Former TGV Cinemas brand lead Yen Ong joins Bosch Home Appliances unit

TGV Cinemas’ former head of brand and communications Yen Ong (pictured) has joined BSH Home Appliances Group as head of marketing in Malaysia overseeing Bosch and Gaggenau. She reports to Adrian Kok, head of marketing and eCommerce, ASEAN.

Ong told A+M in a conversation that she will cover a few key pillars in her new role including brand communication, product marketing, eCommerce, and customer service training. She is responsible for elevating the brand awareness of Bosch and Gaggenau as well as understanding the current consumer needs and wants. "We want to offer a suitable range of home appliances to consumers, especially during this time when everyone is at home and will be cooking, washing and cleaning a lot at home. Hence, we want to ensure we have products that suit their lifestyle," she explained.

On the eCommerce front, BSH began offering its home appliances products on Lazada Malaysia last August and Ong aims to continue building brand awareness via D2C engagements. Additionally, she will also oversee PR and consumer engagement. 

"I know that Bosch is a well-known, globally recognised brand and its products are of high quality, with innovative technology and are stylish. Taking on the challenge of building the brand into a household one for Malaysians excites me," Ong said. She added that her new role is about focusing on the consumer experience, having product knowledge and putting people at the heart of its marketing efforts, as well as selling the experience together with the product.

Ong will lead a team of four comprised of brand and communications, product marketing, eCommerce and customer service training. She was previously with TGV Cinemas for more than three years, leaving her role in January this year, according to her LinkedIn. Among her list of memorable achievements at TGV included the creation of an in-cinema concert and on-ground engagement for frontline heroes in Malaysia where families and their children could participate in activities at TGV to make their movie-going experience more memorable.

Before TGV, she was manager, brand building at UMW Toyota Motor where she was responsible for the overall planning and development for digital marketing and advertising and promotion. Her areas of responsibility included web management, social media, SEO, SEM, content marketing, e-sales tools, and performance analysis, according to her LinkedIn. Ong also oversaw media planning management with all brand managers and led the communication strategy and user journey innovation of marketing campaigns.

Additionally, she also worked at Naza Crest as an assistant manager for three years, planning and defining the overall marketing strategy for each project, as well as developing and implementing marketing campaigns. According to her LinkedIn, Ong also spearheaded and managed cross-functional third-party relationships internally with the sales teams and externally with dealer principals and agencies, on tactical campaign development. Ong was also from the adland, helming the role of manager at McCann for more than five years and managing clients including KFC, Sime Darby, Nestle, Tiffany & Co, Cereal Partners Worldwide, and UPS.

When asked about the lessons she learnt during the pandemic, Ong said self-improvement was the main lesson for her because everyone had to remain at home and live in the new normal. By spending more time at home, she had the chance to cook, bake and appreciate the kitchen home appliances she has. This resulted in her family venturing into the home baking business. "With this goal of self-improvement, I can generate initiatives that resonate with consumers during MCO 3.0," she added.