TheSmartLocal (TSL) Media Group

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TSL is a leading media publisher in Singapore with 5 subsidiary sites.

TheSmartLocal (TSL) started in August 2012 as a “positive hyper-local crowd-sourced review portal”.[1] Now a leading lifestyle publisher in Singapore, the TSL Media Group has grown to consist of the following publications: TheSmartLocal, ZULA, MustShare News, Eatbook.sg and Wiki.sg. As of 2020, the company has also opened regional offices in Malaysia, Thailand, Philippines, Indonesia, Vietnam, Japan and Korea. In 2018, TSL won ‘Media Brand of the Year’ at the Mumbrella Asia Awards.[2]

Background

Business model

In 2018, TSL created a 10-part commissioned network programme for Toggle.

Equipped with an in-house editorial and video team, TSL creates content for its audience that can also be monetised.[3] TSL remains profitable by creating branded editorial and video content, an effective alternative to traditional advertising. Acting as a media publisher, creative agency and production house, TSL provides an “end-to-end service” for its paying clients.[4]

Content growth

The cover image for TSL's "20 Greatest Daiso Things To Buy" article in January 2020.

In a 2017 interview with Vulcan Post, TSL’s founder Bryan Choo shared that the site had encountered hiccups with its initial crowd-sourced review portal concept.[5] The site was slow to grow as Singaporeans were not contributing as actively as he had hoped.[6] With that in mind, TSL was then developed into a lifestyle media publisher.


By 2020, TSL has covered a wide variety of topics ranging from wisdom tooth removal[7] to hiking locations[8] and overseas scams.[9] Other than publishing editorial content on its website, TSL actively creates video content on YouTube and Facebook. The site is also active on Instagram. On average, TheSmartLocal has an average monthly reach of over 3 million Singaporeans.[10]


Over the years, TSL has expanded to include the following sister sites.

Year Founded Sister Site Summary Refs.
2019 Wiki.sg A site dedicated to fact-finding and fact-checking in Singapore. [11]
2017 ZULA A site producing female-centric content for Singaporeans. [12]
2015 Eatbook.sg A site producing food-related content for Singaporeans. [13]
2014 MustShare (MS) News A news site providing credible and engaging news to Singaporeans. [14]

Office culture

TSL's office cats Jaymee (left) and Pika (right).

The first TSL office in 2013 was located at 71 McNair Road. A year later, the office space was relocated to 592F Balestier Road. In November 2016, TSL Media moved into an office space at Kallang Bahru which has since remained the company's headquarters.[15] In 2019, TSL opened physical offices in Malaysia and Thailand.


Founder Bryan Choo places importance on a positive office culture as this translates into a conducive environment for good work ethic and values. The TSL headquarters has an open-office concept and is equipped with a communal dining area, three studios, one meeting room and a chill area. TSL also has two office cats, Pika and Jaymee.[16]

Founder

Bryan Choo

Bryan Choo is the founder and Managing Director of TSL Media Group. Before setting up TSL, Bryan was a competitive Starcraft gamer,[17] participating in multiple competitions in and out of Singapore.[18][19][20][21] In 2010, Bryan kickstarted SC2SEA - a South East Asia (SEA) eSports community site.[22]


Bryan went to Catholic High School before furthering his studies at the University of Queensland where he graduated with a Bachelors of Commerce (Honours) in Finance.[23]

Awards & accolades

Mumbrella Asia Awards (2018) - “Media Brand of the Year”

Mumbrella Asia Awards is a prestigious award celebrating media-marketing work across the region. The awards consist of 30 categories that are judged by 200 industry jurors.[24]


In September 2018, Bryan submitted an award entry for TSL to Mumbrella Asia.[25] In November, TSL was nominated alongside media companies such as VICE Media, Consumer News and Business Channel (CNBC) and South China Morning Post (SCMP).[26] They won the award for Media Brand of the Year. The award presentation ceremony was held at the Intercontinental Hotel in Singapore.[27]

References / Citations

  1. ↑ Tan, Vanessa. “Be a Smarter Local with TheSmartLocal.com”. Tech in Asia. May 24, 2013. Accessed on 13 November 2019.
  2. ↑ Yang, Joyce. “Winning work: How TheSmartLocal harnessed the power of positivity to beat the big media players”. Mumbrella Asia. November 30, 2018. Accessed on 28 January 2020.
  3. ↑ Yang, Joyce. “Winning work: How TheSmartLocal harnessed the power of positivity to beat the big media players”. Mumbrella Asia. November 30, 2018. Accessed on 28 January 2020.
  4. ↑ “Advertise”. TheSmartLocal. Accessed on 28 January 2020.
  5. ↑ Chan, Melissa. "TheSmartLocal Founder Bryan Choo - From Champion Gamer to Media Entrepreneur". Vulcan Post. October 27, 2017. Accessed 12 November 2019.
  6. ↑ Chan, Melissa. "TheSmartLocal Founder Bryan Choo - From Champion Gamer to Media Entrepreneur". Vulcan Post. October 27, 2017. Accessed 12 November 2019.
  7. ↑ Syuhada Suri. “Guide to wisdom tooth removal in Singapore - Extraction, costs and recovery”. TheSmartLocal. November 13, 2019. Accessed 13 November 2019.
  8. ↑ Khoo, Deborah. “10 Highest Mountains to climb near Singapore if Bukit Timah is no kick for you”. TheSmartLocal. May 28, 2018. Accessed 13 November 2019.
  9. ↑ Tan, Kezia. “15 travel scams Singaporeans always kena in Asia, Europe & USA and how to avoid them”. TheSmartLocal. August 14, 2019. Accessed 13 November 2019.
  10. ↑ “About us”. TheSmartLocal. Accessed 13 November 2019.
  11. ↑ “About Wiki.sg”. Wiki.sg. April 4, 2019. Accessed 13 November 2019.
  12. ↑ “About us”. Zula. Accessed 13 November 2019.
  13. ↑ “About us”. Eatbook. Accessed 7 June 2019.
  14. ↑ “About MS News”. MS News. September 15, 2014. Accessed 13 November 2019.
  15. ↑ Lee, Grace. “Office Renovation: TSL turned this rabak industrial unit into a mini-Google HQ”. TheSmartLocal. December 16, 2016. Accessed 12 November 2019.
  16. ↑ Chan, Melissa. "TheSmartLocal Founder Bryan Choo - From Champion Gamer to Media Entrepreneur". Vulcan Post. October 27, 2017. Accessed 12 November 2019.
  17. ↑ “About Bryan Choo”. I am Bryan Choo. July 25, 2015. Accessed 15 November 2019.
  18. ↑ “Taking Starcraft II with Team aLt’s Bryan nivAnA Choo”. Game Spot. March 20, 2011. Accessed on 15 November 2019.
  19. ↑ “WCG 2001”.  Liquipedia. Accessed 13 November 2019.
  20. ↑ “Final Results”. SC2SEA. August 8, 2011. Accessed 13 November 2019.
  21. ↑ “Smuft's Team Battle Tournament”. Liquipedia. Accessed 13 November 2019.
  22. ↑ Chan, Melissa. "TheSmartLocal Founder Bryan Choo - From Champion Gamer to Media Entrepreneur". Vulcan Post. October 27, 2017. Accessed 12 November 2019.
  23. ↑ Bryan Choo. Facebook. Accessed 12 November 2019. Retrieved from: https://www.facebook.com/beautifulseoul/about?section=education&lst=1596858661%3A635691171%3A1573547106
  24. ↑ “Asia’s more credible media & marketing awards”. Mumbrella Asia. Accessed 12 November 2019.
  25. ↑ Bryan Choo. “OMG WE WON!!” Facebook. November 15, 2018. Accessed 12 November 2019.
  26. ↑ “Mumbrella Asia Awards winners revealed”. Mumbrella Asia. November 15, 2018. Accessed 12 November 2019.
  27. ↑ Choo, Bryan. “The Smart Local wins media brand of the year at the Mumbrella Asia Awards”. I am bryan choo. November 16, 2018. Accessed on 30 January 2020.
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