YAW SENG HENG
GROUP MANAGING DIRECTOR NIPPON PAINT MALAYSIA GROUP
On how social media has impacted or promoted your business brand.
The rapid progress on the social media front has enabled us to further widen and extend our engagement with our audience and customers in a more targeted manner. With various digital platforms such as Facebook and Instagram revolving around conversations, insights derived from social listening and engagement further drives brand innovation and elevation.
On the company’s digitalisation efforts and how it has helped in branding.
At Nippon Paint, we see digitalisation as the way forward to enabling greater customer experience. We are constantly working towards creating a leaner and more efficient digital ecosystem that inter-connects our various stakeholders. From production to inventory planning and all the way to customer service, we envision a future that is more seamless, integrated and efficient.
Challenges faced by your company in a challenging economic environment.
Like any other business entities, we are constantly faced with various challenges either within the industry segment or the economy as a whole. Notwithstanding that, this propels us further into looking at various ways we are able to augment our position as industry leader. Beyond focusing solely on product characteristics, we place our efforts on inspiring our customers in which through our #PaintNewHappiness activation, we look at celebrating various life stages or milestones such as marriage, the joy of a new baby or remaking of an old age home through repainting. Product innovation will still play an important role in shaping consumer purchasing decision. Appreciating this insight, Nippon Paint recently launched Malaysia’s first Child Wellness Range, focusing on paint solutions that focuses on enhancing the overall health and wellness of children, while creating an uplifting and creative environment for a more positive developmental growth for infants, toddlers as well as preschoolers.
On strategies put in place to boost the company’s brand image.
Innovation has and will always be at the heart of Nippon Paint’s DNA. We focus on innovations at every aspect of the brand – be it product innovations, colour innovations as well as innovations in the way we do things. Ultimately, we are there to listen to our customers’ needs and to respond to them effectively and efficiently. Since a decade ago, we have led through various industry-first innovations such as odourless paint, anti-formaldehyde, anti-bacterial and anti-viral paint as well as paint that is able to reduce indoor thermal heat. With our recent ownership of the wellness-focused solutions, we are confident that are able to enhance and build stronger brand affinity among our customers.
The importance of a meaningful connection between a brand and a consumer in brand-building.
When a brand forges a connection between what it does and what people are seeking in a profound level, a meaningful connection is forged. This connection is the very foundation of building brand affinity and loyalty – areas that we as a brand truly treasures and constantly work on improving. That aside, the quality and credibility of our solutions remain the core foundation in building that trust in the longer term.