VIEWPOINT: LEADER - Agencies' role in CRM acceptance

Agencies banking on the much hoped for second half rebound in adspend had better start looking elsewhere for business. The release of the latest adspend data region-wide makes it abundantly clear that the first half spending malaise will not lift any time soon - at least not soon enough to spare this year's bottomlines. But all is not lost, provided agencies are willing to look and work harder for business. Regional advertising growth may be anaemic at best and contracting at worse, but it belies the fact that there is still revenue to be earned. The slowdown has not stopped companies spending marketing dollars though it has reduced the amount advertisers have at their disposal. What the downturn has done is accelerate the shift of marketing dollars away from television-centric campaigns to less sexy disciplines, including customer relationship management. Asia isn't the only market where this is happening. The region is merely tracking global marketing trends, where the shift to more targeted - and in effect more efficient and accountable - communication has been underway for some time now. However, getting businesses to take up and commit to the challenge of harvesting their existing customer base will require agencies to play their part. There is more than a passing interest in CRM, as OgilvyOne's survey to determine the general attitude among businesses in Asia towards nurturing meaningful customer relationships. But the overriding point that also came across was the nervousness exhibited by companies in implementing a CRM strategy. Having long overlooked the crucial role of CRM to the success of any marketing plan, companies are decidedly skittish. If anything, this provides an opening for agencies to step in, ease clients' fears at this critical acceptance stage, while offering the CRM know-how that businesses desperately need.

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