Marketing Excellence Awards Malaysia 2019 finalists revealed

A+M is pleased to unveil this year's finalists for the Malaysian edition of the Marketing Excellence Awards. Who will take home the gold this year? Last year, we saw Etika take home the night's highest honour, walking away as 2018's Marketer of the Year.  This year, the awards' winners across the 33 categories will be revealed on 16 October at Sofitel Damansara, as Malaysia's top marketers of the year are crowned.

New categories were introduced this year to reflect the evolving marketing and advertising services landscape. These new categories now recognise excellence in Influencer Marketing, Marketing Transformation, Marketing to a Specific Audience, Programmatic Marketing, and Public Sector / Non-Profit Marketing. Close competition within Malaysia’s industry saw an increase in the number of brands making the shortlist. With greater expectations and higher industry standards pushing brands to innovate, many submissions were close contenders within the same category.

This year also saw a record of 30 industry experts and senior marketers joining the judging panel, bring all their experience to the table. Some of this year's submissions were described as "impactful", "commendable", "very targetted" and having demonstrated a "good understanding" of the needs of the audience.

Which brand had the most effective and successful campaigns over the past year? Which brands dominated the market and got the most traction? While we wait for the answer, let's take a look at our finalists.

Marketing Excellence Awards 2019 Finalists

Excellence in Advertising
• Berjaya Sompo Insurance - Silent Guardians
• Etika - Wonda - Wonda Zero Max: Maximum Feel Good in a Can
• Etika - Pepsi - The Colour Of Happiness
• Etika - Wonda - Wonda Brings Maximum Relaxation With Satisfying, Zero-Sugar Coffee
• McDonald’s Malaysia - Big Mac TikTok Challenge
• RHB Bank - Becoming Malaysia’s #1 Challenger Bank
• Sharp Malaysia - Sharp Raya Sure Suka
• Tourism Australia - UnDiscover Australia campaign
• UNIQLO (Malaysia) - Together in Comfort, Raya in Style

Excellence in B2B Marketing
• Moving Walls - Three Billboards Inside KL
• RHB Bank - RHB SME Raya Festive Campaign
• Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau (SLTPB) - Sri Lanka: Wonder of Asia Extravaganza
• Sunway Resort Hotel & Spa - Re.Defined Showcase Event
• WeChat Pay Malaysia - Advancing The Future of Malaysia's Digital Landscape

Excellence in Brand Awareness
• Berjaya Sompo Insurance - Your Protection Is Our Priority
• Etika - Wonda - Wonda Brings Maximum Relaxation With Satisfying, Zero-Sugar Coffee
• Hong Leong Bank - Demi Kita: Suri
• Malaysia Airlines - MH Malaysia Day – From the Heart
• McDonald’s Malaysia - Spicy Drama, Spicy Korean Burger
• Nippon Paint - Nippon Rangers Room Makeovers : For Kids By Kids
• Panasonic Malaysia - Airdibles: Eat Your Air Pollution
• QSR Brands - Pizza Hut Malaysia - The Singing Pizza
• RHB Bank - Becoming Malaysia’s #1 Challenger Bank
• Watson's Personal Stores - Happy Beautiful Year

Excellence in Brand Strategy
• Berjaya Sompo Insurance - Your Protection Is Our Priority
• Dommal Food Services - Domino's Pizza Malaysia - Domino's "It's All About You" Rebranding Campaign
• Etika - Pepsi - The Colour Of Happiness
• Etika - Mari-Mari Erat / Ayat Siapa Lagi Power
• McDonald’s Malaysia - Big Mac TikTok Challenge
• McDonald’s Malaysia - McD Elections 2019
• QSR Brands - Pizza Hut Malaysia - The Singing Pizza
• RHB Bank - Becoming Malaysia’s #1 Challenger Bank
• Sunway Pyramid - A Hakka Heritage Celebration at Sunway Pyramid

Excellence in Communications/Public Relations
• Axiata - Axiata 10th Anniversary: Fast-Forward from Strangers to Lovers
• BMW Group Malaysia - Story of Visionary Mobility
• Etika - Wonda - Wonda Brings Maximum Relaxation With Satisfying, Zero-Sugar Coffee
• Heineken Malaysia - The Great Brew Fest
• Heineken Malaysia - Apple Fox Cider - Way More Apples Campaign
• Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation - #mydigitalmaker
• Mondelēz Malaysia - Cadbury Dairy Milk - Jom Cadbury
• RHB Bank - Becoming Malaysia’s #1 Challenger Bank
• TNG Digital - Touch ‘n Go eWallet (‘eWallet’) - Overall Brand Awareness of the Touch ‘n Go eWallet
• UNIQLO (Malaysia) - Together in Comfort, Raya in Style

Excellence in Consumer Insights/Market Research
• AirAsia - AirAsia and (RED) Partnership
• Etika - Pepsi - The Colour Of Happiness
• Mantra Experiential - SCORE Marathon - SCORE Marathon 2019 Facebook Ads
• McDonald's Malaysia - Got A Problem? Drive-thru Je Lah
• QSR Brands - Pizza Hut Malaysia - Bersyukur panjang, Berbuka senang.
• RHB Bank - Awakening the Challenger Within
• TNG Digital - Touch ‘n Go eWallet (‘eWallet’) Money-back Guarantee
• Tourism Australia - UnDiscover Australia campaign
• UNIQLO (Malaysia) - Together in Comfort, Raya in Style
• Vase.ai Carsome - A Journey In Bridging Trust by Revolutionising Consumer Experience with Used-car Dealerships

Excellence in Content Marketing
• AIA Malaysia - AIA The Hunt for Health
• AirAsia - PLAYYOURWAY - Bali/Lombok Interactive Digital Video
• AirAsia - Gawai Video "The Girl Who Loves Rice"
• Etika - Pepsi - The Colour Of Happiness
• Grab Malaysia - Grab #PekSenangRaya & #BuangBalikRaya
• Malaysia Airlines - MH Malaysia Day – From the Heart
• McDonald’s Malaysia - Big Mac TikTok Challenge
• McDonald's Malaysia - Taking Twitter by Storm
• RHB Bank - Awakening the Challenger Within
• Sunway Property - Sunway Super 5

Excellence in Corporate Social Responsibility
• AirAsia - AirAsia and (RED) Partnership
• Blackmores Malaysia - From Slacktivists to Activists: how we embraced both groups to drive brand love and sales
• Kurnia Insurans (Malaysia) - Kurnia Insurans - Riang Ria Bersama Kurnia
• MBO Cinemas - Nationwide Blood Donation Drive 5.0 & Mega Movie Treats 3.0
• McDonald's Malaysia - McDonald’s Teachers Programme
• Prudential BSN Takaful - PruBSN Microtakaful Jariyah Distribution for Hardcore Poor in Malaysia
• RHB Bank - Tabung Teddy
• Sunway Group - #SUNWAYFORGOOD Raya Cheer 2019
• Sunway Putra Mall - Autsome Is Awesome
• Tune Talk - Malaysian Invasion Spirit In Motion (MISIM) at The Jakarta Asian Para Games 2018

Excellence in Customer Engagement
• Etika - Calpis - Calpis 100th Anniversary Campaign
• Etika - Wonda - Wonda Elicits Coffee Euphoria through ASMR
• Etika - Wonda - Wonda-Lane: Reframing Rewards for our Coffee Lovers
• Fonterra Brands (Malaysia) - Connected Mums Club Emotion AI Bringing Mommies Together
• McDonald’s Malaysia - Big Mac TikTok Challenge
• McDonald’s Malaysia - McD Elections 2019
• McDonald's Malaysia - Winning The Hearts of Young Malays on Twitter
• QSR Brands - Pizza Hut Malaysia - The Singing Pizza
• RHB Bank - Becoming Malaysia’s #1 Challenger Bank
• UNIQLO (Malaysia) - Together in Comfort, Raya in Style

Excellence in Data-Driven Marketing
• Alliance Bank - One By Six: How we used the 6T Data Model To Drive The Alliance One Account, and get 200:1 ROI
• Cartoon Network Amazone - CNA International Membership Campaign
• Celcom Axiata - Guna Celcom
• Digi - AI-backed Personalisation brings 71.8% uplift in conversion rate for Digi
• McDonald’s Malaysia - Ramadan 2019 – Winning With Malays
• McDonald’s Malaysia - Fencing In Beef Lovers
• QSR Brands - KFC Malaysia - KFC Dissecting Data to Feed Gamers’ Appetite
• RHB Bank - RHB Insurance - RHB Dah
• Taylor’s University - When Logical Data Meets Magical Creative
• Tesco - Tesco - Tesco ROLVA

Excellence in Digital Marketing
• Axiata Digital eCode - Boost - Boost ‘Super Shake’ Campaign
• Cartoon Network Amazone - CNA International Membership Campaign
• Celcom Axiata - Guna Celcom
• Etika - Mari-Mari Erat / Ayat Siapa Lagi Power
• Etika - Pepsi - The Colour Of Happiness
• McDonald’s Malaysia - Big Mac TikTok Challenge
• McDonald's Malaysia - Filling the Hunger Gaps with McDelivery
• RHB Bank - RHB Insurance - RHB Dah
• Sunway Pals Loyalty - Sunway Pals Loyalty
• UNIQLO (Malaysia) - Together in Comfort, Raya in Style

Excellence in Event Marketing
• Alliance Bank Malaysia - Alliance BizSmart Challenge 2018
• Amorepacific - Innisfree - Innisfree My Foundation Moving Bank
• Fonterra Brands (Malaysia) - Anlene - Stay Active, Stay Agile with Anlene
• Heineken Malaysia - Guinness - Guinness Quality & Recruitment Campaign
• HP PPS Sales - HP Science of Printing Workshop
• Loob Holding - Tealive - Tealive Breakthrough Moments
• Petronas Dagangan - Petronas on-ground activation at Art of Speed 2019
• Trinity Group - Trinity Pentamont - Size Does Matter
• Tune Talk - 16 Baris x Tune Talk

Excellence in Experiential Marketing
• Axiata Digital eCode - Boost - Boost ‘Super Shake’ Campaign
• Dutch Lady Malaysia - Dutch Lady Emojify Yourself
• Etika - Wonda - Wonda-Lane: A perfect concoction of Medium, Moment & Message brewed for Coffee Lovers
• Heineken Malaysia - Guinness - Guinness Taste Perfection
• Loob Holding - Tealive - Tealive Breakthrough Moments
• McDonald’s Malaysia - Big Mac TikTok Challenge
• Nippon Paint - Nippon Paint Expo
• QSR Brands - Pizza Hut Malaysia - The Singing Pizza
• Pos Malaysia - A Journey Through Time in 360
• Sunway Pyramid - A Hakka Heritage Celebration at Sunway Pyramid

Excellence in Influencer Marketing
• AirAsia - Throughthelens campaign
• Estee Lauder Malaysia - Bobbi Brown - Bobbi Brown - Confident Beauty
• Etika - Calpis - How Calpis Influencers Outdanced Competitor to the Beat of TikTok
• Fonterra Brands (Malaysia) - Fernleaf - Putting “Mmmmmm” Back to Milk
• Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation - #mydigitalmaker
• McDonald’s Malaysia - “Mocha Kau Bahagia” – A Coffee Love Story
• Mondelēz Malaysia - Cadbury Dairy Milk - Jom Cadbury
• RHB Bank - Awakening the Challenger Within
• Sunway Group - The Amazing Sunway City Challenge
• UNIQLO (Malaysia) - Together in Comfort, Raya in Style

Excellence in Integrated Marketing
• Alliance Bank Malaysia - Alliance BizSmart Challenge 2018
• Berjaya Sompo Insurance - Your Protection Is Our Priority
• CIMB Bank - CIMB DebitJer
• Etika - Calpis - Calpis 100th Anniversary Campaign
• Grab Malaysia - Grab #PekSenangRaya & #BuangBalikRaya
• McDonald’s Malaysia - Spicy Drama, Spicy Korean Burger
• RHB Bank - Becoming Malaysia’s #1 Challenger Bank
• TNG Digital - Touch ‘n Go eWallet - Raya Sempoi Campaign
• Tourism Australia - UnDiscover Australia campaign
• UNIQLO (Malaysia) - Together in Comfort, Raya in Style

Excellence in Launch Marketing
• Allianz Malaysia - Allianz Road Rangers: Keeping Malaysians Protected!
• Etika - Wonda - Wonda Zero Max: Maximum Feel Good in a Can
• Etika - Wonda - Wonda Brings Maximum Relaxation With Satisfying, Zero-Sugar Coffee
• Fonterra Brands (Malaysia) - Anmum Essential - Less is More: No Added Sugars Campaign
• McDonald’s Malaysia - Big Mac TikTok Challenge
• McDonald’s Malaysia - Spicy Drama, Spicy Korean Burger
• Mondelēz Malaysia - Cadbury Dairy Milk - Jom Cadbury
• RHB Bank - Becoming Malaysia’s #1 Challenger Bank
• TNG Digital - Touch ‘n Go eWallet - Money-back Guarantee
• TNG Digital - Touch ‘n Go eWallet (‘eWallet’) - Raya Sempoi Campaign

Excellence in Loyalty Marketing
• Axiata Digital eCode - Boost - Boost – 1 Million Ringgit Cashback
• Bata Malaysia - Bata - Bata Club
• Friesland Campina Malaysia (Dutch Lady Milk Industries) - Friso Gold - From Grass to Glass - Friso Gold A.R. Farm
• Malaysia Airlines - Enrich - Enrich Triple Everything
• McDonald's Malaysia - Building Loyalty Through Gamification
• QSR Brands - KFC Malaysia - KFC Finger Lickin' Data Creates Diversified Segmentation
• RHB Bank - Awakening the Challenger Within
• Sunway Pals Loyalty - Sunway Pals Loyalty

Excellence in Marketing Innovation
• Binastra Land - Trion@KL - Trion@KL Real-Time 3D Display
• Boat Noodle - Savour Your Moments - Ratchada Dulang
• Etika - Wonda - Wonda-Lane invades MRT!
• L’Oréal Malaysia - Kerastase - Kerastase Stylist Rewards
• McDonald’s Malaysia - McD Elections 2019
• McDonald's Malaysia - Catching Nonando – The First Facebook AR Game in Malaysia
• QSR Brands - Pizza Hut Malaysia - The Singing Pizza
• Pos Malaysia - A Journey Through Time Time in 360

Excellence in Marketing to a Specific Audience
• Friesland Campina Malaysia (Dutch Lady Milk Industries) - Friso Gold - From Grass to Glass - Friso Gold A.R. Farm
• Hewlett Packard - HP Deskjet Ink Advantage 3700 - HP Little Makers Challenge
• McDonald’s Malaysia - Big Mac TikTok Challenge
• McDonald’s Malaysia - Solidifying Malaysia's No.1 Burger - McChicken
• Muslim Pro Technologies - Muslim Pro Technologies - Omni-channel Ramadan Campaign 2019
• Shell - Shell Personalised Billboard
• Tune Talk - Value Incredible Plan (VIP)
• U Mobile - Retail on a Bus: How U Mobile Captured Migrants on Their Way to Work
• UNIQLO (Malaysia) - Together in Comfort, Raya in Style
• Yoodo - Establishing Yoodo as the Telco for Gamers

Excellence in Media Strategy
• Coway - Swirl of Media is a Smashing Success
• Etika - Pepsi - Media time tunnel, powered by Pepsi Generations
• Etika - Wonda - Wonda Brings Maximum Relaxation With Satisfying, Zero-Sugar Coffee
• Galderma - Cetaphil - Cetaphil GSC (Gentle Skin Cleanser)
• McDonald's Malaysia - Filling the Hunger Gaps with McDelivery
• McDonald’s Malaysia - Ramadan 2019 – Winning With Malays
• RHB Bank - RHB Yanxi Deposit Strategy
• Telekom Malaysia - unifi - When You Are No.1, Keeping The Status Quo Means Thinking Differently
• Unilever Malaysia - Vaseline Deodorant - Khan

Excellence in Mobile Marketing
• Alibaba Group - Tmall - Double 11 - Biggest One Day Sale
• Cartoon Network Amazone - CNA International Membership Campaign
• Etika - Calpis - How Calpis Rewrote the Story with Tik Tok
• Friesland Campina Malaysia (Dutch Lady Milk Industries) - Friso Gold - From Grass to Glass - Friso Gold A.R. Farm
• McDonald’s Malaysia - Big Beefy Bites
• McDonald’s Malaysia - Big Mac TikTok Challenge
• McDonald’s Malaysia - Diverting Drivers In 2 Seconds
• Tesco - Tesco - Tesco ROLVA
• TNG Digital - Muslim Pro Technologies - TNG Digital Ketupat Runtuh Campaign
• Yoodo - The first Malaysian telco to run a mobile marketing acquisition model

Excellence in Out-Of-Home Advertising
• Etika - Wonda - How Wonda-Lane redefined the conventional OOH medium
• Fonterra Brands (Malaysia) - Anlene - Anlene UHT Jump
• McDonald’s Malaysia - Icons Meet Icons
• RHB Bank - Never Too Old – A Mother’s Day Storyboard on KL’s Most Iconic Billboard
• Shell - Shell Personalised Billboard

Excellence in Performance Marketing
• AirAsia - The AirAsia BIG Sale 2019
• CIMB Bank - CIMB DebitJer
• JobStreet - Taking Care of Number One
• Kurnia Insurans (Malaysia) - Kurnia Insurans - Riang Ria Bersama Kurnia
• McDonald’s Malaysia - Eliminating Human Limitations in Search Engine Marketing
• Pizza Hut Malaysia - Pizza Hut Malaysia - Pizza Hut Delivery: The Right Ingredients For Double Digit Sales Delivery
• RHB Bank - Banking at your door step
• Taylor’s University - How 2,178 Unique Creatives Generated 23% Increase In Leads
• Tesco - Tesco - Tesco ROLVA
• Tune Hotels - Striking The Right Tune (Hotels)

Excellence in Print Advertising
• Coway Malaysia - Coway Print Delivers a Swirling Crescendo of Sales
• Etika - Pepsi - Transporting The Sun readers to Yesteryears through Pepsi Generations
• Panasonic Malaysia - Panasonic Malaysia National Day 2018
• Penang State Tourism Development - Penang Street Food Brochure
• RHB Bank - RHB Deposit Your Child’s Future Campaign

Excellence in Programmatic Marketing
• McDonald’s Malaysia - McD Elections 2019
• Mitsubishi Motors Malaysia - What if machine learning is learning wrongly
• Taylor’s University - How 2,178 Unique Creatives Generated 23% Increase In Leads
• Tesco - Tesco - Tesco ROLVA

Excellence in Public Sector/Non-Profit Marketing
• BMW Group Malaysia - The BMW Shorties
• Construction Industry Development Board Malaysia (CIDB) - CIDB TV
• Hong Leong Bank - Demi Kita: Suri
• Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation - #mydigitalmaker
• National Cancer Society of Malaysia - #Andabelikamiderma
• Perbadanan Insurans Deposit Malaysia (PIDM) - The Invisible Protector
• Rotary Club Petaling Jaya - SuperMum Bakery - The Gift That Keeps On Giving

Excellence in Search Marketing
• CIMB Bank - Personal loan #MAKEITHAPPEN
• Gamuda Land - Mindful Planning at Gamuda Land
• McDonald’s Malaysia - Eliminating Human Limitations in Search Engine Marketing
• Pizza Hut Malaysia - Pizza Hut Malaysia - PHD Always On SEM
• U Mobile - Slide Into Your Search Results: How U Mobile Hijacked Intent with Competitor Telcos

Excellence in Social Media Marketing
• 7-Eleven Malaysia - 7-Eleven Mickey Go-Local Campaign
• Etika - Calpis - #CalpisLycheeBattle: Super Choreography with TikTok
• Grab Malaysia - Grab #PekSenangRaya & #BuangBalikRaya
• Malayan Banking - Maybank Cards Maybank Regional Cards Year End Campaign
• McDonald's Malaysia - Taking Twitter by Storm
• Petron Fuel International - Petron Malaysia - How Petron's Social Content Phasing Helped Ending The Game 30 Days Earlier
• Sunway Pals Loyalty - Sunway Pals Loyalty
• Tune Talk - Tune Talk x AirAsia Voucher Giveaway
• UMW Toyota Motor - Toyota Gazoo Racing Festival Season 2
• Unilever Malaysia - Clear - Pasti Clear

Excellence in Sponsorship Activation
• Dommal Food Services - Domino's Pizza Malaysia - Domino’s Pizza Partners with MASwings, marks monumental entry into Sabah!
• Dommal Food Services - Domino's Pizza Malaysia - Domino's Boosts Winning Spirits for Malaysian Esports Team
• Malayan Banking - Maybank Cards - SuperCharge with your Maybank Cards : Marvel Studios’ Avengers Endgame
• Shopee Malaysia - Shopee Malaysia - Shopee Scores a Memorable Goal with Piala FA
• Tune Talk - 16 Baris x Tune Talk
• Unilever Malaysia - Sunsilk - Sis Cuba
• Yoodo - Yoodo, the official digital telco of PUBG MOBILE National Championship Malaysia

Excellence in Sports/esports Marketing
• Dommal Food Services - Domino's Pizza Malaysia - Domino's United We Win Campaign
• Heineken Malaysia - Tiger Beer - Tiger Hear The Nation Roar
• Mantra Experiential - SCORE Marathon - SCORE Marathon 2019 Facebook Ads
• Maybank - Maybank Cards - Maybank Manchester United Kids Mascot Campaign
• PGL - PGL and Egg Network - The Kuala Lumpur Major
• Tell6 Group - The Green World - Battleground Fun Run
• UMW Toyota Motor - Toyota Gazoo Racing Festival Season 2
• Unilever Malaysia - Rexona - Northstar
• Yoodo - Establishing Yoodo as the Telco for Gamers

Excellence in TV/Video Advertising
• Axiata Group - Project Eid
• Axiata Group - Axiata Kites 2.0
• Celcom Axiata - Guna Celcom
• Danone Dumex Malaysia - Dugro - From Tiffin Lunch Boxes to YouTube Stars!
• Malaysia Airlines - MH Malaysia Day – From the Heart
• Nippon Paint - Nippon Rangers Room Makeovers : For Kids By Kids
• RHB Bank - Awakening the Challenger Within
• Sharp Malaysia - Sharp - Sharp Raya Sure Suka
• Watson's Personal Stores - Happy Beautiful Year - Instead of A Film, We Created A Musical
• Watson's Personal Stores - Ada Hati, Raya Menjadi - Jadi

Excellence in Viral Marketing
• Danone Dumex Malaysia - Dugro - From Tiffin Lunch Boxes to YouTube Stars!
• Etika - Pepsi - The Colour Of Happiness
• Etika - Mari-Mari Erat / Ayat Siapa Lagi Power
• Grab Malaysia - Grab #PekSenangRaya & #BuangBalikRaya
• McDonald’s Malaysia - Icons Meet Icons
• McDonald's Malaysia - Taking Twitter by Storm