Content Champions: MAMEE Chef (Malaysia)

MAMEE Chef is the instant noodle brand which innovates authentic local flavours such as lontong (rice cake soup) and rendang (beef stew). The brand was borne out of MAMEE-Double Decker Malaysia, which created the famous MAMEE Monster and Double Decker snacks. MAMEE Chef has been around since 2012, and claims to use ingredients crafted and handpicked to remind its customers of the real deal of Malaysian street foods. 

Content Champions is a segment during A+M’s Content360 conference in Malaysia in which we highlight brands who have made significant impact in the content marketing space through their campaigns. This campaign was shortlisted for Marketing Events Awards 2024 and chosen for coverage by the editorial team at A+M.   

Brand: MAMEE Chef 
Campaign: “MAMEE Chef Laksa Goreng: The Instant Noodles that Unified Malaysians” 

Challenge  

While MAMEE Chef has seen modest growth over the past few years, the brand still finds it challenging to breakthrough the sea of content in the Malaysia market. In Malaysia, the brand faces intense competition when it comes to instant noodles and often, instant noodle is seen as a commodity.

MAMEE Chef wanted to establish an emotional connection with its users, and gain traction with young working adults who tend to prefer premium and global instant noodle brands. In the fiercely competitive instant noodles landscape, dominated by celebrity endorsements, price wars and flashy campaigns, MAMEE Chef recognised that following a formula is not enough to stand out.  

Strategy

As a solution, MAMEE Chef and its agency Accenture Song, set their eyes on laksa, a deeply iconic and beloved Malaysian noodle soup dish with diverse regional interpretations, which sparked passionate debates online known as “the laksa war”. 

People from different regions came to defend their version of laksa, creating divisive opinions over which laksa type reigns supreme. It became a widespread sensation that even the nation’s Queen and former Prime Minister jumped on the bandwagon.

As a Malaysian brand, MAMEE Chef took it upon itself to promote unity and deliver a positive message to Malaysians during the Merdeka period. Hence, the “Laksa untuk semua” (‘Laksa for everyone’) tagline was born. MAMEE Chef wanted to remind Malaysians that its nyonya laksa goreng (fried nyonya laksa) is made to be enjoyed by everyone; therefore, positioning it as “the first instant noodle that brings Malaysians together”.

It hoped that the campaign would help to form differentiation in the market and create a deeper, meaningful connection with the young working adults who place high value on community spirit and inclusivity. To craft impactful content, MAMEE Chef made sure to roll its campaign out with a big bang. It drafted three key phases for its launch. 

Execution 

Phase one was to engage well-loved icons, to embody the spirit of unity among Malaysians. MAMEE Chef engaged local singer Sheila Majid as the face of its campaign. It believed that Sheila’s warm and charismatic presence would spark conversations and drive purchases of its nyonya laksa goreng. It also expanded its campaign to feature emerging local talents who are popular amongst the young working adults in Malaysia. 

The second phase of the campaign was to compose a catchy and compelling song that would be too hard to ignore. The “Laksa goreng style” (‘Fried laksa style’) song blended old school Malaysian jazz pop with modern beats, and incorporated local slangs and lingo. The song was created in collaboration with diverse talents. MAMEE Chef and Accenture Song then set out to create a vibrant music video set against a vibrant backdrop, to honour the rich heritage of nyonya cuisine, which inspired its innovative fried laksa product.  
 
Lastly, MAMEE Chef set out to spread the word nationwide. The “Laksa goreng style” music video was showcased across Malaysia on various digital out of home (DOOH) locations, to reach more eyeballs and attention. It also pushed the video further by retargeting and using the Lookalike approach on Meta & Instagram platforms to drive better reach and engagement. 

Check out the other winners here.