MarTech is simply the collaboration between marketing and technology. Since the term ‘digital’ fundamentally implies technology, anyone working within the realm of digital marketing is, by extension, dealing with MarTech. The term ‘MarTech’ especially relates to forward-thinking efforts, initiatives, and tools that harness and utilise modern technology to accomplish marketing objectives and goals.
Throughout this disquisition, we will take a glance at a few of Southeast Asia’s MarTech-messiahs. What are these innovators doing to excel in the world of digital tools? Moreover, how do they allow a plethora of new and established brands to automate tasks so easily?
How marketing disruption will help you build your brand
Whose praises shall we sing in Singapore?
As it stands in 2019, the gold star almost certainly has to be awarded to Impact, a company which recently installed an office in one of Asia’s most tech-savvy city-states. It doesn’t stop there either. Impact has unveiled ambitious plans to extend their MarTech map to China, Japan, and even as far as India. One of the company’s managing directors, Adam Furness, gave a speech in November last year in which he suggested that Shanghai would be on the Impact map by 2019. Offices in Japan and India are most likely to be established by 2020.
Impact is the brainchild of numerous internet marketing and technology oracles who began collaborating in 2008. Having previously held the keys to the doors of Savings.com, LeadPoint, and Commission Junction, it was clear from the beginning that Impact was going to smash the MarTech sphere. By introducing a SaaS technology platform, Impact has taken a clever sidestep from the more traditional affiliate networking models, allowing performance marketing professionals to expand in size, giving their revenue-generating partnerships a chance to blossom in this cutting-edge field.
Zanroo: the zeitgeist of Thailand’s tech turbulence
Not only is this the fastest tech startup in Thailand but, in fact, the whole of Southeast Asia. Zanroo is a company rooted in Asian tempo and tradition but seeks to be a global brand in the near future. By using real-time data analytics, this insight discovery MarTech startup provides its clients with a host of possibilities, and the opportunity to trigger sniper-precision digital activations and marketing engagements that result in more action than a superchip bidding war.
Zanroo was founded in 2013 by Chitphol Mungprom, and its primary vision is to collect consumer data via social media and other channels. This information can be used to help up-and-coming brands optimise the reach of their marketing campaigns and build effective and actionable insights. Zanroo began in Bangkok, but it has spread its wings to Kuala Lumpur, Singapore, Tokyo, Jakarta, and even London. By the end of 2019, projections suggest that Zanroo will also be visible in China and the U.S. Over 300 corporate customers from the telecom, banking, eCommerce, and automotive industries have placed their faith in Zanroo since its inception. Doubling and sometimes quadrupling in size annually, since its foundation in 2013, Zanroo is currently a front runner in the MarTech marathon, and one to keep an eye on.
An in-depth look at Indonesian tech
Vamp is an influencer platform which has been making waves in Indonesia’s tech circle since the beginning of this year. After partnering up with mobile manufacturer OPPO to help promote the latest handset in their entourage, the F11 Pro Smartphone, Vamp’s reputation went stratosphere! This marketing campaign was responsible for a terrific rate of engagement between influencers and their audiences. Initially, this campaign experienced audience participation of just over 28%, while some influencers more than doubled their engagement on their own channels. More recently, Vamp quarterbacked the influencer marketing strategy for Laneige, a Thailand-based beauty brand. This campaign was successful in commanding the attention of over 700,000 potential customers.
Artificial intelligence is changing marketing forever
It’s fair to say that Vamp is a cut above the crowd; they are not just a marketing platform, but could arguably become the patron saints of influencer marketing. By strategically selecting social media talent and monitoring campaign results with real-time perseverance, Vamp’s comprehensive reporting could potentially change the influencer marketing sphere for the better.
Before we pull the plug on this…
This year has already seen some earth-shattering tremors in the MarTech industry, but this is just the beginning. Marketing as a whole is at somewhat of a crossroads right now, and there are no absolutes regarding its future. All we are certain of is that the next few years promise some radical advancements, both in terms of technology itself and the creative ways in which it will be utilised.