APAC marketers flag mobile first as key differentiator: Adobe report
- 23 February, 2015 14:27
Marketers in the Asia Pacific value the smartphone more highly than marketers in other areas of the world, according to research released by Adobe.
Digital Trends 2015, an econsultancy, surveyed more than 6000 marketers worldwide, with 14 per cent from Asia Pacific. About 10 per cent of marketers in the Asia Pacific said becoming a mobile-first company will be the primary way that they will differentiate their organisation from competitors, compared to 5 per cent in North America and 7 per cent in Europe.
A majority of marketers in all three regions chose customer service and customer experience as the primary way to differentiate from rivals.
“The smartphone dominates as the device of choice among the majority of APAC consumers, and is used to research, communicate and make purchases, so it makes perfect sense that more marketers here than anywhere else in the world are prioritising development of a mobile-first business,” said Adobe APAC president, Paul Robson.
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However, marketers in the Asia Pacific appeared to value technology less than those in North America as a critical element in delivering customer experience.
In APAC, 43 per cent said they ranked technology and tools as being among the three most critical elements in the delivery of customer service, compared to 55 per cent of marketers in North America.
Of the North American respondents who gave a top-three ranking to technology and tools, 15 per cent said this was the most important delivery factor. Of the APAC respondents, only 7 per cent said it was the most important.
Instead, APAC marketers identified strategy, culture and development of digital marketing skills as the most important elements for customer experience.
Asked where their organisation places the highest emphasis in improving customer experience, most of the APAC marketers (38 per cent) chose making the experience highly personalised and relevant. Slightly less but still a majority of European marketers (32 per cent) chose the same category.
In North America, the majority of marketers (35 per cent) chose making the experience as valuable as possible. This ranked second in the other markets – 23 per cent in APAC and 29 per cent in Europe.
“Customer experience is forcing organisations to create a more integrated approach, with marketing no longer simply carried out by the marketing department but at every customer touch point, which is dramatically changing how the brand experience is delivered,” said Robson.
“This research shows that we’re seeing a high level of marketing sophistication in digitally-aware Asian businesses, whose marketing leaders are transforming their organisations to ensure brand is central at every moment of customer experience.”
Adam Bender covers digital marketing and emerging technology for CMO and is the author of dystopian sci-fi novels We, The Watched and Divided We Fall. Follow him on Twitter: @WatchAdam
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