Mumbai: WARC, has today released its annual Asian Strategy Report, an analysis of the region’s most effective marketing trends based on insights from the 2017 WARC Prize for Asian Strategy.
Lucy Aitken, Case Study Editor at WARC, comments: “We’ve analysed the data of close to 200 entries from 17 countries to the 2017 WARC Prize for Asian Strategy to ascertain insights and trends that Asian marketers are deploying to build their strategic capabilities.
“Against a backdrop of demographic challenges, new technologies and market-orientated reforms, we’re seeing that Asian brands are moving from tactical, activation-based marketing to more long-term, consistent and strategic marketing.”
WARC’s Asian Strategy Report highlights the following key insights and marketing trends in Asia for 2017:
Mirroring social change: Purpose continues to be a popular strategy for many brands in Asia that successfully plug into the social and cultural change that is still under way in many territories. Brands are still recognising the long-term value in appealing to women and taking on the issues that are important and significant to them. However, brands need to exercise caution: those that are not entirely authentic to a particular cause will find themselves called out by consumers.
Low-interest categories, high-interest ideas: User experience is starting to play an important role in brand differentiation, so smart product or packaging ideas are emerging within Asian communications. These ideas are efficient at engaging with elusive target audiences, particularly if they can prove that they are useful products. Asian brands are increasingly putting innovation at the heart of their marketing strategies.
Channel-first ideas: Channel choice is core to an effective strategy and is not an afterthought. Having a particular target audience and the means by which it is reached, is reframing the brand, building awareness and engagement, and adding to the bottom line.
Blue Ocean brands: Deploying a Blue Ocean strategy – which sees brands existing in places where they are not competing with rival brands for the same sector – is increasingly important at a time when brands are finding it hard to differentiate through mere function alone.
WARC Data points – Asian Strategy 2017
- 78% of shortlisted campaigns used online video – a 34% increase from 2016
- 72% of shortlisted campaigns used emotion – a 41% increase from 2015
- 2 out of 5 shortlisted campaigns targeted influencers – a 17% increase from 2016
The Asian Strategy Report 2017 in full is now available to WARC subscribers on warc.com
The WARC Prize for Asian Strategy is an annual competition showcasing the smartest strategic thinking that has driven business results in Asia. An eminent judging panel of leading industry marketers, strategists and planners, chaired by Nicole McMillan, Vice-President, Marketing, The Wrigley Company, Asia-Pacific, judged the 2017 awards. The WARC Prize for Asian Strategy 2018 will open for entries in April.
