So here are the 3 winners of the little giveaway I had a couple of weeks back!

1. Roxanne
2. Yanjun
3. Lyndsey

Congrats, y’all! I will be emailing you soon to get your mailing address so I can send you the vouchers! Do go down to the FRANK stores and get your card soon. Let me know which one you’ve chosen, okay?

By the way, look at what the awesome folks at FRANK by OCBC sent us on our wedding day! That’s really a very sweet gesture. Thanks for the gift and well wishes!

But that doesn’t mean I don’t have a good reason to still share the news with those of you who don’t know about this!

“What is FRANK by OCBC?” you may be wondering. So I’m going to try to explain it the way I see it, and hopefully you guys will like the concept as much as I do!

To me…

FRANK is a ‘retail concept’ of a bank which comes in the form of a physical shop/bank. You step into a FRANK store and you’ll be surprised at how it does NOT look like a bank, but a regular store instead. It’s so fun, so non-threatening, so warm and so unlike a bank! It all ties in with OCBC’s new direction, of making banking accessible and friendly and easily-understood by its customers!

They’re really doing a great job at making saving and banking fun and accessible to youths, I must say!

FRANK is about being true (Frank, get it? Haha) to yourself (about how much money you have, how much money you owe, how much money you need to save).

Come on, face it. How many of us are really FRANK with ourselves about our monetary matters? In fact, I for one, hate looking at my bank balance until I absolutely have to! It depresses me. But NO LONGER! Cos now with OCBC, I get better control over my money, and I can save better! How? Read on!

So how do I get into this FRANK thing?

FRANK by OCBC has 2 main products – the FRANK Account and the FRANK Debit Card. Yes, both are interlinked. (Debit Card applicants must be above 16 years though!)

So let me share with you some of the awesome things about a FRANK Account:

• No initial deposit – WOOHOO!
• No monthly fees – WOOHOO!
• Cash withdrawals at any overseas ATMs that carry a Mastercard logo
• Practically no queues at the OCBC ATMs in Singapore cos there are over 1100 ATMs islandwide! (I always snigger and give condescending and patronizing looks to people who have to queue up to get their own money from their bank accounts, hahahaha)
• Banking on the go – online banking and mobile (application and mobile-optimized online banking website!)
• Attractive interest rates of 0.3% to 0.6% per annum (this is not an investment-based bank account, so that’s really what you get!)
• And the best part is that you can create “Savings Goals” every month, which will help you save more! For example you can set a “Boracay trip” goal, and aim to put $100 in every month automatically. You won’t be able to touch this money or withdraw unless it’s an emergency (you’ll have to go through several steps to withdraw from this section of your account). You can have more than 1 savings goal too! See? Saving can be fun!

But that’s not all!

Each FRANK account also has a FRANK Debit Card tied to it. What’s so awesome about this debit card?It’s a MasterCard and NETS card, 2-in-1! Discounts as an OCBC cardmember! AND! The designs – WOW. Over 130 card designs to choose from!

Here are some designs that I really liked!

Camera, Broadway, coffee mug stain and giraffe prints! <3

The gallery of card designs available, on display at FRANK Stores. The designer series is updated frequently, so you can change the design of your card without having to change your debit card number, as frequently as you want! Over 130 card designs to choose from! Each change comes with a fee, but you can get it free now! Read to the end to find out how! (Giveaway, yo!)

Another design that I thought was super adorable… Hello, Kitty!

So I bet you’re not wanting to rush down to the nearest FRANK Store to get your cards. There are currently 2 Frank Stores – at NTU and SMU – but fret not, you can sign up for FRANK accounts and debit cards at any of the 54 OCBC branches islandwide too.

OKAY! So I have some news for you guys.

Those of you who want to get a FRANK Account and Debit Card, I have 3x FRANK card design vouchers worth $20 each to give away!

(It costs $20 to make each card design yours, or to change your card design). Do note: If you don’t wanna get a special design now, you can still get the debit card with the basic design.

With these vouchers, you can choose any design as your debit card, or (if you already have a FRANK debit card) to change your card design to any of the 130 card designs, absolutely free.

If you want one, just leave a message below before 17 Nov 2011 at 2359 hrs. I will pick 3 readers randomly to get a voucher each. This will be mailed to you, so please ensure you leave behind a REAL email address so I can contact you for your postal address.

Also, great news for those of you who have graduated from school. They’re opening a new FRANK Store soon, at VivoCity! It will be the first one outside campus, and you can head there to check it out from next week onwards, I think! Keep a look out! I’ll be attending the launch event for the VivoCity Store next week, so… Stay tuned for more cool OCBC stuff. <3

Debit Cards not your thing?

TADAH! FRANK Credit Cards are coming soon! (actually they’ve launched, you just have to go to the bank to request for an application form, or email frankbyocbc@ocbc.com for a digital copy)

In my next post, I’ll be sharing (raving) about the OCBC online banking site and mobile banking app. Both of which in my opinion are THE BEST in Singapore! As I tweeted last week…

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BTW, I just want to give a shout out to the senior bank executives from OCBC who came up to me during the FRANK store launch event to speak with me about a previous issue that I wrote about, on their bank services. I was surprised to know that they had read it, taken the feedback seriously, and was really glad to hear their reassurances that their backend operations are being improved. I just have to say that despite my previous grievances, OCBC still remains my bank of choice, not just because all the rest suck, but because they have proven to me that they are worth staying with.

Many of you must have read at least one book by Canadian author Malcolm Gladwell, whose books The Tipping Point, Outliers and Blink have all made it to the Number 1 spot on the New York Times best-sellers list.

This August, I’m privileged to be invited by the Singapore Institute of Management (SIM) for their 30th SIM Annual Management Lecture (AML), where Malcolm Gladwell will be speaking in two keynote presentations:

1. The Human Capitalization Challenge
2. The Entrepreneurial Profile

I’ve read two of Gladwell’s books, and I’m definitely excited to hear him speak in person.

His books are logical; you will find yourself nodding in agreement while turning the pages, and yet they are also set against conventional wisdom; making you think twice about topics ranging from social psychology to marketing, politics to self-help, and also decision-making strategies.

Having studied Human Resources in my diploma course, I am aware that many companies these days have a problem not just in talent acquisition and talent retention, but also talent capitalization. In the first keynote, Gladwell will share his thoughts and learnings about how to best ‘exploit’ the available human capital in an organization, to ensure highest efficiency at the workplace. This is relevant not only to HR managers, but also all persons within a managerial-level position, business owners, as well as supervisory-level staff.

The second keynote should be of interest to current business owners and potential entrepreneurs. Gladwell will be profiling the ‘entrepreneur type’, so I’m definitely interested to see if I fall into that ‘type’. I’ve never thought of myself as a risk-taker; yet Gladwell opines that entrepreneurs are operationally risk-averse. Regardless, this session is bound to shed some light on how we can encourage innovation and entrepreneurism at our workplace.

If you’re interested in these talks, check out the SIM-AML Facebook page, where you can find out how you can buy a ticket to this full day seminar event, as well as how you can WIN a complimentary event pass worth up to S$1337.50 (inclusive of GST and buffet lunch).

SIM Annual Management Lecture 30th Anniversary
Event details:
26 August 2011 (Friday)
9am to 4pm
Shangri-La Hotel Singapore

This post is sponsored by SIM Annual Management Lecture.

If you’re a fan of TEDx, you’ll definitely like this series of talks brought to you by the NUS Office of Alumni Relations.

Every month, U@live brings 1 speaker from the NUS community (students, faculty, alumni) to the central stage to speak for 10 minutes. This forum is meant to inspire young people to believe in the causes they are inspired about, to take action, and in turn, inspire others.

I know what you’re thinking: Do I need to be an NUS Community member to participate and/or attend? Nope! Anyone is welcome to participate and/or attend!

Visit the U@livewebsite to find out more about the event, or read on!

This July, U@live presents Prof. Kishore Mahbubani, Dean, Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy in an event bound to create headlines and make YOU think about the world beyond Singapore and our role in it.

“Do Asians believe in the rise of Asia?”, Prof. Kishore asks. Do you think the decline of western dominance comes at a time when Asia is ready to take on the western world, to provide the type of leadership that the world needs? Are we ready for this shift of global power to the east?

Do Asians believe in the rise of Asia? – Prof. Kishore Mahbubani

Come join us on 27 July 2011, 7:30pm onwards at the NUS Shaw Foundation Alumni House.

Here’s how you can take part:

Join the Google Moderator page to ask questions:

You can also login with your Twitter, Facebook, Windows Live, Google Account, Yahoo ID, or Open ID to interact with the speaker and ask questions through the U@live website:

I’ll be attending the event at NUS. Hope to see you there!

If you would like to nominate a speaker from the NUS Community because he/she has inspired you, contact U@live!

Watch this short video to find out more about U@live:

Introduction Video – U@live by NUS

Important Update: As at 20 June 2011, the contest mechanics have been updated. Just follow the steps below!

Some of you who follow me on Twitter and Facebook must have seen my updates about the Hotmail / Windows Live “Save Social Energy” Campaign that I was involved in some time in April.

Hotmail generously sent me to Kuala Lumpur to watch Bruno Mars live in concert. I travelled luxuriously by SIA to KL, and stayed at Traders Hotel in the city centre while I was there! Read more here!

This time, Hotmail is bringing all of you yet another awesome treat!

HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS™!

As you probably already know, the highly anticipated finale to the Harry Potter series comes on 15 July 2011. But why wait till then? You could be among the first in the world to watch it at the World Premiere on 7 July, IN LONDON!

Friends who know me well will know that I am definitely a tremendously big fan of the series! Are you, too? If so, read on to know what you can win!

1 winner from Singapore, Malaysia, Philippines and Thailand can each win:

• A ticket to attend the World Premiere of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows™ – PART 2 in London
• Return flight tickets to London
• 3D2N accommodation in London

Working with Warner Bros to bring you this amazing Grand Prize, Hotmail has designed a special quest that uses its Windows Live Messenger and Windows Live Mail platforms to help you complete the challenge, to win this exciting trip!

The World Premiere that will be held on 7 July at Leicester Square (possibly one of my favourite areas in London, as this is at West End!) will (of course) include a red carpet event that will take place beforehand at Trafalgar Square. It will be attended by all the stars of the movie, as well as JK Rowling herself!

That’s Emma Watson (aka Hermione) at the 2010 World Premiere in London for Part 1 of the 7th movie.

Photo credit: SocialiteLife.com

I’m just brimming with excitement at the thought of all these! So imagine my excitement when Microsoft first contacted me to be part of this campaign!

Can’t wait any longer? Read the 8 steps below to find out how you can be part of all this action!

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5 steps to win a trip to London to attend the World Premiere of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows™ Part 2 :

1. Go to iwanthotmail.com/harrypotter

2. Fill in your details, accept the T&C, and ‘Enter the Contest Now’.

3. Check your Windows Live Mail or Hotmail inbox for the next step to take in your Harry Potter quest! If you don’t seee the email, check your spam folder.

4. Your first task will be to watch a video. This is actually the movie trailer! You’ll have to answer a question, so do watch out. *hint hint: answer is at 0:34*

After watching the video, you will be given 2 questions:

a. In the Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows™ Part 2 movie trailer, what do Harry, Ron and Hermione use to escape from Gringotts?

b. Most Creative answer wins: Who is your favourite Harry Potter Character, and why? (20 words or less)

5. Send your answers to the specified email address, and you may be the lucky one to join me in London for the World Premiere of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows™ Part 2!

Contest ends: 11:59PM (GMT +8) on 20 June 2011. That’s a week from now! Don’t miss it!

There’ll be more prizes to win (from my blog itself), so stay tuned! But first, you probably have something more important to do now.

The first step of your journey begins here:

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This promotion is brought to you by:

by Microsoft

Note: Winners will be selected by contest judges from Microsoft, and I have no influence in the judges’ decision.

Full Disclosure: My trip to London, UK to attend the World Premiere of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows™ Part 2 is fully sponsored by Hotmail.

As of now, all the tickets for the concert are are sold out.  But the good news is, Hotmail has one pair of tickets left to give away as a Thank You to its fans and users. What has Bruno Mars got to do with Hotmail? Read on to find out, and when you’re done, sign up for what looks like the best opportunity to get your hands on an all expenses paid trip to watch Bruno Mars live in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

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Ever felt like being online gives you an information overload? Sometimes, I feel that way. And being online 18 hrs a day sometimes also means that I almost never switch off.

Friends have asked me: Isn’t it distracting for you to be “online” so much at work, on the various social media platforms?

For me, I now use different social dashboards to manage different things. One of the latest dashboard I now use is the Windows Live Dashboard! If you haven’t tried it out, you should. Just log in with your MSN/Windows Passport, and you’ll be able to access your dashboard.

From this dashboard, you can link up your Hotmail account, Windows Live Messenger, Facebook, LinkedIn,  Twitter and more, so you see all the activities going on on a single page! It’s really pretty cool. Here are the services you can use:

So if you haven’t recently logged on to Hotmail, you definitely should. You can post a single status update to all your social networks (depending on your settings, which are totally customizable). You can actually even reply to Windows Live chat buddies, Facebook friends, and more, from this new dashboard.

So it’s definitely great for people who login from different computers. You don’t have to install different types of software or social media client – this is web-based, and you always see the same screen, no matter whether you log in from San Francisco, or Singapore, or Melbourne, or London!

So what does this have to do with having an information overload?

Whenever you socialize or consume information online, you’re effectively using what we call ‘social energy’. With the various platforms and social media tools we use on a daily basis, you will realize that you’re wasting a lot of social energy, and causing communication inefficiency!

It’s like that movie, “He’s Just Not That Into You“:

“I had this guy leave me a voice mail at work, so I called him at home, and then he emailed me to my BlackBerry, and so I texted to his cell, and then he emailed me to my home account, and the whole thing just got out of control, and I miss the days when you had one phone number and one answering machine, and that one answering machine had one casette tape, and that one casette tape either had a message from a guy or it didn’t, and now you just have to go around checking all these different portals just to get rejected by seven different technologies. It’s exhausting.”

Yes, it’s exhausting. So why not put everything on one single dashboard, and manage your communication more effectively?

This way, you can be more organized, productive and efficient, both at work and in your personal social life.

If y0u find yourself often feeling like everything is just too much for you to handle, Hotmail and the new Windows Live dashboard in your new Hotmail can also help cut down on the stress level in your life.

Doesn’t that sound great? It’s like taking a vacation from your online life, but not really leaving it at all. A win-win situation where you are still connected, yet you can cut down on the clutter and 5 million different voices shouting at you from 20 different social media platforms!

And… Even more good news coming your way!

To further help you relax and enjoy this new found freedom, Hotmail is going to send you on an all expenses paid trip to Kuala Lumpur in April, to watch Bruno Mars live in concert!

Contest closes on Monday, 31 March 2011, so HURRY check it out, if you wanna catch Bruno Mars Live In Concert!

And oh, don’t forget to watch this short clip about Bruno Mars.

Psst. I’m also going on the trip, thanks to the cool folks at Hotmail. So come join me! We get to hang out in KL as a treat from Hotmail, eat awesome Malaysian food, and watch this awesome performer LIVE in concert! HERE. REMEMBER. CLICK. HERE.

This awesome promo is brought to you by Hotmail. To find out more about saving social energy, CLICK:

Full Disclosure: My trip to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia to attend the Bruno Mars concert is fully sponsored by Hotmail.

All my bags are packed, I’m ready to go. I’m standing here outside your door, I hate to remind you but you need to prepare!

SMWF Asia is happening in 12 hours – have you prepared yourselves?

Attending a conference is a big deal to me. I like to get the most out of my time spent at a conference, and the amount of money spent for the conference fees, if any. So here’s how you can prepare the way I do:

1. Look at the conference agenda and workshop agenda and decide which ones you want to attend
2. Check out post-conference networking events, such as the Facebook-sponsored Helipad Party, and this community-organized TweetUp
3. Set up hashtag monitoring columns on your Twitter client (I use Tweetdeck) – The 2 hashtags for SMWF Asia are: #SMWF and #SMWFQ
4. Prepare namecards for networking and introductions to conference attendees – you may also consider bringing Pokens or digital namecards if possible
5. Add yourself to lists of attendees that you can network with via Twitter such as this one. Check out the list of attendees and link up with them on Twitter before the conference.
6. Check out this [Google Spreadsheet] list of conference and workshop speakers’ Twitter handles or follow the Twitter List I’ve created
7. Connect with conference participants, speakers, and exhibitors via Twitter and other social networks, if you are interested

Here’s how you can connect with me:

Other must-bring items:

1. Laptop + Charger
2. Namecards and Poken
3. Mobile phone
4. Conference pass confirmation email
5. Jacket (conference venues can be freezing, at times!)

BTW. If you have an iPhone, there’s an SMWF iPhone app!

Happy conferencing! See you at SMWF Asia 2010!

[Image source: TheSituationist]

2 months ago, I blogged that I will be attending SMWF Asia 2010 as part of its team of official bloggers. Now it’s less than 2 days away! I’m definitely getting excited, as are many in the local and regional Twitterverse and blogosphere.

If you haven’t registered for the event, or if you’re not sure if you want to pay for the event, you can get a ‘preview’ of sorts by attending the free exhibition and workshops!

Do register for an SMWF Asia workshop pass here.

I’ve started a Google Docs spreadsheet for all conference and workshop attendees to list themselves and their Twitter usernames, so that we can Tweet for a meet up during the 2 days of the conference.

Please add your name to the list here if you are interested to meet up during lunch and coffee breaks. In addition, we’ll be having a TweetUp at Zsofi’s Tapas Bar after the conference and workshops end on 23 September. Do RSVP promptly for all the activities, and come meet up with us!

Social Media World Forum Asia 2010
22-23 September 2010
Suntec City Convention Centre, Singapore

- – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – -

I first heard about Social Media WorldForum Asia from Dorothy Poon, who attended SMWF last year and who has been, for 2 years running, one of the official media partners for this event.

I think this in itself is something exciting for me, because Dorothy is a friend and someone I continually engage with, online and offline. Earlier this year, I also attended the Mobile Marketing Association Forum Asia with Dorothy, and to say the very least, Dorothy is a very attentive conference attendee who injects very insightful updates into every conference’s social stream. Definitely looking forward to following her live updates on Twitter come 22-23 September 2010.

SMWF Asia, in its second year now, is fast gaining traction amongst social media practitioners and enthusiasts in the region, and worldwide. It should come as no surprise that social behaviour online in Asia is very much different from that in other parts of the world, so those who are looking to understand the digital space in Asia should definitely attend this event.

There’ll be several segments to the event, namely the:

• Conference
• Social TV session
• Exhibition
• Workshops
• Networking events

I’m personally looking forward to a few specific items on the agenda during the event:

• “The State Of Social Media in Asia Today – A Year On” – Keynote by Thomas Crampton, Asia-Pacific Director, 360 Digital Influence,Ogilvy Public Relations Worldwide, Hong Kong
• “Case- Study -Social Media Marketing @ Toys R Us” – Presentation by Argha Sen, Head of Marketing & CRM, Toys R Us
• “Increasing customer intimacy and empowerment through Social CRM” – An Interactive Panel session with Damien Cummings of Dell and Nik Ong of MRM Singapore
• “Integrating Social Media into traditional marketing strategy“ - An Interactive Panel session with Singapore marketers (Derek Yeo of Tiger Airways, Jeremy Khoo of NTUC Fairprice, Francis Wang of Singapore Turf Club, and Pooja Arora of P&G)
• “Monetizing Social Media & Social Networks” – Keynote by Laurel Papworth, Social Network Strategist
• Meeting Brian Solis
• Meeting Shalabh Pandey
• Party at Helipad!

25% discount off conference ticket price: Find out how

Social Media WorldForum Event Brochure

Twitter handle: @SocialMediaWF
Twitter hashtag: #SMWF

Project Reach is a programme presented and spearheaded by Murdoch University’s Public Relations students in Singapore. The programme consists of Causathon, an online fund-raiser competition and a Conference, which is the landmark event for Project Reach.

Causathon “the race for cause” kick-starts on 7 July 2010 and involves 85 students in an online fund-raising competition. To raise funds for 14 different causes, the teams will tap on social media and the online social giving portal Give.sg, which helps connect Not-for-Profit organizations with donors.

I found out about Give.sg during the first Twestival SG event which I volunteered at. I got dunked for charity! Anyway, the people at Give.sg are a really passionate bunch, who have been working at their Give.sg portal, to improve users’ experience. Check out some of the fund-raising projects that they had a hand in recently! One of the key offerings of the Give.sg portal is its personal fundraising feature, which allows individuals to start their own campaigns and get friends and family to fund their favourite social projects by donating to a cause or Not-for-Profit / Charitable organization that they support! If you’re interested to find out more, you can always give the site a try, or Tweet them at @GIVEsingapore.

But I digress! Back to Causathon - I’m really excited to go down and meet the teams, and find out more about what each of them are planning to do to raise funds for their cause. Perhaps I can even do my part and share with them some ideas about how to further reach out to people on Social Media!

But this is not all just talk – You can follow the teams’ progress at this Causathon microsite on Give.sg, and make a donation to help them achieve their targets for their selected beneficiaries!

Wanna find out more and meet the teams in person? Come down today, to SMa Institute of Higher Learning, at 410 North Bridge Road #01-00 (It’s just opposite the National Library and Bras Basah Complex at Bugis!)

You can also get to enjoy a good cuppa coffee from Starbucks, at just SGD 2! Yes, you read that right! SGD 2! All proceeds from the coffee sales go to charity.

So come on down if you’re free this afternoon, come and meet us, and have a cuppa joe with us, for a good cause! Some bloggers will be joining us too, to learn more about this project, and share the word with their readers! Interested? Join us!

Among the bloggers attending will be:

Sham of mhisham.org

Robert of robertsky.com

Catherine of camemberu.com

Aaron of aaronpeng.org

Nikita of iHengbok.blogspot.com

We’ll be having rounds at 3pm, 4pm, and 5pm! If you plan to come, just Tweet me at @daphnemaia or call me at 91685900 so I can personally meet you there!

Official Twitter hashtag: #projectreachsg