Creative catch-up: TBWA\Malaysia's Yee Wai Khuen

In an era where audiences can swipe past a campaign in seconds, creativity has never had to work harder to earn attention. For Yee Wai Khuen, chief creative officer, TBWA\Malaysia, the answer isn't chasing every trend or new technology but creating ideas that are meaningful enough to outlast them.

Prior to joining TBWA, Yee had been on the brand side for a stint at CARSOME. Earlier on, he had been with an array of agencies, including Entropia Global, VMLY&R Hong Kong, BBDO\Proximity Singapore, M+C Saatchi and Naga DDB.

Having spent years championing disruption with purpose, Yee believes the industry's greatest competitive advantage remains the strength of the idea itself, even as AI reshapes how creative work is made.

In this edition of "Creative Catch-up", he reflects on balancing data with intuition, why the best campaigns become cultural ecosystems rather than standalone films, and why Malaysia's creative future depends on teaching people not just how to make, but how to think.

Don't miss: M+C Saatchi KARSA's Darren Lee on the creative power of specificity  

A+M: What does creativity mean to you today, and how has your definition of it evolved over your career?

There is so much noise in our industry today that I believe creativity is more important now than at any other point in modern marketing.

Our audiences are exposed to thousands of ads, content pieces, promotions and notifications every day. They scroll through their screens in seconds. The challenge is no longer just getting noticed, it’s capturing attention within two seconds and earning the right to stay there.

What people don’t see is everything happening behind the scenes. Every advertisement or piece of content is the result of countless rounds of ideation, strategic discussions, design revisions, product shoots, animation updates, media planning, and endless refinements.

Yet despite all that effort, many campaigns are gone with a single swipe. Let’s be honest. How many ads have you swiped past today?

Take a car ad as an example. If you’re not in the market for a car, chances are you’ll swipe past it immediately. But perhaps that’s also because many car ads look and feel the same. Different logos, different models, but the same story.

That’s why I believe a unique idea is one of the most valuable assets a brand can own. A great idea helps a brand stand out in a crowded marketplace. More importantly, it connects with culture, emotion, and human truth.

I have always been drawn to the idea of disruption. Not disruption for the sake of being different, but disruption that creates meaningful impact. It is a mindset that constantly challenges average ideas and pushes them toward extraordinary ones.


A+M: What makes creativity truly unique in your view, especially in an industry where ideas are constantly being shaped by trends and constraints?

I’ve always believed that every creative idea should have a purpose. Creativity is not just about making something beautiful, entertaining or innovative.

At its best, creativity solves a business problem. The ideas I admire most are often the simplest ones. They are smart, relevant, and immediately make you feel a little jealous.

Those are the ideas that stay with people. They connect naturally with the audience, solve a real challenge. Today, however, creativity exists in a world where ideas are constantly shaped by trends, algorithms, platforms, and constraints.

It’s easy to get distracted by what’s popular instead of focusing on what’s meaningful. That’s why I always come back to one question:

Does this idea matter to the people we’re trying to reach?

If it doesn’t resonate with the audience, it doesn’t matter how clever the execution is. As a creative leader, I’ve learned to stay flexible. The industry evolves too quickly for anyone to rely solely on what worked yesterday.

AI has also dramatically changed the creative landscape. Today, anyone with little technical skill can visualise an idea, create content, build experiences or prototype concepts that previously required an entire team. That’s an exciting shift because creativity is becoming more accessible than ever before. But accessibility is not the same as originality.

The challenge is no longer whether we can make something. The challenge is knowing what is worth making in the first place.

AI can help generate possibilities, but it cannot replace judgment, taste, cultural understanding or human insight. The role of the creative is becoming more about translating ideas into meaningful realities.

The true competitive advantage is still the idea.

A+M: With marketing becoming increasingly driven by data and performance metrics, how do you personally protect and develop your creative intuition?

Data tells us where the audiences are. We don’t have to waste time and just stay on the right direction. As technology continues to evolve, creative intuition becomes even more valuable. When everyone has access to the same data, the difference lies in how we interpret it. That’s why creatives continue to stay curious about people, culture, technology, and everyday human behaviour. We observe things that cannot always be measured, such as emotions, tensions, habits and unexpected insights. Sometimes great ideas come from observations that never appear in a report.

Here’s my five cents advise, spend some time with things that aren’t measured, go talk to people, market visit and understand target audience’s behaviour.

The future of creativity isn’t data versus intuition.

It’s knowing when to listen to each one.


A+M: Do you experience creative fatigue? What does that look like for you, and how do you navigate through it?

As a team lead, I’ve experienced two very different types of creative fatigue.

The first is what I would call unproductive creative fatigue. It usually happens when the brief isn’t clear, the direction isn’t single-minded, or there are simply too many boxes to tick under one proposition.

More often, these are briefs trying to talk to everyone at once. When that happens, the team can spend hours, sometimes days, generating ideas without making meaningful progress. In situations such as this, the solution is rarely to push harder, or go back to the drawing board, revisit the brief, and redefine the problem we’re trying to solve.

The second type is the kind of creative fatigue which I like. This happens when we have a promising direction, but the idea isn’t fresh enough, clever enough or distinctive enough yet. We know we’re close, but not quite there. That’s when the team keeps pushing, challenging, refining and exploring until we uncover something stronger. That kind of fatigue is worth it because it’s in pursuit of a better idea.

I’ve also learned that mindset plays a critical role in the creative process. As creatives, we need to believe that the client’s product has genuine value for consumers, even when there may be stronger competitors in the marketplace. The moment we start comparing negatively or questioning the worth of what we’re working on, creativity begins to suffer. Energy drops, frustration rises, and the team struggles to find possibilities.

A positive mindset doesn’t mean ignoring reality. It means choosing to focus on the opportunities within the challenge. When the team believes there is something meaningful to uncover, we approach the brief with greater curiosity and optimism. Most of the time, when we hit a wall, we don’t blame the process or the product. We revisit the brief together, ask better questions, and search for new angles.

Great ideas are rarely the result of individual brilliance. Advertising is a team sports, a team that remains curious, positive, and committed to solving the problem together.


A+M: Can you share a personal moment where you were stuck on a brief, and eventually found a breakthrough idea in an unexpected way?

Three years ago, the adult milk category was crowded with brands making almost identical promises: Stronger bones, high calcium, better health and more. Both direct competitors and adjacent categories were steadily chipping away at market share.

Almost every commercial featured older adults carrying their grandchildren, accompanied by before-and-after health results after consuming the product. It had become the category’s default “money shot.” We knew we couldn’t afford to be another “me-too” brand.

Our brand had a genuine advantage: trusted health credentials, certified quality, and scientifically proven results. It was finding a distinctive territory we could truly own and proudly champion.

After numerous tissue sessions and conversations with the client, we realised that the breakthrough didn’t come from the written brief. It came from listening. During one meeting, a seemingly casual remark surfaced in conversation, we noticed a sentence that wasn’t documented anywhere in the client’s brief. That single insight sparked a completely new direction.

The rest is history.

Today, the brand remains the market leader in the adult milk category.

Sometimes, great ideas don’t always come from what’s written down, but from what’s genuinely heard.


A+M: Creativity is highly subjective. How do you personally process feedback or criticism when it challenges your work?

I always tell my team that there is rarely a definitive right or wrong in creativity.

At least an idea always starts with consumer insight. Not generic consumer observations, but deeply local truths that reflect how people live, think, behave and feel.

Today, many brands are focusing with sales KPIs, conversion rates and short-term performance metrics. While those numbers matter.

Consumers don’t automatically have a relationship with your brand.


A+M: Looking back at the Malaysian creative industry, what shifts have stood out most to you, both in the work and in how agencies operate?

I still admire the legacy pioneered by the late Yasmin Ahmad, whose work shaped an entire generation of creatives and marketers. For many years, our industry was defined by the iconic two- to three-minute festive branded film, the kind that made audiences laugh, cry and share it with their family and friends.

But today’s reality is very different. A beautifully crafted festive film is no longer enough.

The most successful campaigns today need to be built as ecosystems rather than single piece of content. A festive idea must be capable of living across multiple platforms and multiple behaviours. It needs to make people stop on YouTube, engage on TikTok, spark conversations on social media, drive traffic to retail platforms, and create meaningful experiences through on-ground activations.

The strongest idea today embraces our local realities local dialects, humour, cultural nuances, social tensions, and everyday behaviours across all communities. The campaigns that resonate most deeply are often the ones that understand a uniquely Malaysian truth rather than simply adapting a global tagline for a local audience.

I’ve always believed that great creativity starts with understanding people. The best work doesn’t just reflect culture it participates in culture. A recent example is our most current piece: 7-Eleven Malaysia's "The If7ar o' clock" campaign.

A+M: Beyond your own experience, what do you think the Malaysian creative scene needs more of right now to grow in a meaningful way?

I believe what the Malaysian creative industry needs most right now is a stronger focus on learning how to think, not just how to make. Fresh ideas remain the foundation of creativity but craft is equally important.

Too often, people see them as separate disciplines when in reality, they work hand in hand like partners. An idea gives the work its purpose and originality. Craft gives the idea its impact and ability to connect with people. I’ve always believed that neither can succeed without the other.

Meanwhile, a brilliant idea can lose its magic through poor execution. The best work happens when strong thinking meets outstanding craftsmanship. At the end of the day, creativity is not a choice between idea and execution. The masterpiece is born when both are equally respected.

My hope is for Malaysia to become known for creative powerhouse. A creative ecosystem where universities, agencies, brands, and creators share the same belief: that originality begins by teaching people how to think creative solution then how to make it happen.

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