Once upon a time, if you wanted to break into advertising or marketing, you needed three things: Connections, credentials, and a cubicle in Damansara Heights.
Today?
You just need a cracked phone, a half-decent signal, and the guts to press – post.
No, it didn’t come wearing suits or carrying pitch decks.
It came with baju kelawar, background noise, and unfiltered relatability.
From Penang to Prime Time
Let’s talk about Faezah Binti Sufian, better known as @adikfoods on Instagram and TikTok.
A food-loving girl from Penang with zero agency backing, no expensive equipment, and definitely no Cannes aspirations.
Yet her creamy nasi goreng recipe went viral — pulling millions of views, loyal followers, and even brand collabs.
No media plan.
No production house.
Just magnetic charm, bold flavours, and a camera propped against a tissue box.
Today, she’s an F&B influencer, micro-business owner, and storytelling powerhouse — all in one.
And yes, she’s doing it better than most brand teams with five-figure budgets and internal task forces.
From Briefs to Bite-Sized Brilliance
While agencies are still editing the first draft of a festive campaign, these creators have posted three trending videos, gone live twice, and soft-launched a sambal product with more conversion than your best retargeting funnel.
Because they move fast.
They speak the language.
And they know what Malaysians want — not from insight decks, but from experience.
While your pitch slide says “We want authenticity,” they’re living it in real-time.
No polish. Just presence.
Shopee Sellers & Makcik Marketers
Scroll through Shopee Live.
You’ll find Abang Haikal from Batu Pahat selling tudungs with humour, hustle, and Hokkien jokes.
He’s got a ring light, a whiteboard, and a better understanding of CTAs than most junior copywriters.
On Instagram, Makcik Kalsom shares her petai sambal recipe with no filters, no edits — just fire.
Her DMs? Full. Her orders? Closed till Merdeka.
These are not isolated stories.
These are signs.
The next great marketer may not even know what a funnel is.
But they’ve figured out something better: connection.
This Is Not a Threat. It’s a Wake-Up Call.
Let’s be clear — this isn’t about pitting creators against agencies.
This is about evolution. Collaboration. A reality check.
Agencies need to stop seeing these creators as “just influencers.”
They’re marketers in their own right — with instincts forged in comment sections, not classrooms.
The ad industry has long glorified the “big idea.”
But in 2025, small ideas told honestly are outperforming big-budget bluffs.
So instead of asking “What’s our viral strategy?”
Ask: “Who already knows our audience better than we do?”
Then reach out. Listen. Learn.
From Pasar Malam to Brand Strategy
The future of branding isn’t in your war room.
It’s in the kedai mamak. The night market. The small kampung sundry store with 500k followers on TikTok.
The future of strategy is lived, not written.
And the next generation of brand voices may come from those who’ve never seen the inside of a creative brief but know exactly how to make Malaysians feel something.
That’s your new competition. And hopefully, your next collaboration.
So here’s the question every brand manager, planner, and CMO needs to ask: Are we speaking to Malaysians — or are we speaking like them?
Because if you’re not working with these self-made marketers…
