Tag: Digital

Singapore – Global creator and entertainment company Gushcloud has been appointed by MUSINSA, a Korean online fashion platform, as its digital partner in Southeast Asia. Through the appointment, Gushcloud will provide marketing services–including influencer marketing services–to MUSINSA as it accelerates its growth in the region.

With deep insight and a strong network in Southeast Asia, Gushcloud has been partnering with MUSINSA to deliver the most localised content aligning with their core branding messages.

The move rides the wave of global interest in Korean culture, particularly in K-dramas, K-Pop, Korean food, beauty, and fashion. In Southeast Asia, Korean dramas are the largest consumed online video content category, as well as K-Pop-related online videos.

MUSINSA’s ‘Global Store’ presents current Korean fashion trends, including Seoul fashion from casual, street style, and contemporary to luxury, sports, and beauty.

In May this year, Gushcloud launched a new live commerce unit called GC LIVE which operates premium live commerce shows distributing global brands into SEA.

Hong Kong – Consumer bank DBS in Hong Kong and non-profit organisation GS1 Hong Kong have joined hands to further enhance their innovative SME trade financing solution with the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) Commercial Data Interchange (CDI) platform. 

The move is part of DBS Hong Kong’s commitment to providing enterprises with tailored, efficient financing services while also supporting the fintech ecosystem development led by the HKMA in Hong Kong.

DBS Hong Kong said that it plans to leverage CDI’s platform capabilities to further enhance its recently launched trade financing solution and accelerate its ecosystem strategy in Hong Kong.

Alex Cheung, managing director and head of Institutional Banking Group of DBS Hong Kong, said that the latest trade financing solution enhancement demonstrates the bank’s strong commitment to developing Hong Kong’s fintech ecosystem. 

“As a leader in SME banking, DBS is proud to be a part of HKMA’s CDI platform. Since launching our innovative digital trade finance solution with GS1 Hong Kong earlier this year, we have successfully provided SMEs with enhanced and simplified access to working capital. DBS Hong Kong is proud to be an early adopter of CDI and we look forward to working on additional use cases that leverage the platform and find new ways to increase access to funding for SMEs,” added Cheung.

In June 2022, DBS Hong Kong and GS1 Hong Kong launched a digital post-shipment trade financing solution powered by alternative data. The solution enables SMEs on GS1 Hong Kong’s ezTRADE platform to utilise their trade data to access trade financing in a digital and straight-through manner.

With the new solution, SMEs can access much-needed working capital with just one click via the bank’s corporate banking platform, DBS IDEAL. This means that SMEs no longer need to manually submit hundreds of invoices and supporting documents, reducing time and effort through the adoption of a more digital and sustainable way of doing business and seeking financing. 

Moreover, the solution redefines the trade financing journey for SMEs with DBS availing financing through a streamlined credit assessment process. Through DBS’ predictive analytics capabilities, invoice data is used to assess the financial health of SMEs, with the amount of financing available to SMEs updated on a dynamic and recurring basis.

Anna Lin, chief executive of GS1 Hong Kong, shared that the collaboration between GS1 Hong Kong and DBS Hong Kong on digital trade financing has borne fruit to many SMEs enjoying trade financing in a much simpler and digitised manner already. 

“With the CDI, I look forward to unleashing the full potential of more alternative data, enhancing SMEs’ access to financial services and nurturing the trade financing ecosystem in Hong Kong,” said Lin.

Meanwhile, Sandy Tan, head of ecosystems for Institutional Banking Group at DBS Bank Hong Kong, noted that their digital solution has redefined the trade financing journey for SMEs on GS1 HK’s ezTRADE platform, and via their collaboration, they have enabled a digital ‘one click’ transaction experience and greatly reduced the time and effort needed to acquire working capital.

“DBS Hong Kong is committed to taking an active role in further developing and growing Hong Kong’s robust fintech ecosystem. Building on the launch of CDI’s capabilities, we expect to bring our solution to the next level in customer experience while providing more offerings to support the business growth of the SME community,” said Tan.

West Java, Indonesia – Indonesia-based e-commerce platform Tokopedia, Unilever Indonesia, and the West Java Provincial Government have partnered to hold a Digital Advanced Women’s Class entitled ‘MSMEs Women Empowered and Forward Digital: Inspiration for Women Dare to Bring Change’, which was attended by hundreds of local MSMEs in West Java, a province in Indonesia, and surrounding areas.

The event is a continuation of the signing of the cooperation between Tokopedia and Unilever Indonesia in the series of B20 Indonesia Women in Business Action Council programmes dedicated to empowering women entrepreneurs. Present as a result of the B20 Indonesia presidency, this program also presents the One Global Women Empowerment (OGWE) platform initiative that focuses on expanding access to information, business assistance in the digital era, and technical entrepreneurship training as a preparation to face the challenges ahead.

Emmiryzan, head of the public policy and regional government division of Tokopedia, said, “This is the fourth time that Tokopedia has held a KPMD after being successfully held in Bali and Surabaya. We hope that through KPMD, Tokopedia can help improve the competitiveness of local MSME players, especially female MSMEs so that they are able to become hosts in their own country and become the main choice of Indonesian people.”

Meanwhile, Marini Fabiano, Unilever Indonesia Foundation’s diversity and inclusion lead, noted that in line with the ‘The Unilever Compass’ strategy, Unilever is committed to continuing to contribute to creating a more just and inclusive society which is manifested through their efforts to develop entrepreneurial skills and provide access to mentoring and mentoring for women and MSMEs. 

“Through collaboration with Tokopedia, we hope that women’s MSMEs, especially in West Java, can continue to grow and be competitive,” said Fabiano.

Atalia Praratya, the chairperson of Sekoper Cinta, commented, “We welcome the collaboration of Tokopedia and Unilever Indonesia in presenting KPMD activities in the West Java region. This is also in line with one of our programmes at Sekoper Cinta which provides training in opening up business opportunities so that women can be independent and contribute to the family economy. We hope that through this activity there will be more and more qualified MSMEs from West Java.”

Manila, Philippines – Tier One Entertainment, the Philippine-based gaming and esports entertainment company, will be launching its latest incubator programme ‘ALLIANCE’. This aims to gather a curated list of Web3 content creators and train them to be top-notch opinion leaders shaping the future of content creation in the global blockchain and crypto industry.

For this programme, Tier One Entertainment has appointed Tyrone Anthony Bretaña as the head of ALLIANCE. He has worked with some of the biggest brands in fintech and e-commerce for eight years. With an early adopter mentality, Bretaña has the vision to lead the ALLIANCE into becoming a global collective that will drive traffic and mainstream adoption of Web 3 while promoting the values of authenticity, relevance, and legitimacy.

The new programme’s initial list includes professional basketball player Jared Dillinger, holistic wellness coach Chris Tan, gaming content creator Crisostomo ‘Chibiby’ Tan Jr., multimedia creative John Sedano, and DJ and producer Patty Tiu, as well as architect and artist Timi Sky, and filmmaker and entrepreneur Janina Manipol. 

Also joining them are business executives like Block Tides founder Myrtle Ramos, Stock Smarts CEO Marvin Germo, and Tetrix CEO Emman Navalan who have etched their names in the Web3 community.

“As a company that has multi-millions in following in the Web2 space, our role is to be able to help bring the attention and the traffic and help contribute to the mainstream adaptation of Web3. We are confident that our future plans for Web3 will help bring a new generation of users to the exciting space,” said Tryke Gutierrez, CEO of Tier One Entertainment. 

Previously, Tier One Entertainment conducted its influencer programs such as AMPLFY, ARDENT, and ASCEND, which elevated the video game streaming careers of SB19’s Josh Cullen, Filipino actress Sharlene San Pedro, and streamer and content creator Khenji Saito. It also launched The Gaming House with ABS-CBN, a reality show featuring gaming personalities, the first of its kind in Asia. This is on top of managing athletes under Blacklist International, a world champion in mobile esports.

Singapore – To continuously enhance creative tech advertising for businesses, Stellar Ace, the media and digital arm of Stellar Lifestyle, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with REVEZ Corporation’s wholly owned subsidiary REVEZ Motion for the advancement of next-gen digital interactive media in Singapore.

The opportunities include the adoption of REVEZ’s Metaverse, augmented reality, mixed reality, virtual reality, and a suite of cutting-edge technologies with 5G-ready capabilities as part of Stellar Ace’s expansion into an omnichannel advertising ecosystem. Both parties will also brainstorm ways to create Intellectual Property relating to digital creative initiatives. as well as conduct business feasibility, research, and development in the media industry to create new go-to-market experiential engagements.

PLONK, REVEZ’s MarTech platform, will be the first product in this collaboration to be launched. One of the region’s first web AR Content Management platforms makes AR campaign executions easy, cost-efficient, and consumers can view it easily with no app required. An immediate application would be the enhancement of social messaging communications such as Singtel location-based SMS. Traditional text will now come with an added AR experience for brand awareness and product showcasing through gamification to deliver consumer engagements.

“We look forward to enhancing our omnichannel solutions with REVEZ to include Extended Reality Technology and Metaverse. As we work on R&D for creative digital solutions, we aim to break new ground in the areas of digital innovation, engagements, and holistic insights in campaigns across our HOME, TRAVEL, EAT, SHOP & PLAY daily touchpoints platforms,” said Jeslyn Tan, managing director of Stellar Ace.

Meanwhile, Victor Neo, deputy board chairman and group CEO of REVEZ Corporation, commented, “REVEZ Motion is pleased to work towards more innovative and creative solutions. This will herald a new generation of advertising and digital creativity in campaigns. With Stellar Ace’s advertising ecosystem, we can extend more options to offer new edge creative experiences to customers.”

The last two years have changed the way consumers interact with brands. Apart from speeding up digital consumption, consumer behaviour continually shifted, even as brands press on and prepare for a more digital future. Increasing mobile internet penetration to 52 per cent by 2025 (up from 42 per cent at the end of 2020) is also resulting in more technologically savvy citizens; driving digital consumption on various platforms, with Southeast Asian consumers reportedly spending 414 billion hours online in 2021.

This increased consumption has also fuelled digital content production, especially in the advertising space. In Asia Pacific, the digital advertising market is expected to grow by 13.25 per cent annually, with a totally addressable market capitalisation of USD 2.9 billion from 2022 to 2031. Another global advertising forecast by MAGNA also suggests the same rampant growth, predicting digital and mobile campaigns to drive APAC advertising revenue to an 11.2 per cent increase and be worth USD 235 billion this year. 

All these factors are contributing to the thriving digital economy in Asia Pacific, and it is up to brands and marketers to adapt to newer marketing strategies to capitalise on the shift. Today, many are already delivering personalised content across omnichannel platforms and creating successful mobile experiences that convert. With 8 out of 10 consumers surveyed by Forrester perceiving their world as ‘all digital’, brands have to question if their current content production process can meet these expectations. 

Across every industry, major brands are becoming more reliant on technology to deliver engaging content and nurture new leads for higher revenue. In fact, up to 79 per cent of Asia Pacific marketers admitted to investing in marketing technology. This should not come as a surprise, since 80 per cent of consumers use digital platforms to discover and evaluate products and services online before actual purchase. 

For companies to stay nimble and be able to continually wow customers, content production needs to become an increasingly important part of marketing strategy. The way it is produced is just as important as what is produced. In today’s lightning-paced environment where content could become immediately obsolete, the agility in content production requires brands to be agile-minded in their processes.

What does agile content development look like?

Firstly, an agile content development process utilises data science and an iterative approach to content optimisation and delivery. This enables the business to create solution-focused content and present its brand as an industry thought leader.

Three things to look out for in agile content development

To foster an agile content development process, brands must implement a strategy to create a full-stack solution. Here are the actions to create one:

  1. Increase efficiencies, manage costs, and establish better processes.

Day-to-day oversight of the content production process across brands, agencies, vendors and countries helps stakeholders identify cost inefficiencies, and spot new trending opportunities quicker. 

  1. A centralised concierge to manage every aspect of content production.

Having all production data in one place, helps stakeholders access and manage all production activities more efficiently. From assessing production readiness, or Request For Proposal (RFP) programmes, this concierge enables greater transparency when it comes to timelines and costs. With the flexibility to produce content with the right selected partners, brands can mitigate risks – especially when it comes to media rights and getting sufficient production insurance. 

  1. Syncing your brand with the right strategy and ecosystem.

With marketing content being generated across a wide range of sources, in various markets and locations, stakeholders from agencies, in-house teams and media partners need to take a step back and assess their current capacity, processes and investments. Sometimes deviating from the norm can provide the brand with the best results, but many brands are tied with existing production partners, which can often frustrate processes. Hence, an aerial view of the business gives more options to the brand. 

The future of content production is agile

As consumer behaviour continues to sporadically transform, brands that are aiming to ride the wave of market relevance need a strategy that can help the business pivot faster and stay nimble. The ability to engage and capture attention will keep business booming, and it is important for brands to stay ahead 

of competitors. For profits to keep flowing, the business needs to be adaptable, and traditional approaches constrain that.

A new standard has arrived, and it is time to embrace something better and faster or choose to hold on and stagnate. The decision is yours. 

This article is written by Jonathan Parker, managing director of Advertising Production Resources for EMEA & APAC.

New York, USA – Global independent marketing consultancy, R3, has launched a new suite of digital tracking services to help marketers assess how their social, influencer, search, and e-commerce marketing measures up against others in their industry. 

The new services, namely SocialTrack, InfluencerTrack, eCommTrack, and SearchTrack, have been developed to deliver business-relevant metrics that help marketers improve performance across four key areas of marketing. Each digital tracking service uses bespoke audits available on a quarterly or annual basis to deliver in-depth reports with customised, strategic, and tactical recommendations.

SocialTrack identifies performance gaps, including which markets are overexposing ads or under leveraging paid ads on social media, while InfluencerTrack analyses influencer quality, competitor performance, and influencer effectiveness on a quarterly basis.

Meanwhile, eCommTrack delivers a quarterly or annual evaluation of brand and competitor experience, product ratings and reviews, SEO visibility, and share-of-shelf, amongst others. And lastly, SearchTrack produces a quarterly report on Search Performance, looking at always-on and tactical search campaigns at a keyword level.

Greg Paull, co-founder and principal at R3, noted that R3’s new suite of digital tracking services presents decision-makers with strong supporting data that supports strategy and investment, and provides insight into key implications for their brand.

“Our approach is different from other evaluations on the market in that they go beyond numbers. Each service delivers quantitative benchmarking of key metrics, success factors for the channel, best practice guidelines, and insight into creative and innovative strategies used by competitors across a variety of digital channels,” said Paull.

The Philippines – MARKETECH APAC‘s What’s NEXT returns this year with a stronger push to bring the industry together through a variety of knowledge-sharing activities. MARKETECH APAC will continue to feature thought-leadership articles written by renowned marketing leaders to cover various marketing areas, as it did last year.

With MARKETECH APAC‘s ongoing push to create relevant video content, we will gather the best in the industry this year and sit down with them to discuss how marketers can prepare for the upcoming year of marketing opportunities and challenges.

On November 3, 2022, What’s NEXT 2023 will kick off with a regional webinar, What’s NEXT: Events in Asia Pacific, in collaboration with event tech platform, Hubilo. On November 8, in partnership with influencer marketing platform Vamp, another regional webinar, What’s Next: Influencer Marketing in APAC, will be held.

True to its mission of creating a well-connected marketing community in Asia Pacific, What’s NEXT 2023 concludes with a two-day hybrid conference, What’s NEXT 2023: Marketing in Asia Pacific, on February 21-22, with at least 120 physical attendees in Manila and 1,500 virtual attendees from various markets in Asia Pacific.

The conference will spark offline and online discussions about digital, e-commerce, customer engagement, CX, esports, research, B2B, metaverse, and other relevant topics that will help marketers future-proof marketing strategies.

MARKETECH APAC’s What’s NEXT 2023 will be a go-to platform for checking out the marketing industry’s new trends, opportunities, and challenges to be explored in the region through this holistic approach.

Keep an eye on our website and social media pages for updates on the hybrid conference.

Please contact Joven Barceñas at [email protected] if you are interested in becoming a partner.

Singapore – Singapore-based telecom ViewQwest, has partnered with Hong Kong’s telecom and technology solutions provider HKBN Enterprise Solutions (HKBNES) to both elevate their regional capabilities in providing ICT and digital transformation (DX) services to customers in APAC, especially for large regional retailers. 

By combining ViewQwest’s extensive regional network with HKBNES’ one-stop digital solutions, the two companies will be able to further strengthen their regional capabilities to create win-win-win outcomes with customers.

Moreover, leveraging HKBNES’ competitive ICT and digital solutions capabilities, ViewQwest will be working with HKBNES in deploying digital transformation services in Hong Kong and Macau. Both will be establishing a colocation facility in HKBN’s data centre, providing on-ground technical and engineering support to ViewQwest’s customers in Hong Kong and Macau, including software and hardware installation and troubleshooting services.

Vignesa Moorthy, CEO of ViewQwest, shared that their partnership with HKBN leverages their deep knowledge and experience in the Hong Kong and Macau market, and it will enable them to better serve their customers with regional operations.

“This combined play marks a significant milestone in our journey and mission to help our customers build and transform their network and security architecture with confidence, streamlining operations, driving cost-savings, and enabling business agility,” said Moorthy.

Meanwhile, William Ho, co-owner-to-be and CEO at HKBNES, noted that this is a unique growth opportunity to further enhance their position as one of the most trusted ICT and digital transformation solutions providers, as they can more dynamically meet their customers’ diverse business and strategy needs – like expanding into overseas markets.

“This world-class partnership will strengthen HKBNES’ footprint in Singapore, and provide us with a solid foundation for accelerated development and growth in the Southeast Asia and APAC markets,” said Ho.

Singapore – WPP creative company Superunion has unveiled its proprietary design technology which enables brands to create innovative digital experiences and build meaningful connections with their audiences. This new offering includes generative design and metaverse experiences, in addition to established motion design expertise.

The new creative technology service was developed by the Superunion Asia team across APAC and China studios, led by Jessica Tan, Superunion’s digital director for Asia, and Paola Demichelis, Superunion’s digital designer. By applying technology and digital art, and connected to data, the tools enable brand owners to generate limitless creative assets in record time, within the parameters of their brand identity, giving them creative control, and a platform to express their creativity, over their own brand.

Moreover, the tool has been put to use by multiple Superunion clients to ensure brand innovation and coherence after the creation of brand guidelines. After defining the brand rules with the client, Superunion codifies what makes the design unique, creating a set of design rules. These are then built into a series of algorithms and codes to build bespoke software, along with the UI and UX interfaces integrated into the final tool.

The generative design tool is also complemented by the launch of the Superunion metaverse offer for clients looking at the next generation of digital experiences to engage their employees and external audiences through gamification and creative possibilities of Web 3.0.

With Superunion expanding its portfolio of services, the company will be able to act as a creative partner for the world’s biggest businesses across multiple sectors and geographies.

Tan shared that creative technology is a core aspect of their Superunion proposition, along with digital-first brand creation and the exploration of the opportunities of the next generation of internet experiences. 

“We believe in handing power to our clients and their creative teams, and our creation of these expansive systems enables this. Clients can use the design rules of their brand and create an almost never-ending suite of assets to suit any need over time and let their own creativity free. This is where Superunion has come into its own and where we see the opportunity for growth, globally,” said Tan.

Meanwhile, Ambrish Chaudhry, Superunion’s managing strategy director for Asia, said that their creative technology offer has already changed the way they think of branding and design at Superunion. 

“It’s helped us to think screen -first, be agile around [the] adoption of our work and to play an even more consultative and partnering role for our clients. The opportunities are truly boundless and if client response is something to go by; then we are well poised to write the next chapter of brand and product identities for some of the largest businesses globally and in Asia,” said Chaudhry.