Advertising best practice, evidence and insights

Malaysians hold back on discretionary spending in 2020

News • 12 December 2019

Malaysians are being more fiscally prudent heading into 2020, choosing to defer spending on discretionary products, according to the latest Consumer Sentiment Index from the Malaysia Institute of Economic Research.

The war of Malaysia’s e-wallets

News • 04 December 2019

Businesses looking to expand in Malaysia need to offer digital wallet payment options, as these cover a much greater proportion of the population than credit cards.

Five payment trends to watch out for in Malaysia

Article • Low Lai Chow, Event Reports, E-commerce Expo Asia, October 2019

Johnny Chong, head of sales at iPay88 Holding provides an overview of the payments landscape and highlights some untapped opportunities for businesses looking to grow.

Shell: Closing the online to offline loop with smart use of data

Case Study • Hong Tran, Clarissa De La Paz, Maaz Khan, Joanna Mary, WARC Media Awards, Shortlisted, Best Use of Data, 2019

Oil brand Shell implemented an innovative audience-targeting framework in Malaysia to investigate whether tactical promotions work and, at the same time, increase fuel sales and grow brand preference.

Malaysia Airlines taps nationalist sentiment with Fly Malaysia brand campaign

News • 18 October 2019

Malaysia Airlines has launched a new logo and brand campaign, called ‘Fly Malaysia’, aimed at drumming up inbound and domestic travel in support of Visit Malaysia 2020.

Unilever Male Grooming: Total Men – Be the Coolest Football Zombie

Case Study • Mochammad Iqbal, WARC Prize for Asian Strategy, Entrant, 2019

Unilever tapped into World Cup fever with a contextual content campaign aimed at male football fans to increase sales of its grooming products in Malaysia.

Tesco: Move ROLVA to Tesco

Case Study • Kartini Tapubolon, WARC Prize for Asian Strategy, Entrant, 2019

Retailer Tesco created ROLVA, an effective, data-driven tool that helped it drive consumers in Malaysia away from the giant competitor stores encroaching on its market share.

Maybelline: Maybelline FitMe Squad

Case Study • Su Ling Chan, Vivien Loh, Kylie Chong, WARC Prize for Asian Strategy, Shortlisted, 2019

Make-up brand Maybelline used a multi-channel campaign to embrace the diversity of Malaysian skin colours and grow market share in the country's liquid foundation category.

Boost: Building an e-wallet ecosystem from the ground up

Case Study • Stephanie Caunter, Norshiha Tahir, WARC Prize for Asian Strategy, Entrant, 2019

E-wallet app Boost partnered closely with adaAsia's proprietary data management platform Xact to create an agile data-driven campaign and build its user base in Malaysia.

Maxis HuatAR: Interview with a Lion

Case Study • Galen Lau, Su Ling Chan, WARC Prize for Asian Strategy, Entrant, 2019

Maxis, the premium Malaysian telco brand, created brand standout and increased sales during Chinese New Year in Malaysia through an AR based app.

Milo Malaysia: Breakfast

Case Study • Arindam Chatterjee, Sohini Das, WARC Prize for Asian Strategy, Entrant, 2019

Milo, the market leader in health food drinks in Malaysia, gained new consumers by positioning itself as a more nourishing energy option for school children than milk.

IPC Shopping Centre: The Mood Menu

Case Study • Sabrina Jamaludin, Daniel Olivan, Taryn Mook, WARC Prize for Asian Strategy, Entrant, 2019

IPC Shopping Centre developed an app based around music and eating habits to refresh its brand identity and drive visitor numbers in Malaysia.

KFC: Anything is better with KFC Golden Egg Crunch

Case Study • Galen Lau, Alyafarah Zainudin, Phoenix Tang, WARC Prize for Asian Strategy, Silver, 2019

QSR brand KFC successfully relaunched its Golden Egg Crunch during Chinese New Year in Malaysia using a TV sync activation.

PruBSN Warisan: Always by your side

Case Study • Galen Lau, Alyafarah Zainudin, WARC Prize for Asian Strategy, Entrant, 2019

Insurance company Prudential BSN created Warisan, a life insurance product suitable for Muslims in Malaysia, designed to leave an inheritance upon death in the form of a gift.

Anchor Beer: The Shortest CNY Ad

Case Study • Su Ling Chan, Simon Yong, WARC Prize for Asian Strategy, Shortlisted, 2019

Budget beer brand Anchor used an innovative social media campaign to cut through the clutter of Chinese New Year advertising and boost its unaided brand recall in Malaysia.

Nippon Paint: Child Wellness Range

Case Study • Su Ling Chan, Chow Chia Yuin, WARC Prize for Asian Strategy, Entrant, 2019

Nippon Paint, the leading Malaysian paint manufacturer, introduced its Child Wellness Range to create differentiation in the category and, without reducing prices, beat its copycat competitors to achieve a 75% increase in sales.

Dissecting loyalty in Malaysia

News • 06 September 2019

Price, quality and “the Amazon effect” are all factors that play into brand loyalty in Malaysia, according to researcher Nielsen, while Google-sponsored research shows a wide take-up of loyalty and rewards schemes.

YouGov Ad of the Month – Malaysia: Milo

Opinion • BrandIndex, September 2019

During August, chocolate malt drink Milo is the brand which has achieved the highest uplift in its Ad Awareness over the past month.

Tesco: Unforgettable Bag

Case Study • Cannes Creative Lions, Silver, Creative Strategy Lion, 2019

Tesco, the supermarket chain, incentivised shoppers in Malaysia to reuse their bags by giving them money off their shop when they did.

AirAsia eyes ‘Amazon of travel’ opportunity as it invites others into its ecosystem

Article • Low Lai Chow, Event Reports, Skift Forum Asia, May 2019

AirAsia has its sights set on a travel ecosystem play as it invests in complimentary business ventures.

Tesco: Unforgettable Bag

Case Study • Cannes Creative Lions, Entrant, Creative Effectiveness Lions, 2019

Tesco, the supermarket chain, incentivised its shoppers in Malaysia to reuse their bags by giving them money off their shop when they did.

Malaysian OTT market looks beyond subscriptions

News • 11 June 2019

Malaysia’s OTT landscape is facing a period of change as increased choice and more free content puts pressure on existing business models which have largely relied on subscriptions.

Maxis HuatAR: Interview with a lion

Case Study • Chan Su Ling, Galen Lau, WARC Awards, Entrant, Effective Content Strategy, 2019

Maxis, the premium Malaysian telco brand, created brand standout and increased sales during Chinese New Year in Malaysia through an AR based app.

PruBSN Warisan: Always by your side

Case Study • Chan Su Ling, Galen Lau, Alyafarah Zainudin, WARC Awards, Entrant, Effective Content Strategy, 2019

PruBSN, the leading Malaysian insurance company, increased brand awareness and engagement through a digital campaign in Malaysia.

Nippon Paint: Child Wellness Range

Case Study • Chan Su Ling, Chow Chia Yuin, WARC Awards, Shortlisted, Effective Use of Brand Purpose, 2019

Nippon Paint, the leading Malaysian paint manufacturer, introduced its Child Wellness Range to create differentiation in the category and, without reducing prices, beat its copycat competitors to achieve a 75% increase in sales.