Malaysian Business Online

Kuala Lumpur, April 5 – Maybank & BIZSPHERE Brand and Marketing Group jointly presented a four-day exclusive workshop on weekly basis for the month of march, with the theme of ‘imparting Best Brand and Business Practices Into your Organization.
Held at Maybank Innovation Centre Kuala Lumpur, top Maybank SMEs the in depth knowledge on how to gain competitive advantage in running and growing their business in the difficult times. Participatings were engaged within 14 topics facillated by Industry experts from MPC, MATRADE, SEEK Asia and seven of BIZSPHERE SME / Branding affiliate consultants including Yap Keng Teck – Managing Consultant of BIZSPHERE Brand and Marketing Group.
“The idea to organize this workshop series was mooted after the success of Maybank Building Capacity Seminar for SMEs nationwide roadshow 2016 where I was the key speaker for 8 locations. Many SMEs know the importance to leverage on branding and the need to be more efficientin operation but just do not know where to start and how to justify their case to their management, As such, Maybank and BIZSPHERE decided to collaborate again to give greater insight to SMEs. In this workshop series, we go in-depth providing statistics, processes, templates, case studies to give the SMEs much clearer idea to start them off.” Said Keng Teck.

SME & Entrepreneurship Magazine

Maybank & BIZSPHERE Brand and Marketing Group jointly presented a 4 days exclusive workshop on weekly basis for the month of March, with the theme of ‘Imparting Best Brand and Business Practices into Your Organisation`. It was held at Maybank Innovation Centre Kuala Lumpur. Top Maybank SMEs customers, Malaysian productivity Corporation (MPC)- MPIC programme members and MATRADE GoEx Programme members were invited to this complimentary workshops series.
This 4 days intensive workshop was designed to provide SMEs the in depth knowledge on how to gain competitive advantage in running and growing their business in the difficult times. Participants were engaged with 14 topics facilitated by industry experts from MPC, MATRADE, SEEK Asia and 7 of BIZSPHERE SME/ BRANDING affiliate consultants including Mr Yap Keng Teck – Managing Consultant.
“The idea to organize this workshop series was mooted after the success of Maybank Building Capacity and Capability, Seminar for SMEs nationwide roadshow 2016 where I was the key speaker for 8 locations.
Many SMEs know the Importance to leverage on branding and the need to be more effective in operation but just do not know where to start and how to justify their case to their management. As such, Maybank and Bizsphere decided to collaborate again to give greater insights to SMEs much clearer idea so to start them off.” Says Keng Teck, Managing Consultant of Bizsphere Brand and Marketing Group.
Over 20 SMEs registered for the workshop and attended by more than 30 participants. The participants were from diverse industries and some even travel every week to & from Johor Bahru just to attend the workshop. Many of them love the format of the workshop where 1/3 of the time was allocate for dialogue with industry experts, expressing their thoughts and clarifying their doubts.
“Year 2017 will be a very challenging year for SMEs. There are many uncertaitles from the globa; economy as well as local political development. Every SMEs are trying hard to survive if not grom.
BIZSPHERE has been serving SMEs for 10 years and we shall continue to share more practical branding solutions to take SMEs brand to the next level and maximizes their brand potential. We aim to build local global brands.” Says Keng Teck.

Malay Mail

KUALA LUMPUR – Maybank expects the value of banking transactions via its mobile platform to rise by over 50% this year to some RM25 billion, driven by the new Maybank2u app as well as growth momentum achived last year.
Maybank group chief strategy officer Michael Foong said the volume of digital banking transactions via all online channels (including desktops and personal computers) rose by 14% demonstrating that users are increasingly comfortable with digital platforms,” he said.
The refreshed app allows customers to get instant access to their balances, with fingerprint recognition technology. Weaved into the app is the ability to view an aggregated balance of all accounts, providing a better view of the customer’s financial standing.
Another first for mobile banking is the Secure2u feature enabling customers to enjoy added security for their transactions. To be introduced by end-April, Secure2u allows a customer to have the option to acknowledge and digitally verify transaction via the new app.
Delays in receiving transaction authorization codes (TAC) via SMS will also be eliminated as Secure2u comes embedded with Secure TAC which allows for TAC to be generated on the mobile app.
The new app also enables Open Fund Transfer following customer feedback, allowing them to perform transactions to a third party who is not listed in the “ favorites list”.
Foong said over the next few months, Maybank’s product roadmap will see new app features such as facial recognition as well as the progressive rollout of the new look-and-feel in key overseas markets.
The bank recorded a growth of 34% in the number of active online users in 2016 compared with 2015, while the number of active mobile users rose nearly 42% in the same period. The number of transactions carried out online was closed to three billion in 2016, with close to 500 million being done on mobile.
Maybank expects the proportion of customers transacting digitally will grow exponentially over the next few years.
The pilot launch of the new Maybank2u app in mid-March has seen good traction with more than 57,000 downloads to date, and 82% of users rated the app as excellent.
Separately, Maybank and Bizsphere Brand and Marketing Group jointly presented a four-day exclusive workshop on a weekly basis last month, designed to provide small and medium enterprise (SMEs) with in-depth knowledge on how to gain competitive advantages in running and growing their business in these difficult times.
Participants were engaged on 14 topics facilitated by industry experts from Malaysia Productivity Corporation, Matrade, Seek Asia and seven of Bizsphere’s SME and branding affiliate consultants including managing consultant Yap Keng Teck.
“Many SMEs know the importance to leverage on branding and the need to be more efficient in operation but just do not know where to start and how to justify their case to their management. “In this workshop series, we go in-depth, providing statistics, processes, templates, case studies to give the SMEs much cleaner idea so to start them off,” Yap said.

Bername

KUALA LUMPUR. 3 April (Bernama) — Maybank dan Bizsphere Brand & Marketing Group bersama-sama menganjurkan bengkel eksklusif selama empat had untuk memberi pengetahuan lebih mendalam kepada perusahaan kecil dan sederhana (PKS).

Ia. yang menyediakan pengetahuan luas mengenai bagaimana memperoleh kelebihan kompetitif untuk menguruskan dan mengembangkan pemiagaan PKS dalam tempoh-tempoh mencabar. dianjurkan secara mingguan pada Mac lepas.

Bengkel bertema ‘Menerapkan Amalan Jenama dan Perniagaan Terbaik dalam Organisasi Anda’ itu berlangsung di Pusat Inovasi Maybank Kuala Lumpur….

The Malaysian Times

KUALA LUMPUR: Maybank dan Bizsphere Brand & Marketing Group menganjurkan bengkel eksklusif selama empat hari untuk memberi pengetahuan lebih mendalam kepada perusahaan kecil dan sederhana (PKS).
Bengkel yang menyediakan pengetahuan luas mengenai bagaimana memperoleh kelebihan kompetitif untuk menguruskan dan mengembangkan pemiagaan PKS dalam tempoh-tempoh mencabar. dianjurkan secara mingguan pada Mac lalu.
Bengkel bertema ‘Menerapkan Amalan Jenama dan Perniagaan Terbaik dalam Organisasi Anda’ itu berlangsung di Pusat Inovasi Maybank Kuala Lumpur.
Peruncing Urusan Bizsphere, Yap Keng Teck berkata, banyak PKS mengetahui kepentingan memanfaatkan penjenamaan dan perlunya menjadi lebih cekap dalam operasi, namun mereka tidak tahu di mana untuk bermula dan bagaimana untuk melaksanakan aspek itu dalam pengurusan masing-masing.
“Oleh itu, Maybank dan Bizsphere memutuskan bekerjasama untuk memberi pandangan lebih luas kepada PKS,” katanya.
Yap berkata, dalam siri bengkel itu, penganjur secara terperinci menyediakan statistic, proses, contoh dan kajian kes dalam usaha memberi gambaran lebih jelas kepada PKS supaya mereka mula melaksanakannya.
Peserta diberikan 14 topik yang disediakan oleh pakar industry dari MPC, Matrade, Seek Asia dan tujuh PKS Bizsphere.
Lebih 20 PKS berdaftar untuk bengkel itu yang dihadiri lebih 30 peserta
-BERNAMA

The Malaysian Times

KUALA LUMPUR, April 3: Maybank and Bizsphere Brand and Marketing Group have jointly organized a four-day exclusive workshop to provide the small and medium enterprise (SMEs) with in-depth knowledge on how to gain competitive advantages in running and growing their business in difficult times.
Themed ”Imparting Best Brand and Business Practices into Your Organization”. The workshop was held on a weekly basis in March.
The workshop was attended by top Maybank SME customer. Malaysian Productivity Corporation (MPC), the Ministry of Plantation Industries and Commodities programme members and Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation (MATRADE) GoEx Programme members.
Bizsphere Managing Consultant, Yap Keng Teck said. “Many SMEsknown the importance of leverageing branding and the need to be more efficient in operation but just do not know where to start and how to justify their case to their management.
“As such, Maybank and Bizsphere decided to collaborate to give greater insight to the SMEs,” he said in a statement today.
“In this workshop series, we go in-depth in providing statistics, processes templates, case studies to give the SMEs a much cleaner idea to start them off,” he added.
Participants were engaged with 14 topics facilitated by industry experts from MPC, MATRADE, Seek Asia and seven Bizsphere SMEs.
Over 20 SMEs registered for the workshop which was attended by more than 30 participants.

-Bernama

Let us have a look at the potential investment needed for branding.

• Time and commitment to set the strategic direction for the brand.
• Cost to engage brand consulting company to steer your brand towards the right direction and plan your brand campaign cost effectively.
• Basic marketing materials including brochures, leaflets, profiles and other point of sales materials.
• Trademark your brand in the respective markets you are marketing to.
• Concept design of your stores and your advertisements.
• Cost of advertisement media buy and media relations.
• Online Marketing and others.

I hope the above will not scare you off from branding your business or products. In our opinion, your time and commitment are much more important than the funds to advertise. A clear brand direction will sure allow you to market your brand cost effectively. Yet, to bring your brand to the next level, some funds need to be allocated. How can we lower our burden on brand investment? One of the answers is to seek government assistance.

What Kind of Government Assistance is Available?

Malaysia is one of the few countries that provide many assistance programmes to assist businesses to start and grow, especially for the SMEs. SMEs always associate government assistance with grants. Grants may help you in the short term but I would say the non-financial assistance is equally or even more important than grants. The branding know-how, market access, networking, media exposure, award recognition are some of the crucial elements to bring your brand to the next level. Below are some examples of the government assistance which your business can benefit from :-

National Mark of Malaysian Brand Certification (National Mark)

Launched in 2010, National Mark’s objective is to nurture and facilitate the growth of Malaysian Brands to be on regional and global stage. It is a recognition of home-grown Malaysian brands whether they relate to products, services or corporate branding. The programme was initiated by SMECORP in collaboration with SIRIM. Up to Oct 2014, there are approximately 100 companies certified under this programme.

The Mark itself carries some weight as it has been heavily promoted locally and abroad. Some of the benefits include privileged media coverage, invitation to brand trainings, assistance on local and international trade. Some recipients received up to RM 500,000 in financial assistance. The funds can be used for advertising and promotions e.g. TVC, radio ads, billboards, marketing in hypermarkets and shopping malls, certification, R&D packaging and machineries. The key eligibility criteria include international standard certifications like ISO and a registered trademark. Please visit www.nationalmark.gov.my for further details.

Go-Ex Programme

The Go-Ex programme is part of the government’s initiatives to guide and enhance the growth of exports of Malaysian SMEs. The programme is targeted at export-ready companies or high potential exporting companies venturing into new products or new markets.

SMEs, whether in retailing or manufacturing, always face uncertainties when exploring export market. Market potential, trends, legal requirements, competition, and the certifications required are just some of the questions to address when considering the export market. Much time will be spent on these and by the time the business is ready, the opportunity may have passed.

Go-Ex Programme by MATRADE is able to assign a market advisor and market linker to address your above concerns. We also understand that the programme offers up to RM 50,000 funds for relevant certifications needed to enter a new market.

Mid Tier Companies Development Programme

MTCs in Malaysia are defined as companies with annual revenues between RM50 million to RM500 million in the manufacturing sector and between RM20 million and RM500 million in other sectors. If your business is in this category, it is best you get into this programme. Why? Because MATRADE will assign international consultancy firm – McKinsey to consult, and provide practical tools and guidance on marketing your brand globally at no cost to you.
The objective of this programme is to accelerate export growth and to strengthen core business functions. This 9-month programme is opened to only 50 companies per year. They will tailor the assistance and support in accordance to your present organizational needs. Branding, expanding to new markets, access to finance, market intelligence, and linkage to technology partners are the type of support that grants can’t help you with but the MTC Development Programme can.

There are other government assistance programmes available but there are simply too many to share it in detail here, e.g. Industry Promotion and Development Grant by MCMC, Business Accelerator Programme and Innocert by SMECORP, Biotech Commercialisation Fund by BiotechCorp and MSC Malaysia Research & Development Grant Scheme (MGS) by MDEC.

Don’t be Fooled by Self-proclaimed Agents

It is important to note that government agencies do not appoint any agents or consultants to assist in the application for their assistance programmes. There are no official or approved agents for any of their programmes. Many “agents” will claim that they can guarantee approval, they know people and they will do everything without spending your time. Not True. Let’s be rational. Most programmes are evaluated and approved by a panel of committees from different departments or agencies. The “agents” can’t guarantee anything. They can’t help you without your involvement. Business direction, present corporate and product development, challenges and opportunities are important information to be submitted. The top management has to be involved. How much does an “agent” know about your business?

If you really need help, hire a consultant who can guide you through the process, strengthen your strategies, provide objective feedback, and produce concise and impactful write-ups to convince the government to provide assistance.

Doing it Right!

Many businesses claim that it is not easy dealing with government officers but have you played your part in understanding their process? Below are some recommendation to do it right:

• Check the website for basic information and forms. Most programmes have their forms downloadable from the respective agency’s website.
• Seek face-to-face clarification. Don’t interpret based on your own understanding. Spend time to pay a visit to the agency to seek clarification.
• Ask fellow recipients. Get insights from others on areas which need special attention.
• Submit the right documents or write-ups and NOT MORE. Submitting a lot of information and documents doesn’t necessarily make it better. But the officers will definitely need to spend more time to pick out the relevant information to prepare their reports.
• Please follow up. Constant follow up with officer in charge to ensure you have all the necessary information and documents in place and are ready for approval process.
• Management must know the content of submission. Do not only leave it to junior staff. Otherwise, interviews might be conducted and management might have zero knowledge then.

In short, branding can be done cost effectively. You do not need millions to brand. All the best in branding in these challenging times.

Total Brand Experience

Many retailers will focus on the customers’ purchasing and usage process to design their retailing business and yet neglect the crucial consumers’ buying journey of awareness, consideration, decision process, advocacy and upgrading. Retailers will need to offer brand experience that consumer cannot get elsewhere to differentiate themselves from others. It is all about the kind of experience you deliver to your customers with each and every interaction.

Consumers’ expectation can only get higher every day. They may know about your business or products better than you as information is just a click way. Hence, they have choices and information. They can choose freely.
I have always been equating branding = relationship. It is like dating with your consumers. Your girl/boyfriends expect you to read their minds, to find the solution for them before and without them asking for help, to provide the comfort and sense of security that they are your No. 1 priority, to love them with sincerity, to prove that you can be trusted, and much more. Consumers expect the same from retailers – nothing less.

Creating a Sustainable Brand Experience

Retail aesthetics are the key attraction today yet may no longer be in trend tomorrow. You may offer the most innovative products, delivered in the most creative and technologically advanced manner but what is innovative today will be a basic requirement tomorrow. The team you have, the values you practice and the culture you demonstrate are the ones your consumers appreciate the most. These are the elements that touch their hearts and gain their loyalty. Creating a sustainable brand experience is to invest in internal branding. It allows the brand offerings to evolve together with the market trend and consumers’ expectations.

It’s Real and in Malaysia

You may be sceptical that such an idea would work in Malaysia. In this article, I will share how a local brand in a sunset industry transformed itself offer a great total brand experience that SELLS. The brand is FERUNI. Feruni Ceramiche is a leading brand in upmarket ceramic and porcelain tiles. It was established in year 2001 as a conventional tile retailer which we are familiar with as somewhat a hardware shop. But FERUNI now has seven concept stores delivering a whole new brand experience. Below is my brand experience visiting their PJ outlet and joined their culture tour.

People and Values as the Backbone to Great Brand Experience

The Team – We were welcomed specifically by our names which even appeared on their LED TV screens, and were energetically greeted by their happy team members with smiles. They then guided us how to choose tiles based on our individual preferences, and showed us the layout designs of our kitchen or bathroom, incorporating the tiles we had shortlisted.

The team member even offered us tips on selecting tiles with our partners, no selling just sharing. It was more about helping us to make our choice but less on selling FERUNI products.
I felt more at ease exploring their tiles, to ask more questions, and I grew in confidence to make my decision, convinced that I fully informed to make the right choice. Even though I decided not to buy, I will surely recommend that my friends come over to check out the store.

The Values & Culture – Open-office concept with a strong belief to deliver Happiness and closely guided by their 10 core brand values. The company’s detailed programmes to ensure the well-being of their team members gave me a sense of confidence that I will be well taken care too. Gym, café, study room, hang out area etc. are made available to the team members to make them feel at home. They even have their own version of the “American Idol” talent audition to select the best team members.

Visualise What You Get Beyond Seeing What You Buy

Seeing is believing – If you like what you see in IKEA, you’ll love what you experience in FERUNI. Certain tiles may look nice but they may not fit into your entire interior design scheme. Just like IKEA, you can see, feel and touch their products (in this case, tiles) in actual room settings. But they are doing more to educare customers on the “why” and “when” of choosing the right tiles. If you are still uncertain whether a particular tile will suit your own home, bring along your layout and they will digitise the image and show you how it would look like. They even demonstrate how to maintain the tiles. The brand experience? Total peace of mind!

Involve and enjoy – Many of us would like to design our own house but have doubts about our own creativity. The FERUNI team seems to know that too. By understanding our emotional needs, they design their products in a way that we can mix and match to create a unique home design despite using the same tiles. I got to be involved in designing my house and enjoyed the process, and that in itself is another brand experience which you don’t normally get elsewhere.

FERUNI is neither my client nor am I their customer. I need to qualify that. Yet, my brand experience with the team was so complete that I would recommend other retailers to look at how and what they have done. Retailing by just selling can only get you a customer once. But retailing by delivering brand experience gets you more mileage and your customers may end up selling for you too.

It takes a lot of effort and planning. Take small steps and just focus on the following three and you will be on the way to capture your customers’ hearts and loyalty.

• The values that drive all programmes and activities
• The communications that deliver the same message using the same tone
• The little tiny things which we can help consumers throughout their buying journey

If a brand in a sunset industry can do it, why not you? Maximise your Brand Potential!

So, how can we derive the most ideal brand communication message if not a perfect one? The most ideal message is neither what your CEO likes nor it is whatever the consumer wants to hear. That is often the easy way out to fix that. At Bizsphere, we recommend brands to use this simple VALCOM 3C™ model as a guide. It is a simple and practical exercise we developed to assist brand managers to derive the most ideal message, taking into consideration the competitive market which they are operating in.

Easy Steps for Ideal Message

1. Customers (List out what matter most to them)
We are selling to or servicing our customers. Their needs and wants must be taken into consideration. We will need to find out what matter most to them with reference to the products or services we are offering. Try to list down as many as you can. If you are opening a café, would it be the coffee aroma, the origin of the coffee bean, the ambience, the personalized service with a smile, the price, the activities in it, the barista or the location that matters the most to them?

2. Company Strengths (filter & list out what are your strengths based on what matter most to them)
We must communicate the strengths that are “relevant” to what matter most to your customers. We can’t be overpromising what we do not have. There will be a lot of disappointments if we overpromise yet under-deliver. Filter out what you can do best to fulfill your customers’ needs and wants by looking at your internal strengths.

3. Competitors (Filter and list out your strengths which competitors are not addressing or heavily communicating)
You would have by now discovered your company’s strengths that are relevant to your customers’ needs and wants. Yet, your competitors can have similar capabilities as well. So what differentiates you and allows you to gain “competitive advantage” over your competitors? This is the step where you need to identify what you can do but not your competitors. Very often they can do the same but have they actively communicated out? If not, that could be your first-mover advantage of shouting out those strengths. A simple example will be the milk formula “Enfagrow”. Most brands in the market also contain DHA but did not actively shout it out. “Enfagrow” took the lead by advertising heavily, and everyone thought that they were the only one to offer DHA in earlier stage, and that enabled the brand to take the market by storm.

The red intersection in the centre will likely be your ideal message as it is relevant to what customers want and is able to demonstrate your strengths and competitive advantage over your competitors. The intersection between what matters most to customers and what your competitors are not addressing will be the key attribute for your brand to look into. This will be the high market potential area your brand should be focusing on to further develop your competency.

The Ideal Message(s) is what you should brief your copywriter on to further enhance it to be more appealing in your communication or advertisement. Looking back at the example of a café, you might be brewing the best coffee in town but your brand message might be “experiencing the enjoyment of coffee relaxation at your neighborhood” as this could turn out to be your competitive advantages that are most important to your customers.

Be reminded that the most ideal communication message might not be what you can do best or what you produce, but is instead about what your customer wants. It is not only about what you can promise but more about what you can deliver. It is not about how your services are the best, but about what your customers experience and how you can be better than the rest.