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| The 2014 Influential Brands Award winners with Guest of Honour Seah Kian Peng (5th from left) and Director of Brand Alliance Group, Jorge Rodriguez (1st from right). |
“Singapore brands can make its mark in the global scene. I encourage more Singapore companies to think of branding strategically, and as a tool for expansion. Underpinning all these requires long term planning and definitive and inspiring leadership,” said Seah Kian Peng, Deputy Speaker of Parliament and Minister of Parliament of Marine Parade GRC, the guest of honour.
In his speech Seah, who is also NTUC FairPrice Singapore's CEO, spoke about Singapore as a springboard to the world. "More Singapore companies can benefit from thinking of branding strategically, of capturing the imagination, the hearts and minds of their customers and the public at large and also, as a tool for expansion," he said.
“The future is bright and promising for many of the brands in Singapore. There are plenty of opportunities for brands to innovate and grow beyond our shores, in representing Singapore globally,” said Jorge Rodriguez, Director of Strategy at Influential Brands.
"Old Chang Kee is a proudly Singaporean brand which has room to grow in the region and beyond. While brands such as Tata and Alibaba are proudly known as global brands from India and China, Singapore can be proud of our homegrown brand heroes and Influential Brands hopes to provide the platform for brands to collaborate for better growth opportunities,” he said.
Rodriguez also touched on online media amplification is a way to get brand stories to a wider audience. "Do they know the value of your company, your mission, your ambition? This is what we want to bring online," he said. "Consumers want to know what you stand for."
He also stressed that brand builders should not reinvent the wheel. Rather than creating their own loyalty card platform, for example, they can ride on existing popular loyalty platforms like the PAssion card.
Working with popular online content platforms can also make a difference as their followers can share the story with others, provided the story is a good one. "Develop stories that are meaningful," he said.
Rodriguez also shared a sneak preview of a mobile app which will provide users with targeted location-aware promotions from Influential Brands winners.
Brand Alliance also launched a book, Influential Brands: A documentary of their heroic rise.
Han Keen Juan, Old Chang Kee Group’s Executive Chairman, said: “We see many passionate young people trying to start up their business. Many of them are not prepared for the long journey ahead. We hope that by sharing our story, we can play a part by giving them a perspective of realism that is not often told in the classroom.”
More than 40 categories have been identified in the lead-up to the 2014 Influential Brands Award*, with more than 30 new categories compared with 18 categories for the 2013 Influential Brands Award. The brands recognised in each of the categories have been selected by consumers themselves and this recognition is a mark of trust and consumer preference that represents a brand’s achievement in engagement.
Some of the 2014 Top Influential Brands include Ya Kun for in the Asian Cafes category, Old Chang Kee for F&B Kiosks, and Dumex for Milk Powders.
"Old Chang Kee is a proudly Singaporean brand which has room to grow in the region and beyond. While brands such as Tata and Alibaba are proudly known as global brands from India and China, Singapore can be proud of our homegrown brand heroes and Influential Brands hopes to provide the platform for brands to collaborate for better growth opportunities,” he said.
Rodriguez also touched on online media amplification is a way to get brand stories to a wider audience. "Do they know the value of your company, your mission, your ambition? This is what we want to bring online," he said. "Consumers want to know what you stand for."
He also stressed that brand builders should not reinvent the wheel. Rather than creating their own loyalty card platform, for example, they can ride on existing popular loyalty platforms like the PAssion card.
Working with popular online content platforms can also make a difference as their followers can share the story with others, provided the story is a good one. "Develop stories that are meaningful," he said.
Rodriguez also shared a sneak preview of a mobile app which will provide users with targeted location-aware promotions from Influential Brands winners.
Brand Alliance also launched a book, Influential Brands: A documentary of their heroic rise.
Han Keen Juan, Old Chang Kee Group’s Executive Chairman, said: “We see many passionate young people trying to start up their business. Many of them are not prepared for the long journey ahead. We hope that by sharing our story, we can play a part by giving them a perspective of realism that is not often told in the classroom.”
Some of the 2014 Top Influential Brands include Ya Kun for in the Asian Cafes category, Old Chang Kee for F&B Kiosks, and Dumex for Milk Powders.
Read the blog post about the book here and the post about the Influential Brands award here.
*The Influential Brands Award was developed to recognise brands’ efforts in engaging with the consumers through various means. Influential Brands also hopes to provide brands with a platform for further engagement with the target audiences. The Influential Brands programme is guided by four key goals:
- To create a fresh perspective on influential branding in Asia
- To educate brand owners seeking to harness branding as a key enabler for business growth
- To serve as a platform for recognising top brands and their commitment to engage consumers and for knowledge exchange
- To provide relevant insights to meet the expectations of today's ever-changing customers' needs
