Content Increasingly Contextual: Marketers Need to Account for Device, Platform, Location and Sector When Hunting ROI

SINGAPORE, May 21, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Leading independent integrated communications agency Waggener Edstrom Communications (WE) has released the second edition of its proprietary Asia-Pacific research study, Content Matters: The Impact of Brand Storytelling Online in 2015.

This year's report explores the correlation between devices and social media platforms as it relates to purchase behavior, revealing the factors that drive consumer brand advocacy and how those dynamics vary across industry and geography in Asia-Pacific.

The 2015 study surveyed over 4,000 consumers in nine markets across Asia-Pacific, including Australia, China, India, Indonesia, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore and South Korea. It also covered nine industries, including Beauty, Consumer Electronics, Finance & Banking, Food & Beverage, Healthcare, Mobile Devices & Tablets, Personal Care, Restaurants & Dining, and Travel & Tourism.

"Riding on the success of the first Content Matters report, we wanted to take a deeper dive into what consumers really think in relation to brands online, and the research provided some fascinating facts," said Henry Wood, APAC Lead, WE Studio D. "Simply put, we learned that content is never a sole panacea. Effective content is a cocktail of geography, platform, industry and device. In order to stay ahead of the curve marketers must have data-driven insights that help prioritize their investments and capture value."

• It's all about the ecosystem
  The data show that consumers want cross-channel experiences, via an ecosystem of online and offline touch points. However, the dominant platforms shift according to industry and geography. In South Korea, for example, regardless of industry, blogs dominate purchasing decisions; in the Philippines, social media carries the greatest purchase influence. And in the majority APAC markets, corporate websites are key for Finance & Banking decisions, while Restaurant & Dining purchases rely most heavily on word of mouth.
• Content is a local game
  Although Facebook and WhatsApp currently dominate the region, the third most preferred social network is different in almost every market. Singapore consumers are hot for Instagram, Indonesians love to tweet, and China is bonding via WeChat. Furthermore, willingness to engage with brands and motivation is market-led. For example, access to discounts is the key reason consumers follow a brand in Hong Kong (46%) and Indonesia (38%); in China, it's simple love for the brand; in India, it's because consumers find the content inspirational. What this means for campaign design is Southeast Asia should be promotion-led, while marketers will need to focus on brand in China and charm in India.
• Multiple devices matter
  The data indicate that consumers are using multiple screens to engage with brands and gather information prior to purchase, pivoting between two devices, typically a smartphone and a computer. Additionally, not only are they amalgamating branded content before taking action, but they do so in different ways depending on their location.

"As an integrated communications agency, we are committed to making sure everything we do maps to business needs and is backed by data. Using our own internal insights and analytics tools and experts, we're able to conduct APAC-level research to ascertain what drives consumer interests when it comes to brand advocacy, and use this data to help our clients create more impactful content that links to commercial outcomes," said Matthew Lackie, Senior Vice President, Asia Pacific, Waggener Edstrom.

Download the report: http://apac.waggeneredstrom.com/what-we-do/digital-influence-insights/content-matters/.  

Waggener Edstrom Communications (WE) is a global independent communications agency. To learn more, visit http://www.WaggenerEdstrom.com

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SOURCE Waggener Edstrom Communications