APAC marketing analysis for 2018

APAC marketing analysis for 2018

As the year comes to an end, here are some things we think will go big in 2018. 

Continued use of AR/VR

As brands continually look for new ways to engage audiences, we have reason to believe Augmented and Virtual Reality will continue to be big players in this arena.

The use of this technology will continue to develop through mobile, event activations and other channels.

Adoption of new cashless alternatives will continue.

2017 was a year of significant change in Hong Kong. We saw the continued use of new payment technologies such as Android Pay, and the introduction of new players such as Samsung Pay.

A huge breakthrough was seen with the Taxi industry starting to accept WeChat pay with a small selection of taxis. This is an area to be looked at closely as we will see further developments in this arena.

Advertising platforms will be held to more accountability and transparency than ever before in 2018.

Accountability and transparency has been a huge issue in recent years. 2017 was no different and we expect to see more discussions happening in this space.

One of the largest pieces of news in this space was P&G's Marc Pritchard setting new rules calling for better digital transparency with the agencies.

Storytelling on the rise in APAC.

More and more marketers in Hong Kong are finally following suite with the storytelling strategy. We've seen quite a number of brands tell great stories this year, including JobsDB, Cathay Pacific, Singapore Tourism Board and KFC. We expect 2018 to be another year of storytelling.

Social media will continue to be an important component of any brand campaign.

The way we consume on the internet has changed so much in the past year. Social media as a channel has changed so much. From a publisher's point of view, video with text subtitles have been a clear winner in terms of snackable content. From a brand point of view, innovative mediums such as 360 video, live video and cinemagraphs are all rewarded on the feed with higher exposure.

We look forward to an exciting 2018!