Joey Leong - Editor and Creative Lead

Chapter 2: Broadening Palettes

I left Edge Media to expand my portfolio into social media copywriting, figuring it was the right time as I began pursuing a part-time degree in English Language and Literature.

Although Edge Media offered opportunities to write video captions, it wasn't enough for me, and their focus was more on visual design.

Safe to say, I became (figur[e])-atively fat, broadening my palette not just in copywriting, but also in video production, and in understanding food and F&B culture in Singapore. I ate a lot and put on weight too.

Maxima Creatives was a small team comprising one Founder, a Graphic Designer, a Chief Marketing Officer, and an occasional Sales Executive. I was their go-to for editing, whether it was writing EDMs, Social Media posts, video captions, or content calendars.

Maxima Creatives' brainchild was Deliver.SG, which was born from the vision of bringing food from restaurants people love to their doorstep without the 5km radius imposed by food delivery companies like GrabFood, Foodpanda, and Deliveroo at the time.

This idea was conceived pre-pandemic to disrupt the industry's current rules. The COVID-19 pandemic was not even at the forefront of the media at the time.

Fortunately, as Deliver.SG and the nature of Maxima Creatives' Marketing services to food businesses grew, we were considered an 'essential service' during the pandemic. This meant we grew while other 'non-essential' services rode the waves of a downturn.

Aside from being able to edit full videos, including coming up with captions and determining how the logos appear in the ending stinger for each brand under Maxima Creatives, I was exposed to using the camera almost daily.

Holding a Canon EOS 60D in front of an oven grilling steak at 200 degrees Celsius is quite an experience. Here, I learnt the basics of aperture, shutter speed, and ISO through the heat of the kitchen - though 'best practices' for the trade have not been made known to me, I shot what looks and feels right.

I also learnt what it takes for a restaurant to thrive and succeed, - location, food quality, pricing, marketing, etc.- and that it's extremely hard for food businesses to thrive in a post-pandemic economy.

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What is Deliver.SG?

Deliver.SG was an islandwide food-delivery service owned by Maxima Creatives/Maxima Logistics. The brand was established to help food businesses reach customers beyond their restaurant walls across the island. Primarily focusing on benefiting restaurants (And its vision was born before COVID), Deliver.SG also offers marketing packages for F&B businesses, such as lower delivery commission rates and sales through provided marketing strategies.

During its operations, Deliver.SG has served over 12,000 unique users, with over 200 restaurants on board the platform.

How was I Involved?

Editor and Creative Lead
Jan 2019 - Apr 2021

I led end-to-end digital marketing initiatives for F&B businesses and Singapore’s first islandwide food-delivery mobile application, producing copy, scripts, and videos for social media assets, EDMs, and press collateral.

Working closely with the Chief Marketing Manager, we have grown the user base of Deliver.SG's mobile application and web platform from zero to over 12,000 organic users within a year.

More About Maxima Creatives

Maxima Creatives Consultancy Pte. Ltd. is a Food and Beverage (F&B) marketing and branding consultancy that helps budding and established F&B businesses reach new heights.

Deliver.SG Video Trailer

All videos produced for Deliver.SG were shot by the Chief Marketing Officer and me. Alongside the social media posts, I conceptualised every video caption.

You would notice how the words in Deliver.SG videos were treated: emphasis in red and animated in and out with an overshoot.

Conceptualising how the videos look through animation and font, and how the ending stinger is animated, reinforced the idea that even video can convey a brand.

More Deliver.SG Videos

Deliver.SG Copywriting Samples

Deliver.SG Press Kit

Maxima Creatives had given me the privilege of drafting their press kit.

As part of the brand, I wanted the voice to be friendly and candid, as reflected in the final draft at the link above.

I also wrote press releases for them, which was my first foray into that kind of writing.

A little bonus for you...

In the same vein as Deliver.SG, Maxima Creatives also owns a (Currently inactive) food blog brand called Our Food Channel.

My contributions to the brand stay the same.

What is Our Food Channel?

Our Food Channel is a food blog focused on finding good food in Singapore. With its videos showcased mainly on YouTube, the channel had/has an online audience of over 3000 users.

Our Food Channel Videos

Notice the choice to use a translucent container for the words here, as part of the distinction between the Our Food Channel and Deliver.SG brands.

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Reflection

Working at Maxima Creatives was the natural next step in my journey of video editing, video production, writing, and, eventually, branding, communications, and public relations.

With two years holding a camera and featuring many different food businesses and dishes, from gracing spacious tze char kitchens to squeezing into cosy Michelin-starred counters, I have not only gained a deep appreciation for food but also gained exposure to the realities of setting up businesses.

Granted, the features I have experienced and covered may not be around today, with new flavours taking their place, but that's the reality of the industry, and if they are still around today, kudos to them for standing the test of time.

Still, I am thankful for two years of dining, writing, and holding a camera almost daily.

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Have a Taste of What I Can Do For You

Read the Next Chapters of My Career