On July 25, 2013, the Student Executive Council held this year’s Youth Empowerment Seminar at Chiang Kai Shek College’s main auditorium entitled: Marketing Innovation. The speaker was Mr. Josiah Go, one of the country’s most respected marketing gurus. This seminar was hosted by Joanah May P. Calaunan, a 3rd year Management Student.

Mr. Josiah Go emphasized that the three phases of innovation are to discover, to differentiate, and to deliver.“Change the rule or game, don’t be the market reader.” The first phase is to discover, marketers must change to make things more exciting rather than being confined within onself and be boring.

One must start questioning, observing people, and assess what customers want and need. From there, a new idea will begin to develop. The second phase is to differentiate. One does not have to follow the rules; one must be original and unique. The last phase is to deliver innovation. Marketing plus innovation is equal to the faster growth of a company. Innovation is to satisfy the unmet needs of people. The best time to innovate is when the company is in good condition. Otherwise, the company would just keep going back to basics.

One of the many key insights learned by students is  that marketers should always look for an opportunity to compete and be innovative. This will enable them to challenge themselves, grow, and bring out the best in themselves. Ever the dynamic speaker, Sir Josiah shared illustrations and examples from actual companies and inspired future marketers to never take for granted the key processes involved in what he called Moments of Truth (MOTs) in Marketing: pre-purchase, purchase, and post-purchase.

As down-to-earth as he is successful, Mr. Josiah Go took the time to address questions from the audience after his talk. He also posed for some photos with CKSC-FBAS students.

(Article by Kimberly Lagunday and Hazellene Chua/ Photo Credits : Wilson Ibasco, Lance Jason Go, Emoboss Jk Yu)