SINGAPORE — Media agency VaynerMedia has welcomed Melanie Cook as its new Head of Strategy and Insights for Asia Pacific. With creative, media, and strategy under one roof and its unique social-at-the-center model, the agency is uniquely positioned to help brands capture and leverage consumers’ attention.
Melanie joins with a deep, intuitive understanding of VaynerMedia’s approach, marking a pivotal moment in its commitment to helping clients find and build relevance in today’s rapidly changing advertising landscape. Melanie will leverage her extensive expertise as an international strategic leader to spearhead the regional Strategy team.
Drawing on cultural insights, emerging trends, and evolving formats, she will help brands shape their narrative to truly connect with real audiences, guiding brands through dynamic “consumer-up” strategies that prioritize relevance and business outcomes over the traditional “brand-down” approach.
“Melanie had an affinity to our mission from the very first conversation; the world needs to change, and she’s clearly up for the challenge. She brings a depth of strategic, creative, and media experience that is hard to find,” said Tim Lindley, Managing Director at VaynerMedia Asia Pacific. “ Her track record of building high-performing teams that are equally obsessed with consumers as they are with their own internal culture fills me with confidence. Melanie brings an energy that exudes curiosity, courage, and kindness, and we can’t ask for much more than that.”
Melanie has led expert teams in brand and digital planning, customer experience, and Martech strategy. Beyond traditional agency roles, Melanie has driven numerous consulting engagements with diverse clients from MetLife to Jardine Matheson, driving programs that deliver real business outcomes. Her strong strategic acumen, leadership, and passion for driving meaningful change further strengthen VaynerMedia’s ability to help brands become more relevant to more people than ever before.
“In the age of generative AI and gate-keeping algorithms, brands risk commoditizing creativity and losing the relevance and ingenuity that sets them apart,” said Melanie. “I want to work with and learn from a disruptive team that values human insight and creativity as critical to a brand’s distinction, and I found this with VaynerMedia. By leveraging human insight, AI, and scale data, we can evolve the art and science of storytelling in underpriced attention channels so we move closer to a consumer’s interests and needs.”
Before joining VaynerMedia, Melanie was the Regional Head of Strategy at MRM MENAT, where she led her team to drive some of the most significant marketing transformations in the region, working at the intersection of brand, digital technology, and customer experience. Melanie has also worked with leading agencies such as Saatchi& Saatchi, Publicis Sapient, and BBDO Proximity across Europe, MENAT, and APAC markets, working with clients across several industries, including L’Oreal, Unilever, Visa, Neom, and LVMH.
Melanie assumes her role immediately and reports to Tim Lindley.
