Meet Jusmin, the visionary founder behind TMR Media, the powerhouse agency making waves in Singapore’s B2C campaign landscape. Under her leadership, TMR Media has become the go-to name for iconic national events like the National Day Parades (2023 & 2024), River Hongbao, PassionArts, and the Chinatown Festivals.
With a dynamic and youthful team bursting with creativity, Jusmin and her team have shaped a culture of bold ideas and flawless execution. From large-scale campaigns to vibrant social media strategies, they have built an agency that doesn’t just follow trends—it sets them.
TMR Media has played a major role in iconic events like Singapore’s National Day Parades, River Angbao and Chinatown Festivals. What does it take to execute such large-scale B2C campaigns successfully?
I think the key is communication. For example, for National Day, we have to work with multiple committees within the event itself.
For us, we have weekly meetings with the main committee to communicate what’s going on and what needs to be done. So for me, the key is communication—making sure that everybody on the team is well-informed.
Your agency is known for being dynamic and full of fresh ideas. How do you keep your team innovative and ahead of trends in the ever-evolving social media space?
Whenever I interview or hire someone, there’s one key question I always ask: are you active on social media? If you’re not active on social media, there’s no way you can have fresh and innovative ideas, or be aware of trends.
Even though we have software to help us daily, if the person is not socially active, there’s no way he or she will know the latest trends. So I do encourage my team to look at their phones in the office as well. I think working in a social media agency is the only place where you can openly look at social media and not be scolded by your boss—that’s part of your job.
What are some of the biggest challenges in B2C marketing today, and how does TMR Media tackle them?
The biggest challenge changes from time to time, but one consistent challenge is that some clients always look for immediate response or results. Educating them to understand that social media is not something that gives you immediate results just by doing one post or one ad is very important.
When I pitch to clients, I always tell them: first things first, do not expect immediate results. It’s a bit like dieting or having good skin or hair—it takes a lot of time and care before you see results. So educating them is key. I’m glad that increasingly, clients are becoming aware of this and understand that having a consistent social media strategy is very important.
As an entrepreneur, you have to be more positive than the average person. You really have to be adaptive to changes and challenges.
Can you share an example of one B2C campaign that was truly impactful and exceeded expectations?
One very important and long-term client of ours is an F&B ‘live’ outlet. They’ve been with us since their opening. Since then, every weekend their place has been packed. If you want to go there, you have to book one to two weeks in advance. It’s a great case study.
I remember the client told me something very important: “If I don’t have a good product for you to market, no matter how good a marketer you are, the place won’t be successful.” Not all clients understand that, so I’m very thankful to this client for giving us the opportunity.
When we first got them as our client, we were newly open ourselves, and till now we’re still working with them. I even celebrated my 40th birthday at their place. It’s been a long-term relationship, and one of the campaigns we didn’t expect such results from.
In your opinion, what makes a good entrepreneur?
I would say adapting to different changes and challenges. I think at my age, or with my experience, when challenges come, I don’t feel down or depressed. I feel excited. Life is full of challenges.
As an entrepreneur, you have to be more positive than the average person. You really have to be adaptive to changes and challenges. I remember one of my friends, Richard, told me something about being happy and I feel that it’s something I’ve learnt and still practice today. Accepting different kinds of people—your staff, clients, everyone—is very important.
If not, you’ll always feel like you’re facing setbacks and can’t move forward. I’m still working on it till today. I always try to learn from others, including my staff—they teach me new things along the way too.
What advice would you give to someone who aspires to start a social media agency?
I think client handling is one of the most challenging parts. You need the patience to handle your clients first, even before your own staff. I first started my digital marketing agency without quitting my full-time job. It was a risk.
Recently, I see a lot of content creators doing the same—trying to run social media agencies. One common thing I notice is that many entrepreneurs or aspiring business owners want to start something risky or uncertain, but my advice is: don’t quit your full-time job first. Try doing it on the side and only quit when it matures and gives you your bread and butter.
Of course, it’s hard to say this openly because your full-time employer might not like it, but the reality is, you don’t know whether you’ll have clients or if they’ll stay long-term. Some may not even be prompt payers. That’s why I say—if possible, find an investor. Clients will delay payments. So having cash flow support is important.
What are your future plans for TMR Media and how do you see it evolving in the near future?
My goal has always been to build a 50-man agency and reach $3 million in revenue. But working towards that is the painful part—getting new clients, retaining existing clients, ensuring they go long-term with you, and making sure they pay. I’m still working towards that.
Along the way, I’ve realised you need to keep reviewing strategies—what’s working, what’s not. Social media is always changing.
When I first started, we were focused on content strategy and had only two in production. But this year, we restructured and put more into the video team, because social media is moving towards video. You have to adapt to trends, use your resources carefully, and make sure your clients see and feel that you’re evolving to meet market demand.
What’s your vision for Singapore in the next five years?
Even recently, Google has introduced a video tab in the search results. So I feel things are moving towards video content rather than written content. But social media is always changing.
A big player could come in within the next one or two years—we won’t know, just like how ChatGPT or TikTok emerged. Still, I lean towards video content. We’re working towards that.
Connect with Jusmin: Instagram and TikTok.
Jusmin is a member of Rainmaker, a revolutionary movement that rallies like-minded people together based on the values of Love, Authenticity, Respect, Kindness and Youthfulness (LARKY).
