MasterChef Malaysia Design elements

Based on other MasteChef Malaysia's pictures, the logo and tagline and it's whole theme is orange and white. It is shown in figues 1 to 5.

Figure 1
http://www.astro.com.my/masterchefseason1/articles/art_7655.html

Figure 2
 http://www.astro.com.my/masterchefseason1/articles/art_7655.html

Figure 3
http://contest.1000savings.com/2011/11/masterchef-malaysia-online-challenge.html

Figure 4
 http://shakiddo.com/juara-final-masterchef-malaysia-2/ 

Figure 5

 http://blog.nuffnang.com.my/2011/09/14/cook-up-a-storm-as-malaysias-first-ever-blogger-masterchef/

One of the weaknesses of the MasterChef Kuala Lumpur billboards were not having consistency in design and didn't have the orange theme. Therefore to not making the same mistake it is important to consider the orange theme for billboards as well.

By Pegah

The Role of Malaysian Cultural Elements on Advertisement Reception

Sociologists claim that culture is locally unique, but universally different. The elements of culture distinguish culture universally. Cultural elements such as language, norms, beliefs (Religion), values, social collectiveness, status and cultural integration contribute to the segmentation of people. The main features that differentiate the three main ethics of Malaysian population are; language, religion, and cultural norm. These are the perceived adoptable cultural elements in Malaysia media. Presented language as the most important cultural elements that is used to transfer meaning for the purpose of communication. Language itself could be seen as a symbol of culture and the differences in languages indicate cultural diversity.

Cultural norms directly affect peoples’ way of living, communication and interactions. The differences in Malaysians’ cultural norms influence differences in reception of advertisement themes, pictorial interpretations, media selection, and words.

Religion affects people in many ways because it prescribes proper behaviour, including work habits. The Protestant work ethic encourages Christians to glorify God by working hard and being thrifty. Islam exalts work, and idleness is seen as a sign of a person’s lack of faith in the religion. In Hinduism and Buddhism, the emphasis is on the elimination of desires because desires cause worries. Not striving brings peace, and a person at peace does not suffer. The Malaysian Government’s primary task is to ensure that none of these contrasting elements are depicted in commercials.

In Malaysia, culture and religion goes hand in hand. Most of the cultural values were actually shaped by various religious practices. For instance, the Advertising Code for Television and Radio (1990) was heavily influenced by the government’s effort to promote Islamic values throughout the country. This includes the imposition of stricter regulations on the mass media content based on Islamic principles and values. For example, the women in Malaysian advertising must be portrayed as having “good behaviour acceptable to local culture and society” (Advertising Code Television and Radio 1990, p.7). Furthermore, female models must adhere to the Advertising Code’s decent dress code which stipulates that a female model must be “covered until the neckline, the length of the skirt worn should be below the knees, the arms may be ex- posed up to the edge of the shoulder but armpits cannot be exposed”. This ruling has restricted the advertising of female and male underwear on mass media. In addition, because of religious and cultural sensitivity, the sale of female contraceptives and female hygiene products were strictly limited on the mass media. Advertising of female hygiene products on national television, in particular, was allowed only after 10o’clock in the evening.

Islam forms the largest single religious group in Malaysia, practiced by around 60% of the population. Islam prohibits gambling and alcohol consumption. However, because Malaysia is also a multicultural society, these restrictions were only limited to national mass media such as television and prints that are targeted at the Malays. Other media such as Chinese, English and Hindu language newspapers and magazines were allowed to carry both gambling and alcohol advertisements provided that the advertisements do not encourage the readers to gamble nor increase alcohol consumption.

Finally, death is a bad omen in Malaysia, and not something one should glorify. Death in a family brings “bad luck” to the whole family, perhaps for between one and three years. Therefore, advertising a funeral service will be frowned upon. Furthermore, Asian values dictates that the children are the ones who would bear the funeral costs of their parents, so purchasing a funeral service before a death is like telling the parents their “time is up”.

These are important points that we will take into account when creating our ad.

Reference list:

David S. Waller. Cultural Values and Advertising in Malaysia: Views from the Industry. Cultural Values and Advertising in Malaysia. [Online] Available at: http://www.google.com.my/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=cultural%20advertising%20in%20malaysia&source=web&cd=4&cad=rja&ved=0CEYQFjAD&url=http%3A%2F%2Fciteseerx.ist.psu.edu%2Fviewdoc%2Fdownload%3Fdoi%3D10.1.1.202.3457%26rep%3Drep1%26type%3Dpdf&ei=vi25UdekGcPKrAeU-4CYBA&usg=AFQjCNEpITdWxX-j4nr_DyJ-mK21mVLTOA&sig2=y19YxGRFXBpH361eD6Mamw&bvm=bv.47883778,d.bmk [Accessed: 13 June 2013]

Saudat Salah Abdulbaqi, Ridwan Adetunji Raji. The Role of Cultural Elements on Advertisement Reception: Case Study of Malaysians, 2012. International Journal on Social Science Economics and Art. [Online] Available at: <http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1991676> [Accessed: 13 June 2013]

By Brindha

Strengths and Weakness of a Print Ads

The strengths and weakness of a print ad are analyse in this post.

Base on this research, the print ad used is billboard. It has the strength of targeting a selected group of consumers. Base on the culture, ethics, habits and lifestyle of the targeted consumer, billboards featuring advertisements that are of the consumer's interest, are placed around that particular geographically area. It is then likely that this product or service would attract the consumer's interest and thus make the advertisement a success.
On the other hand however, because the billboard are geographically static, it only targets those who use the roads often. Also, geographically, most billboards are found in urban areas, restricting the exposure of the ad towards the rural consumers.
In the case of master chef ads however, it is arguable that almost every household in the urban area has access to television comparatively to household in rural areas. So it would logical that the billboard is situated at the urban area.

Besides that, billboards has the strength of being able to convey the message to the mass audience at one go due to its large size. However, billboards that conveys a negative image run the risk of being an eyesore and this may lead to bad advertising.

Another strength of a billboard ad is that the advertiser is able to choose the size of the advertisement space. By deciding on a portrait or landscape billboard, it will greatly effect the communication of the message. For example, the milo ad below(figure 1) which portrays the pole vaulter sport so it billboard would be more effective if it is a portrait instead of a landscape format. At the same time, the landscape format billboard is suitable for the battleship movie ad(figure 2) as it shows the horizon of the sea, making the boat look intimidating which is what the advertisers wanted to communicate.

Figure 1

http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2007/6/16/bizweek/18038920&sec=bizweek

Figure 2

http://www.dailybillboardblog.com/2012/04/bonus-day-battleship-movie-billboards.html

Malaysia is a tropical country has a hot and humid weather. Weather such heavy rain is a major problem to the billboard ad as it limits duration of communication to the consumer. Also, the materials used in a billboard has to be a good quality as the message would fade due to the hot and humid weather in Malaysia.

One of the weakness of billboards ads are you can't write a lot of copy in a billboard as a driver has only a few seconds to read the advertisement.  Also due to the short time the advertisement is being viewed, there is a low recall of the advertisement. Another weakness of print ads is that with all the advertisements on displayed, a particular ad may just get lost in the midst of all the other ads already on displayed. To be noticed by the audience, the billboard must therefore must have an impact.

In terms of budgets and prices, billboard has a greater advantage comparative to a TV commercial or a newspaper ad as it is relatively cheaper. Billboards are expose to the consumers 24 hours a day for an extension of period while newspaper ad only last for one day and TV commercial?-only 30 seconds the most. (Tendick, R.). Billboards are definitely more worth it.

Based on the strengths and weakness of a billboard, we would maintain the use of this medium; billboard, as the number of strengths overrides the number of weakness. We would avoid making the mistakes or overcome the weakness of a billboard made as mentioned above in our revamp master chef ads.



Reference
Buzzle.com (2012). Advantages and disadvantages of Print media. [online]. Available at:< http://www.buzzle.com/articles/advantages-and-disadvantages-of-print-media.html.> [Accessed 2 June 2013].

Tendick. R. (2007, July 31). The Many Benefits on Billboard Advertising. [online]. Available at : <http://searchwarp.com/swa238593.htm> [Accessed 2 June 2013].

Media Miser Turning News into Knowledge.(2013). Strengths and limitations of various media. [online].  Available at: <http://www.mediamiser.com/resources/pr-glossary/strengths-limitations-of-various-media/> [Accessed 4 June 2013]

MasterChef Identity

What is brand identity?

The visible elements of a brand (such as colors, design, logotype, name, symbol) that together identify and distinguish the brand in the consumers' mind.
( http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/brand-identity.html#ixzz2V4uJThYa

About the show:

MasterChef show is about finding the best home cooks and through several challenges help them to become culinary masters. It is being produced in more than 35 countries and airing in at least 200 territories. The contestants compete to become their country's next MasterChef and a large cash prize.

MasterChef Brand Identity:

Some of Masterchef brand's design elements such as logo, logotype and using the photos of show's judges and contestants as design elements, rather than their colour are mostly the same in all countries. But brand's other design elements in each country is different from the others and is based on each show's season's theme. I studied 3 countries, U.S, Australia and Malaysia to compare their design strategy.

based on my researches in MasterChef U.S and MasterChef Australia, design consistency has been observed that makes the show more recognizable which is the objective of designing a brand identity for a brand.

MasterChef U.S:

In the new season of MasterChef U.S a strong orange theme is applied to all the designs and advertising such as their website, Facebook page and scene decoration. Figures 1 to 8 are some examples.

Figure 1  MasterChef U.S website

Figure 2  MasterChef U.S website

Figure 3 MasterChef U.S judges

Figure 4  MasterChef U.S contestant

Figure 5  MasterChef U.S

Figure 6  MasterChef U.S contestants

Figure 7  MasterChef U.S

Figure 8  MasterChef U.S

MasterChef Australia:

The new season of Masterchef Australia’s theme is boys VS girls. And it's new tagline is “who will rule the MasterChef kitchen?”  And the strong theme of boys VS girls is applied to MasterChef Australia's all designs and advertisements, such as bus advertisements, website, Facebook page and TV commercial. Figures 9 to 14 are some examples.

Here is the link of MasterChef Australia commercial: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8bNLX4VymO4

Figure 9  

Figure 10  MasterChef Australia website

Figure 11  MasterChef Australia contestant

Figure 12  MasterChef Australia contestant

Figure 13  MasterChef Australia contestant

Figure 14  MasterChef Australia bus advertisement

MasterChef Malaysia Brand Identity And Comparing It With MasterChef Malaysia Billboards In Kuala Lumpur:

Based on the pictures of MasterChef Malaysia's website and Facebook It seems the new season, season2, has a fire flame theme but it is not strongly applied to all designs and advertisements. For instance the flame theme in their website is so blur and is not adjusted in a way that attracts viewers attention, thus without zooming out the page  viewer may even don't notice it at all . However, obviously MasterChef Malaysia has the flame theme because it is anyway applied to their designs but billboards in Kuala Lumpur(figures 15 to 17 ) are extremely weak from design consistency aspect because they have no elements in common with the season's theme and without seeing the logo and logotype it is impossible to recognize them as MasterChef billboards.

Figures 18 to 20 are some examples of MasterChef Malaysia designs and advertisements.

Figure 15  MasterChef Malaysia billboards in KL

Figure 16  MasterChef Malaysia billboards in KL

Figure 17  MasterChef Malaysia billboards in KL

MasterChef Malaysia other designs:

Figure 18  MasterChef Malaysia Logo

Figure 19  MasterChef Malaysia website

Figure 20  MasterChef Malaysia Facebook page

Reference list:

Business Dictionary. Brand Identity.[Online]. Available at: <http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/brand-identity.html#ixzz2V4uJThYa> [Accessed 4 June 2013]

Picture Credits:

Figure 1:

Master Gordon Ramsay [electronic print] Available at: <http://www.fox.com/masterchef/bios/judges/gordon-ramsay> [Accessed 4 June 2013].

Figure 2:

MasterChef US [electronic print] Available at: http://www.fox.com/masterchef/about/> [Accessed 4 June 2013].

Figure 3:

MasterChef  Judges [electronic print] Available at: <https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=603515236328230&set=a.397033363643086.100870.126204090726016&type=1> [Accessed 4 June 2013].

Figure 4:

Christine Ha [electronic print] Available at: <https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=481417388538016&set=a.481417381871350.116338.126204090726016&type=1&relevant_count=4> [Accessed 4 June 2013].

Figure 5:

MasterChef Mystery Bix [electronic print] Available at: <https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=604378292908591&set=a.148022941877464.27890.126204090726016&type=1&relevant_count=1> [Accessed 4 June 2013].

Figure 6:

MasterChef [electronic print] Available at: <https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=604807479532339&set=a.148022941877464.27890.126204090726016&type=1&relevant_count=1> [Accessed 4 June 2013].

Figure 7:

MasterChef  Audition [electronic print] Available at: <https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=600813676598386&set=a.148022941877464.27890.126204090726016&type=1&relevant_count=1> [Accessed 4 June 2013].

Figure 8:

MasterChef  Finalists [electronic print] Available at: <https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=603999559613131&set=a.148022941877464.27890.126204090726016&type=1&relevant_count=1> [Accessed 4 June 2013].

Figure 9:

MasterChef First Look [electronic print] Available at: <https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10151410565520636&set=a.109606340635.107043.80261010635&type=1&relevant_count=1> [Accessed 4 June 2013].

Figure11:

Housewife [electronic print] Available at: <https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10151400794200636&set=a.109606340635.107043.80261010635&type=1&relevant_count=1> [Accessed 4 June 2013].

Figure 12:

Dude [electronic print] Available at: <https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10151409183640636&set=a.109606340635.107043.80261010635&type=1&relevant_count=1> [Accessed 4 June 2013].

Figure 13:

Boy VS Girl Australia [electronic print] Available at: <https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10151405226985636&set=a.109606340635.107043.80261010635&type=1&relevant_count=1> [Accessed 4 June 2013].

Figure 14:

MasterChef Australia Bus [electronic print] Available at: <https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10151414989135636&set=a.109606340635.107043.80261010635&type=1&relevant_count=1> [Accessed 4 June 2013].

Figure15:­­­­

Kenwooi. (2011). MasterChef Malaysia Billboard Adverts Suck. [Online] Available at:http://www.kenwooi.com/2011/12/masterchef-malaysia.html[Accessed 3 June].

Figure 16:

Kenwooi. (2011). MasterChef Malaysia Billboard Adverts Suck. [Online] Available at:http://www.kenwooi.com/2011/12/masterchef-malaysia.html[Accessed 3 June].

Figure17:

Kenwooi. (2011). MasterChef Malaysia Billboard Adverts Suck. [Online] Available at:http://www.kenwooi.com/2011/12/masterchef-malaysia.html[Accessed 3 June].

Figure 18:

MasterChef Malaysia [electronic print] Available at: <https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=544771338906364&set=a.158963930820442.38879.158958980820937&type=1&source=11> [Accessed 4 June 2013].

Figure 19:

Fire [electronic print] Available at:  http://www.astro.com.my/masterchef/> [Accessed 4 June 2013].

Figure 20:

MasterChef Malaysia astro [electronic print] Available at: < https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=571851972864967&set=a.351050281611805.91150.158958980820937&type=1&permPage=1> [Accessed 4 June 2013].

By Pegah