Creating Good Vibes

March 4, 2007 • Blog • 2 comments

Recently, I attended a staff seminar where the theme of resonance was used. According to Wikipedia, resonance is a term used in physics whereby one system tends to oscillate a maximum amplitude at certain frequency.

Resonance is a powerful force multiplier. It is both a natural and artificial phenomenon whereby something moves in synchrony with another, for both good and bad. Witness how the powerful high pitched voices of soprano singers can cause wine glasses to shatter.

Marching soldiers crossing a wooden bridge at a certain rhythm can cause it to break. Even helicopters like the almighty Chinook can fall prey to Resonance! Watch this video below:

Entrepreneurship 101

March 2, 2007 • Blog • 7 comments

Singapore’s economy is doing well recently. GDP is up, tourism arrivals are up, average household incomes are rising, and the job market looks white hot. With more potential customers with higher disposable incomes, plus the recent bundle of goodies for SMEs, there is never a better time for entrepreneurs here.

Rather than wait for the perfect job to come along, why not consider starting your own business? Before you take the plunge though, do consider the following:

My Worst Weekend Ever?

February 26, 2007 • Blog • 13 comments

Bumper Sticker Guy: [running after Forrest] Hey man! Hey listen, I was wondering if you might help me. ‘Cause I’m in the bumper sticker business and I’ve been trying to think of a good slogan, and since you’ve been such a big inspiration to the people around here I thought you might be able to help me jump into – WOAH! Man, you just ran through a big pile of dog shit!

Forrest Gump: It happens.

Bumper Sticker guy: What, shit?

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Zoophilia

February 25, 2007 • Blog • 12 comments

I recently re-visited the Zoo during a management retreat. Amidst all that brainstorming activity, we did manage to squeeze a little time to visit the Zoo. As I walked through the lush environment in the warm tropical Sun, I was convinced once again why the Zoo can attract more than a million visitors a year! Here’s the story through photos.

The first thing is landscaping. Notice how the home of the Hamadryas Baboons from Ethiopia looks better than a District 10 Bungalow? Go ahead and drool folks!

Staying Afloat in a Shopper’s Paradise

February 22, 2007 • Blog • 17 comments

Crowds thronged VivoCity when they first opened

Recently, quite a few shopping centres in Singapore seem to be left behind in the retail race despite our buoyant economy. Poor customer traffic, contractual spats, tenants going on “strike”, empty shop spaces, decay and disrepair seem to be some of their common woes.

Some are new and spanking. They include Dhoby Xchange, which is strategically located next to the Dhoby Ghaut MRT Station yet attracting hardly a soul. Another recent case is an unnamed shopping mall at Commonwealth Market (to be renamed Queenspoint) which apparently ran afoul of the law. Its owners Pagar Park did not have approval to sub-let its spaces but still went ahead, with 70% of its 150 retail outlets taken up. Now it is tangled in a messy litigation case involving multiple parties including the Singapore Land Authority.

Leapin’ Lions and Rollin’ Dragons

February 21, 2007 • • 6 comments

As some of you would know, my 3.25 year old son Ethan simply LOVES lion dance performances. He will go into a frenzy, eyes glazed and jaw agape, when he hears the heart pounding bellows of the Chinese drums coupled with the clashing cymbals. Long time readers would probably have seen him doing his own lion dancing performance before.

This CNY, Ethan was really lucky. He managed to catch not just two lion dancing but an exciting dragon dance at his great grandmother’s place at McNair Road. How did it go? Well first, a few words of greetings from our sponsor.

10 Tips to Hit the Headlines

February 20, 2007 • Public Relations • 9 comments

This is a rehash of something I wrote for a major national newspaper more than two years ago. I have tweaked it to be more comprehensive, with the general principles remaining the same. Of course, this doesn’t guarantee coverage everytime, but if at first you don’t succeed, try, try again!

Here are 10 tips to improve your chances of making it into the news:

1) Understand the needs and target audiences of different media. Establish rapport with journalists and editors and speak to them to understand what they are gunning for. Which categories of stories do they normally cover? What are their editorial styles?

Happy Year of the Ham

February 18, 2007 • Blog • 9 comments

Ethan wishes you “Gong Xi Fa Cai, Xin Nian Kuai Le!”

Here’s wishing all my friends, family members and readers a very “pork”-sperous Chinese New Year full of “ham”-some harvests, sausage days, pigging out, fat returns, and endless opportunities to go the whole hog!

In the wise words of the 40th President of the United States, Ronald Reagan:

“I am very proud to be called a pig. It stands for pride, integrity and guts.” Hmmm….reminds me of ter huang kiam chye!

Are F&B Flops Uber Unlucky?

February 16, 2007 • Blog • 16 comments

Courtesy of www.uberburger.com

Over the years, we have seen quite a few high profile F&B failures in Singapore. They include Rainforest Cafe at Liang Court, Hello Kitty Cafe at Downtown East, and of course the numerous bubble tea shops whose bubbles have popped.

The latest casualty in the scene is Uber Burger. This uber upmarket joint has folded on 7 February 2007 barely 10 months after a much-heralded opening. Famous for their S$101 Wagyu Burger stuffed with truffles, foie gras and all things decadent, they claimed to offer unique mouth watering experiences that you can never get at cheaper chains.

Word Of Mouth in a Nutshell

February 15, 2007 • Blog • 9 comments

Word of Mouse in Action!

I am currently reading the Secrets of Word-of-Mouth Marketing, a book by George Silverman, which I borrowed from the National Library. Fascinating stuff in there with some explanation of how one can make Word Of Mouth (WOM) marketing work.

Let me highlight two key learning points. First is the Buying Decision Process. Those who studied Marketing 101 may be familiar with this. The stages are as follows: