| Insights into branding in Asia

Are brands responsible for where their ads are placed?

A couple of years ago I wrote a blog post about negative brand association. You can read the story here. I hate to say ‘I told you so’ but I’ve always said that in the social economy, the concept of using communications to try and position a product or service in the mind of a … Continue reading »

Destination branding – turning a bad story into a good one to protect your brand

Italy is the fifth most visited country in the world and gets over 44 million tourists a year. Tourism is estimated to generate revenue of £120 billion (RM600 billion) per year. It’s a lucrative industry and one that needs protecting. So the last thing they need is a negative story that could drive visitors away. … Continue reading »

What’s happening in social marketing in 2013

As the advertising agency driven ‘big idea’ developed to push out a corporate controlled message continues to lose steam, social media and multiple new platforms, devices and applications mean that marketers have less control over the brand. Indeed, as consumers not companies now define brands, those marketers need to learn how to engage consumers on … Continue reading »

How to build a luxury automotive brand in the tough Malaysian market

The Malaysian automotive industry consists of two low-end manufacturers. To help these manufacturers, the government protects them with massive import duties, sales and other taxes that can jack up the price of an imported car with a large engine by as much as 155%. In addition to these taxes an Approved Permit (AP) is required … Continue reading »

Every brand can make a mistake

When Starbucks first came to South East Asia the general perception was that no one in the region would pay US$4 and upwards for a cup of coffee when a decent cup of local coffee (kopi-O as we call it here in Malaysia and we’re the ones who drink it without sugar or condensed milk) … Continue reading »

Brands, it is no longer about you

Whilst researching a chapter for my new book (you can get an idea of how the book will go by reading this article here) I came across a fascinating company called Undercurrent. One of the key players in the firm is a guy called Aaron Dignan. You can follow him on Twitter here. I was … Continue reading »

Stop advertising and start branding

Are you happy with your branding activities? Or do you find the money you spend does little to build your brand? Unfortunately, most branding initiatives revolve around a creative campaign developed by an advertising agency. Depending on budget, the creative campaign will be implemented with a one-size-fits-all message communicated to all and sundry and across … Continue reading »

What is Social Business

We’re involved in the development of the Asean Social Business Summit to be held in Kuala Lumpur in May 2013. You can read more about the event here and visit the official site here But there is a lot of confusion over what is and what isn’t social business. Social Business refers to enterprise collaboration … Continue reading »

Learn how to be a more competitive, collaborative and innovative enterprise at the Asean Social Business Summit in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Dr Jim Hamill, IBM, GARTNER, MOSTI & OTHER HIGH-PROFILE THOUGHT LEADERS TO HIGHLIGHT FIRST ASEAN SOCIAL BUSINESS SUMMIT A premier 1-day event in Malaysia to provide business and government with insights, case studies & useful tips for high-ROI innovation and collaboration The emerging arena of Social Business, which helps firms to substantially boost collaboration and … Continue reading »

Building a country brand requires more than just a well executed advertising campaign

If you are responsible for a country or destination brand, read on. As cheap air travel and the package tour (as well as the devaluation of the Spanish Peseta and the abolition of currency controls in the UK) helped jump start international travel in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, the world was still a fairly … Continue reading »

This infographic shows the right way to build a brand online

John Cullen runs an Internet marketing company out of Ohio in the US. He dropped by my blog and out of courtesy I had a look at his. He also liked the ‘about me’ page on my blog. I’m not sure if I should be happy with that because I hope he liked some of … Continue reading »

Which brands fooled you on April 1st?

The concept of the April Fools Day joke has had something of a renaissance with the advent of the Internet. Many brands take it very seriously as they try to out do each other with varying levels of success. Google is always up there and this year Twitter also scored well in the original stakes. … Continue reading »

5 facts about developing a brand strategy in the social economy

1) Research is more important than ever. Research has always been important but it was cumbersome and time consuming. Not any more. Today, the right research can be developed and implemented and results analysed quickly and efficiently. It’s easy to find those people who are likely to like your product. It’s even easier to talk … Continue reading »

Building the Malaysia brand, one step at a time

I’m a brand consultant (that’s brand consultant not advertising agency marketing itself as a brand consultant – you can learn the difference here). We’ve worked with many elements of the Malaysia Nation Brand and were once appointed to develop the Malaysia Nation Brand. Unfortunately, due to one of those cruel twists of fate and through … Continue reading »

Dove commercial raises a laugh but will it increase sales of the brand?

Every now and then a television commercial appears that brings a smile to the viewers face. And Unilever brand Dove tends to make us laugh more than many other brands. Their new commercial, created for the Brazil market is creating a bit of a stir . It features a conversation between two men in an … Continue reading »

Cross platform marketing to build a brand

It is accepted now that consumers are paying less attention to traditional media. Although the TV or the radio may be on, it doesn’t mean they are viewed or heard. And with the proliferation of ads and trailers, more consumers are reaching for other screens during a break in programming. But marketers still insist on … Continue reading »

When is the best time to use Twitter?

Whether we like it or not – and despite the fact that there are 500 million Twitter users of whom 200 million are active users, far too many companies refuse to take Twitter seriously. Preferring instead to continue to use traditional channels – Twitter is an increasingly important tool for brand building. It allows firms … Continue reading »

Can poor customer engagement across social media destroy a brand?

I came across a remarkable story about how a brand failed to deliver on its promise and the result of that failure. You can read the full story here In a nutshell, it’s the story of a gamers attempt to buy an add-on for video game console controllers. The tool, known as the Avenger and … Continue reading »

Stop giving creative advertising agencies responsibility for your brand

This article is worth reading, especially this paragraph, “You’ll find many ‘marketers’ pushing their social and interactive expertise with little true marketing experience in their backgrounds. This results in tactically driven campaigns that do not support a company brand promise or any kind of overarching strategy. It’s talking for the sake of having a mouth … Continue reading »

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