(marketingmagazine.com.my) – By: Malati Siniah
There has been a recent trend of brands creating their own media platforms in communicating to their audiences.
Beauty brand L’Oréal earlier this year launched an unbranded online platform called, Fab Beauty, to showcase the latest lifestyle and fashion trends, similar to a beauty magazine.
However, this trend does not only stop with beauty brands, battling with strict advertising and regulations alcohol companies such as Heineken Malaysia have to stay creative in creating brand awareness.
Earlier this year, as part of an initiative, to better connect with its fans Tiger Beer launched a new music and arts website to showcase talented local artists.
The company’s latest initiative, however, is the launch of Malaysia’s first online radio station Amplify FM, a campaign under its Guinness brand.
“While there are already many online-based local music stations such as AFO Radio, what sets Amplify FM apart is that the station is purely dedicated to playing local Malaysian music,” Nick Larkworthy, Guinness Malaysia Marketing Manager told MARKETING in a recent interview.
“Whilst other contemporary radio channels give most of their airtime to international artists, we believe there is fantastic local talent in Malaysia and it deserves a home for people to tune in to.”
The company launched its new online radio station earlier this month. To create further buzz on Amplify FM, they also launched an online video which is fast approaching 600 thousand views on Facebook.
The video featured popular local band ‘An Honest Mistake’ performing Live inside a Guinness Truck cruising through the busy streets of Kuala Lumpur.
Apart from the buzz created by the launch video, Nick shared that Amplify FM would be promoted mainly through Facebook, PR and other digital partnerships.
The Amplify FM’s website currently runs a continuous stream of local music through SoundCloud. While the current advertisements heard in between songs are those promoting the station itself, Nick shared that despite having its own media platform they weren’t keen on opening up ad slots for the station anytime soon.
“Selling advertising to third parties on Amplify FM is not a part of the plan. Our priority is on attracting as many local bands as possible to showcase their talent and give them a voice.”
Amplify FM’s main purpose according to Nick was to give its annual Amplify campaign both scale and longevity.
“Amplify was launched in Malaysia in 2014 and what differentiates us is that we are hyper-local. While we will still host live events and experiences to showcase local music, we wanted to create a platform that was easily accessible year-round.”
While declining to share the exact ad spend of the campaign, Nick highlighted that Guinness spent around 50% of their above-the-line (ATL) budget on digital platforms and activations for this campaign.
As an extension of the campaign an Amplify Live Tour featuring local acts from Amplify FM will be conducted in Klang Valley, Ipoh, Penang and Johor, followed by a two-day music festival on September 30th and October 1st at Publika.
The 5th Malaysian Chief Marketing Officers (CMO) Conference is a full day journey into the minds of some of the sharpest and most inspiring minds in the business.
The market is in a state of flux. Media fragmentation has gone wild. Digital is exciting but also a minefield if handled wrong. Marketers need stamina, focus and a scalable approach to strategies. ROI has never been more confusing.
Hear from these dynamic and feisty brand leaders on how they are facing the New Realities:
• Loh Keh Jiat – CMO, Digi Telecommunications Sdn Bhd
• Raja Teh Maimunah Raja Abdul Aziz – MD & CEO, Hong Leong Islamic Bank Berhad
• Sulin Lau – Head of Marketing Services, Maxis
• Cyril Dhenaut – Head of Marketing, KFit
• Timothy Johnson – Senior VP of Marketing, INTI International University & Colleges
• Eric Wong – Marketing Director, IBM Malaysia
• Srikanth Ramachandran – Executive Director, Moving Walls
• Spencer Lee – Head of Commercial, AirAsia Berhad
• Bala Pomaleh – CEO, IPG Mediabrands
• Rachel Lim – Co-Founder of Love, Bonito
• Edward Ling – Sales Manager, Waze Malaysia
• Santharuban T. Sundaram – Group Marketing Manager, Etika Holdings (formely Permanis)
• Dato Seri Vida – Founder, Pamoga & Qu Puteh
•Rafiq Razalli – CEO, Media Prima Digital Sdn Bhd
Date: September 6th, 2016 (Tuesday)
Venue: Sime Darby Convention Centre, Jalan Bukit Kiara, Kuala Lumpur.
For details, contact Ruby on 03-77262588, [email protected]
Download event PDF here
More details www.marketingmagazine.com.my/cmo2016
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The Malaysian Marketing Conference & Festival 2024 at the Sime Darby Convention Centre is a TWO-day marketing event for all those in Marketing, Media, Advertising, PR, Digital, Data, and more….
The experience is on May 15 & 16, with Keynote Speakers, multiple tracks or Breakaway Sessions hosted by our booth partners who will show you the latest in the industry.
