The move to specialisation in the Internet and new media field is
gathering pace in Asia, with the establishment of "digital media
specialist" AdXplorer aiming to exploit the vacuum which traditional
advertising agencies and media specialists have been struggling to fill
since the big bang of cyberspace took place.
Zenith Media Asia CEO Antony Young, who will be moving to AdXplorer as
CEO early next month, said the start-up would focus on marketing
strategies, campaign development (placement and planning) and
measurement specifically for digital media.
AdXplorer launched in Singapore in February, has offices in both Hong
Kong and Beijing, and is looking to set up in Taipei before the end of
the year.
"Many people are trying to claim that territory called 'anything on the
Internet'," Mr Young said.
"There are people trying to fill gaps because there is no one else out
there doing it."
AdXplorer will work with dotcoms (content providers, i.e. media owners),
advertising networks (such as 24/7, Space Asia, DoubleClick and BMC
Media) and Web strategists (CCG.XM Asia, Grey Interactive, Web
Connection), as well as traditional ad agencies.
"Our mutual aim is to facilitate online advertising, and we hope to
complement everyone else and drive users to sites," he said.
What is currently missing in the mix is "someone who can enable clients
to put campaigns online, make them effective and add value in terms of
determining those campaigns and making them successful".
Therefore, Mr Young believes, ad agencies will want to see AdXplorer
succeed because "we have only one thing to sell, and that's online".
With clients scrambling to get on the 'Net as fast as they can, the
advertising industry landscape is changing at lightspeed - where
part-timers were previously taken on by agencies to handle the
additional workload, there are now up to 30 or 40 fulltime staff doing
nothing else.
"One problem is the speed - what works or is innovative or hot or funky
now, will be old news in just six months," he said.
However, the very problems posed by the speed of the 'Net can also be
resolved by it - thanks to new ad-serving technology and optimisation
software, marketers and agencies can see almost immediately if an online
campaign is working. If it isn't, then changes are equally as rapidly
effected.
"I don't know of a single client who doesn't want to be on the
Internet.
No one needs to be sold on it," Mr Young said.
"Procter & Gamble and all the majors are encouraging their agencies to
think beyond mainstream advertising, because advertising is much tougher
and not as effective as it used to be.
"Now is the right time for marketers to look at alternatives as the
economies recover and move ahead."
However, Mr Young did caution against getting too carried away,
stressing that at this point, the Internet was still a supplement to
mainstream media: "Mass media advertising is still the bread and butter
of marketers and agencies.
"A lot of truths have been blurred by spiralling inflation of dotcom
values on the stock markets. It's like a gold rush.
"But whether the bubble bursts or doesn't, is not important. We know
this is a medium which is going to stick around. It isn't going to go
away."
AdXplorer is also looking to hire staff, with its Singapore office now
15-strong (headed by Southeast Asia general manager Alan Lim) and 12
people on board at its Beijing site (headed by North China GM Lim Wee
Min).
A general manager for South China/Hong Kong has been appointed but could
not be named at press time; and working alongside Mr Young is chief
marketing officer Eileen Ang, who is based in Singapore.
