by Rome Jorge
Asia is different. The Great Firewall of China and the censorship imposed by several economic powerhouse nations has throttled social media to some degree while fostering local brands of social media such as Weibo. The rates of internet penetration, connection speeds, credit card usage, and the platforms used are different, creating opportunities for companies that provide creative workarounds for current limitations such as payment services using mobile phone loads, huge text messaging traffic, as well as a preference for phablets or large screen phones for an all-in-one device.
Asians are different. Cultural preferences and tastes remain distinct, even as the region achieves parity with and at times superiority over the West at this age of globalization. The emphasis on family and community over individuality and the preference for fostering personal relations with non-confrontational communication over cut-and-dry business deals with blunt objective language are just some longstanding Asian archetypes that still hold true.
And the Philippines is different from the rest Asia. Often described as the most un-Asian of Asians and the most reluctant of Asians, Filipinos possess a culture than cannot be defined by purity, but instead by inclusion and assimilation. To look for what is exclusively and purely Filipino is a vain search. Instead, what defines Filipino culture are foreign influences adapted creatively, from American military jeeps converted into folkloric jeepneys and ancient pagan fertility rituals masquerading as Roman Catholic festivals. Unlike other nationalities that hold centuries-old grudges against former colonizers and oppressors, Filipinos forgive and forget quickly, proudly accepting their colonial experience as an integral part of their identity. Abroad, Filipino migrants are the first to assimilate and adopt the most conservative views of host countries. The most westernized of Asian countries, the Philippines is a nation bilingual in English with no language or culture barrier to protect its creative economy and where the domination of western cinema, literature, and music have made local movies, books, and albums an endangered market niche.
Now that they have made themselves at home on social media, Filipinos retain their unique and highly adaptive identity even as the brands that court them have followed suit. Thankfully, there is quantifiable data to guide brands hoping to win over, build relation and do business with Filipinos on social media as well as that of their neighbors across Asia and the Pacific.
Metrics and direction
The TNS’s Annual Marketing Monitor of Asia Pacific provides fresh insights into the fast evolving digital realm and how the people of APAC region as well as Filipinos in particular are using social media and how brands need to do to build relations with them better.
TNS, formerly known as Taylor Nelson Sofres, is part of Kantar, the data investment management division of WPP Group, the British multinational advertising and public relations company that began as Wire and Plastic Products plc.
The 2016 Marketing Monitor study surveyed 2,250 marketers in APAC—Singapore, Thailand, India, China, Indonesia, Malaysia, Australia, Japan, New Zealand, and South Korea—including 200 from the Philippines.
Numbers speak
The Marketing Monitor provides insightful data that contrasts the Philippines from the rest of APAC. The study comes at a time when social media monitoring has come to have more weight than other metrics such as: market share data, brand tracking, what the competition is doing, and information from media agencies. For many Filipinos as well as other people across APAC, social media is the primary reason for going online and their primary device is the mobile phone. Simply put, social media is now where the market is.
Despite one of the slowest internet speeds in the APAC region, the Philippines leads in social media engagement. Its platform usage more closely follows western preferences, owing to the lack of firewalls and censorship as well as the lack of culture and language barriers. On the other hand, the huge population of ethnic Chinese in the mainland and across the region explains the prevalence of WeChat Moments and QQ Space.
More importantly, the study also reveals how effectively marketing departments have engaged consumers across the entire Asia Pacific region.
However, organizationally, brands in APAC have yet to fully take advantage of collaborative synergy. Many brands do not posses customer insight departments. Departments are still mostly within their own silos.
Zoë Lawrence, TNS digital director for APAC, notes, “It’s no secret that social has become an intrinsic part of our daily lives: 97% of connected consumers in the Philippines use social networks, switching between Facebook and Google+ and Instagram as the top three channels. This mass adoption of social provides marketers with an array of sources when it comes to developing strategies and evaluating the effectiveness of their marketing activity. As the digital ecosystem evolves, we will continue to identify new ways to build insights. However, whatever the metric used, it’s important to ensure marketers are monitoring the indicators that contribute to sales.”
“With marketers using social for a range of marketing objectives, it is important that they are offering a consistent, coherent experience to the customer. Brands need to strive to break down the silos in their organizations to ensure that they are realizing the potential positive impact that an aligned, well-executed social strategy can deliver,” he advises.
