DATUK NAJMUDDIN ABDULLAH
DIRECTOR OF STRATEGIC COMMUNICATIONS AND STAKEHOLDER RELATIONS MRT CORP SDN BHD
On how social media has impacted or promoted your business brand.
Mass Rapid Transit Corporation Sdn Bhd’s (MRT Corp) vision is to be recognised as an integral provider of urban rail transport solutions and the mission is to engineer and deliver an effective, efficient and integrated mass rapid transit system safely, on time and within cost.
MRT Corp is the developer of the Klang Valley MRT Project and has successfully delivered the first out of three lines, the Sungai Buloh-Kajang (SBK) Line, on 17 July 2017.
As such, the brand can be associated for completion of the SBK Line Project on time and within cost.
Social media has allowed MRT Corp to keep the public informed of all stages of the SBK Line Project, which is vital for the brand.
And throughout all stages, the progress of the Project was shared on social media via photos of construction sites, as well as events and activities of milestones achieved.
On the company’s digitalisation efforts and how it has helped in branding.
MRT Corp’s digital platforms consist of the website and social media such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.
The information cascaded differ for the respective channels, such as traffic management which worked well on Twitter as a quick update on road diversions, while Instagram was effective as a story provider.
These tools have helped keep the public well-informed on the progress of the SBK Line Project.
Challenges faced by your company in a challenging economic environment (in
relation to branding).
In maintaining the public perception of the Project being able to be completed on time and within cost, it is essential that communication was constant and consistent. The challenges faced were generally in terms of the magnitude of the communication i.e how widespread the communication needed to be. Fortunately, for MRT Corp’s utilisation of social media platforms, this was not significantly hindered by the challenging economic environment.
On strategies put in place to boost the company’s brand image.
In boosting the brand image of completing the SBK Line on time and within cost, a number of strategies were implemented.
Campaigns were designed and executed on social media platforms in order to inform public on the milestones achieved. For example, the Catch the Train Photo Contest was held in conjunction with catching sight of the trains. This signified and created excitement on the impending opening of the SBK Line.
Infographics and videos were widely used to educate the public about the Project. Under the Did You Know posts, infographics which provided facts and figures to reinforce the message of the Project being able to be completed on time and within cost were posted.
On top of that, videos presented employees of MRT Corp opportunities to share and explain what they did for the Project in their respective functions. These videos gave the Project a human face, but more importantly, it highlighted how Malaysians were gaining new knowledge in the high-technology railway industry – an excelling in it through their involved in the Project.
The importance of a meaningful connection between a brand and a consumer in brand-building.
The most meaningful connection between the brand and the consumer in MRT Corp’s case is trust. Trust in brand builds confidence in MRT Corp as an organisation and this is extremely important as MRT Corp’s consumer is the rakyat.
The brand also instils a confidence in MRT Corp that it can complete the Project on time and within the stipulated budget, which means taxpayers money is being used correctly without any wastage.