Thailand: Brands want more meaningful engagement online

Paul Soon, CEO at XM Asia Pacific and digital director at JWT Asia Pacific, said that while Facebook is considered the most popular social media platform in the country with brands that want to be found and talked about, brands also want to home in on their target audiences and find brand advocates.

This phenomenon, he added, causes brands to push for conversion and long-term engagement via owned media such as communities, clubs and branded content. “Brands are starting to explore beyond digital paid media and instead focus more on how to build their branded digital ecosystem and the role they play digitally.”

Thailand Facebook’s rank has jumped from 17th to 13th, standing at 18.7 million users with a penetration of online population of 127 per cent, according to socialbakers.com.

Rob Hall, general manager at Open & Partners, said brands are asking agencies to help them truly engage with potential consumers rather than everyone. The level of interaction between Thai consumers and brands, he added, is very high, but the competition is getting tougher as many brands are playing the same digital game.

“Consumers are willing to engage with brands, but there are just too many out there,” he said. “It is getting harder. Brands will have to work harder to get their attention and put in more values such as promotions and benefits, and not only selling stuff.”

Dinesh Sandhu, regional touchpoints director, Southeast Asia at Hakuhodo Communications Asia, said while consumers spend time on social activities such as email, social, knowledge/information, video and gaming, they are highly receptive to brand messages.

“This opens up an avenue for brands to engage, provided the message is compelling, texturally rich and entertaining enough,” he added. “According to the recent TNS Digital Life survey, 50 per cent of consumers who have made a brand friend did so after seeking special offers. Price comparison sites are also often visited while researching brand and product choices.”

Break the conventions

Charles Cadell, Asia-Pacific president at McCann Worldgroup, said Thai consumers are constantly looking for ground-breaking concepts that challenge the status quo. This plays an important role in pushing brands to break the conventions of traditional digital advertising, he added.

“The key development of digitisation as a means of social expression is becoming prominent, and the concept of digital influencer/curator has been embraced by the digital community, where consumers do not solely see brands as aspirational, but look to people like themselves for new inspiration,” he said. “We expect to see more integration and personalisation of various digital platforms in bringing about the message, which was made possible with digital, native design and visualisation.”

Visually driven

Hall noted that Thai consumers are very visually oriented, and this has led to the popularity of social-media platforms such as Facebook and Instagram, as well as celebrity culture.

“In the morning, young Thai girls will check on Instagram to decide what to wear for the day,” he said. “They are very image-conscious and image-driven. They also like gossip such as celebrity news.”

Cadell noted that Thais are living in the ‘outer-driven’ society where it is crucial to “stand out while fitting in”. The concept of ‘face’ in Thai culture, he said, is a rule in any communication, regardless of the platform.

“And this reflects a lot in how we get consumers to be an amplifier of the message in the digital scene,” he added. “To be ‘liked’, ‘followed’ and ‘downloaded’, brands need to be something that resonates with their aspirations and values to achieve the momentum of the campaign.”

Crowdsourcing social issues Kulapa-on Chansrakao, general manager at ARC Leo Burnett Group Thailand, said crowdsourcing is growing in Thailand. Apart from the monetary factor, Thais are also crowdsourcing to express their opinions. “With the attitude of helping to improve society, protecting those who can't protect themselves, and making the world a better place, Thai people have a tendency to collectively voice their opinions for a cause and also support organisations with good social responsibility,” she added. “The explosion of social media and smartphones has fuelled the possibilities of allowing people to discuss topics of concern and get involved.”

Industry players have noticed more digital pitches than in previous years. Michel de Rijk, managing director, Asia Pacific at Xaxis, said more clients are choosing to divide the pitches into different areas, such as planning/buying; digital creative and search, which was not common previously.

He expects digital advertising spend to grow to 4 per cent of total ad spend this year, from 3 per cent last year. It is still lower than most other countries in the region, mainly due to the slow development of support technologies, such as fixed broadband internet and 3G, which will only be rolled out this year.

Hall, meanwhile, noted that while clients now consider digital part of the overall marketing strategy, television still dominates the market.

Cadell said youth-native and tech-led brands, such as telecommunications, technology, automobile, retail and FMCG brands, are driving digital in Thailand.

“These brands are constantly syncing their digital initiatives with consumer insights at the core of their communication inventions,” he said. “They know that ideas are the currency in the digital scene and they are the first to push forward that in providing utility, storytelling of the brands and transforming the experience by leveraging the right use of digital technology.”

A fresh look at consumer insights in the digital context and progressive brand planning are essential for driving forward digital initiatives, he added.

Independent agencies

Thailand has also seen more independent digital agencies coming up recently. While such expansion is good for brands and the growth of the industry, it has led to a general shortage of digital talent in the market, De Rijk said. While the situation is manageable at the entry and junior levels, it is difficult to find experienced people.

Like other markets in the region, the challenge for agencies lies in how they can train and nurture local talent who understand the market. Alternatively, the familiar game of bigger agencies acquiring smaller agencies is expected. However, there are also doubts whether the smaller agencies' strategies are consistent and sustainable enough for long-term partnerships.

Thailand also saw e-commerce picking up exponentially in the past year, Chansrakao said. The trend of purchasing online is increasing as netizens become used to this facility and banks are able to facilitate online transactions better than before.

Mobile utilities, he said, are beginning to get traction with both brands and consumers, where they enjoy personalised, relevant content and tools that assist them through the path to purchase. “Data network infrastructure as well as smartphones and devices have also become affordable and accessible to the mass market.”

Infrastructure

Infrastructure and security issues remain major obstacles to internet penetration in the country. Difficulties include a lack of capability in developing and upgrading technology, while infrastructure is centred in urban areas, with about 30 per cent of the population connected, Sandhu said.

Soon suggested the establishment of infrastructure can be opened to public companies for investment, which would help speed up the process.

Cadell said that with the majority of the population being rural, there is still room for improvement in personalisation and simplification of digitisation in upcountry areas. “New inventions in how we can communicate digitally, but in back-to-basics platforms such as feature phones, could be one of the things that can make a difference in most emerging markets.”