Sekejap Saje

Malaysia is a nation rich with many things that we can be proud of.  Amongst which are mottos and taglines to reflect our pride as Malaysians and these ‘riches’ include “Malaysia, Truly Asia”, “1Malaysia”, “Malaysia Boleh!”, "Rakyat DiUtamakan" and a whole lot more if we have the patience to sift through our annals and especially our press libraries.  But it is in our daily routine that our quirky motto outlives all hype and that would be our famed ‘sekejap saje’ motto.

Think about it!  There isn’t any other country that could outdo our lifestyle of breaking all rules created for order and harmony under the pretext that we’re committing the deed for a short while only.  We are all guilty of double (and triple) parking in desperation to make a deposit at the ATM, buy a loaf of bread at the sundry store, dropping off a child at school or taking a teh tarik break at the mamak.  We are guilty of staying in way after check-out hours in hotels, be 15 minutes late to a spa appointment, take extra time with the doctors because we have ample questions laced with personal stories to share, keep a loaned library book an extra semester, sit at a café to do work but not place an order while other patrons have nowhere to sit and the list goes on and on and on.  After all, everybody does it one time or another, so EVERYBODY should understand.  ‘Sekejap saje’, what?

There are the ‘bakhil’ parkers who would roam neigborhood lanes and backyards to illegally park and block resident driveways to avoid RM2 per hour parking fee in malls so they could grab a sekejap saje latte break with friends.  We’ve also witness shoppers walk away with their grocery shopping cart to abandon it haphazardly at car parks.  After all, sekejap lagi the ‘expatriates’ from Bangladesh and Nepal working at the stores will track down their missing carts while other shoppers wait in agony at the mart quite incapable of starting their shopping due to the MIA carts. 

An errant cart at a car park

 

And then there’s the good friend who would jump queue and ‘tumpang’ an order because getting in line is not an option.  Only one more order…can what?  Sekejap saje.

So, what is the outcome of such behavior should a behavioral scientist care to conduct a short survey?  Maybe our unique motto could warrant a qualitative study about ‘the Malaysian daily insights to accepted behavior,’ good enough for an international conference presentation.  It is very Malaysian and I trust it does not happen in isolation.  As a matter of fact, it could proof that when push comes to shove, Malaysians can be quite a tolerant lot for their fellow Malaysians for being the product of Malaysia.  It’s simply amazing how casual Malaysians do what they do, breaking rules and not bothered to run like hell!  It is indeed Uniquely Malaysian.

I suppose we can no add “sekejap saje, what?” to Malaysia's motto that Malaysians to be proud of...or not.  I leave it up to you to decide.

Public Relations vs Events

Public Relations is about the Spreading of Information
and Creating Goodwill

What is PR? 

PR means Public Relations.

Is Events PR?

Not all events are PR.

Can PR practitioners do Event Management?

Yes.

Do Events and PR complement each other? 

Yes.

Then why is Events not synonymous to PR?
 
Public Relations (PR) practitioners manage the spread of information from the source (client or management) to the intended public or audience.  PR is about building relationships and safeguarding image.    Sometimes it is used to enhance brands and improve memorability.  The objective of engaging a PR activity or campaign is to maintain or persuade trust in regards to the product, services or political decisions made.  PR activities are further enhanced when it gets third party endorsements, primarily from the media that do not require direct payment. At the core of Public Relations is ethical behavior and honesty.

Events, on the other hand can be so many things, including:

1.  Social i.e. birthday parties, engagement, weddings, baby showers and funerals.
2.  Education or career awareness i.e. workshops, exhibitions, conferences, seminars and education or job fairs.
3.  Sports i.e. Commonwealth games, Olympics, Wimbledon, Iron Man, and marathons.
4.  Entertainment i.e. concerts, award shows, pageants and theatre.
5.  Political i.e. rallies, demonstrations, elections and debates.
6.  Corporate i.e. product launches, annual dinners, roadshows, buyer-seller meet and programs or MICE (meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions)
7.  Religious i.e. Maulidur Rasul Procession, Thaipusam, Qurban, and conferences.
8.  Fund Raising or Cause Related i.e. donation drive, blood donation drive and auctions.
 
Events, however, can be a tool that PR practitioners use to build relationships, create awareness, increase knowledge, harness loyalty and everything else that translates into "building bridges" and creating trust.  If the objective is to meet the need of building relationships and safeguarding image, than the event is a form of PR.  These events are designed and managed with a conscious intention to accomplish the objective of a business/political entity/social organization or individual to generate goodwill. 

Unless the event is created to engage the audience with the organizer's products and services that translates into some form of loyalty, the event is not PR.