Influence (noun): the power to change or impact someone’s character or behavior.
While the word “influence” is easy to comprehend, it has more depth and weight when experienced in a realistic setting. If you made a record of how many people of influence you were surrounded by throughout your lifespan, the number would be overwhelming. Teachers, parents, siblings, friends, politicians, movie stars, artists, and the list goes on. Certain people, however, manage to redefine the impact of a particular influence on others
at home and globally. In the realm of business, these people are called PR trendsetters.
Featuring in this magazine is an alpha leader, Marie Alexander (Executive Director). Through her agency, Alexander PR Group, she has taken the modern world of digital media by a vigorous storm. APR is a world-class, global award-winning ROI digital marketing, PR, events, and advertising agency.
Marie is an expert in PR, marketing, advertising, and finance. Her budget allocation expertise helps clients grow their brands. Warren Buffet is her financial inspiration. She also admires Michael Jordan as an athlete.
In the following interview, Marie unveils details of her journey in the media industry over the past 18 years. She also gives us details about how her company is currently positioned as one of the top PR and marketing agencies in Singapore, APAC, the US, and the rest of the world. Additionally, she shares her opinions on the industry landscape, the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, and her vision for her company’s future.
A 360-Degree Professional Experience
Over the past 18 years, Marie has worked with various industries, including Fashion and Beauty, Automotive, Home and Décor, Medical, Food and Beverages, Hospitality, and Luxury and Lifestyle media. She also has a proven track record of delivering effective and measurable marketing, branding, and public relations strategies for clients.
“I have spent those years learning about different B2C and B2B sectors. I began my career in interior design and fashion with Runway Productions, Home & Decor magazine, and other Singapore Press Holdings publications in 2003. I achieved success by staying on top of the latest design trends and improving my skills,” Marie says.
In addition, Marie has hosted SPH Magazines’ Woman’s Fair comprising Her World, Icon, NuYou, Shape and Citta Bella, the Home and Decor Fair, Young Parents events, and movie launches for Movie Magazine FIRST Magazine, such as Paris Je’Taime and Eragon.
From 2005 to 2008, Marie worked as a fashion stylist and fashion director for FHM and Simply Her magazines. She was also the design and fashion director of Carrie Models International, where she quickly built a strong presence in Singapore’s luxury fashion, beauty, and F&B industries.
Her experience in designing fashion campaigns for local and international brands, as well as styling celebrities, politicians, and CEOs, tells the story of what makes her different from others in the field.
Foundation of APR
In her first business venture, Marie Ng Advertising, Events and PR, in 2008, Marie implemented marketing and PR campaigns on behalf of many national and international clients. Within two years, the company took on several eco-vegan accounts and changed its name to Alexander & Alexandria from 2010 to 2013.
Following an increased growth in clientele across industries, and the demand for projects spanning public relations, publishing, and events, she changed the firm’s name to Alexander PR Group in 2015. “As a true trendsetter, from then to now, I have both predicted and set trends,” Marie says.
“Alexander PR Group is an experienced marketing and branding agency with a wealth of world-class experience,” she describes when asked about her company.
Career Specialities
As an influencer, Marie is committed to satisfying the demands of APR’s clients, developing their brands, and making good decisions on their behalf. Each client she has worked with has found her to be trustworthy, dependable, and reliable.
Marie has gained deep knowledge and insights throughout her career. She has managed many of her work assignments with utmost dedication and integrity. Talking about her career
specialties, Marie says, “I am a Digital Marketing Champion, PR Champion, Advertising Champion, Events Champion, Host, Triathlete, Creative Director, and Model. Apart from that, I have art directed and designed 13,000 creatives.”
She adds, “I have also choreographed, hosted, and organized nearly 100 events, and launched 150 PR campaigns. I single-handedly led numerous teams and helped all my clients reach their destiny and goals with kindness.”
Unique Persona
Since Marie has traveled worldwide and experienced many cultures, her clients deeply trust her personality, ENFJ-A, and Pisces nature, which is extremely rare. “Myers-Briggs says I am the most influential and powerful person,” Marie tells us.
Her unique personality has enabled her to develop savvy interpersonal skills, which have made her a celebrity in her own right. Marie claims, “People have even asked me whether I am an actor, the CEO of a corporation, or a politician.”
Most Successful Campaigns
Describing the proven work outcomes, Marie provides us the APR’s most successful
campaign statistics that her company has delivered. She says, “Our most successful B2C campaign (an F&B campaign) has generated more than 18 million views and huge profits.”
Recently, 17 of her campaigns for Singapore, Southeast Asia, and the United States received tens of millions of views collectively. Moreover, she was recently named one of the top 10 Digital Marketing and PR Specialists in the World and one of the top 10 World Marketing & Advertising Champions for 2022.
Highly Regarded Clients
From wellness products to new product launches and jewelry representation, APR helps brands translate their desires into innovative, engaging, and appealing products. It includes news releases for launches, engaging key personalities to represent the brand, and handling creatives for ads and videos.
APR has also provided specialized services to various brands of its clients over the years, according to their requirements. When asked about all the clients that APR has served and the experience that she has gained, Marie says, “With Fortune 500 companies, global brands, and celebrities on our client list, Alexander PR Group continues to flourish, and I am thankful for all the opportunities given to me.”
Core Values and Qualities
When asked about what set of values and qualities guided her on her exciting career journey, Marie says, “I am 100% committed to my work. I am straightforward, kind, honest, dependable, and trustworthy.”
“Our bigger-picture mindset enables us to localize content according to the country or region where a release or launch is taking place. Whether we are working internally or with a client, we truly believe teamwork makes the dream work,” she adds.
“My alpha parents instilled in me the importance of being an alpha personality in a good way. My father taught me discipline, humility, and kindness, and my mother: love, friendship, compassion, and respect. My team reflects these values,” she declares.
Collaboration with Leading Entertainment Figures
Asked about which prominent public and entertainment figures she has worked within the US and Singapore through her leading PR and digital marketing agency and as a worldwide entertainment broker, Marie answers, “I flew Sean ‘Puffy’ Combs’ manager to Singapore in 2017 to meet with one of my clients. Within a month, I was invited by Diddy, Busta Rhymes, and Kevin Hart to a music and movie launch party in Los Angeles. While in LA, I met with leading entertainment companies that represent the Kardashians, Paris Hilton, and other US celebrities and athletes .”
Since then, Marie has been an entertainment broker with global leads. APR is affiliated with leading celebrities and athletes in the United States, Singapore, Europe, and the Asia-Pacific region.
Career Journey
Marie has experience in working with brands from a variety of industries, including automotive, medical, FMCG, technology, health and sports, fashion, interior design, beauty, entertainment, hospitality, food and beverage, and corporate. “My clients keep coming back and referring others to me,” she tells us.
Her name also gets searched a lot on the internet worldwide. In Singapore, her company was nominated as a top PR agency on numerous media sites. APR runs campaigns that receive direct views from nearly 20 different countries in Asia, Europe, the US, etc.
Personality Influences
Marie credits her strong intuition and creative ability to her alpha father. He was a sprinter, a gymnast champion, a boy scout, a marksman, and a commanding officer in the army, as well as an advertising and design expert. She says, “Both creatively and physically, I am like him. My mother dedicated her life to me. Her beauty, kindness, feistiness, and gracefulness taught me to always be graceful, kind, and empathetic towards others.”
“Additionally, I attribute my success to my 10 best friends, who have been my mentors and helped me to become the professional that I am today. I also credit my life coach Caroline Chapman and personal advisors such as C, Anshul Gupta, Ann Ling,” she adds.
Leading celebrities such as Jean Danker, Andrea DeCruz, Cassandra See, and Zoe Tay have also helped her personally and professionally. “My amazing cousins Xan Chew, Chanel Ng, and Stephanie Loke, my besties, have been by my side since I was 2,” she adds. Lastly, she credits herself for staying motivated throughout her career, saying, “The saying ‘you become one of your best friends’ is true.”
Leadership and Exclusivity
Marie has developed strong leadership skills during her career journey. She makes sure to always apply the lessons she has learned to the benefit of her company. She says, “My commitment to excellence is reflected in every project I handle for Alexander PR Group. My leadership style is hands-on and passionate, focusing on strategic thinking and creative ideas that get results.”
She further adds, “It is also an honor to be born a Pisces, a sign that represents less than 5% of the people in the world. In line with my sign, I excel in business and personal relationships, and I make decisions based on empathy, kindness, logic, precision, and meticulousness. “
Marie values her company’s clients. She wishes them the best when it comes to having positivity all around them. She says, “Every year, my one wish is that my long-term clients to faster get on the social media bandwagon with me leading them. As a luxury and lifestyle expert, I dedicated myself 18 years learning Medical, Automotive, Health, Beauty, F&B, Interior, Sports, Entertainment etc sectors intensively.
Views on Technology
In response to a question about how Alexander PR Group is riding the technology wave, Marie says, “My media credentials and business acumen complement my driving passion. Staying up to date keeps us on top of our game.”
“Our expertise includes keeping abreast of the latest technologies and innovations our clients can apply to their online and social media campaigns,” she further notes.
The advent of digital marketing has created a world of possibilities for every industry to grow its customer base. As a digital marketing expert, APR has gained a strong market position in the process. Marie says, “We are the industry leaders for Digital Marketing, climbing the social media mountain of maximum visibility for our clients by creating unique virtual creatives and campaigns with visuals and videos that capture consumers’ attention in a
single glance. It is challenging but not impossible.”
“As a digital marketing champion, I am the King of IG and FB; in one week, one IG post can reach 120K views in multiple countries such as the US, Singapore, Korea, Indonesia, Thailand, Brazil, Turkey, Hong Kong, Italy, and France.” she notes.
Plans for 2022 and beyond
Occasionally, it is a good idea to look back over the journey that has been taken to determine if it is heading in the right direction or if it is heading in the wrong direction. The COVID-19 lockdowns and the crisis that followed taught us a great deal. “Most of us have had the opportunity to reflect and pause professionally over the past couple of years.
“As a result, I learned to practice value listening to understand customer pe rceptions and possibilities. Outstanding PR professionals can spot inconsistencies and dishonesty simply by listening to others explaining what they mean.”
Describing the goals for her agency in the coming years, Marie says, “Alexander PR Group’s goal is to generate visionary ideas, be responsive in times of crisis, and find an effective balance.”
Father As an Inspiration
Our personalities are derived from members of our family, usually our parents. Having someone to look after and be motivated by from childhood helps us realize what it takes to succeed in life. Describing her source of inspiration in her family, Marie says, “My father, Peter Ng, will always be famous to me.”
Her father spent 25 years at Singapore Press Holdings as an artist, a visualizer, and then an art director, working for The Straits Times, Business Times, The New Paper, Sunday Times, Lianhe Zaobao, Wanbao, Berita Harian, and Tamil Murasu.
In his prime, he was also a leading gymnast, a sprinter and a champion long-distance runner. Additionally, he was a commander in Singapore’s Armed Forces, as well as an expert
marksman.
He holds distinctions in advertising art, display design, and logo design from the Baharuddin Vocational Institute (now Temasek Polytechnic) and designed a renowned poster design
campaign for Singapore between 1971 and 1972. “He would have gone to Japan to work| with an advertising agency if I hadn’t been born,” Marie adds.
She further elaborates, “Having worked with and hired many leading celebrities for
campaigns in Singapore and the US, I consider myself the most powerful in my family.”
Exemplary Sportsmanship
Marie ran track when she was young. “As a swimming champion and team captain in the East One Cluster School competitions, I beat my rivals four times in four years of swimming,” Marie says. She completed her swimming course with gold, silver, and bronze certificates and had the opportunity to go for Goldstar, but she thought it was too risky since she had to jump from a swimming board 6 to 10m above the ground.
As a student, she was a running, swimming, javelin, short-distance, long-distance, and swimming champion, as well as the swim team’s captain. She is a triathlete and has the ability to excel in any sport. “I don’t have enough time to devote to any sport at the moment. For it to grow, I need to make time. I’m trying my best to keep both things going at once right now,” Marie says. Her strengths in school were leadership, academics, and ECAs. She ran the 100, 200, and 400m, 4 x 100m, and 4 x 400m at Loyang Secondary School for four years. She also won the javelin without practice. Additionally, she was a percussionist in the Loyang Secondary School Symphonic Band for two years.
Because of her involvement in sports and other ECAs, along with her responsibilities as a monitor and then a prefect, she decided to leave the band. She served as a school commander, a pledge announcer, the swim team captain, and a prize-winning swimmer while she was on the prefectorial board. She describes her life as very busy and rewarding since she was the most popular and one of the top five academic students in her class.
For More Visit:
