’. Morten (DiGi’s then CEO) was in a meeting at the time and we had to wait for a few hours. Morten came in, sat down, said four words: ‘I’m here. Impress me.’ We presented our ideas and after the third script, he stopped us. He took out a pen and paper, and wrote his own script. Then he read it aloud and asked, ‘Do you like it?’ ‘Yes, of course’ – what else could we say? ‘I like it!’ he said. ‘I’m going to get my team to look into thisjust tell me what you need’. Long story short, that day we sold 13 out of 15 scripts.” “Um, including the one Morten wrote?” “No, not the one he wrote- I think he was only joking.”

What started as a tactical campaign had somehow evolved into a brand campaign for DiGi. But before the yellow man went public, the agency had to introduce him to the rest of the DiGizens. Challenge Conventional coverage campaigns usually featured geographic locations. The Yellow Coverage Fellow was the first to put a face to the coverage story. “The DiGi brand is a little eccentric and quirky,” said Alvin. “Which gave us the opportunity to introduce the fellow in a fun and unforgettable way. Except, for the staff, we couldn’t use TV and had to think of something more tactile.” Truth “The yellow man could be whatever we wanted him to be. Very early on, we decided that he wasn’t human. Sure, he looked human but he wasn’t. He may or may not be from earth,” said Alvin. Answer And so, early one morning, the staff at DiGi’s HQ in Shah Alam found a five-foot tall egg in the lobby. It started as a perfect egg-shaped egg. Smooth, flawless, yellow. And then it started to crack. Every day, the crack would get bigger and bigger. Some of the staff would peel off the shell to see what was inside. But it was pitch black and the agency made sure whatever it contained remained hidden. About a week later, with

everyone gathered in the lobby- there were 5 Yellow Coverage Fellows running around introducing themselves to the staff. That same day, DiGi’s new 40-second TVC was launched across all channels (both FTA and cable TV) as well as on YouTube and DiGi’s internal server. And that, dear readers, was how the Yellow Coverage Fellowlater referred to as the Yellow Man- burst into Malaysian pop culture. Before long, he was invited to weddings, birthday parties, festivals and at one time, upon request, escorted a young girl to school. There was even a yellow man at a school sports day. “Fan made. Ugliest yellow man ever,” said Alvin. “All the same, I think it’s a great honour to have your work plagiarised. We found badly drawn yellow man stickers in Johor, yellow man music CDscomprising 10 techno versions of ‘I will follow you’ (the Yellow Man theme song)- in Penang, but not a single pirated yellow man t-shirt in Petaling Street. That sucks.”

Edward Ong is on a quest to discover and create Malaysia’s best ideas. He is an award-winning Writer and Creative Director, and can be found at IdeasAreBorderless.com

INFLUENCER MARKETING:

MCDONALD’S MALAYSIA MARKETING DIRECTOR, EUGENE LEE that customers experience and has been instrumental in the company’s recent shift from traditional advertising to a focus on digital media. He leads a lean team of eight marketers and is behind recent successes such as the Ayam Goreng McD relaunch, Spicy Korean Burger and everyone’s favourite, the D24 Durian McFlurry. WE all have our favourite influencers, we follow them on Instagram as they endorse various products. However, finding the best influencers for your brand isn’t as easy as it sounds. You can select influencers which have the most followers but if their content is not targeted to the right audience, it can shake a marketer’s confidence.

In this series, MARKETING speaks to McDonald’s Malaysia Marketing Director, Eugene Lee on his thoughts on influencer marketing. McDonald’s is a household name, and the Golden Arches is one of the most recognisable logos in the world. Eugene Lee has been with McDonald’s Malaysia for more than eight years. He is in charge of all marketing communications

What are the challenges faced when it comes to selecting the right influencer? When an influencer is used, the customer will associate the brand directly with that person. Therefore, it is crucial when it comes to influencer selection that the KOL used reflects the values of the brand. For McDonald’s, the influencer has to hold a wholesome image and not involved in extreme views/

movements, or have too sexy/ revealing an image on social media. How do you measure the success of the campaign with the KOL? Engagement is one of the key measures of success. If a post by the influencer garners higher comments/likes versus their average post, it’s proof that the fans resonate with the content of the post, and the linkage between the KOL and the brand. As with any form of advertising, sales is also a key measure, along with campaign awareness figures. The Ayam Goreng McD made its successful comeback thanks to the ad which absolutely no music or dialogue, but just the sounds of crunching fried chicken. Do you believe the budget

can be better spent elsewhere? Malaysia, and especially the Malay audience, are very highly influenced by KOLs & Celebrities. Having an influencer endorse your product or brand can really elevate the customer’s perception, especially amongst the millennials who usually turn a deaf ear to direct advertising from companies. What do you think are areas that influencer marketing needs improvement on? Influencer marketing needs to be genuine. Blatant product placement that comes off as unnatural can have adverse effects on both the brand as well as the influencer themselves. Therefore, with influencer marketing, honesty and genuine posts are key to success.

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CMO JUDGING

After an intense judging session at the Sime Darby Convention Centre (SDCC), we are proud to announce the Malaysian CMO Awards 2018 winners. The judges studied over 70 final entries to select their choices across 30 categories. Winners will be honoured on November 16 at the Grand Ballroom of SDCC in an event officiated by YB Gobind Singh Deo, Minister of Communications & Multimedia Malaysia. The winner of the Best of the Best or CMO Marketer of the Year will also be awarded then. Here are the winners in alphabetical order:

MALAYSIAN CMO AWA

Abdul Sani Abdul Murad Group Chief Marketing Officer, RHB Banking Group Amanda Chong Senior Product Executive, Wipro Consumer Care (LDW) Andrew Gnananantham Chief Marketing Officer, Lazada Andrew Pinto Head of Marketing, mudah.my Ben Foo Group CMO, Taylor’s Education Group Ben Rynjah Regional Brand Manager, AirAsia Chayenne Tan VP, Growth Marketing, Consumer Banking, CIMB Malaysia Christine Ho Senior Marketing Manager, Wipro Consumer Care (LDW) Eugene Lee Marketing Director, McDonald’s Malaysia Farah Miptah Brand Manager, Campbell Soup Company Gopal Putrevu Digital Marketing Manager, Kimberly-Clark Malaysia Izra Izzuddin VP, Marketing & Communications, Firefly Airlines Jean Ler Chief Marketing Officer, (QSR Brands (Pizza Hut) Jess How Country Marketing Manager, HP Malaysia

LEFT TO RIGHT: Yeoh Chen Chow Co-founder, Fave Datuk William Ng President, Enterprise Asia John D Chacko President, International Advertising Association (IAA) Malaysia & VP Asia Malek Ali Founder, BFM Datuk Yvonne Chia Chairman, Standard Chartered Bank Malaysia Berhad Greg Paull Principal and Co Founder R3 Worldwide Renzo C Viegas Advisor to Group CEO of CIMB Bank Harmandar Singh President, Malaysia CMO Awards Dato Sri Shazalli Ramly

Joseph Lim Chief Marketing Officer, TuneTalk Khairy Al-Fiqry bin Bakhtiar Nor Assistant Manager, Group Marketing, RHB Lai Shu Wei VP (unifi Marketing & Operations), Telekom Malaysia Leong Kuan Yew Head of Digital Acquisition, HSBC Linda Hassan Senior VP, Marketing, Domino’s Pizza Malaysia/Singapore Manpreet Singh MD, Head, Group Customer Experience Management, CIMB Mark Karmen Assistant Brand Manager, Etika Sdn Bhd

ABDUL SANI ABDUL MURAD

ANDREW GNANANANTHAM

ANDREW PINTO

BEN FOO

JEAN LER

JESS HOW

JONATHAN LINDA HASSAN ADAMS

LAI SHU WEI

PETE POHLSCHMIDT

RISHI PAHWA

SANTHARUBAN THURAI SUNDARAM

SHIV SAHGAL

Group Chief Marketing Officer RHB Banking Group

Chief Marketing Officer Lazada

Head of Marketing Mudah.my

Group Chief Marketing Officer Taylor’s Education Group

Mohamed Adam Wee Abdullah Group Chief Marketing Officer, CIMB Mohammad Munzir Aminuddin Marketing Director, Siti Khadijah Nabil Fauzy Marketing Communication Specialist, Maxis Ng Ching Yee Chief Marketing Officer, Trinity Group Nizam Sani Senior VP, Marketing and Communications, Bank Rakyat

Chief Marketing Officer QSR Brands (Pizza Hut)

Country Marketing Manager HP

Pete Pohlschmidt Head of Digital, Malaysia Airlines

SeniorMarketing Chief Vice President, Officer iCar Asia Domino’s Pizza Marketing, Malaysia/Singapore

Vice President (unifi Marketing & Ops) - Telekom Malaysia

Rishi Pahwa Head of Marketing, Wipro Consumer Care (LDW) Narishvin K.Sukumaran Chief Marketing Officer, Gameka Santharuban T Sundaram VP of Marketing, Etika Holdings Schrene Goh Miow Ying Global Head of Marketing, Malaysia Airlines

Head of Digital Malaysia Airlines

Head of Marketing Wipro Consumer Care (LDW)

Shiv Sahgal Marketing Director, Foods & Refreshment, Unilever Malaysia

Vice President - Marketing Etika Holdings

Steff Yong Manager, KFC Marketing Stephanie Caunter Global Director, Marketing & Communications, Catcha Group Timothy Johnson SVP Marketing, Product & Partnerships, INTI Education Group Victor Kaw Chief Commercial Officer, AirAsia Big Loyalty Zaid Hasman Director of Digital, McDonald’s Malaysia

TIMOTHY JOHNSON

Senior VP, Marketing Product & Partnerships INTI International University & Colleges

VICTOR KAW

Chief Commercial Officer AirAsia Big Loyalty

ZAID HASMAN

Director of Digital McDonald’s Malaysia

Marketing Director - Foods & Refreshment, Unilever (M) Holdings Sdn Bhd

ISSUE231MID-NOV2018

ARDS WINNERS ANNOUNCED!

BEN RYNJAH

CHAYENNE TAN

CHRISTINE HO

LEONG KUAN YEW

MANPREET SINGH

MOHAMED ADAM WEE ABDULLAH

Regional Brand Manager AirAsia

Senior Digital Marketing Manager / Head of Digital Acquisition, HSBC

VP, Growth Marketing Consumer Banking CIMB Malaysia

Managing Director & Head of Group Customer Experience Management, CIMB Group

EUGENE LEE

Senior Marketing Manager Marketing Director (Bio-essence), Wipro Consumer McDonaldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Malaysia Care (LDW)

Group Chief Marketing Officer CIMB Group

MOHAMMAD MUNZIR AMINUDDIN Marketing Director Telekung Siti Khadijah

IZRA IZZUDDIN

JOSEPH LIM

NG CHING YEE

NIZAM SANI

VP, Marketing & Communications, Firefly

Chief Marketing Officer Trinity Group

CMO AWARDS RISING MARKETING STARS 2018 Amanda Chong Senior Product Executive, Wipro Consumer Care (LDW) SCHRENE GOH MIOW YING Global Head of Marketing Malaysia Airlines

STEPHANIE CAUNTER

Global Director Marketing & Communications Catcha Group

Farah Miptah Brand Manager, Campbell Soup Company Karmen Mark Assistant Brand Manager, Etika Sdn Bhd Khairy Al-Fiqry Bakhtiar Nor Assistant Manager, Group Marketing, RHB Narishvin K. Sukumaran Chief Marketing Officer, Gameka Nabil Fauzy Prepaid Marcomm, Marketing Services, Maxis Berhad Steff Yong Manager, KFC Marketing

Chief Marketing Officer TuneTalk

Senior VP, Marketing & Communications, Bank Rakyat Malaysia

COVER STORY CMO JUDGING

ISSUE231MID-NOV2018

CMO JUDGING

“I think this is a great thing for Malaysia. It is setting a standard of what world class marketing is, and the people who are going the extra mile in making it great!”

“Great helicopter view of those who are offline, those online, those with sexy businesses, those who have turned around their business, those who have made an unsexy business sexy,... interesting to see how many people put ideas together and make them awesome!” Yeoh Chen Chow

Greg Paull

“Some of the nominations I went through were really outstanding and trying to pick the winner was a difficult task. I wish I could hire all those who were nominated and got awarded, because they are a bunch of outstanding folks.”

“There were a lot of details about results, and about what the challenge was; perhaps not always enough about what is the insight, what is the real challenge, which is what helps me to judge an entry.” John D Chacko

Renzo C Viegas

“This gives a good opportunity, for me at least, and hopefully for all the judges to expand their horizons on how the dynamics of the CMO’s role has changed.” Dato Sri Shazalli Ramly

“I’m always a believer that a good marketer must have a healthy dose of three things: strong leadership, focus and strategy, and relentless implementation.” Datuk William Ng

“I realise we do have a lot of marketing and communication talent in Malaysia. This show celebrates some of the best, especially the Rising Stars!” Dato Yvonne Chia

“Marketing is not just about cost, it is about creating real value and not just a perception of it. Marketing is about branding and advertising as well. I was looking for who will grow from being a great CMO to a great CEO,” Malek Ali

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COVER NETWORK STORY OF THE YEAR

IDEAS FOR THE MOMENTS THAT MATTER

THE promotional marketing space is finally getting a muchneeded recognition in the industry. This year some of the most prestigious advertising festivals have added new categories reflecting the rapidly changing business environment. Namely, D&AD debuted their first ever Experiential category; and Cannes introduced Brand Experience & Activation Lions and Creative eCommerce Lions under an all-encompassing brand-new Experience Track. These changes are neither random nor transitory. They’re mirroring an increasing client demand for the accountability of ideas. Something that shows like Effie or Dragons of Asia have been championing for years. Virtually all of Dragons’ categories have conversion at their heart, covering the whole spectrum of promotional marketing, brand activation and brand experience. We —at Geometry— have been honoured with the Network of the Year Red Dragon for third year in a row now; a testament to a strategic and creative approach that works across industries, geographies and disciplines.

We call this approach: Ideas for the moments that matter. Today it’s easier than ever for people to actively ignore ads. And despite what digital gurus or media owners want us to believe, there’s no single tech platform or social media network that can address all brand issues. It’s a very complex environment and there’s no-one-size-fits-all solution. We look at our clients’ briefs with a wide-open lens and look for the bigger business opportunities beyond the primary request. Then we use our deep knowledge of the local retail landscape and the shopper needs to identify the moments that really matter in making a long-lasting difference for the business, not just a sales spike. These moments could be places, time of the day or time of the year, consumption occasions, and even a moment in someone’s life. Not all moments are equal so we deep dive into the critical ones for the brand. With that knowledge (backed by data and research) we look into the existing behaviour and how we can influence long

WE’RE IN A GOLDEN ERA FOR PROMOTIONAL MARKETING WHERE EVERYTHING IS POSSIBLE THROUGH TECHNOLOGY AND IDEAS ARE NOT LIMITED TO A SPECIFIC FORMAT. WE HOPE THESE IDEAS FOR THE MOMENTS THAT MATTER WILL KEEP HELPING SHAPE THE FUTURE OF OUR INDUSTRY..

lasting change. Our ideas draw a great deal of inspiration from behavioural sciences, which learnings are embedded into our creative process. One of our most recent examples of this approach was Popo’s Kitchen. A virtual restaurant that gave Uber Eats (a late comer in the HK delivery business) a local edge. Using data, technology and creativity we changed busy young people’s food delivery habit, from depending on Western style fast food to traditional homemade recipes. That’s how we manage to get a creative output so diverse, yet so consistent across brands, countries and capabilities: Tech-enabled promo caps in Australia, to help ‘bros’ enjoy a cricket game like never before. Mobile-driven gifting to break and honour tradition during Chinese New Year, in Hong Kong. A heartwarming social experiment in India. Launching a totally new product category and behaviour in Japan. A retailer-driven promo to boost sales in Malaysia. A pop-up store in New Zealand to curve demand from milk to plant-

based drinks. And unconventional educational materials designed in Singapore to empower kids in Myanmar. Just to name a few of the top winners this year. All teams across the region follow this common approach, which helps us not only in delivering a consistent product but also in sharing knowledge and resources. We’re in a golden era for promotional marketing where everything is possible through technology and ideas are not limited to a specific format. We hope these ideas for the moments that matter will keep helping shape the future of our industry..

Written by Dani Comar, Geometry’s APAC Regional ECD

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FESTIVE CAMPAIGNS

DEEPAVALI 2018 FAVOUR Malaysia has made a name for itself when it comes to creating ads during the festive seasons. So, get your tissues and murukkus out as we bring you our favourite Deepavali ads that are rib tickling, thought provoking, meaningful and especially, Malaysian. Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB) Family Mischief TNB’s short film centers on the family theme titled Kurumbu Kudumbam. The light-hearted film is based on the Indian cultural tradition of Thalai Deepavali, which is the first Deepavali celebrated by an Indian couple after their marriage, in the bride’s family home. The film follows a young groom Ramesh as he is left feeling slightly bewildered by strange behaviour on the part of his in-laws. However, a surprising reveal at the end makes for a heart-warming moment as Ramesh expresses his gratitude for the greatest gift received – that being his “cheeky” new family, or ‘Kurumbu Kudumbam’.

RHB Bank 2 Light Up Lives with Tabung Teddy This campaign is a collaboration with Dr. Madhusudhan Shanmugam from the Teddy Mobile Clinic. It encourages the public to donate to the Teddy Mobile Clinic via the creation of RHB’s Tabung Teddy, which will be launched closer to Deepavali. Dr Madhusudhan and his volunteers have been providing free medical check-ups for various orphanages, the elderly, disabled, the homeless, the urban poor, Orang Asli villagers, and refugees for over three years now. When he first started, Dr Madhusudhan funded the cost of medicines and other necessities but along the way, donors provided supplies such as food, clothes, and other key items. Petronas Monochrome The story starts off showcasing a somewhat tense relationship between a father and son, which results in the son abruptly leaving the house. Unable to stay still, his father decides to follow him through back alleys, only to find him at a photo exhibition.

Malaysia Airlines The Tradition of Hospitality Malaysia Airlines is highlighting the making of kolam and the beauty of tradition in celebration this Deepavali. This video tells the story of a mother and daughter team prepare the kolam together as part of tradition. Until the time the daughter starts working as a Malaysia airlines cabin crew member where she continues the tradition of hospitality on board the aircraft.

Celcom 5 Sekawan Back by popular demand from fans throughout Malaysia, Celcom’s ‘5 Sekawan’ friends are back this Deepavali. The film explores the dynamic of an adoptive sibling and the subsequent jealousy faced in the family. The short film does a wonderful job of highlighting the unique diversity of Malaysia, while proving that even with all our differences, there’s more than enough love and acceptance to go around

Hong Leong Bank Appa’s Cheeky Dancer ‘Appa’s Cheeky Dancer’ showcases a father and his young daughter dancing the classical Indian bharatanatyam. The young girl deviates from traditional steps, incorporating modern dance moves to her father’s disdain. Only after seeing how his disapproval demotivates his daughter does he realise how much his support and encouragement means to her, as he takes his own first steps in empowering her towards her dreams with compassion and understanding.

Mudah.my #SeMudahABCD Mudah.my celebrated Deepavali with a music video entitled #SeMudahABCD which highlights the message of finding, buying and selling everything on Mudah. my and equates it to being as easy as ABCD. The music video dials up the fact that users can find almost anything on Mudah. my – motorcycles, property, jobs, electronic items, cars and accessories. The song lyrics, interlaced with Tamil chorus, communicates the ease of buying and selling almost

ISSUE231MID-NOV2018

BEST COVER STORY DEEPAVALI TVC2018

RITE ADVERTISEMENTS! 3

... top 10 favourite Deepavali ads that are rib tickling, thought provoking, meaningful and especially, Malaysian! anything, anywhere, conveniently through the Mudah.my app.

Deepavali is celebrated - the triumph of light over darkness.

INTI International University & Colleges Deepavali with Appu INTI collaborated with selftaught Malaysian visual artist Ruby Subramaniam - an active proponent of Malaysian narratives and culture in her artwork, and the founder of Art Battle Malaysia to come up with this approach. The video which features deities in Hindu mythology, highlights the rich culture of the Hindu religion and raises awareness on why

Enrico’s Ninaivugal (Memories) Enrico’s a household brand has decided to invoke the nostalgic and emotional moments often remembered during Deepavali to make us realise family and parental values when we celebrate festivals. The core theme of this inaugural campaign titled “Ninaivugal” (Memories) is to showcase the childhood days of a small estate family and is narrated

by the youngest son, Kumar. It starts with the early days and how they used to be happy as a family, enjoying the small thrills of playing marbles, eating raw eggs, drinking milk straight when it is being milked and many other memorable events in their lives.

provoking. The video uses sand art and took more than 5 hours to film. It was a collaboration with the Malaysian Hindu Sangam Association and highlights sand art, and light with rangolis and oil lamps for added effect.

CIMB The Art of Rama’s Journey CIMB gets creative with an artistic video tracing the epic journey of Rama from the Ramayana in a video that is both enlightening and thought-

Content Partner

ISSUE231MID-NOV2018

NEWS

AIRASIA X BERHAD APPOINTS NEW GROUP CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER

CHRIS LEONG TOPS FORBES LIST, WOMAN AT THE PINNACLE

The chief marketing officer for Schneider Electric is making waves on the global stage as she was named one of the world’s Most Influential CMO by Forbes Magazine in 2017. “I can tell you that today in Schneider Electric, I have team members that have joined me from Nokia and Bates. I think it goes a long way in maintaining good relationships with your employees and clients as some of them have become my good friends.” As global marketing head at Schneider, Leong oversaw transformation of the 182-yearold French company – one of the largest energy management and automation firms in the world – from a largely ‘invisible brand’ to become the preferred B2B energy solutions provider.

DIRECTORS THINK THANK RAJAY SINGH, TO BE JURY MEMBER AT ONE SCREEN SHORT FILM FESTIVAL

AirAsia X Berhad, Asia’s leading long-haul low-cost carrier, has announced the redesignations of Co-Group CEO Datuk Kamarudin Meranun and Co-Group CEO Tan Sri Tony Fernandes as Non-Executive Directors. Datuk Kamarudin and Tan Sri Fernandes will both continue to oversee the strategic direction of the business and its operations as directors of AirAsia X Berhad. AirAsia X Thailand CEO Nadda Buranasiri(pic) has been appointed as the new AirAsia X Group CEO, effective immediately. Commenting on the appointment, Fernandes said the announcement was an important one for the long-haul airline of AirAsia as it continues with its business transformation plans to take long-haul, value air travel to new heights.

FIRST SOUTHEAST ASIAN MOTOGP RIDER HAFIZH SYAHRIN APPOINTS DENTSU SPORTS ASIA AS COMMERCIAL PARTNER

Dentsu Sports Asia has announced its official appointment as the exclusive commercial partner for Hafizh Syahrin, Malaysia’s top motorcycle racer and the first rider in Southeast Asia to compete in the Motorcycle Grand Prix (MotoGP), the premier motorcycle world championship. As the exclusive commercial partner, effective 1 November 2018, DSA will be managing all of Hafizh’s non-motorsports-related commercial contracts globally, including endorsements, promotional contracts, non-MotoGP media activities and event appearances. Other athletes managed exclusively by DSA are gymnast Farah Ann, swimmer Welson Sim, taekwondo athlete Sara Yap, triple jumper Hakimi Ismail and Para-athlete Ridzuan Puzi.

ASTRO AND LES’ COPAQUE COLLABORATE TO STRENGTHEN LOCAL AND REGIONAL ANIMATION INDUSTRY

Co Founder and Film Director at Directors Think Thank (AOI Pro Group) Rajay Singh will be a member of the jury at the 7th annual One Screen Short Film Festival. One Screen Short Film Festival is the premiere short film festival that celebrates and awards filmmakers from advertising and film. The festival pays tribute and awards film makers from both the commercial advertising and film industries. To spearhead growth in Asia, Rajay successfully negotiated capital participation by the largest production group in Japan, AOI Pro. — the first in Malaysia to attempt such a feat. Director’s Think Tank was ranked amongst the TOP 10 production houses across Asia for Campaign Brief’s The Work, and was recently awarded Production House of the Year at the Kancil Awards.

Astro Malaysia Holdings Berhad and Les’ Copaque Production Sdn. Bhd today announced a strategic collaboration in content sharing, distribution and marketing of animation content produced by Les’ Copaque.

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This collaboration is aimed combining the expertise and media assets of both companies to strengthen the local and regional animation industry. Les’ Copaque’s animation content IPs namely ‘Upin & Ipin’, ‘Upin & Ipin Iqra’, ‘Pada Zaman Dahulu’ and ‘Puteri’ will be available to both Astro and NJOI audiences across the TV and OTT platforms including on-ground events. The collaboration also involves selling exclusive merchandises on Go Shop and various fans activities to reward loyal customers under Astro Circle.

TRAPPER MEDIA GROUP CHOSEN TO REPRESENT AS ONLY MALAYSIAN AGENCY AT GOOGLE PREMIER PARTNER’S APAC EVENT

Trapper Media Group, a Malaysian local media specialist, made a strong name for themselves by winning Best Video Innovation category at this year’s Google Premier Partner Awards. Only 9 submissions were passed onto the final round, and only 1 was selected to represent Southeast Asia in Japan. Out of all the applicants, Trapper Media Group took home the trophy for the Video Innovation Award – and was chosen as the only Malaysian agency representative at Google Premier Partner’s event in Tokyo, Japan this December, 2018. To qualify as a Premier Partner, digital marketing agencies and professionals must pass a series of exams and prove their expertise in using and applying Google’s advertising products.

MEET MALAYSIA’S NEWEST CREATIVE AGENCY WINNERS!

COVER STORY NEWS

DOMINO’S PIZZA TROLLS NEELOFA IN THEIR LATEST AD

Who doesn’t know Neelofa? The Malaysian actress, television presenter, commercial model and entrepreneur has always been in the spotlight. Recently, the popular TV host-actress levelled up her travel game, leaving many feeling extra envious of her recent sojourn to the Maldives. She later posted a photo of her wearing a wide-brimmed hat with a drink in her hand and the sun setting in the background. Domino’s took quick notice of this and alongside with their digital agency, 16Two published a picture of a lady with a pizza on her head and a bottle of Pepsi in her hand, along with the sunset in the background. Above the female was the sentence “Bila tak nak kongsi piza dengan orang lain” (When you don’t want to share your pizza with others). In the captions, Domino’s joked that one does not need to turn a pizza into a hat and took the opportunity to push its 1 for 1 extra large pizza promo, along with a bottle of Pepsi Black.

VITAGEN RECEIVES PUTRA BRAND ICON AWARD FOR WINNING GOLD 4 YEARS IN A ROW

According to global consulting firm for marketers and agencies, R3 Worldwide, there was a flurry of winners especially for creative agency, FCB Kuala Lumpur. FCB Kuala Lumpur won the PropertyGuru account in August and Marriot International account in July. RinggitPlus.com, Malaysia’s leading financial comparison website also appointed an integrated team of Grey Group Malaysia, Mindshare Malaysia and Zeno Group Malaysia in September for its brand communications. September proved to be a good month for Publicis One as Nestle appointed them as their media agency in Malaysia. Publicis Media also won the GlaxoSmithKline global account.

VITAGEN has firmly established its position as the nation’s favourite cultured milk drink once again with its 4th consecutive Gold for the Beverage – Dairy Category at the recent Putra Brand Awards 2018. The four-year win has earned VITAGEN an additional Putra Brand Icon award. “We are pleased to be awarded two significant wins under the People’s Choice award. This win further spurs our determination to work harder for all who believe in our brand,” expressed General Manager of VITAGEN, Mr Poh Eng Lip. According to Yap Jay Queen, Marketing Manager of VITAGEN, “2019 will be an exciting year for us. As part of our brand strategy, we aim to uncover supplementary findings to further illustrate that our gut is truly the cornerstone of good health through more initiatives involving the general public.”

THE UNKNOWN FACE, A DIGITAL EXHIBITION DEDICATED TO FALLEN WW1 SOLDIERS

To mark the Centenary of the Armistice and the history of the War of Péronne, creative boutique agency FF Paris is bringing to life a collaborative digital project entitled “Le Visage Inconnu” (The Unknown Face). In memory of the lives shattered by war, tens of thousands of portraits were collected over several months and overlaid using an algorithm, to make up one unique face: “THE UNKNOWN FACE”, human, universal. This portrait will be unveiled on November 11 at the Historial de la Grande Guerre in Péronne, for the centenary of the Armistice, in the form of a digital work of art. Visitors will be able to browse through the tens of thousands of faces that constitute it.

MALAYSIA’S ‘PULANG’ MAKES IT DEBUT AS A NETFLIX ORIGINAL FILM

Media Prima Berhad’s content creation arm, Primeworks Studios, exclusively premiered the film Pulang globally on Netflix, marking its debut to global audiences via the U.S. based streaming platform. Produced by Primeworks Studios and directed by the award-winning Kabir Bhatia, Pulang tells the story of a fisherman from a small Malaysian village who takes a leap of faith and works on merchant ships travelling the world, hoping to return with riches for his wife and son. The film features Malaysian actors Remy Ishak and Puteri Aishah, and is filled with stunning cinematography, a majestic musical score and a beautiful story that unfolds across the world from Malaysia to Hong Kong to Liverpool. Released in Malaysian cinemas on 26 July 2018 to massive critical acclaim, Pulang has received exceptional praise, with some describing it as “a wonderfully crafted story of love and romance,” .