Issue 233

www.marketingmagazine.com.my

ISSUE 233 END-DEC2018

HERE’S THE YEAR OF SOOH! Kenneth Leong Admiral

Joash Tan Commander

Ramesh Marthaveron Admiral

Wong Say Heng Commander

Jamsheed Commander

Christopher Kannesan Captain

ISSN 1985-5575

00233 9 771985

557001

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

CANNES SCREENING ON JANUARY 28: DISCOVER CREATIVITY IN FULL CINEMATIC GLORY

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ISSUE233END-DEC2018

When Astro, South East Asia’s top cross-media organization, with direct-to-home satellite TV services in Malaysia, Brunei, Singapore, Indonesia and other parts of the ASEAN region, collaborates with another brand that is seeking communications solutions, the partnership gives desired results. The effectiveness of the campaign is amplified, and the brand’s inherent strength also stands leveraged, driven by Astro’s strategic content input.

The tenth case study in the ‘Winning Partnership Series’ discusses how Astro used a mixed formula of innovative content and its multi-channel platforms to establish MARIGOLD as every mother’s go-to-milk brand for their kids. Most milk brands available on the market tend to use this expression that mothers want the best for their kids especially milk as it is one of the main source of nutrients for their bones and growth. But how would MARIGOLD assure that their milk was the go-to-brand?

ASTRO KICKSTA MOVEMENT FOR AND ADVENTUR

OVERVIEW With the milk market being such a competitive product segment, MARIGOLD had to convince mothers that MARIGOLD’s fortified formula contains nutrients needed for their child’s growth and development. Astro’s expertise in crafting a successful reality show content made it the perfect home for a unique branded game show to showcase MARIGOLD’s messaging in a fun and entertaining manner.

CHALLENGES Mothers want the best for their kids especially milk, as it is one of the main sources of nutrients for their bones and growth. Most milk brands use a similar statement on their nutritional facts.

Therefore, MARIGOLD needed to find a different way to win over mothers and gain market share in a competitive segment.

TARGET AUDIENCE Mothers and kids STRATEGIC FIT MARIGOLD utilised its mascot, Happi Cow in order to connect with mothers and kids while establishing itself as the go-to milk brand, essential for children’s growth to reach their fullest potential. MARIGOLD needed a platform to forge this connection between its functional benefits and relevance to audiences. Being the home to reality shows, Astro had the expertise in crafting successful reality game shows that showcased the brand’s messaging in a fun and entertaining manner.

OBJECTIVE The campaign’s main objective was to win over mothers and gain market share.

MARIGOLD wanted to connect with mothers and kids while

establishing itself as the go-to milk brand.

SOLUTION To convince mothers to place their trust in MARIGOLD UHT milk as their brand of choice for their children, Astro banked on the idea of starting a movement for mothers to be fearless and let their kids explore the world.

Astro came up with the idea of a branded reality game show “Cabaran Happi Susu UHT MARIGOLD” where consumers

stood a chance to participate as contestants. The contestants, parents with kids, worked together to solve obstacles both physically and mentally.

The challenges were designed to encourage communication between parents and kids while the mascot, Happi Cow, helped to form a bond between parents and kids and drive engagement with audiences.

MARIGOLD’s key USP were seamlessly integrated into the gameplay and was created into

branded capsules to emphasise the brand’s messaging. Home viewers engaged with the show through a dedicated homepage on digital platforms, with weekly episodic questions for a chance to win attractive prizes.

By injecting a strong brand proposition throughout the episodes, coupled with a convincing narrative targeted to mothers to allow their kids to explore the world together made the campaign a hit amongst audiences.

CONTENT STRATEGY The campaign was promoted through three phases: 1. CATCH: STARTING A MOVEMENT A call for action 20-second promo was created to instigate the movement to get moms and dads to let their child explore the world through the gameshow and participate as contestants.

The promo ran across Astro’s Malay channels to drive recruitment and traffic to the

ISSUE233END-DEC2018

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ARTS MARIGOLD’S R FEARLESS MOTHERS ROUS CHILDREN

ASTRO WINNING PARTNERSHIP SERIES

“CREATING CONTENT THAT RESONATES WITH PARENTS AND KIDS WAS OUR AIM AS MARIGOLD UHT MILK ASPIRES TO BE A BRAND THAT ENGAGES WITH CONSUMERS. THIS ASTRO PARTNERSHIP ALLOWED US TO TELL OUR BRAND STORY THROUGH A FUN AND EXCITING MANNER. WE LOOK FORWARD TO MORE BREAKTHROUGH AND INNOVATIVE IDEAS FOR OUR FUTURE CAMPAIGNS WITH ASTRO” CAROL GOH, SENIOR BRAND MANAGER COTRA ENTERPRISES SDN BHD.

content’s official website for registration.

2. ACTIVATE: BUILDING THE NARRATIVE FOR MOTHERS A story-based capsule was created depicting a mother’s love towards her child as she let her kids go out and explore, knowing an active childhood creates strong and healthy kids.

The capsule encouraged mothers and kids to explore by convincing that it’s ok to be adventurous if you have a good foundation

and strong bones which starts with MARIGOLD UHT milk. The capsule ran across Astro’s Malay channels in high rotation to promote the message of MARIGOLD UHT Milk as the milk of choice for children’s growth while establishing the brand as an enabler for a strong bond between mother and child.

3. CONNECT: CABARAN HAPPI SUSU UHT MARIGOLD The 4-episode branded reality Time-Base Competition cum Treasure Hunt was set against

the backdrop of Malaysia’s most popular theme park, Sunway Lagoon, where 3 teams (parents and kids) compete in various tasks as they undergo obstacles curated specifically to highlight MARIGOLD UHT MILK USP to earn points. In each round, the teams have to find clues, questions, and bonus points hidden along the trail with a map given to lead them to the treasure hunt where only one family will emerge as the ultimate winner. Throughout the gameplay, the families were tested in various terrain around the theme park like the beach, water park and wildlife areas to reflect real life conditions while Happi Cow cheered them along in their journey.

CONTENT DISTRIBUTION Call for entries were also extended onto the digital and social media platforms through Astro’s digital assets such as Astro Gempak, Oh My English and Astro Ceria’s Facebook and Instagram pages.

A dedicated homepage for the content was created online

to allow viewers at home to engage with the show through a weekly quiz based on the show for audiences to win prizes from MARIGOLD. After the content aired, MARIGOLD continued engagement and brand recall with audiences through post campaign fillers and branded advertorials shared on Astro Gempak’s website.

RESULTS The overall campaign achieved impressive results!

Cabaran Happi Susu UHT MARIGOLD reached 5.4 million viewers on Astro Ceria, Prima and Maya HD appealing to urban mums with children 4-9 years old.

The branded capsules reached 5 million viewers throughout campaign period of two months.

BRAND ALLIANCE ASTRO-MARIGOLD MEDIA AGENCY: WAVEMAKER

The results proved that Astro’s innovative content, multichannel platforms and production expertise helped MARIGOLD tremendously in its growth in the market.

“Creating content that resonates with parents and kids was our aim as MARIGOLD UHT Milk aspires to be a brand that engages with consumers. This Astro partnership allowed us to tell our brand story through a fun and exciting manner. We look forward to more breakthrough and innovative ideas for our future campaigns with Astro,” adds Carol Goh, Senior Brand Manager Cotra Enterprises Sdn Bhd. This campaign was shortlisted as Finalist under Best Use of Branded Content by a Media Owner at the 2018 Spark Awards.

ISSUE 233/// END-DEC2018 COVER FEATURE

07 DIGITAL TECH LIGHTS A FIRE UNDER OOH

EVENTS CALENDAR 28 JANUARY 2019 @4.30PM

CANNES LIONS SCREENING + MC2 AWARDS CEREMONY: HALL 5, TGV CINEMA, ONE UTAMA, PETALING JAYA. Regional CEO Professor Harmandar Singh ham@adoimagazine.com Content Officer Reena Sekaran reena@adoimagazine.com Business Development Managers Jarrod Sunil Solomon jarrod@adoimagazine.com Sandesh Singh sandesh@adoimagazine.com Art Director / Designer Chemical Ali ali@adoimagazine.com Designer Lilna Marlina lilna@adoimagazine.com Events & Workshops Ruby Lim ruby@adoimagazine.com

ASTRO WINNING PARTNERSHIP SERIES

EDITOR'S NOTE

WE APOLOGISE FOR BEING IN YOUR FACE ALL OF 2018

ASTRO KICKSTARTS MARIGOLD’S MOVEMENT FOR FEARLESS MOTHERS AND ADVENTUROUS CHILDREN With the milk market being such a competitive product segment, MARIGOLD had to convince mothers that MARIGOLD’s fortified formula contains nutrients needed for their child’s growth...

FUTURE MEDIA

02 CREATIVE SURGE

06

At the beginning of this year, we said we will buck the trend and publish our magazine every two weeks.

Many said we were suicidal and unreasonable, and they were probably right...

CANNES SCREENING 2018

10 14

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 Roving Photographer: Mccain Goh Contributors: Edward Ong, Alvin Teoh 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 is available across 200 selected bookstores in the Klang Valley.

TED DOES MALAYSIA PROUD AT CANNES LIONS 2018

05 ANALYTICS & INNOVATION DRIVING STAR MEDIA GROUP’S TRANSFORMATION Following his decision to retire as Star Media Group group managing director and chief executive officer, Datuk Seri Wong Chun Wai stated that the transformation plan needed to continue.

Alongside moving from a print to digital-first organisation, key to this was succession planning, talent acquisition and reskilling of existing talent.

Roy Tan, Star Media Group’s Chief Operating Officer talks to MARKETING magazine about the transformation.

Business success rarely comes from resisting change. Star Media Group Bhd knows this well, having developed into a leading player in Malaysia’s media industry by nimbly adapting to shifting conditions, not just in business...

PSALM 23 FOR AD FOLKS With Christmas around the corner, it’s time to reflect on the year that was.

Of course, for most of us, reflection is a strange notion - as the only time ad people ever do any reflecting is when we fill up timesheets or the Effie entry forms.

And so, without ado, here’s to the year that was- the good, the bad, the ugly, and everything in-between. Here’s to the One who holds all things together, and keeps us from falling. Here’s to when love came down in a manger in Bethlehem over 2,000 years ago. Merry Christmas, everybody.

Pitch 23 For account directors The Lord is my CEO, I shall not want.

He introduces me to CMOs with...

Enough cannot be said of our very own Ted Lim – Regional Chief Creative Officer of Dentsu Aegis Network (DAN) AsiaPacific. He is shining bright for the country based out of Singapore. An illustrious creative leader, he has been inducted into the Malaysian MC2 Advertising Hall of Fame and named the country’s top ECD by Campaign Brief Asia and many other magazines. He now works with over 20 offices across 10 countries and helped win over 20 pitches...

LOCAL CONTENT

PRIMEWORKS STUDIOS AND WAU ANIMATION’S EJEN ALI PUSHES LOCAL ANIMATION TO GREATER HEIGHTS

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ISSUE233END-DEC2018

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ANALYTICS & INNOVATION DRIVING STAR MEDIA GROUP’S TRANSFORMATION

FUTURE MEDIA

MARKETING INTERVIEWS ROY TAN – COO, STAR MEDIA GROUP

“CONSUMERS TODAY HAVE SHORT ATTENTION SPANS – THEY HAVE 24 HOURS AND TOO MANY DISTRACTIONS. OUR JOB IS TO FIGURE OUT WHAT THEY ARE LOOKING FOR, AND HOW WE CAN MEET THEIR NEEDS BETTER,” - ROY TAN

FOLLOWING his decision to retire as Star Media Group group managing director and chief executive officer, Datuk Seri Wong Chun Wai stated that the transformation plan needed to continue.

Alongside moving from a print to digital-first organisation, key to this was succession planning, talent acquisition and reskilling of existing talent.

Roy Tan, Star Media Group’s Chief Operating Officer talks to MARKETING magazine about the transformation.

Business success rarely comes from resisting change.

Star Media Group Bhd knows this well, having developed into a leading player in Malaysia’s media industry by nimbly adapting to shifting conditions, not just in business, but also in society and culture.

With its 50th anniversary

just a few years away, the Group continues working hard to maintain its position, fully aware that its environment today is much unlike the one in which it started.

“Consumers today have short attention spans – they have 24 hours and too many distractions.

Our job is to figure out what they (consumers) are looking for, and how we can meet their needs better,” says Star Media Group chief operating officer Roy Tan. In sync with the increasingly digital media landscape, the Group began a transformation programme in December 2017.

This focuses on three key objectives: putting consumers first, putting data at the heart of the business, and making the business economically sustainable.

According to Roy, the goal is to leverage on consumer-focused analytics to drive growth via

creative innovations. One way is to increase engagement time with consumers by matching content with their preferences.

He points out that there are two broad categories of consumers. “The first are those who are attracted to flashy headlines and clickbait-y content,” “The second are those who stay longer and are more interested in analytical pieces.

They are the kind that we actually like. We’ve seen a 50% growth in engagement time in this category.”

A key move in powering Star Media Group’s transformation is the setting up of its product and marketing division.

This enables the management to make decisions based on data tracked by the programmatic team, thus helping the Group to effectively target its audience.

“A lot of things that we have done are structural,” adds Roy. “We’ve changed the structure of the organization, and we have set up new units. Apart from creating our product and marketing division, we’ve also invested in technology and analytics.

“Under the product and marketing division, we have a programmatic and data lab that tracks audience preferences in various sectors, be it entertainment, food, travel, telecommunications, property or automotive. We currently have over 40 different segments.

Clients are having conversations with us to map their audiences on our platforms.”

Roy says the programmatic team is responsible for about 12% of the Group’s total digital revenue. “That is actually a phenomenal achievement for us, and we know this figure will grow significantly very quickly.”

Given today’s challenging business climate, Star Media Group believes it is uniquely placed to serve the needs of marketers and clients.

“We must make sure that every dollar performs,” continues Roy. “How do we answer for the client’s dollars spent with us?

What are the returns for them from the perspective of sales or any other metric they are looking at?”

Another important element of what the Group offers is the capability of its growth marketing team, which has been built over the last 18 months “They serve our needs internally and also those of our clients. For clients that don’t have the capability to do growth marketing for themselves, we can assist them. The conversation today is no longer about how much money is being saved, but about yields – what returns can be generated for their businesses.”

About a year ago, the Group’s primary brand, The Star, erected a paywall for its business offering, StarBiz Premium. It has been a valuable learning experience so far.

“It brought us tremendous value but not in the way that we expected,” shares Roy. “We learnt consumer behaviour and what people’s propensity to spend is, especially on services and subscriptions.”

He believes Malaysians, especially those from the younger, more digital-savvy generation, are skilled in evaluating quality content. This gives him confidence that The Star will continue to be the people’s choice as long as it stays relevant to its audience.

“Since the 14th general election, Malaysians are asking for more things. They want to know the story behind the story. Now, it’s not enough to have breaking news alone. The conversation has changed. This helps us because we can now spend more time being engaged with them.”

“Ultimately, that’s what we’re about as a company – a reflection of our consumers. We speak for them and we present what’s in their hearts and minds as a people.”

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EDITOR’S NOTE

AD AGENCIES ARE “GOING TO WITNESS

NOTHING SHORT OF A BLOODBATH. HALF A DOZEN GLOBAL CREATIVE NETWORKS WILL SHUT DOWN, MERGE OR SELL OUT – INCLUDING THE MOST VENERATED OF NAMES ON THE DOOR.

”

WE APOLOGISE

ISSUE232END-NOV2018

FOR BEING IN YOUR FACE ALL OF 2018 At the beginning of this year, we said we will buck the trend and publish our magazine every two weeks. Many said we were suicidal and unreasonable, and they were probably right.

But now as the year comes to an end, we look back and boldly declare “we did it”.

As a result, we are now top of mind among our readers - both offline, online and across 200 bookstores in the Klang Valley. So on that note, we wish to thank all our readers for giving us the confidence to do the unthinkable and still stay relevant.

Happy Holidays, Merry Christmas and here’s to an unreasonable 2019!

PRASHANT KUMAR OF ENTROPIA GLOBAL COMMENTING ON 2019 PREDICTIONS

WE HAVE GIVEN “EACH OF OUR

RISING MARKETING STAR WINNER A SCHOLARSHIP FOR DIGITAL MARKETING PROGRAMMES FROM CLICKACADEMY BACKED BY ECONSULTANCY UK.

”

ANNOUNCED AT THE RECENT MALAYSIAN CMO AWARDS

www.marketingmagazine.com.my

“

ONE COLLEAGUE CROSSED THE LINE BY PUTTING HIS HAND UP MY SKIRT. HE CLAIMED IT WAS TO SHOW HOW SHORT IT WAS.

”

A SEXUAL HARASSMENT COMPLAINANT TALKING TO THE INSTITUTE OF JOURNALISTS MALAYSIA

ISSUE 233 END-DEC2018

HERE’S THE YEAR OF SOOH! Kenneth Leong Admiral

Joash Tan Commander

Ramesh Marthaveron Admiral

Wong Say Heng Commander

Jamsheed Commander

Christopher Kannesan Captain

ISSN 1985-5575

00233 9 771985

557001

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

CANNES SCREENING ON JANUARY 28: DISCOVER CREATIVITY IN FULL CINEMATIC GLORY

DIGITAL TECH LIGHTS A FIRE UNDER OOH Out-of-Home is an industry unquestionably in the spotlight. It is an exciting time for the industry, as it is catching the attention of companies like Amazon, Google, Microsoft, and Netflix. Tech companies like Facebook and Google are leading the way in the world of online advertising. Yet when they want to spread the word about their newest product or feature, they turn to out-ofhome advertising, buying billboard ads around the world. The reason is simple: For all the strengths of online ads, when you want a message to get noticed, you go with out-of-home. But what accounts for the ongoing OOH renaissance?

There’s one main driver: out-of-home is going digital. No suprise there, outdoor home advertising is looking forward to a great year in 2019!

(L-R): Joash Tan, Ramesh Marthaveron, Kenneth Leong

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ISSUE233END-DEC2018

COVER STORY

MARKETING speaks to SOOH Media, a partnership between Star Out Of Home, Impressor, Interlight Technologies and Nearbuy Group, which is now taking digital out-of-home (DOOH) advertising to greater heights.

DIGGING DEEPER INT OF OUT-OF-HOME AD

We gather the thoughts of the two media techies behind SOOH Media: Ramesh Marthaveron (R) and Christopher Kannesan (C)...

How did this partnership come together?

R: It was kickstarted between Interlight Technologies’ James and myself one evening, trying to understand how we could help each other in the industry.

SOOH Media came together after a couple of meetings with our partners. It is vital that all the partners have a complementing edge to each other, from marketing to market intel, technology, financial perspective and a global marketing outlook.

In today’s DOOH landscape, there are many screens and media owners popping up.

It is clear to us there were many site options being made available to clients. Most media owners tend to have their individual strength at a certain location and were queuing to sell their individual sites to clients.

We thought it would be good idea to joint forces and create a network that would create a win-win situation for both media owners and clients.

The partnership was formed out of a realization that we should be united as one, to provide better value to clients and also change the DOOH landscape in the way campaigns are executed.

With a wealth of knowledge in OOH media planning and buying, we found that each of the partners had premium DOOH sites located in the Klang Valley.

By unifying all these sites into a network, we created a network of premium sites at great locations.

The individual selling prices of these sites were high and in an environment where clients slashing their budgets, bundling these sites would bring better value and encourage them to further use our network.

The Nearbuy Group with their strong expertise in digital technologies and indoor advertising had secured the rights for KLIA TV. This partnership helped us expand the network and provided greater reach. Campaigns now could be executed across multiple OOH platforms, all at a reasonably bundled price.

How did you guys get into ad tech and digital media?

C: Our team has some amazing

From left: Christopher Kannesan, Jamsheed, Wong Say Heng, Joash Tan, Ramesh Marthaveron and Kenneth Leong

strengths. For example, Kenneth Leong’s expertise is in hardware development and my forte is software development. With both our backgrounds combined, we are able to leverage off our experience and strengths to develop new technologies and innovate existing technologies to bring brand new experiences to clients. The buzz word ‘ad tech’ points to engagement and I believe it is the way forward in the industry today.

Where are your screens?

C: You can catch our DOOH screens at Jalan Imbi, Jalan Duta, Bukit Jalil, MEX Highway, Brickfields, Menara Shell....

Meanwhile our LED buntings can be found at Jalan Sg Besi, Jalan Yew, Jalan Tun Razak, Old Klang Road and Jalan Kuching.

What are the key strengths of a DOOH network?

C: By having the screen at a strategic location, it will have the desired impact on the audience and will ensure its success.

When it comes to pricing and campaigns executions, our client campaigns are creatively crafted to suit their budgets.

For example, if a client’s budget does not permit the full slot rates, we execute differently with reduced-buy campaigns, looping and smart peak hour buying.

We have even accommodated clients coming in just for a few days on some of our screens.

This has helped not only our large corporate clients, but also encouraged other sectors like SMEs to buy into our network.

We are currently working with an agency specializing in SME

clients and are hoping to roll out a few campaigns specifically for SMEs in the coming year.

Joash is an SOOH wizard when it comes to numbers, keeping our clients happy with his interesting financial solutions. Hee, hee...

Are you the first OOH company in Malaysia to manufacture LED screens?

R: Currently, most of the LED screen suppliers in Malaysia purchase their stock from the manufacturer in China and ship them down here. We now are manufacturing our own LED screens in Malaysia itself. This is an achievement which no other LED screen supplier can match.

We have the same machinery as the large factories in China and all the parts required to build and service the LED screens. We

work in partnership with LCF of China to provide these services in Malaysia.

The benefit of this is that there are cost savings to be enjoyed as it will be based on local price as well as shorter service lead times. In most cases, when there are major breakdowns, the parts would need to be sent back to the manufacturer in China for warranty purposes. This process usually takes a few weeks to a month, during which time the screen is impaired and of little use. However, we are now able to minimize the downtime with these full suite of LED manufacturing and services.

How will deploying CMS further help DOOH? C: Our partners, the Nearbuy

ISSUE233END-DEC2018

TO THE FUTURE DVERTISING

9

... OOH IS THE OLDEST FORM OF ADVERTISING, BASICALLY FROM SMOKE SIGNALS TO SKY-SCRAPING INTERACTIVE SCREENS. IT HAS TRANSFORMED OVER THE YEARS AND IS AN INDUSTRY THAT EVOLVES IN APPEARANCE AND STILL STAYS RELEVANT IN THE CURRENT MARKET SCENARIO...

SOOH’s manufacturing facility based in Kuala Lumpur

Kenneth Leong with LCF China Co-Founder cementing the partnership for manufacturing and support in Malaysia

Group, are in the midst of deploying their programmatic advertising across our platform (i.e. our large format LED screens). This programmatic has been tried and tested across the Middle East and selected European markets with initial key locations in Malaysia and has proven to be a robust platform, which is open to integration with third-party applications, as per client needs. Programmatic has allowed us a great amount of flexibility in customizing our client campaigns and also deploy dynamic content across the large format screens in our network.

It features an analytics tool, which will allow clients to be able to measure campaigns effectivity more accurately.

We also have a buying module, which in the future,

will allow clients to access, bid or purchase slots across our screens. This programmatic will soon be made available to the market, on a Software-AsA-Service model, so that others may be able to try it out and manage their own assets with ease. Due to this we are now able go to the market with a robust working Programmatic and Content Management System (CMS).

It’s amazing how every step has been properly analyzed and deployed in a secured fashion. This CMS can control an activation campaign on any screen and collect analytics based on client’s requests.

Basically, it is what clients and media owners dream of: to effectively manage their OOH assets without any hassle.

How do you see the OOH industry evolve?

R: OOH is the oldest form of advertising, from smoke signals to sky-scraping interactive screens. It has transformed over hundreds of years and is an industry that evolves in appearance and still stays relevant. The good part of OOH is that even though general reading, watching, listening and purchasing habits have changed but habits like going to work, shopping, sightseeing and entertainment have expanded and is more intense compared to the past.

So OOH will always be relevant as we move around. It is about addressing the moving crowd.

C: Along the years we have heard client requests, ideas and difficulties in achieving

new creative approaches for OOH. So we have created solutions under one roof all the way from strategy to manufacturing, events, interactive solutions to campaign executions. No matter how and what form OOH evolves into, we must not forget the guiding principle of outdoor: location. With the exciting new technologies we bring to the table, we will see more dynamic content being deployed on OOH, driving more engagement, rather than just advertising. We also see DOOH being able to interact with the audience smartphones and other platforms. Cross platform marketing and engagements are the way forward and we want to enable these executions for all our clients.

Ramesh always had a knack for fun and cheeky executions. Many years ago, he staged a bold stunt right after completing Malaysia’s very first large wall projection campaign. He found out that one of his friend’s was about to propose to his girlfriend. So he created a dramatic ruse to attract her attention. She took the bait and arrived on the scene, only to find him on his knees instead, with his marriage proposal projected on a giant wall. That stunt won her over and also gained traction in the news. Outdoor stuck with him since.

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ISSUE233END-DEC2018

CREATIVE COVER STORY SURGE

PSALM 23 FOR AD FOLKS

WITH Christmas around the corner, it’s time to reflect on the year that was. Of course, for most of us, reflection is a strange notion - as the only time ad people ever do any reflecting is when we fill up timesheets or the Effie entry forms.

And so, without ado, here’s to the year that was- the good, the bad, the ugly, and everything in-between. Here’s to the One who holds all things together, and keeps us from falling. Here’s to when love came down in a manger in Bethlehem over 2,000 years ago. Merry Christmas, everybody.

PITCH 23 FOR ACCOUNT DIRECTORS The Lord is my CEO, I shall not want. He introduces me to CMOs with healthy budgets.

He leads me to Creative Directors with refreshing ideas.

He provides strategic input for the bottom line’s sake.

Yea, though I walk through the valley of no pitches.

I will fear no resignations nor scared-to-die millennial AEs. Guinness Stouts, and Karaoke nights, they comfort me.

You provide initiative briefs in the presence of nay-sayers.

You anoint my head with ideas, my powerpoint overflows.

Surely new business and great clients shall follow me all the days of my life, and I will develop amazing campaigns year after year.

despite not being able to present well.

IDEA 23 FOR WRITERS AND ART DIRECTORS The Lord is my Creative Director, I shall not want.

He helps me deliver breakthrough ideas that (most times) meet the budget.

He leads me to account directors who write refreshing briefs.

He guides me in business thinking for the client’s sake.

Yea, though I walk through the valley of creative blocks.

I will fear no pitches nor last minute deadlines.

Award annuals and Pinterest, they inspire me.

You help develop 360 campaigns in the presence of suits and planners.

You fill my deck with doable digital ideas, my timesheet overflows.

Surely creative and effectiveness awards shall follow me all the days of my life, and I will gain the respect of clients

TAKE 23 FOR PRODUCERS The Lord is my Executive Producer, I shall not want.

He gives me scripts that are funny, honest, insightful and intelligent.

He leads me to healthy budgets with sensible timelines.

He guides me to the right directors for the idea’s sake.

Yea, though I walk through the valley of RM1k budgets.

I will fear no groanings from Creative Directors nor Account Directors.

Your inhouse editor and director, they comfort me.

You ready offline and online reviews in the presence of fussy clients.

You anoint my presentations with clear and persuasive words.

Surely great content shall follow me all the days of my life, and the work will get thumbs up and positive comments on YouTube.

INSIGHT 23 FOR PLANNERS The Lord is my Planning Director, I shall not want.

He makes me embrace new methodologies like social listening.

He leads me to relevant facts and useful figures.

He guides me through tons of data for the one-liner’s sake.

EVERYONE’S COMPLAINT DEPARTMENT

UNKNOWING

THIS is a strange place to write about a faith/deity/religion but there’s something to be learnt

from everything so I’ll give it a go.

We live in a world where

there are constant clashes of ideologies and I think the root of these problems lie in the

Yea, though I walk through the valley of unenthusiastic creative people.

I will fear no ideas that come from completely different directions.

The client’s business objective and marketing brief are aligned, they comfort me.

You prepare a deck for me in the presence of people who think they know planning.

You anoint me with truths and insights, my arguments are valid and airtight.

Surely awesome and differentiated campaigns shall follow me all the days of my life, and my Slideshare presentations will hit a million views or more.

PROJECT 23 FOR FREELANCERS The Lord is my Business Development Director, I shall not want.

He makes me rest during quiet periods.

He leads me during crazy mad last-minute deadlines.

He restores my bank account balance for my sanity’s sake.

Yea, though I walk through the valley of countless internal reviews, I will fear no ‘slight changes’ 24-hour mamaks and kopi kaw, they comfort me.

You prepare a comfortable bed for me when I reach home.

You anoint my temples with essential oil, my headache runs away.

Surely meaningful projects and clients who pay on time shall follow me all the days of my life, and I will finally go on that vacation to the Maldives.

misguided belief that our way is the only and absolute way.

There is no room for dialogue and no chance for an authentic solution when we see everything in black and white. So for me, what I’ve discovered in my faith as a Catholic is the appreciation for mystery in the relationship I have with the one I worship. In other words, I am comfortable not having any concrete answers and because of that, am able to wander and wonder and through this, much is revealed. What the heck does this have to do with the ad industry?

Everything.

Pardon the drama, but yeah, pretty much everything. I’m going to sound like a heretic, I know, because this sounds like I’m going against the grain of measurements and dataoptimized communication solutions. I’m not. In this culture versus collateral debate, both are needed. That’s not even an argument. But what’s lacking in our desperate need to leap forward is now the culture.

There’s a need to engage society not just as a sea of consumers, but also as a person struggling

The ‘Everyone’s Complaint Department’ series of comic strips began as random doodles and reflection pieces of Alvin Teoh, ECD of NagaDDB Tribal.

These little stories were originally posted on Facebook and are an ongoing tribute to life in Adland.

BRIEF 23 FOR MILLENNIAL AES The Lord is my Account Director, I shall not want.

He makes me understand agency and digital jargon.

He leads me to cooperative clients and responsible creatives.

He restores my confidence for my blood pressure’s sake.

Yea, though I walk through the valley of late nights and working weekends.

I will fear no snarky comments from Traffic nor Creative people.

My chai latte and evening Zumba classes, they comfort me.

You show me how to prepare contact reports and powerpoint decks.

You anoint my lips with bad excuses, my pride and arrogance tumble over.

Surely a great career lies ahead of me, and I will remain focussed and not dwell on missed opportunities all the days of my life.

This is penned with love for all our Christian readers. Happy Holidays!

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 and navigating the ups and downs of the human journey.

Often, I do most of my reflections when I am talking with my children, my wife and my parents. I believe these relationships are healthy and reasonably happy because I never start any conversation from the point of having an absolute belief or point of view.

It’s hard I know, but it’s possible.

There’s still a place of mystery in these relationships and it allows me to listen and learn and organically navigate this space.

To build culture, we need to leave a space for mystery.

I don’t have all the cock-sure answers so I’m just going to apply faith and trust that society will respond to our attempts to engage them as people.

It’s about stripping away all the layers I have from all the prejudices formed and have the courage to say, I may not know everything, but here I am. Let’s have an unbridled conversation about all the stuff that matters to us as a species. Far beyond the consumer journey is the human journey. The human condition is hard to measure. We will never have all the assurance we need.

But that’s where culture is built.

BEST OF 2018 S C R E E N I N G & C R E AT I V E F O R U M +MC2 AWARDS WINNERS CEREMONY 4 . 3 0 p m | 2 8 J A N 2 0 1 9 | H A L L 5 , T G V C I N E M A , O N E U TA M A

MARKETING magazine is screening the Best of Cannes Lions on January 28. Get inspired by how creativity is a force for business growth, positive change and the greater good of society. Take away key learnings from the winners and discover future trends you can use in your work.

SHINE ON THE WORLD STAGE AT CANNES 2019 JOE PULLOS

4.30pm Registration 5.00pm

Special Presentation by Joe Pullos - Festival Director, Spikes Asia

5.30pm

Learn From The Best Of Cannes Lions - by Ted Lim Regional Chief Creative Officer of Dentsu Aegis Network (DAN) AsiaPacific.

Cannes Lions Jury President 2017

6.00pm

What does it take to become the world’s best Emir Shafri Executive Creative Director, VMLY&R (tbc) Gigi Lee Chief Creative Officer, TBWA\KL (Cannes Lions Jury) Rajay Singh Founder, Directors Think Tank

6.30pm

Cannes Lions Best of 2018 Screening (Grand Prix & Gold)

7.45pm

MC2 Awards winners presentation 2018

8.15pm

Cocktails and light dinner buffet

TED LIM

RAJAY SINGH EMIR SHAFRI GIGI LEE

Link to register: http://bit.ly/registercannes2018

Plus MC2 Awards 2018 winners presentation, followed by drinks and light dinner buffet.

28 January, 2019 (Monday) | 4.30pm - 10.30pm | TGV Cinemas One Utama Hall 5, TGV Cinemas, 3rd Floor, 1 Utama Shopping Centre 1, Lebuh Bandar Utama, Bandar Utama, 47800 Petaling Jaya.

RM 180+ 6% SST per pax Call Ruby/Amira on 03-7726 2588 ruby@adoimagazine.com amira@adoimagazine.com LIMITED SEATS

PARTNERS:

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BEST OF 2018 S C R E E N I N G & C R E AT I V E F O R U M +MC2 AWARDS WINNERS CEREMONY 4 . 3 0 p m | 2 8 J A N 2 0 1 9 | H A L L 5 , T G V C I N E M A , O N E U TA M A

MALAYSIA’S CREATIVE REPUTATIO

1981 1987 1993

NATIONAL PRIZE PTM Thompson Advertising, ‘Sam, Ghazali and Me’ for Toyota Land Cruiser. CD and Director was Paul Loosley. Michael Cheah wrote it.

Charlie Ghazali Baba Art Directed. Agency Producer Basir.

Produced by Ho Eek Kee for Jemima Films.

Also won 6As Grand Prix Awards, now equivalent of Golden Kancil.

INTERNATIONAL PRIZE KHK Needham, ‘Power’ for Benson & Hedges Gold Centre

BRONZE LION POSTER & BRONZE LION PRESS Dentsu Young & Rubicam, ‘5-Star’ for Hotel Equatorial

1999 2000 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006

MEDIA LION Starcom, for Meranti Information System

BRONZE LION PRESS & BRONZE LION POSTER Grey, ‘Steps’ for 3M

SILVER LION PRESS Ogilvy & Mather, ‘Rugby Stocking’ for Guinness Anchor

SILVER LION PRESS CAMPAIGN Saatchi & Saatchi, for LOOK

BRONZE LION OUTDOOR Grass, ‘Wonderbra’ for Thompson Lab BRONZE LION OUTDOOR Foote Cone & Belding, ‘Mosquito Screen’ for SC Johnson GOLD LION DIRECT OgilvyOne Worldwide, ‘Missing Bottle’ for Guinness Anchor GRAND PRIX OUTDOOR JWT, ‘Missile Car’ for Channel 9/CH-9 Media

BRONZE LION FILM Saatchi & Saatchi, ‘Bait’ for Toyota BRONZE LION OUTDOOR JWT, ‘Wheel Clamp’ for Ford SILVER LION OUTDOOR & SILVER LION PRESS Naga DDB, ‘Whiteboard’ for EUT Fashion

MALAYSIA RULES ASIA IN 2006 No 1 2 3 4 5 6 7



FIRST MALAYSIAN GRAND PRIX OUTDOOR WINNER ADVERTISER Channel 9 / CH-9 Media AGENCY J Walter Thompson YEAR 2004 AWARD Grand Prix CREATIVE DIRECTORS Edwin Leong / Andy Soong COPYWRITERS Hasnah Mohd Samidin / Wong Sen Kiat / Joel Lim ART DIRECTORS Andy Soong / Ray Goh / Edwin Leong ACCOUNT SUPERVISORS Carmen Koo / Cheryl Lee Chris Von Selle / Jessie Yee MARKETING MANAGER Mark Hermon BRAND MANAGER Benjamin Leong PHOTOGRAPHER Looi Weng Fai (IFL Studio) PLANNING DIRECTOR Subhendu Mukherjee

THE CANNES LIONS INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL OF CREATIVITY IS THE WORLD’S BIGGEST CELEBRATION OF CREATIVITY IN COMMUNICATIONS SINCE THE 1940S!

Gold Malaysia 5 India 3 Thailand 3 Japan 2 Singapore 1 Phillipines China

Silver 3 3 2 4 2

Bronze 3 5 3 4 9 3 3

BRONZE LION OUTDOOR X 2 McCann Erickson, ‘Maze’ and ‘Bubbles’ for SONY BRONZE LION PRESS Lowe & Partners, ‘Classroom’ for Nailz World GOLD LION DIRECT X 2 ARC Worldwide, ‘Best of Both Worlds’ for Malaysia Airlines GOLD LION OUTDOOR Lowe & Partners, ‘Directions’ for Land Rover Owners Club GOLD LION OUTDOOR CAMPAIGN JWT, ‘Widow’ and ‘Old Man’ for KimberlyClark GOLD LION OUTDOOR CAMPAIGN Saatchi & Saatchi, ‘Zimbabwe’, ‘Iran’, ‘Bush’ and ‘Myanmar’ for Amnesty International Malaysia SILVER LION DIRECT ARC Worldwide, ‘Carbon’ for Womens’s Aid Organisation SILVER LION OUTDOOR Lowe & Partners, ‘Sale On Sale’ for IKEA SILVER LIONS RADIO CAMPAIGN Naga DDB, ‘Saviour’ for Radio Televisyen Malaysia

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ON AT CANNES OVER THE YEARS

13

BEST OF 2018 S C R E E N I N G & C R E AT I V E F O R U M +MC2 AWARDS WINNERS CEREMONY 4 . 3 0 p m | 2 8 J A N 2 0 1 9 | H A L L 5 , T G V C I N E M A , O N E U TA M A

2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

BRONZE LION DIRECT OgilvyOne Worldwide, ‘Small, Medium or Large’ for IBM Malaysia BRONZE LION OUTDOOR Y&R, ‘Wuthering Heights (Soundwave 1)’ for Penguin Books BRONZE LION OUTDOOR Saatchi & Saatchi, ‘Rusty’ for Diageo BRONZE LION OUTDOOR Saatchi & Saatchi, ‘How To Remove’ for ACP Magazine GOLD LION OUTDOOR CAMPAIGN Lowe & Partners, ‘Wallpaper’, ‘Tiles’ and ‘Carpet’ for Sara Lee Malaysia SILVER LIONS OUTDOOR CAMPAIGN McCann Erickson, ‘Blue’, ‘Black’ and ‘Red’ for Penline Art Supplies GOLD LION DIRECT ARC Worldwide, ‘Stick & Save’ for Treat Every Environment Special (Trees) SILVER LION PRESS JWT, ‘Bacon’ for Kimberly-Clark Trading SILVER LION PRESS Saatchi & Saatchi, ‘How To Remove’ for ACP Magazine SILVER LION PRESS CAMPAIGN JWT, ‘Oil’, ‘Wine’ and ‘Coffee’ for KimberlyClark Trading SILVER LION DIRECT Naga DDB, ‘Break-In’ for ISEO Asia SILVER LION OUTDOOR EURO RSCG Partnership, ‘Strong Tape’ for Penline Art Supplies

BRONZE LION PRESS Naga DDB/RAPP, ‘Handwritten Newspaper’ for Schwan-Stabilo BRONZE LION PRESS Y&R, ‘Catapult Launcher’ for Cartrade ABT Sdn Bhd BRONZE LION OUTDOOR Lowe & Partners, ‘IKEA Staircase Drawer’ for IKEA BRONZE LION OUTDOOR BBDO/Proximity, ‘Art Against Drink Driving Phase 2’ for HELP SILVER LION DESIGN Saatchi & Saatchi, ‘Ball Point / Felt Tip / Fountain Pen’ for Amnesty International BRONZE LION DESIGN Lowe & Partners, ‘IKEA Sale: Fruit Peeler, Potato Peeler & Grater’ for IKEA BRONZE LION DESIGN Publicis Communications, ‘Organise Your Head’ for Vision Art

GOLD LION FILM Leo Burnett, ‘Tan Hong Ming’ for Petronas BRONZE LION FILM Leo Burnett, ‘Race’ for Petronas GOLD LION OUTDOOR CAMPAIGN BBDO/PROXIMITY, ‘Bushman & Eskimo’ and ‘Husky & Camel’ for Chrysler Korea GOLD LION OUTDOOR CAMPAIGN Saatchi & Saatchi, ‘Affair’, ‘Candlestick’, ‘Liberty’ and ‘Psycho’ for Silverfish Books SILVER LION OUTDOOR CAMPAIGN Saatchi & Saatchi, ‘Alley’, ‘Toilet’ and ‘Park’ for Procter & Gamble BRONZE LION OUTDOOR CAMPAIGN Saatchi & Saatchi, ‘Stop’, ‘Traffic Light’ and ‘Cliff’ for Guinness Anchor Bhd SILVER LION PRESS Saatchi & Saatchi, ‘Stop’ for Guinness Anchor Bhd BRONZE LION PRESS CAMPAIGN Saatchi & Saatchi, ‘Toilet’ and ‘Park’ for Procter & Gamble BRONZE LION PRESS Ogilvy, ‘Cats Impotence’ for Advertisers Without Borders SILVER LION RADIO Y&R, ‘Brushing’ for Colgate-Palmolive BRONZE LION RADIO Y&R, ‘Stuck Tune’ for A.W. Faber-Castell

OUTDOOR SILVER LION CAMPAIGN Grey Group, ‘Mummy’, ‘Teddy Bed’ and ‘Teddy Hug’ for Procter & Gamble OUTDOOR BRONZE LION CAMPAIGN Ogilvy & Mather, ‘Stadium’, ‘Carnival’ and ‘Concert’ for Glaxo Smithkline

BRONZE OUTDOOR LION Ogilvy, ‘Traffic Blues’ for Glaxo Smithkline BRONZE OUTDOOR LION CAMPAIGN McCann Erickson, ‘Riot’, ‘Smuggling’ and ‘Exploitation’ for New Straits Times Press BRONZE OUTDOOR LION CAMPAIGN Y&R, ‘The Pied Piper Of Hamelin’, ‘The Jungle Book’ and ‘The Wizard Of Oz’ for Penguin Books SILVER OUTDOOR LION CAMPAIGN Ogilvy, ‘Caterpillar’, ‘Monster’ and ‘Whale’ for LEGO GOLD PRESS LION CAMPAIGN Ogilvy, ‘Jet Fighter’, ‘Wrestler’ and ‘T-Rex’ for MATTEL BRONZE RADIO LION Bates 141, ‘Rewind’ for FLY FM

BRONZE OUTDOOR LION CAMPAIGN Y&R, ‘Architecture’, ‘Fairy Tales’, ‘Gardening’, ‘Hobbies’, ‘Science Fiction’ and ‘Travel’ for Penguin Books SILVER OUTDOOR LION CAMPAIGN Y&R, ‘Architecture’, ‘Fairy Tales’, ‘Gardening’, ‘Hobbies’, ‘Science Fiction’ and ‘Travel’ for Penguin Books SILVER RADIO LION CAMPAIGN X 2 McCann Erickson, ‘Audrey’, ‘Freda’ and ‘Yameen’ for BFM BRONZE DESIGN LION Y&R, ‘More Than Just The Classics’ for Penguin Books SILVER DESIGN LION CAMPAIGN Y&R, ‘Fairy Tales’, ‘Graphic Novlels’ and ‘Travel’ for Penguin Books

BRONZE LION CAMPAIGN OUTDOOR Ogilvy Malaysia ‘Nascar, Samurai, Ram’ for Mattel Southeast Asia Pictionary Malaysia SILVER LION CAMPAIGN OUTDOOR Ogilvy Malaysia ‘Snowball, Wave, Whirlwind’ for Pizza Hut Restaurants SILVER LION BRANDED CONTENT Ogilvy Malaysia/ Director’s Think Tank ‘Twisted Football’ For Nestlé Products Milo Cans

FILM BRONZE LION TBWA\Kuala Lumpur, Studio 31/ Munching Monsters/ Canang Studio ‘Live On’ For Malaysian Society Of Transplantation Organ Donation Drive PRESS BRONZE LION CAMPAIGN TBWA\Kuala Lumpur ‘Angel Vs Demon, Wizard Vs Witch & Perseus Vs Medusa’ For Newell Rubbermaid Apermate Liquid Paper Malaysia Health And Wellness BRONZE LION Y&R Malaysia Kuala Lumpur ‘8 Lives’ For National Transplant Resources Centre (NTRC) Organ Donation Malaysia

BRANDED SILVER LION TBWA Group Kuala Lumpur, Reservoir World Kuala Lumpur / Canang Studio Petaling Jaya ‘The Eveready Book Of Play’ for Energizer Malaysia DESIGN BRONZE LION Y&R Malaysia Kuala Lumpur ‘Cut A Tree.

Kill A Life - Tapir’ for Malaysian Nature Society OUTDOOR SILVER LION CAMPAIGN BBDO Malaysia Kuala Lumpur ‘Drumstick, Burger, And French Fries’ for KFC OUTDOOR SILVER LION CAMPAIGN BBDO Malaysia Kuala Lumpur ‘Empty Fridge, Feed Me, Glued To The Tv, And Hungry Workers’ for Pizza Hut Restaurants

2017 2018 BRONZE LION HAKUHODO MALAYSIA/ILLUSION, Bangkok ‘DROUGHT’ for GREENPEACE

TITLE: “Tan Hong Ming” AGENCY: Leo Burnett Advertising CAMPAIGN: Colour Blind ADVERTISER: Petroliam Nasional Berhad (PETRONAS) PRODUCT: Merdeka 2007 LANGUAGE: English LENGTH: 90 seconds

JURORS FROM MALAYSIA - CANNES LIONS

LB’s Yew Leong is all teeth with Malaysia’s first Cannes Film Gold!

NAME

AGENCY

YEAR

CATEGORY

GROUP

Primus Nair

BBDO Singapore

2018

Brand Experience & Activation

Omicom

Ted Lim (Jury President)

Dentsu Brand Agencies Asia Pacific

2017

Direct

Dentsu Aegis Network

Gigi Lee

TBWA\Kuala Lumpur

2017

Print

Omnicom

Alvin Ng

FCB Kuala Lumpur

2016

Outdoor

Interpublic

Sathi Anand

SAATCHI & SAATCHI

2015

Outdoor

SAATCHI & SAATCHI

Mehdi Lamloum

GEOMETRY GLOBAL

2014

Direct

WPP

Gigi Lee

Y&R MALAYSIA

2014

Outdoor

WPP

Huang Ean Hwa

MERDEKA LHS / McCANN WORLDGROUP

2013

Outdoor

Independent

Ng Heok Seong

Euro RSCG

2012

Outdoor

Havas

Adrian Miller

Freelance

2010

Direct

-

Mun Tuck Wai

BBDO Proximity Malaysia

2010

Design

Omnicom

Edmund Choe

Saatchi & Saatchi Greater China

2009

Titanium & Integrated

Saatchi & Saatchi

Ronald Ng

BBDO/Proximity Malaysia

2009

Direct

Omnicom

Prashant Kumar

Universal McCann Malaysia

2009

Media

Interpublic

Joseph Foo

3nity

2008

Design

Independent

Huang Ean Hwa

McCann Erickson Worldgroup

2008

Direct

Interpublic

Theresa Tsang

Arc Worldwide

2007

Direct

Interpublic

Tan Kien Eng

Arc Worlwide Malaysia

2006

Direct

Interpublic

Primus Nair is also the youngest Malaysian copywriter at 22 to win a Cannes Lion.

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BEST OF 2018 S C R E E N I N G & C R E AT I V E F O R U M +MC2 AWARDS WINNERS CEREMONY

TED DOES MALAYSIA PROUD AT CANNES LIONS 2018 4 . 3 0 p m | 2 8 J A N 2 0 1 9 | H A L L 5 , T G V C I N E M A , O N E U TA M A

ENOUGH cannot be said of our very own Ted Lim – Regional Chief Creative Officer of Dentsu Aegis Network (DAN) AsiaPacific.

He is shining bright for the country based out of Singapore.

An illustrious creative leader, he has been inducted into the Malaysian MC2 Advertising Hall of Fame and named the country’s top ECD by Campaign Brief Asia and many other magazines. He now works with over 20 offices across 10 countries and helped win over 20 pitches including Uniqlo, Dulux, Coke, Mondelez and Singapore Airlines in his first 18 months at DAN. Last year, Ted was Jury President at Cannes Lions, this year he pick up multiple Gold, Silver and Bronze for his network.

But this was the icing on the cake for his team this year….

The Cannes Lions 2018 Grand Prix for Good was awarded to “Project Revoice.” Created for the ALS Association from BWM Dentsu Sydney, the initiative helps those afflicted with ALS, which includes the founder of the Ice Bucket challenge, to have a voice.

ALS is also known as Motor Neurone Disease, a progressive neurodegenerative disease that, amongst other symptoms, often takes away a person’s ability to speak. Project Revoice is a non-profit initiative with the ultimate goal to ensure that no one living with ALS will ever have to suffer being robbed of their voice. As co-founder of the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge, Pat Quinn helped give the global ALS community a voice, until the disease robbed him of his own. This is the story of how he got it back. In the past, people with ALS could use pre-recorded messages to communicate, but the BWM Dentsu Group worked with Canadian software partner Lyrebird to create a complete voice clone. This allows Pat to speak freely and naturally in his own voice, rather than a ‘machine’ voice, when linked to his eye reader assistive technology. The man who gave ALS a voice now has his own voice back.

Creative Agency BWM Dentsu Chief Creative Officer Rob Belgiovane Executive Creative Director Asheen Naidu Senior Creative Team René Schultz & Oskar Westerdal Film Producer Emma Durlacher Design Director Eeuwout ‘Dutchy’ Baart Digital Producer Jenna Mills Director Brett Ludeman Editor Brendon Killen PR Agency Haystack National General Manager Haystac Jason Carnew General Manager Haystac Sydney Sarah Littlefair Technology Partner Lyrebird Production Company Finch Sound & Music Rumble Studios Website Space 66 & Finch

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MARKETING PARTNERS OUTDOOR ADVERTISING ASSOCIATION OF MALAYSIA

15 OOH GETS ACTIVE

TO ELEVATE CREATIVE STANDARDS IN THE NAME OF HUMANITY

Posing for a group shot at MERCY Malaysia

SLEDGEHAMMER Communications, the publishers of MARKETING magazine, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Outdoor Advertising Association of Malaysia (OOAM) to plan and launch a competition for Malaysia’s outdoor advertising industry in 2019.

This MoU will see MARKETING and OOAM working together to highlight the power of Out-of-Home (OOH) media amongst marketers, creative and digital agencies, and media specialists in Malaysia.

This non-profit project driven

by MARKETING magazine in collaboration with OAAM will also provide OOH media support to MERCY Malaysia’s humanitarian efforts.

President of MERCY Malaysia, Dato’ Dr Ahmad Faizal, who witnessed the signing said, “This is timely as we are also marking our 20th Anniverary next year.

Malaysian media players has been consistently supportive of our work and it is great to see the outdoor

advertising industry come together for a humanitarian cause.”

Henry Low, President of the Outdoor Advertising Association of Malaysia, announced, “As the industry evolves with the times, marketers recognise that the value of creative messaging is the game changer in their business. And with new innovative techonology platforms available, we welcome agencies to contribute their ideas to real brand briefs in the OOH space.”

MARKETING magazine’s Founder and Publisher Professor Harmandar Singh (Ham) shared, “We will use our MC2 Awards programme to drive this project and our next season will be about the Out-Of-Home challenge.”

“While we discover great ideas and reward creative, media and marketing talent, the intention to do good is the main reason we are excited about this collaboration.

So when Ham first approached us about this initiative, we were all excited about it,” added Henry.

Ham seals the partnetship with Henry as Dato Dr Faizal looks on

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LOCAL STORY COVER CONTENT

PRIMEWORKS STUDIOS AND WAU ANIMATION’S

EJEN ALI PUSHES LOCAL ANIMATION TO GREATER HEIGHTS “INSPIRED BY EJEN ALI’S ESPIONAGE THEME, WE SET OUT OUR OWN SET OF MISSIONS TO GROW THE BRAND’S PRESENCE. THE FIRST MISSION WAS TO LAUNCH THE BRAND IN A NEW AND DIFFERENT WAY, WHICH WE ACHIEVED

BY INTRODUCING EJEN ALI TO THE AUDIENCE VIA A MOBILE GAME FIRST BEFORE FOLLOWING IT UP WITH A SMASHING TV DEBUT ON TV3 MALAYSIA. SINCE THEN THE TWO MOBILE GAMES HAVE GARNERED NUMEROUS AWARDS,” DATUK AHMAD IZHAM OMAR CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER OF PRIMEWORKS STUDIOS

IT’S been only two years since the debut on the small screen, but the award winning, local animation series Ejen Ali has raked in more than two million viewerships weekly on TV3 and another million on tonton.

Touted as Media Prima’s first venture into animation, Ejen Ali is the first intellectual property that Media Prima co-owns with Wau Animation Sdn Bhd. On 30 November 2018, Primeworks Studios and Wau Animation held a trade event to

showcase the Ejen Ali brand’s achievements since its launch in 2016, announce upcoming initiatives and a slate of new merchandise for year-end 2018, and to invite new business opportunities for potential partners in 2019. Since Ejen Ali’s debut in 2016, the animation is now broadcasted in over 50 countries in the Middle East, Africa and India, and has captivated millions of across the globe, topping the charts in its home region of Southeast Asia.

“Inspired by Ejen Ali’s espionage theme, we set out our own set of missions to grow the brand’s presence. The first mission was to launch the brand in a new and different way, which we achieved by introducing Ejen Ali to the audience via a mobile game first before following it up with a smashing TV debut on TV3 Malaysia. Since then the two mobile games have garnered numerous awards,” said Datuk Ahmad Izham Omar, Chief

Executive Officer of Primeworks Studios.

Primeworks Studios then set their sights on being the top animation property in the region. They achieved it when the viewership rose to 2 million viewers weekly on Malaysia’s TV3 channel and emerged as one of the top three programmes in MNCTV Indonesia’s slate of kids programming.

During the event, Usamah Zaid, Chief Executive Officer of Wau Animation also unveiled an

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17 LOCAL CONTENT

early look at the upcoming Ejen Ali the Movie, slated for release by the end of 2019. He adds, “We’re bringing viewers deeper into the Ejen Ali universe with new agents, high-tech gadgets, vehicles, the introduction of a mysterious rogue figure from Ali’s past and the IRIS 2.0. All these exciting elements are complemented by a story with a strong emotional hook, our signature WAU touch that gives Ejen Ali its audience-winning formula.”

In line with the release of the movie, a comprehensive marketing extension will follow suit. Key marketing initiatives include multiple mobile gaming launches, private screenings, TV takeovers, mall roadshows, and cinema tours. These initiatives will provide great opportunities for businesses and brands to leverage on in 2019.

Next to capturing the hearts of millions across the globe, Ejen Ali has completed two more successful missions,

Innovative Partnerships and Consumer Engagement. Through Innovative Partnerships, Ejen Ali formed strong and longlasting relationships with great brands like Mamee and AirAsia. Through award-winning marketing campaign solutions customized for each brand, these partnerships have resulted in notable revenue growth for both brands.

Consumer Engagement focused on strengthening the Ejen Ali fan base via three key

experiential platforms, social media, ground activations and consumer products. The highly engaged fan base drove numerous brand interactions including creation of fan art, fanmade special events and even fan-based spin-off stories.

One of the most heartwarming fan engagement moments included the story of Chong Yik Wei, a passionate super-fan who’s feedback and ideas for the Ejen Ali : Emergency mobile game app

contributed to the constant improvements which brought the gaming app to greater heights.

Ejen Yik Wei was awarded the honour to lead the fashion runway showcase of Ejen Ali’s upcoming consumer products line. A sneak preview of the new products include Ejen Ali inspired school shoes from BATA, new limited edition apparel range, soft toys and an entire Ejen Ali bedroom set, all set for retail sales during the back-toschool season this year.

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CREATIVE COVER STORY DATA

THERE have been a lot of articles that have been written in the recent past, many on Data and Creativity. And it’s one debate that has people quickly taking sides.

On one side – we have a set applauding the need for data to be at the centre of it. To help drive focus, efficiency and apply a sense of logic before the magic.

On the other side we have the push-back from the ‘purists’ - can data really replace ingenuity, originality, and instinct - with an argument that everyone with the access to the same data will come to a similar conclusion.

“Striking the right balance between data and creativity is an art and something that comes with experience,” says Mahesh Neelakantan, ada’s Country Director for Malaysia and Singapore.

The process of automation based on the data that has been collected has started to enter all fields of industry. Marketing and design are no different, and data collected in real time has started to influence the way in which advertisements are displayed.

This includes the manner in which different design elements are highlighted and even going so far as to recommend design changes itself. We are going down an inevitable road where some of the initial aspects of creativity/ design will be replaced by datadriven processes.

“It is the creative input on top that will create value and build brand identity,” adds Mahesh.

Thus, the premise that data is killing creativity may be an overstatement of sorts, however, it can happen if data is used more like guide rails rather than signposts. There is no going back from all the data collection that is happening, but making that data work requires collaborative effort between creative minds and the analytical ones.

For example – data-insights on what content themes is a pregnant woman in her 3rd Trimester looking for and where and how to engage them is clearly a business opportunity that needs an integrated approach.

And two brands with the same data and insights can address this opportunity differently.

Likewise – Holiday-Travel behaviour exhibited by ‘Families with Kids’ vis-a-vis ‘Friends’ vis-avis ‘Singles’ is different and each needs a bespoke approach built on the back of data-insights for each cluster.

“At ada, our data science teams are continuously mining and exploring opportunities and insights related to O2O attribution, life-stage predictive analysis, ‘HVC’-audience segments, device-switching behaviour for the telco players or catchment area marketing for

IGNITE CREATIVITY? CAN DATA

Senior Leaders of ada Malaysia: Mahesh Neelakantan, Country Director of Malaysia & Singapore, Eileen Khor, Head of Creative, Ravi Singh, Director for Client Leadership

ada’s webfront

ada Malaysia’s full strong members ready to ignite!

QSRs and convenience stores.

And we are looking at leveraging this data - either to grow or grab market share for clients across a core set of 8-10 industry segments,” reveals Mahesh.

“Our integrated planning framework facilitates the collaboration between the left brain and right brain,” adds Ravi Singh, Director for Client Leadership. “In the past few years - we have seen massive shifts in consumer behaviour.

As more and more consumers are moving towards digital and mobile first media touchpoints, they are leaving behind a huge

“AT ada, OUR DATA SCIENCE TEAMS ARE CONTINUOUSLY MINING AND EXPLORING OPPORTUNITIES AND INSIGHTS RELATED TO O2O ATTRIBUTION, LIFESTAGE PREDICTIVE ANALYSIS...”

trail of data – which if harnessed and leveraged – can be a gamechanger in helping brands create relevant messaging and engaging content.”

Creative teams at ada have been using data from Xact (ada’s proprietary telco powered DMP) as a single source of truth to drive creativity and ideation.

“Using data from Xact at the core, we have been able to help brands with platform agnostic creative ideation and storytelling, whether it is FMCG brands looking to drive brand adoption and engagement from parents, or quick service restaurants aiming

to spark positive conversations during festive season on social media.”

Gone are the days when creative was traditionally driven by a big idea based on “gut feeling”. Today insights gathered from this consumer data can fuel the creative ideation process helping brands to create relevant communication and custom messaging throughout the entire consumer lifecycle.

Data can definitely take the creative thought process to the next level, however, only time will tell if data geeks will lead this next wave of creative storytelling.

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MARKETING & ADVERTISING DIRECTORY Booking Deadline: 15th January, 2019 Ad Material Deadline: 28th February, 2019

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MAD 2019 OPEN FOR BOOKING NOW!

What profits the planet also profits brands.

The world is changing. Transparency is driving more consumers to connect the dots between Brands and their positive or negative environmental and social impact.

However, building and embedding sustainability require a new kind of thinking, a new slate of collaborators and a different set of tools.

At Acacia Blue, we partner brands to transform their corporate social responsibility initiatives into sustainable corporate social opportunities. We are part of the Sustainable Brands community of change makers. This world-class eco-system of people and organisations from over 90 countries are helping world leading brands embrace social and environmental innovations, and shift towards a more sustainable economy.

* Inspiring marketing communications * formerly known as zenith media

As part of this commitment, we convene the global premier Sustainable Brands Forum in Kuala Lumpur every year, bringing together thought-leaders from some of the world’s largest brands and most influential NGOs to share innovations and learnings here in Malaysia.

For more on how we can help add value and metrics to your sustainability or CSR efforts, e-mail us at may.song@acaciabluecares.com

Acacia Blue Cares is part of Invictus Blue Group.