While attending a press function recently, I had the opportunity to sneak in a photo with Tony Fernandes (middle), CEO of AirAsia. In my opinion, Tony is without doubt the best marketer in Malaysia, and probably one of the best in the world.

I’ve been wanting to get a photo with him for so long. Finally my dream came true, thanks to some random good luck.

In a country where big businesses are politically linked, meticulously regulated and agonizingly boring, Tony pushed through the crap and made an impact in the lives of millions of people. Surely, you’ve flown AirAsia?

For an amazingly successful person, Tony is quite down to earth and in most photos (except this one) you’ll see him wearing an AirAsia cap or jacket, taking every opportunity to promote his airline. And why shouldn’t he? Any marketer like Tony surely understands that you cannot leave marketing to the marketing department.

Marketing does not start once the product is completed. Marketing should influence the product, the pricing, the culture and everything else. Tony is the anti-CEO, getting his hands dirty on all aspects of the business, something most CEOs avoid like a plague.

Don’t be fooled – it takes sheer determination and unusual insight to go against what everyone else is doing to produce something so radically different that people like you and me actually told our friends about it. The “Purple Cow” that Seth Godin popularized, the holy grail of all entrepreneurs. Who can forget the 1 million free AirAsia tickets, or the more recent cheeky AsiaAsia TV ad?

In my opinion, he is the best marketer in Malaysia for the past five years. He’s probably also the best Internet marketer for the last five years.

Second place hopefully goes to me