Curtin Sarawak students commended for creative marketing strategy by Australian premium tea company

Miri – 6 October 2016 – A group of five first-year business students of Curtin University, Sarawak Malaysia (Curtin Sarawak) received a commendation from Elmstock Tea Company, one of Australian’s premium tea companies, for their creative marketing strategy in the final round of Curtin University’s ‘Marketing Idol Competition’, semester 1 2016.

The students from Curtin Sarawak’s Faculty of Business were Wong Soon Ceng, Christine Mening Ngau, Gianina Chung, Kiu Tze Ching and Yii Siew Lien under the supervision of senior lecturer of marketing Dr. Shamsul Kamariah Abdullah and lecturer of marketing Fayrene Chieng Yew Leh.

Students from Curtin’s Perth, Sydney and Singapore campuses, as well as a partner institution in Mauritius, also took part in the competition.

Participation in the ‘Marketing Idol Competition’ was part of the students’ group assignment for their ‘Discovering Marketing’ first-year core unit. The concept of Work Integrated Learning (WiL) is introduced in the unit to expose them to real industry experience and help develop their critical thinking skills in analysing local and global issues in a multi-dimensional context. In addition, it helps them build their competitiveness and confidence.

The competition requires participating students to devise new products and marketing strategies for selected companies in Western Australia where Curtin University is based. Before commencing their projects, they research the backgrounds and operations of their assigned ‘clients’ via i-Lecture or Blackboard, online learning systems used by Curtin students.

They then perform SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats) analyses and design marketing mixes based on the 4Ps (product, price, place and promotion) concept. The companies will then select the best posters and new product concepts among the students’ submissions.

The Curtin Sarawak team first conducted an analysis of tea drinking in Australia and subsequently developed ‘My Mood Tea’, an innovative tea product targeting the younger consumer segment where buyers can choose their preferred type of tea based on their current mood. The team also designed the packaging for the product.

In conjunction with the upcoming Curtin Sarawak Open Day 2016 on 8 October, the students will showcase their ‘My Mood Tea’ product design at the Faculty of Business’ showcase. For more information on the Open Day, visit www.openday.curtin.edu.my.

(L-R) Wong, Kiu, Yii, Chung and Christine in group photo.