Posted: July 25th, 2010 | Author: Isman Tanuri | Filed under: Social Media | Tags: asia, Business, employees, Facebook, forum, organisations, september, Singapore, Social Media, Social media world forum, social network, suntec, twitter | View Comments
Ever wonder what’s the fuss about social media? Why is it important to understand social media’s impact on how we communicate and share information? And the fact that, just like the internet and email, the social and technological changes brought about by social media are irreversible?
Look Who’s Back
For the second year running, the folks from Six Degrees are back to present Social Media World Forum Asia 2010 in Singapore. This year’s event promises to be bigger than last year’s and will present a host of speakers from many sides of the social media story.
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Posted: July 25th, 2010 | Author: Isman Tanuri | Filed under: Customer Service, People Development | Tags: Business, clients, complain, complaining, complaints, customers, healthy, positive, singaporeans | View Comments
| This post first appeared in an internal employee ‘email-cast’ by yours truly. Adapted for general reading. |
Singaporeans like to complain, right?
We complain about everything! Why is it flooding in Orchard Road? Why are MRT fares expensive? Why watching World Cup on cable is so expensive? Why is the weather so hot/cold? Okay lah, let’s say we call these: ‘feedback‘.
Now look at the photo on the right. This is the message from the video display screens around Gatwick Airport in London:
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Posted: June 4th, 2010 | Author: Isman Tanuri | Filed under: Business, Life-long Learning, Management & Leadership, People Development, Technology | Tags: Business, digital, efficiency, efficient, Google, human resource, nexus one, People Development, productivity, simple, survey, technologies, Technology | View Comments
Full disclosure: I admit I am a technology geek and, unabashedly, a Google fanboy. I am always fiddling with my gadget of choice (my Google Nexus One phone), customising my Google Chrome browser and I constantly try to outsmart the office’s laptop and its ‘restrictions’. You may ask why do I spend valuable time and effort on activities like these?
Well, I demand technology to work for me, to get the most value out of pieces of technology I own or paid good money for. But most simple technologies are made available to me for free, so being Singaporean, free is holy. But, above all, the driving motivation for this is to increased productivity and efficiency, both for my personal and professional uses. (Particularly useful when I was studying too).
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Posted: April 16th, 2010 | Author: Isman Tanuri | Filed under: Business, Marketing 2.0, Mobile Marketing, Technology | Tags: android, Business, buuuk, food, foodie, halal food, iPhone, marketing, Marketing 2.0, Mobile Marketing, Singapore, small business | View Comments
Being the avid foodies that we are, the wife and I are always on the lookout for new food joints to satisfy our cravings. Our problem is, being Muslims, finding halal establishments in Singapore can be quite a challenge. The halal foodie depends heavily on word-of-mouth recommendations, googling the Web and physical ‘stumbleupons’ to discover new food places (sometimes food blogs such as ‘Yok Makan!’ offers great recommendation). But most times though, halal food places remains top of our Google search list.
Not for much longer though. The mobile web will save us all.
Introducing BuUuk: The Mobile Foodie App
Things have gotten easier since we discovered BuUuk for our Android phones (Nexus One FTW BTW). BuUuk is a restaurant guide utility application available for free on the iPhone App Store and also for phones running on Android (get it from Android Market on your phone or click this to dowload .apk file and install). Interestingly, BuUuk is a homegrown, Singapore-made product and has also been featured on CNN Go’s list of ‘11 Crucial iPhone Travel Apps’.
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Posted: January 28th, 2010 | Author: Isman Tanuri | Filed under: Business, Customer Service, The Customer | Tags: Business, Customer Service, lost, parcel, postal, service quality, Singapore Post, Singpost, Social Media, USPS | View Comments
Post Updated: 5 May, see end of post
Are we really a First World country with a world-class service industry serving the economy? Certainly not if our still unresolved issue with Singapore Post (SingPost) is a yardstick for measurement. A simple request for Singapore Post to re-deliver my wife’s parcel (containing online purchases of clothes from Forever 21) has dragged on for almost 3 weeks with no end in sight. Much worse is the customer service treatment we have been receiving at the hands of this monopolistic (we don’t really have a choice, do we?) Singaporean postal service. Truth is: no one at SingPost seems to care!
Posted: December 10th, 2009 | Author: Isman Tanuri | Filed under: Business, Life-long Learning, Management & Leadership | Tags: Branding, Business, business lessons, Chris Anderson, competition, Marathon, Marketing 2.0, running, The Long Tail | View Comments
The Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon 2009 came around last Sunday. I eventually ticked another item off my New Year’s Resolutions list by completing the 21km half-marathon, my first ever, but not without pains and frustration. Despite being able to run continuously for 90 minutes and feeling strong and tireless at the 14km mark, I had to switch to brisk walking because of a prior niggling injury to my right ankle. That meant shifting my weight to the left leg, and soon I was cramping out on that leg. One thing led to another and soon both legs were developing muscle pains.
Thinking is a Painkiller
I began writing this blog post in my head for the next 5km. That somewhat took away the troubling thoughts that I will not reach the Finish Line in 2.5 hours (my goal on the outset). In any case, many of my blog posts had been written while on my daily runs. The experts do say that running makes you smarter. I certainly like the tone of that.
As I have been reading Chris Anderson’s The Long Tail lately, naturally my mind drifted there. Observing the massive throng of people (well, mostly folks speeding past me), a theoretical connection clicked, from which more thoughts poured in.
Here’s the result of killing pain with brain juicing.
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Posted: November 20th, 2009 | Author: Isman Tanuri | Filed under: Branding, Business, Marketing 2.0 | Tags: Branding, Business, market share, marketing, offline, online, revenue, sticky marketing, tipping point | View Comments
I think we have to agree that traditional offline marketing is still a crucial business initiative even in today’s consumer markets. As much as I am a huge advocate of bringing people online and influencing through great online content and virtual social interaction, digital alone will not cut it. Going out there with road shows, direct marketing with flyers and sales promotions are still expected by the buying public, most especially in Singapore (Great Singapore Sale, anyone?)
Which is great for the economy, especially in the current slumpish conditions. But unfortunately, most businesses want to fast track the route to cash. ‘What is the fastest way to push stock and goods?’ ‘Which shopping season will reap the most money for us?’ Hence, the customer neglect.
Segment and predict the market, yes. Understand the market, NO!
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