NEWS

Press release

June 15th 2009

MRE to launch T-Zap and Xeralife at APHM
MRE (M) SDN BHD. is to launch two germ decontamination brands, T-Zap and Xeralife, at the Association of Private Hospital of Malaysia (APHM) annual exhibition and conference to be held in Kuala Lumpur’s Convention Center on July 21st through 23rd 2009.

T-Zap is a cutting edge technology brand that captures and decomposes viruses, bacteria, germs and other harmful substances. It also absorbs odors and Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs). It is 200 times more powerful than Chlorine, yet absolutely safe for human beings. This patented Japanese technology has been developed and perfected over the past 18 years and it has passed all critical tests. T-Zap destroys the viruses’ cell walls and has been proven particularly effective against all forms of Influenza including H5N1.

Xeralife is the consumer brand for all T-Zap powered products. The brand offers a comprehensive portfolio for medical practices and hospitals, from 4 ply surgical decontaminator masks, paint for decontamination of walls and ceilings and room decontaminator units. It also offers T-Zap coated textiles including bed linens, curtains, patients’ gowns as well as staff lab coats and scrubs.

This year’s APHM is aptly entitled “Best Practices in Health Care Delivery” as Xeralife products powered by T-Zap tackle the most lethal viruses and flu germs.

Find out more by visiting T-Zap and Xeralife at stand numbers 66 through 69 during APHM. Exhibition pre-registration is available on line at: www.aphmconferences.org
Furthermore, MRE is hosting a T-Zap and Xeralife conference at the Convention Center on the afternoon of July 21st  .Registration for this exclusive event can be made on line at: www.Xeralifeconference.com

Article on T-Zap marketing

T-Zap – Creating a brand 200 times more powerful than Chlorine
At the first meeting, the Managing Director of MRE, the authorised world-wide distributor (outside Japan) of a new technology, reported “Our products are able to kill viruses, bacteria and other harmful organic compounds. We can even prevent the spread of Avian flu”. Further information revealed that the technology avoids germ cross-contamination in hospitals, helps cure skin problems, supports the healing process for certain sicknesses and on top of all this, it eliminates bad odours.
As consumers, we are all familiar with chemical based anti-germs such as Chlorine or Hydrogen-Peroxide. However, these solutions are harmful to humans and the environment. In addition germs are developing new strains that are chemical resistant; Bacteria such as MSRA, the so-called superbug, now resist all forms of antibiotics. There are many non chemical products on the market, however these need an external catalyst such as sunshine to work. In this regard, MRE’s technology is a major step forward. It is non-chemical and yet it doesn’t require an external catalyst to work effectively. In fact, it turns out to be 250 times more powerful than Chorine.

An issue of marketing
One of the glaring problems was that the amazing product properties were not apparent in anything the company said or did, from their chosen name and logo down to the detailed website content. However, the client had already invested in a major branding and marketing project with another agency and was resistant to go through it all again. Still, after two years of struggle and weak sales, management had realized that the product was not the reason for the brand’s lack of success. After all, the potential was enormous, the benefits obvious. 

Misleading brand expression

The initial investigation revealed that the brand’s positioning, mission, vision and values were not clear enough. They were neither specific nor in line with what the technology’s capabilities. In addition, the content of the website was difficult to understand and the information architecture was not well built.
The chosen name (eco +) and logo (a large green “e” on top of the “eco+” name), portrayed the eco-friendliness of the technology and its products. Although the brand’s properties substantiated this claim, the eco angle was ill-conceived for three reasons. First, the name and logo placed the product and technology squarely into the highly competitive eco-friendly environment. Over the past 5 years, eco has become a major buzz word as numerous brands seek to demonstrate their credentials. The result is customer confusion and fatigue from eco-overload. Second, using a simple “e” as a logo added to the generic nature of the brand, as this symbol is used extensively in internet, education, ecology, electronics industries. This also contributed to further consumer confusion. Third, and most important, by placing its product and technology in the eco arena, the company forfeited its primary claim: namely its products protect lives. Health and wellbeing are trump issues and they over-power any other sales argument. If their claims are credible, they need to be served up front and centre.

Muddled communications did not help the brand either. With the myriads of new brands entering the market, the brand promise needs to be clear and concise. In their literature, eco+ was advocating they were “a premier health and eco-friendly product provider for consumers’ wellness.” As their reason for being, they stated “we empower people to make sound decisions to improve their lives”. Furthermore, they advocated “Innovation is key to our success. We take great care in developing reliable solutions for the wellbeing of everyone.”  Nowhere in their core statements did eco+ actually say what it does and that their products save lives. The communication is lost in a sea of generalities that only confuse potential customers. By being everything to everyone, they’ve ended up being nothing to no one.

Extensive product portfolio
The technology works in dry powder form as well as a water based slurry. This duality offers an unusually wide range of products capable of decontaminating air, water and solid surfaces. Originally this broad selection was seen as a major advantage. In reality, this flexibility turned out to be a problem as new ideas and new products kept being generated, resulting in continual priority changes. Within 2 years, the company was marketing towels, socks, surgical masks, air fresheners, paint additives, water sterilizing pills, sheets to prevent algae growth in aquariums, water purifying systems for air conditioners and pools, medical grade air purifying units, air-conditioning filters in roll form, facial masks, toothbrushes and tooth paste. Most of these products were marketed under the eco+ brand name.

Cluttered market
There is a growing customer demand for effective organic decontaminants and the market has reacted by offering a wide range of technologies and products. The air purifier industry in particular featured numerous methods marketed under a wide varied of brands. Most, including eco+, claim to eliminate 99.8% of organic contaminants down to 0.001 micron in size. The problem is that the majority of claims were false but there was little motivation by governments or third parties to pursue fraudulent information. So, even if eco+ was the only technology that really worked, its claim was lost in the sea of similar pronouncements.  

Disappointing sales 
In terms of distribution, the brand owners hoped to sell their products on-line, under the eco+ name.  However, there were no measures in place to drive people to this website and once on the site, it proved difficult for them to purchase an item.
Also, the company had hoped to develop retail sales through pharmacies and other outlets. After two years, a limited number of consumer items – namely eco+ coated towels and socks - were being sold through a dozen outlets of a mid-range pharmacy / home care brand in Malaysia. 

Raising the alarm
The focus of eco+ message was strongly oriented towards its beneficial application in the case of an Asian flu pandemic. It relied heavily on estimations of 500 Million lives at risk to drive its sales. However, using this approach, eco+ was positioning itself only as a prophylactic in case of a major pandemic. This proved to be quite unnecessary as research showed that lives are at risk from multiple contamination sources every day. For instance cross-contamination of antibiotic resistant bacteria in hospitals is a major problem and causes numerous deaths a year. eco+ could help prevent the spread of these pathogens.

Difficult to explain technology
The brand’s technology derives from PCO (Photo Catalytic Oxidation) and uses Titanium Dioxide as the main active ingredient. PCO has been marketed commercially for the past 40 years. Yet, it has only found a substantial market in Japan and has failed to gain a foothold in other developed nations. Even today, there are only a few words regarding PCO applications on Wikipedia and these are confined only as a sub-section of the discussion on air purifiers.
Originally, the company focused on marketing the technology as “Hybrid-PCO”. Although technically correct, this definition suffered from the fact that PCO was unknown to the vast majority of the market. In essence, it required the company to first explain PCO before going on to explain how “Hybrid PCO” differs from PCO. This was simply too complicated. A simpler solution was needed. Namely, the technology needed to be branded and explained in its own rights.  

Small issues that add-up
In reviewing the situation, it really wasn’t a single factor that explained why two years of hard work had failed to result in substantial sales. Rather, it is the cumulative effect of many small issues.
So the solution lay in developing a strategy that addressed each core issue and deploying a coordinated execution to build a consistent, clear message to generate a successful brand. 

Focus on the brand promise
First, the brand direction needed to be realigned from environmental protection to the prevention of diseases and the preservation of wellbeing. There were multiple ways of approaching this new direction and seven alternatives were presented to the client. The selected options was then used to craft the clearest, most concise brand promise and its related customer benefit. This promise then became the source for all marketing and sales related developments.
The new brand promise became: “We will provide the technology and applications that effectively and safely capture and decompose organic contaminants to ensure your health and on-going wellbeing.” So that, “You lead a productive and healthy life in a safer and more hygienic environment.”
Focus on the business model  
Embedded in the revised brand promise is a significant shift in the core business model. Previously, the company had focused on developing direct to customer sales through an on-line and retail brand offer which were essentially eco+ branded goods. As described in its new promise, the brand now “provides technology and applications”, not final products. This revised promise moves the company up a level from B2C (Business to Consumer) retailer to a B2B (Business to Business) wholesaler. This approach leads to an “Intel Inside” type model of co-branding where the existing retail brand leads (such as Dell or Sony) and the component brand (Intel) provides added value support.   
This approach offers three key advantages. First, it leverages the value and marketability of existing consumer brands. Second, it allows the new name brand to represent the “Hybrid PCO” technology as a whole. Consequently, it is only necessary to explain what the brand is and does without having to mention PCO. Third, by positioning the new name as the embodiment of the “Hybrid PCO” technology, it will come to represent that technology in the minds of the consumers. This will lock out potential competitors before they try to enter the market space. The same result had been achieved by brands such as Nylon and Gore-Tex.

Focus on the brand name
The brand promise and business model dictate the need to split the wholesale brand which represents the technology, from the retail brand for specific product application. Although the strategy was now focused on the wholesale brand, the company wanted to also retain a revenue stream based on retail sales. As such, two different yet complimentary names were developed, one for the technology at the wholesale level and one for the retail products.
The technology brand needed to embody power and ability and had to indicate what the product is capable of doing. After multiple iterations, the client chose the name T-Zap. When co-branded with an existing retail brand, the message became “powered by T-Zap”. The “T” in T-Zap is derived from Titanium Dioxide, the main active ingredient, while the word “Zap” describes the sound that an electrical discharge makes when the product decomposes an organic contaminant. Using a sound to describe an action provides a more dynamic and memorable name.
The product brands need to indicate the quality and benefits of the products derived from the T-Zap technology. This brand will distribute a wide-range of products that contribute to the health and well being of its customers. For this brand, the client selected the name: Xeralife. The name was derived from three elements. First, the “X” represents terminal or end as in T-Zap decomposing organic contaminants. Second, the “Xera” – an alternative form for Cera which represents the Ceramic nature of T-Zap – the main active ingredients are Ceramics, namely Titanium Dioxide and the Hydroxyapetite. Third, the “life” portion of the word represents the value of the product – it saves / improves life.

Scripting the message
The client had focused heavily on the avian flu threat to drive sales. Upon review, this approach was viewed as high risk for consumers tire very quickly of scare tactics. The goal was to create a powerful brand that would sustain over the long haul. So, a radical shift in the message was undertaken to no longer position T-Zap as being about the prevention of a possible pandemic, but a technology that helps saving lives every day.

Segmenting the market
Given the wide portfolio of products and applications offered by T-Zap, it is important to focus on high potential market segments to achieve rapid market presence. Two segments in particular offer the right degree of visibility and sales revenue.
The first is the medical field, specifically hospitals and hospices. These facilities are continuously fighting cross-contamination and drug resisting strains such as MSRA. T-Zap offers a wide range of products particularly for airborne and surface applications to reduce the risk of disease transmission. Also, experience has shown that doctors who use T-Zap coated products become strong advocates for the brand and its benefits. Therefore focusing on leaders in the medical profession allows T-Zap to gain key brand ambassadors and to raise its profile above the competitive clutter.
The second field of interest is textiles given the size of the potential market and the viability of T-Zap in terms of durability and flexibility. Not needing light to work means that T-Zap offers new options for under-garments such as socks and underwear. To effectively market to this industry, specialised textile manufacturers are being approached to develop specific applications particularly for the work uniforms, athletic clothing and medical scrubs.

Getting the message out
Two websites were built, one detailing the technology : www.t-zap.com and the other representing the retail branded goods sold under the name brand Xeralife: www.xeralife.com
A sales presentation was developed and adapted for 8 different target markets, spanning governments, businesses and private usage as well as specific product usage, such as air, water and solid surfaces.
A portfolio of product sheets, press kits, exhibition stands and other marketing materials were developed to promote T-Zap and Xeralife to the core markets.

Summary
Within 3 months, MRE had completely turned around from an eco-friendly, me-to brand with weak sales to a brand with a powerful, clear promise to save lives and preserve health. In the process, it also changed its business model from a retail oriented supplier of disparate products to a more focused “Intel inside” co-branded strategy aimed at the medical and textile markets.