It’s more than Specs

Which smart phone should you buy?

Blogger Tekkaus recommends Nokia E72. He compares the specifications of Nokia E72 and iPhone side-by-side, and concludes that the former is a better phone. But before I drill deeper into this issue, let me digress a bit…

A couple of years ago, I was searching for a backpack for my DSLR camera. I narrowed my choice to two – Tamrac Adventure 7 and Crumpler Sinking Barge. Tamrac was more practical, with lots of pockets to store accessories, but Crumpler was more stylish.

Tamrac – practical but boring

Crumpler – colorful and youthful

There is another issue with Tamrac: If I were to take out the camera, I must first lay down the bag on the floor. Imagine if I were shooting at a muddy place… With Crumpler, I could access the camera while the bag is still on my shoulder.

In the end, I got a Crumpler…

When you are buying a car, what factors do you consider? Price, dimensions, engine capacity, fuel economy… and of course physical design. You want a cool-looking car, don’t you?

Now back to the question of smart phone choice. Specifications-wise, iPhone may not be the best. But it is elegant. And many iPhone users have reported that the phone is intuitive and easy to use. (Disclaimer: I don’t own an iPhone.) These qualities are not easily quantifiable, but they are the factors potential buyers would consider.

Specs are not everything…

How to be Famous on Facebook

I came across this news feed on Facebook…

My MBA course mate, Patricia, was tagged in a photo. But I look at the picture, it shows a dress. Where is she???

My ex-colleague, Sarah, is tagged in another photo. Again I don’t see her anywhere in the picture…

So, if you upload your pictures to Facebook and want to capture attention of other people, here is a sure-fire formula: Tag as many of your friends as possible. Not only will your friends be notified, but your friends’ friends will also get the news. Before long, you will be a very (in)famous person on Facebook.

Canon’s Misstep?

Canon has appointed Jackie Chan as it’s spokesperson for China. It even released EOS 550D Jackie Chan Eye of Dragon special edition…

Somehow, the movie star is hugely unpopular in his native Hong Kong ever since he made the Chinese-should-be-controlled remark. Photographers of Hong Kong have created a group on Facebook, asking Canon to remove Jackie Chan as its spokesperson…

Facebook group to remove Jackie Chan as the spokesperson for Canon

And they expressed their disgust over the new camera in a forum…

(link)

Translation:

I will consider if it’s Chow Yun Fat edition… Jackie Chan edition… [laugh]

xxxx!!! [angry] Project a bad image for Canon

Make us vomit [vomit]

For a moment I had the intention to jump ship [vomit vomit]

It looks like Canon’s move has backfired, at least in Hong Kong.

I am not anti-Jackie Chan, but the special edition is definitely not my cup of tea. Even if one is given to me as a free gift, I will cover the Chinese character with a sticker, and replace the strap

PC Fair, Booth Babes & Others

Sex sells. In conjunction to the PC Fair held in Kuala Lumpur on April 16-18, many exhibitors hired young girls to promote their products. Call them expo girls, booth babes or whatever, these pretty promoters had made the PC Fair more than just about technology.

Sony showing 3D technology in the PC Fair

Three promoters for Kaspersky Lab

A rechargeable battery dealer had gone one step further in exploiting the sexual appeal of young promoters. Not only it had hired three pretty girls to attract customers, but it also organized a photo contest. Anyone who purchased any item from its booth was entitled to photograph the girls and participate in the contest. The dealer has listed down the rules of the contest as follow:

1. To enroll for the Grand Prize – buy any item from our booth

2. Take photos of our models posing with our E8GE products!

3. Log on to facebook.com/e8gefb

4. Upload your best photo of our models by 11:59pm 30 April 2010

5. Get your friends to “like” your photo until 11:59pm 9 May 2010

6. The top 62 photos with the highest number of “likes” win!

Now, if a photographer asks his friends to ‘like’ his photo, he is indirectly doing a marketing job for the products. (I’m assuming all participants are males.) What a brilliant idea! Unfortunately, I had less than 50 friends on Facebook. There was no way I could win the grand prize (a total of 2, with the remaining consolations).

One of the models for this contest was Rhea Lim, whom I photographed last year. I was surprised that she still recognized me. I bought four rechargeable batteries and a charger from the booth, but was nonetheless not interested in joining the contest.

This photo contest reminds me of another online contest held several years ago – The New Seven Wonders of the World. Even when the competition was going on, I already could predict the final results. China had the largest number of Internet users in the world, and they were fiercely patriotic. They were called to support their own national treasure, and anyone who failed to do that would be condemned as traitor. As expected, the Great Wall got the most votes in this meaningless competition.

名称学

我在上一篇中文post提出一个问题：

为何中国奇瑞汽车的英文名称是Chery而非Qirui?

Qirui是奇瑞的汉语拼音。但不懂中文的人，会把Qi唸成key。Chery是一个比较『国际化』的名称。从市场学(marketing)的角度来看，Chery会比Qirui占优势。

再看另一个例子：日本Canon株式会社的创办人吉田五郎是佛教徒。1934年他研发出第一台相机，名为Kwanon – 观音，还用上了一个千手观音的商标。可是一年后相机推出市场时，他却决定将之改名为Canon。原因无他：Canon是英文字，比Kwanon更能为国际顾客接受。

如果阁下创办一家公司，已取了中文名，现在想要找一个罗马字母拼写的名称，汉语拼音是否适合呢？

一般来说，『国际化』的名称有其优点。不过如果要显突中华文化，中文名称也行。比如说：如果你开了家中餐馆，取名福满楼，可译为Fumanlou。但如果中国的全聚德想走向国际，最好用简写QJD。若用汉语拼音，讲英语的人会以为Quan的读法和quantity的第一音节相同，jude的读法和Jude Law的名字相似。

汉语拼音中的qi、qu、ri等音节容易唸错，应尽量避免。

当然，我们也可以索性采用『国际化』名称。譬如饺子屋，可译为The House of Dumpling，这比Jiaoziwu什么的要好得多。樱花茶餐厅，可作Sakura Café。李记茶餐室，就称为Lee Restaurant吧！

阁下如果想了解更多，不妨聘请我当顾问。我是MBA学生耶

P/S 新加坡华人已经全面拥抱汉语拼音。狮城最近出品一齣中文电影，片名是《玫瑰香》，译作Mei Gui Xiang。其实，Scent of the Rose会更好！

Should you get an iPad?

Apple finally unveiled its highly-anticipated tablet computer on Jan 27, 2010. The new gadget has been ridiculed for its name, which sounds like high-tech tampon. Jokes aside, should you get an iPad?

Well, if money is not an issue, and if you love gadgets, then by all means get one as your new toy. Otherwise, ask yourself this question: If you already have a PC/Mac and iPhone, do you still need an iPad?

One factor to consider is typing on iPad. With iPhone, you hold the device on your left hand and type with your right hand. iPad is too big to be held with one hand, so most likely you have to place it on the table or on your laps. Here is where iPad is at disadvantage: you can adjust the angle of a notebook screen, but you can’t do so with iPad.

Another factor to consider is that iPad can’t do multi-tasking, so you can’t surf Web and listen to music at the same time. (But I won’t be surprised if Steve Jobs address this issue in future models.)

In the end, I expect iPad will be primarily used as an electronic reader, i.e. device for reading e-books. One can download e-books from Apple’s own iBookstore. Prices begin at US$12.99 for each book.

Another possibility is to use the gadget as the replacement for students’ text books. Imagine carrying an iPad instead of five or more physical books. However, in order for iPad to be widely adopted as text book replacement, its price has to come down substantially. You don’t want your kids to carry a US$499 gadget to school.

Travelers may like iPad too. They can download electronic version of Lonely Planet for reference. Of course, they must make sure that they can recharge the device along the trip. Theft is another concern. (Kikey Loo, are you interested?)

As for myself, I noted in one of my posts that I am a technology laggard. I doubt I will purchase an iPad in 2010.

Singapore’s Cosplay Café

One of Japan’s pop cultures which has gained popularity throughout Asia is cosplay – short for costume play. Cosplay fans dress themselves like characters in manga, anime and computer games.

An offshoot of cosplay is cosplay cafés, in which waitresses often dress in French maid outfits. When patrons enter a ‘maid café’, the waitresses would greet them with “Okaerinasaimase goshujinsama”, which means “Welcome home, master!”

Singapore’s A87 Café & Bar is one cosplay restaurant which draws ideas from Japan. Its waitresses dress in angel outfits rather than French maid outfits. The most interesting thing about this café is – for $1 per bite – you can be hand-fed by the waitresses!

Photo by The Straits Time

I have learned that Starbucks doesn’t just sell coffee, or even service. Rather, it sells experience. A87 is another example of experience business.

I know, some of you would see this as gender-discrimination. I personally would feel uneasy being hand-fed…

Guys, do you like to be hand-fed by teenage angels?

Link: Akibanana

Two Commercial Ads

In my post, Malaysia’s Broadband War, I mentioned P1’s ‘Cut Now’ advertisement. P1 also has ‘Cut Now’ TV commercials. Unfortunately, the commercials were met with strong objections from certain groups, who thought they were derogatory to women. In this conservative Muslim-majority society, the word ‘cut’ has another meaning – removing skin from a man’s private part.

‘Cut Now’ commercial (Cantonese version) on Youtube…

The controversy caused by P1 reminds me of Japanese commercial for Wacoal Up-Up bra. In this commercial, a man drops his document when he sees a pretty lady at the elevator. The lady lowered her body to pick up the paper. It’s at this moment that the guy sees her breasts, enhanced by the Up-Up bra.

18SX! Up-Up bra on Youtube…

I gather that this kind of ads will never make it to Malaysian TV. But let’s assume for a moment that it does, what would happen?

Religious groups would condemn it as obscene and polluting the minds of youths.

Women’s groups would criticize it as a form of gender discrimination.

What do you think of the two commercials? Are they distasteful or creative? Are we too conservative?

Malaysia’s Broadband War

Among Malaysian consumers, ADSL is the dominant technology used to access Internet. Streamyx is the leading ADSL service providers. In the past few years, however, wireless technology has emerged as the alternative means of Internet access. 3G and WiMAX providers are now challenging Streamyx.

P1, the leading WiMAX operator, recently launched an advertisement with the slogan ‘Potong Now’ (Cut Now). The ad tells us to cut the plain old telephony line (landline). Since most of us own mobile phones, landline is redundant, except in the case of prolonged power failure. And if we cut the landline, we essentially terminate the Streamyx service as well.

Here is the P1 ad. Click to enlarge…

Streamyx responded by launching its own marketing campaign. In its ad, a man is shown as having to surf the Net from a window. It implies that wireless technology is not good, and that we can’t use it indoor. (I doubt the claim, though.)

This is Streamyx’s ad. Click to enlarge…

P1’s ‘Cut Now’ slogan may backfire. In this Islamic state, the very word ‘cut’ has another meaning. It implies the circumcision ceremony performed on Muslim boys.

The broadband war has heated up in Malaysia. Competition is good for the consumers, isn’t it? (Well, except in the case of soccer TV broadcast.)

摄影啦

最近无意中发现一个本地的中文摄影网站 – 摄影啦（http://www.fotolah.com ）。

马来西亚有许多供摄影发烧友交流的网站，如PhotoMalaysia，Photokaki，ShutterAsia和Rojak Studio。这些网站的主要媒介语是英语，不过偶尔也有会员以马来文发帖。

个人觉得马来西亚的摄影网站已经太多了。这些网站如果仅仅靠广告收益是不容易维持下去的，因为僧多粥少。PhotoMalaysia 最近已开始向会员征收某些费用。譬如说：要在Service Offer/Wanted 论坛里发表新主题，必需先付一笔钱。

网站经费不谈，我们在论坛里发表新主题，是为了要获得其他会员回应。论坛太多，分散了摄影爱好者的注意力。

摄影啦作为一个中文网站，已经把不懂中文的摄影爱好者排挤在外。它的论坛图库，还只对注册会员开放。一个如此封闭的网站，是否能够取得足够的经费而长久生存呢？

P/S 如果阁下看得懂粤语，不妨上香港的论坛：http://www.dchome.net

Since 1851

The older a firm is, the more we can trust its products or service. Or is it?

If not, why do we see so many “since xxxx” taglines?

Kiehl’s – since 1851…

OshKosh – since 1895…

Sri Melaka – established 1985…

Mind you, Intel and Microsoft dominate PC market, but the older IBM, founded in 1889, exited the business several years ago. Lehman Brothers was founded in 1850, but is now bankrupt.

If you started up your firm last year, you can also consider adding a “since xxxx” tagline for advertising purpose. Examples:

Neo’s Studio – since 2008

Sloppy Chic’s Kitchen – established 2008

Kikey’s Au Pair Agency – founded 2008

Lisa’s Management Consulting Firm – your ideal partner since 2008

FoongPC’s Music Center – bringing music and joy to you since 2008

Tell me if the tagline helps you increase the sale…

Singapore Formula 1 Night Race

Singapore is holding the first ever Formula 1 night race…

But why hold the event at night? I think there are marketing factors at play here.

First, F1 cars racing down the street at night is unique, and uniqueness draws attention. By the way, Singapore tourism’s tagline is Uniquely Singapore.

Second, 8pm at Singapore is 1pm at London, and 2pm at Paris, Berlin and Rome. More Europeans will be able to watch live TV broadcast. If the race starts at 2pm in Singapore, it would clash with church hours.

Now let’s hope that Singapore’s first F1 race will be a successful one…

Marketing Sports

In my earlier post, I wrote that badminton matches need more commercial breaks in order to attract sponsorship. International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) has a more radical idea to promote the sport. The secret:

Sex sells!

ITTF vice-president Claude Bergerewas reporting as saying, “We are trying to push the (female) players to use skirts and also nicer shirts, not the shirts that are made for men, but ones with more curves.”

It may seem derogatory to ask women table tennis players to wear skirts and sexy shirts. But think again, female track-and-field athletes are already wearing bikini-typed suits. Of course, there should be no coercion. As a libertarian, I find it acceptable that table tennis players wear sexy attires. On the other hand, if some women from conservative countries wish to wear long-sleeved shirts and long pants, it is also perfectly fine. No veils, though.

I expect many feminists to rebuff ITTF’s proposal, calling it a discrimination against the fairer sex. But wait a minute. Before you object, ask yourself this question, “Why is David Beckham so popular among ladies?”

Shown below are Russian pole-vaulter Yelena Isinbayeva in bikini-typed tracksuit and some stylish table tennis attires.

Related post:

Badminton - why no commercial breaks?

International Live Broadcast

There are many soccer leagues in Europe, such as English Premier League (EPL), Spanish La Liga, Italian Serie A and German Bundesliga. Among them, EPL has the largest fan base in Asia.

There are many factors which contribute to the popularity of EPL, but I think one of them has to do with timing. EPL matches are played early. In summer, soccer fans can watch some matches as early as 7.30pm in China, Hong Kong, Malaysia and Singapore, or 6.30pm in Thailand. These are soccer-mad nations. Why bother to pull yourself out of the cozy bed at 2.30am for a Serie A match?

The Beijing Olympic organizers probably have learned a thing or two from EPL. In this game, the finals for swimming events were held in the morning – in Beijing. That’s evening in the Americas. I believe millions of Americans must have glued to the TV to watch Michael Phelps in action.

Badminton – why no commercial breaks?

I was watching Olympic badminton matches. As an MBA student, I also pondered a question: How to promote badminton?

In a badminton match, players swap side after each game is played. They also take this opportunity to drink water and probably wipe off their sweat. The interval lasts just 1 or 2 minutes. Such a short interval has two implications.

First, players do not have ample time to rest, and tired players don’t perform well. Second, corporate sponsors may want to shy away, because the interval is not long enough to air their commercials in a live TV broadcast.

Badminton badly needs sponsorship. But to attract sponsorship, there has to be commercial breaks.

Have you ever wondered why NBA basketball matches have so many time-outs? This is because corporate sponsors like them. OK, maybe there are so many time-outs that they break the flow of the game. For a badminton match, perhaps a 3-minute break after first set and a 5-minute break after second set are just nice. As an audience, I hate time-outs.

A side note:

I believe many Chinese Malaysians were happy to see China winning 3 badminton gold medals out of a total of 5. Unfortunately, dominance of a single nation – any nation – is bad for the sport. (I have to stress the words “any nation” or I would be accused of being anti-China.) Where are the excitements if the games are predictable?

Malaysia’s Broadband Networks

In one of my posts, I noted that Packet One, a Malaysian firm, was about to roll the country’s first WiMAX wireless broadband network. Blogger Neo immediately said that he would stick to his existing ADSL (wired broadband) service.

Packet One would roll out its service first in Klang Valley, a region that covers Kuala Lumpur and its surrounding area. Here it would compete with ADSL service offered by TM, and 3G/3.5G offered by Celcom, Maxis, U Mobile, and soon DiGi. Given that WiMAX modems are expensive and bulky, Packet One will have a tough battle ahead.

Which makes me wonder: why doesn’t it launch the service outside Klang Valley?

Blogger Anne who lives in Perak complained that her area had no broadband service at all – neither ADSL nor 3G. Should Packet One launch its service in Perak first, I am sure a lot of people would sign up. Of course, market for Perak is no match compared to that in Klang Valley, but competition is also less intense. Packet One should have what marketers call first mover advantage over much of the state.

All major communication firms in Malaysia – be it Celcom, DiGi, Maxis, TM or U Mobile – launch their respective services in Klang Valley first. Then they expand to Penang and Johor Bahru; then to Kuantan, Kuching and Kota Kinabalu; then to the rest of the nation. Why can’t they break away from this rigid pattern?

Marketing in China

A number of years ago, I went to China on a business trip. I was in a city called Jining （济宁）in Shandong Province for two months. There, I came across a restaurant called California Beef Noodle King （美国加州牛肉面大王）.

The logo of the restaurant featured a man – supposedly the founder Mr. Li. It reminded me of KFC’s Colonel Sanders. Incidentally, the restaurant’s trademark and logo were painted in red, same color as KFC.

A few months later, I was on another business trip, this time to California. I frequented many “Chinese American Restaurants” during my stay there. Some of the most common Chinese American cuisines included Beef and Broccoli, Sweet and Sour Chicken, Kong Po Chicken, General Tsuo’s Chicken, Chap Suay and Egg Foo Yong. Not to be forgotten are the ubiquitous Fortune Cookies. Beef noodle? I am not sure if it ever existed in California.

Chinese consumers probably think that international brands are better than home-grown ones. Mr. Li clearly selected a Western-sounding name for his business. Smart marketing move . Last check, California Beef Noodle King is doing pretty well in the Middle Kingdom, but I doubt it will ever be great in the Golden State.

China's home-grown California Beef Noodle King

P/S

Maybe I should open a curry food restaurant in China and name it Texas Curry House （美国德州咖哩餐厅）. What do you think?

Tune Hotels vs. Backpackers’ Guesthouses

AirAsia is one of the most successful airlines in Asia. This budget airline has transformed the aviation industry in Southeast Asia. No content with his success, AirAsia’s founder Tony Fernandes is venturing into hospitality industry with his Tune Hotels.

Like AirAsia, the Tune Hotels group is run on the “no frills” concept. From what I heard, Tony Fernandez plans to set up Tune Hotels in every city served by AirAsia. This will put them in direct competition with budget guesthouses long favored by backpackers to Southeast Asia. How will they fare? Since I personally am a backpacker and MBA student, I am interested in analyzing the two options we have.

~~~~~~~~~~

Price

Tune Hotels’ webpage says that the room rate starts “from RM9.99”. That’s cheaper than what backpackers’ guesthouses could offer. So, price-wise, Tune Hotels win, provided that you book your room well in advance. (I am assuming that Tune Hotels have the same pricing policies as AirAsia.)

Flexibility

Well, I said “book well in advance.” If you don't, you may have to pay several times more than the amount advertised. One thing Tony Fernandes hasn’t learned is: backpackers’ don’t like fixed itinerary. We change our plans frequently. That will make booking in advance difficult.

Experience

When I visited Bali in 2005, I stayed in guesthouses that were transformed from traditional Balinese houses, and equipped with aesthetic traditional furniture and gardens.

Tune Hotels are likely to have similar, nondescript design everywhere they are built. The staffs are likely to wear the same set of red uniform. Also, since Tune Hotels emphasize (over-emphasize) efficiency and cost-cutting, their employees would have to abide by lots of "standard operating procedures", making them more robot-like.

Location

Guesthouses are usually small. They can be found in metropolis like Bangkok, medium size cities like Chiang Mai, small cities like Chiang Rai and even villages like Mae Salong. Tune Hotels are big, so you are less likely to see one in Chiang Rai. Mae Salong? No way!

Brand

AirAsia is big in Malaysia. Tony Fernandes is one of the most famous Malaysian entrepreneurs. Apparently, the Tune Hotels group can leverage the brand power of its sister company. Malaysians who fly with AirAsia have a very good chance of checking in Tune Hotels too.

But wait a minute. Majority of backpackers are Westerners, with a significant number from Japan. The AirAsia/Tune Hotels brand may have little impact on them.

~~~~~~~~~~

So, how will Tune Hotels fare? I believe they will do well in Malaysia, but more work is needed in Bali, Thailand or Vietnam. For now, I will still choose guesthouses over Tune Hotels.

Employees of Tune Hotels are unlikely to be as friendly as this pretty lady of Shinsane Guesthouse in Mae Salong.

The More, the Merrier

Schick has introduced the Quattro razors. As its name suggests, these are 4-bladed razors.

Back in 1990s, Intel, the chip giant, told us that we needed more megahertz/gigahertz for our computer CPU. In 2000s, digital camera makers remind us that we need more megapixels in order to take professional-grade photos. Now, Schick is telling us, “Guys, you need more blades!”

I have been using 2-bladed Schick product, and haven’t understood why I need a 4-bladed razor. Anyway, Schick has discontinued the sale of 2-bladed cartridge, so I have to ‘upgrade’. Don’t be surprised if Schick comes out with ‘Penttro’ line of products in 2 or 3 years.

Facebook – the next Google?

If I search for “Wat Doi Suthep” on www.google.com, Google could deduce that I may be going to Chiang Mai. It will then insert a text ad for hotel information in the Rose of the North. This is a concept known as target marketing.

Advertising on Facebook works in the same way, but possibly with higher precision. When we join the social networking site, we disclose our personal information such as the country/state/city we live, college attended, workplace, activities and interests. Facebook will then display advertisements that could catch our attention. Here are what I see when I log onto Facebook…

Pretty amazing, huh? And I can bet that if I enter “traveling” in the “interests” field of my profile, I will see advertisements of airlines and hotels.

Some time ago Facebook even intended to notify a user’s friends when he or she made a purchase online. Fortunately, protest from the users forced CEO Mark Zuckerberg to shelf his plan. Just imagine you subscribe Penthouse online and all your friends know about it

Advice to all Facebook users:

Do not disclose too much of your personal data. Your privacy could be at RISK!