Commentary

Engaging with consumers online effectively

Just for a moment, I’d like everyone to take off their advertising hat and become a consumer, with passions, needs, and preferences. Think about a brand which you feel a particular connection with, one that helps you fill a need in your life, one that has stood out from the competition because it connected with you emotionally. In fact, you feel so strongly about this brand that you rave about it to your friends and family, because you want to share that feeling with them.

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Engaging with consumers online effectively

Commentary

The ABC’s of attracting, appreciating and developing Gen Y

Generation Ys are a fantastic, unique group of employees and taking the time to understand, appreciate and nurture their talent is essential for any forward-thinking organisation. According to the Singapore Human Resources Institute, Gen Y represents approximately 20 per cent of Singapore’s labour market. This is a generation that is looking for companies that provide defined career development paths and relevant training opportunities.

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How to ‘recession proof’ your career

Singapore is currently experiencing more than full employment. Executives and professionals can pick and choose which company they want to work for. Make no mistake, this is not job hopping time. Instead, this is the best time to do some career planning.

Commentary

The truth about market research

So let me get straight to the point, what I really want to talk about is the pursuit of the truth in market research. I agreed to do this piece because I am passionate about the industry and want to share what I have come across in my 20 years of doing this that makes my stomach churn which is; how there exists amongst some players, a lack of accountability and responsibility in collecting data for their clients.

Commentary

m-Singapore is checking in, is your brand?

The world is constantly changing and much of that is affected by new technologies. No other medium ignites more change than mobile. Across the globe, people are finding that the mobile device is the first screen that they are exposed to, their primary point-of-access to the World Wide Web.

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The rise of branded content

With the rise of Web 2.0 and advancement of Smart Phones, Tablet computers and faster broadband and mobile services, it means one thing for consumers and audiences - that their consumption habits for media has evolved.

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Lack of skilled sales people holding back Asian corporates

Asia Pacific companies have to step up their sales game, but a lack of sales skills is holding them back.

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Public Relations: Is it all noise?

I received a call recently from a company representative requesting a price quotation for a publicity campaign after winning an award. The company wanted to make some “noise.” In subsequent, I replied by email declining the assignment. My reasons were twofold: The story was not newsworthy and the caller had more ego than clothes on him.

Commentary

Of beer and men

In Singapore it’s not unusual to see coffee shops packed at 11pm/12 midnight every night of the week including weekends. This experience is replicated across many countries in the region from India to Malaysia and Indonesia. The culture of drinking in Asia is not about alcohol it’s about coffee and tea. It’s still about friends but it’s sober conversation as oppose to drunken ones. There are no coffee related fights about spilling a Venti Cappuccino! There are more coffee shops in Singapore than bars.

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Can a ‘Nick Leeson’ strike twice in Singapore?

At the last CEO breakfast meeting, I was amused to hear the following table talk. “What do you think of misdeeds in US companies? Is it greed only or, something else?”

Commentary

How To Rebrand Your Business in Singapore

Is it time for your business in Singapore for a new facelift and rebranding? The experts believe that it is wise to rebrand over time to stay tuned to a fast changing market.

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3 new places SME’s can find staff in a tight labour market

Singapore is currently facing the tightest crunch for talents. According to a MOM publication, Singapore carried a 2.2% unemployment rate in 2010 and an even lower 1.9% (preliminary) over Q1 of 2011.

Commentary

Watch out for the Likes, Facebook may be your next gold mine

When consumer giant Unilever announced in 2010 that it was doubling its digital marketing spend, it put marketers the world around on notice that digital marketing had come of age. Considering the amount of time spent online, the rise of the smartphone, and the amount of attention garnered by social media, it is no surprise that traditional marketing is giving way to digital marketing.

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Big branding ideas for the small guys

I was often asked if there are special rules of branding for small businesses to follow. The reason I get this question a lot is that the moment small business owners see the big brands that I use as case studies of companies that have grown from a struggling two-man start-up to successful global brands using these 10 rules, their eyes glaze over and their minds go, “Ah! These rules apply only to big brands. I am a small business. These rules don’t apply to me.”

Commentary

What's next for the net after social media ?

Alex Tan’s trying on a new suit. He adjusts the jacket, frowns at himself in the mirror and then grabs his iPad. He’s Skyping his personal style concierge. She agrees - this time they didn’t get it right. He’s returning it via express delivery.

Commentary

Hey Singaporeans, don’t miss that USD250,000 sales opportunity on Twitter

In the recent elections, we saw the rise of social media as powerful communications platforms, as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and others were used to discuss election issues in public and galvanise the public to vote.

Commentary

Asian companies more committed to developing leaders than western ones

Why Asia? With Asia expected to record strong economic growth in 2011 and the influx of foreign direct investment as well as the establishment of multinationals in Asia set to increase, the war for talent is certainly heating up in Asia. The collective regional economy of four billion people in 46 countries, Asia has accumulated USD46 trillion in foreign exchange reserves – more than half of the world’s total.

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