How ZenWeb Research Works: Our Data and Kaizen Method
- Numbers only
- Kaizen method
- 500+client accounts across the PNH group
- 2000the year PNH began building websites in Japan
When you read a cost-per-lead figure or a conversion benchmark on ZenWeb, you should know where it came from. This page sets out the ZenWeb research methodology in plain terms: which data we collect, how we protect our clients, and how we decide what is worth researching at all.
ZenWeb Malaysia is part of the PNH group, which serves more than 500 client accounts across Malaysia, Japan and Vietnam. PNH has built websites in Japan since 2000. Each office researches its own market, and ZenWeb's own Malaysian figures on zenweb.my come from ZenWeb Malaysia's client accounts and our own online research.
Want to see this research in action?
Our Google Ads benchmarks guide puts Malaysian campaign numbers side by side. See the Malaysia Google Ads benchmarks →
Where Does ZenWeb's Marketing Data Come From?
ZenWeb research data comes from the client campaigns we run in Malaysia and from our own online research. Since 2023 we have collected numbers from Google Ads, Meta Ads, SEO work, GA4, Google Search Console, leads and WhatsApp enquiries, then added market research using tools such as Semrush and Ahrefs.
Global studies are useful, but they rarely match what a Malaysian SME actually pays for a click or a lead. That is why we start with our own accounts and our own online research of the Malaysian market. The table shows each source, what we look at, and where you can see it used, such as our Facebook cost per lead benchmarks for Malaysia.
| Source | What we look at | Where you see it |
|---|---|---|
| Google Ads | Cost per click, click-through rate, cost per lead | Google Ads benchmarks and pricing guides |
| Meta Ads | Cost per lead, cost per result, ad performance | Facebook and Instagram ads guides |
| SEO and Google Search Console | Rankings, clicks, impressions, click-through rate | SEO guides and reports |
| GA4 | Traffic sources, conversions, visitor behaviour | Analytics and conversion guides |
| Leads and WhatsApp | Enquiries by channel and by page | Lead and WhatsApp guides |
| Our online research: Semrush, Ahrefs and other tools | Search demand, keyword difficulty, competitor visibility | Keyword and market research |
Lead numbers need careful tracking, especially chat enquiries, so we follow the same steps we explain in our guide to tracking WhatsApp leads properly. For search data, we use more than one tool and compare them, for the reasons set out in our Ahrefs vs Semrush comparison.
Every figure says where it came from. A number from our client accounts or our own online research is labelled as ZenWeb data. When we quote an outside study, we link to the original publisher, so you can always tell the two apart. You can read more on how we join these sources in our guide to marketing analytics in Malaysia.
How Do We Keep Client Data Anonymous Under PDPA?
We use numbers only. Client names, contact details and anything that could identify a business or a person never appear in our research. All client data is anonymous and handled in line with Malaysia's Personal Data Protection Act 2010 (PDPA), the same rules we help our clients follow.
Our clients trust us with their ad accounts, analytics and enquiries. Publishing research must never break that trust. These are the rules every ZenWeb dataset follows:
- Numbers only. We publish figures such as costs, rates and counts, never the records behind them.
- No client names. No business name, logo or detail that points to one client appears in a dataset.
- No personal data. The names, phone numbers and emails of leads never appear in our research.
- PDPA first. All client data is handled under the PDPA, which is overseen by Malaysia's Personal Data Protection Department.
If you run marketing in-house, the same obligations apply to your own lead data. Our PDPA compliance checklist for Malaysian marketers walks through them step by step.
You will find ZenWeb's numbers in our research. You will never find our clients' names.
What Is the Kaizen Research Method We Use?
Kaizen is the Japanese practice of steady, step-by-step improvement. PNH, our Japan headquarters, applies it to research: we choose data that could guide future improvements, research it, verify it, publish it, use it in real campaigns, and then check whether it actually helped.
Each research topic moves through the same six steps. The last step feeds straight back into the first.
Find
We pick data that may be useful as a reference for future improvements, such as what a lead really costs in a given channel.
Research
We collect the numbers from our client accounts and our own online research.
Verify
We check the numbers before anything is published, and an experienced specialist reviews them.
Publish
The verified data goes into our guides, benchmarks and blogs.
Use
We put the data to work in real campaigns, which is Kaizen marketing in practice.
Check
We look at whether the data led to better decisions. Useful data gets researched further. Data that didn't help is dropped next time.
Every week, the ZenWeb Malaysia team goes through current research with the team at our Japan headquarters. That weekly discussion keeps our method in line with how PNH works in Japan. It is the same test-and-learn thinking behind A/B testing for marketers, applied to research instead of ads.
How Do We Decide Which Data Is Worth Researching?
We keep researching data that proves useful in real marketing and stop researching data that doesn't. After a round of datasets, we use the findings in campaigns and check the results. This is Kaizen applied to the research itself, so our effort keeps moving towards the numbers that help businesses most.
Research is easy to start and hard to stop. Without a rule for dropping topics, reports slowly fill up with numbers nobody acts on. So we judge our own research the way we judge an ad campaign:
- Keep data that changes decisions. If a dataset helped us set a budget, fix a landing page or choose a channel, we research it again and in more depth.
- Drop data that changes nothing. If a dataset looked interesting but led to no better decisions, we stop researching that kind of data.
That is why some topics, such as website conversion rates for Malaysian SMEs, get researched in depth and come back again and again.
How Does the PNH Group Share Research Across Three Markets?
ZenWeb Malaysia is part of the PNH group, with offices in Niigata, Tokyo, Ho Chi Minh City and Petaling Jaya. Each office researches its own market. Japan leads the Kaizen method, Vietnam studies the Vietnamese market, and Malaysia produces the data on zenweb.my, with findings shared across the group.
Across the group, PNH serves more than 500 client accounts. Each office works on its own market, so the research stays local and the method stays shared.
| Office | Market | Role in our research |
|---|---|---|
| PNH, Niigata and Tokyo | Japan | Group headquarters, building websites since 2000. Leads the Kaizen method and reviews research with us every week. |
| Belleza Vietnam, Ho Chi Minh City | Vietnam | Researches the Vietnamese market. Runs the group's offshore development, started in 2017. |
| ZenWeb Malaysia, Petaling Jaya | Malaysia | Collects Malaysian client data and runs its own online research since 2023, and publishes it on zenweb.my. |
The Malaysian figures ZenWeb publishes come only from Malaysian accounts and our own online research of the Malaysian market. A benchmark for a Klang Valley business is never mixed with a number from Tokyo. What travels across the group is the method and the discussion, alongside the web experience of ZenWeb Japan.
- 500+ client accounts across the PNH group
- 2000 the year PNH began building websites in Japan
- 3 markets: Malaysia, Japan and Vietnam
- Weekly research review with our Japan headquarters
PNH group facts, November 2026.
How Do We Use AI and Expert Review?
We use AI to help sort, summarise and write up research faster. What AI cannot do is the last Kaizen step: judge whether a number actually helped a real campaign. That call belongs to an experienced specialist in the field, such as a senior Google Ads or SEO specialist, who reviews each finding first.
AI makes research faster, but it has never run a campaign. So we split the work like this:
AI does the sorting. Organising large sets of numbers, drafting summaries and pointing out patterns worth a closer look.- People make the calls. Choosing what to research, checking the numbers against what they have seen in real campaigns, and giving the final approval.
This is also how we write. Our view on whether Google penalises AI content comes down to the same point: AI is a tool, and human review is what makes the result trustworthy. Our AI content workflow shows where the human checks sit.
What Is Our Commitment for the Future?
We will keep ZenWeb research grounded in real campaign experience and our own online research, use AI to work faster, and have experienced specialists review what we publish. Following Kaizen, we will keep dropping data that doesn't help and go deeper on data that does, so our research gets more useful every year.
These are the promises behind every number we publish:
- Real experience first. Our research comes from campaigns we actually run and our own online research, not from guesswork.
- Clear labels. ZenWeb data and public statistics stay clearly separated, with outside sources linked.
- Privacy always. Client data stays anonymous and handled under the PDPA.
- Better every round. Each research cycle is judged by whether it helped, and the next one improves on it.
We hold ourselves to the same standard we ask you to apply to any agency. If you want to test another agency's claims, our guide on how to check whether SEO case studies are real shows you what to ask.
How Can You Cite ZenWeb Data?
You are welcome to quote ZenWeb research figures in articles, reports or presentations. Please credit ZenWeb and link to the exact page where the figure appears, so your readers can see the source and the context around the number.
Journalists, students and marketers often need Malaysian numbers. If you use ours, this is all we ask:
- Use this format. "Source: ZenWeb, [page title], zenweb.my, [year]."
- Link the exact page. Link to the guide where the figure appears, not just the ZenWeb home page.
- Keep the figure as published. Quote the number and its date range without changing them.
For press questions or a closer look at a dataset, contact the ZenWeb team.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where does ZenWeb get its marketing data?
ZenWeb's research data comes from ZenWeb Malaysia's own client campaigns and our own online research, collected since 2023. Sources include Google Ads, Meta Ads, SEO work, GA4, Google Search Console, leads and WhatsApp enquiries, plus our own online market research with tools such as Semrush and Ahrefs. Outside statistics are always linked to their original publisher.
Does ZenWeb publish client names or personal data?
No. ZenWeb uses numbers only. Client names, logos, contact details and the personal data of leads never appear in our research. All client data is anonymous and handled in line with Malaysia's Personal Data Protection Act 2010 (PDPA).
What is Kaizen in marketing research?
Kaizen is the Japanese practice of steady, step-by-step improvement. In our research, it means we choose useful data, verify and publish it, use it in real campaigns, and then check whether it helped. Data that helps gets researched further. Data that doesn't is dropped next time.
Do ZenWeb's Malaysian figures include data from Japan or Vietnam?
No. Each PNH group office researches its own market. ZenWeb's own Malaysian figures on zenweb.my come only from Malaysian accounts and our own online research of the Malaysian market. What we share with our Japan headquarters and our Vietnam office is the research method and a weekly discussion of findings, not each other's market data.
Can I quote ZenWeb data in my own article or report?
Yes. You are welcome to quote ZenWeb figures. Credit ZenWeb, link to the exact page where the figure appears, and keep the number and its date range as published. For press questions or more detail on a dataset, contact the ZenWeb team.