TV advtg still works in APAC but smartphones is the screen of choice
The growing significance of mobile has been tabled in various discussions. While mobile handsets found way into the hands of many consumers, across spectrum, one of the interesting points is the growing penetration of smartphones that has allowed marketers new opportunities to engage the device for customised, or mass, messaging.
Taking a closer look into the consumption behaviour of multiscreen users, the recently released 2014 AdReaction Report from Millward Brown shows that multiscreen users in the Asia Pacific region consume seven hours of screen media per day in a five hour period. This is mostly on their smartphones.
Asia Pacific surged ahead of the global average in terms of total screen time (439 minutes versus 417), with smartphones taking up the lion’s share (159 minutes to 147). Screen time for laptops (115 minutes) and tablets (60 minutes) was also higher than the global average. TV was the only screen to fall short (104 minutes to 113 globally), highlighting the opportunity for multiscreen marketers in the region.
“A mobile-first marketing world is here. We’re leading the world in the propensity to spend time with our favourite devices, and switching between screens. There are some great insights to be picked up when it comes to understanding what this means in China and India, as compared with Japan and Australia. Combining this knowledge with consumers’ receptivity to advertising across these screens will lend solid guidance towards creating more impactful and engaging audience interactions,” said Mark Henning, Head of Media and Digital for Africa, Middle East and Asia Pacific at Millward Brown.
Regional numbers from Asia Pacific were higher than global consumption patterns, driven primarily by use in Indonesia and the Philippines. While in other regions smartphones dominate primarily daytime screen usage, in Asia Pacific, they are the dominant screen in the evening as well. Of the total time screens are being viewed, ‘shifting’ among individual screens throughout the day remains the dominant form of screen use, at 61 per cent of screen time. This remains the largest multiscreen opportunity in Asia Pacific.
Simultaneous use of an additional screen with TV accounts for almost 40 percent of the time. During this time, users opt for ‘meshing (where TV and a digital screen are used to consume related content) around 17 percent of the time, or ‘stacking’ (consuming unrelated content) 21 percent of the time.
Understanding local market nuances becomes critical for brand strategies and media planning. Users in Thailand, for example, engage in meshing at a higher proportion than the global average (28 percent versus 14 percent), while users in Australia are stacking more (28 percent versus 22 percent).When consumers port an individual task across screens, they most often begin on TV and move to a smartphone, but all screen sequences are possible.
Other findings from the study include:
- Indonesia and the Philippines topped the global table in terms of total time spent between screens at 540 and 531 minutes respectively
- Laptop minutes in China (161) are the highest in the world
- Within the region, Japan had the lowest consumption at 343 minutes
- Tablets deliver difference for brands, with receptivity notably high in the Philippines
With consumers simultaneously using multiple screens, the opportunity for marketers lies in delivering consistent, integrated campaigns as users shift between screens. Specific to multiscreen marketing opportunities, AdReaction found that consumers are most receptive to micro-video; TV ads with interactivity; and TV ads promoting mobile apps, Facebook pages and websites. Marketing that delivers more entertainment and rewards are generally preferred over multiscreen campaigns which simply offer more information.
“Marketers can now be better equipped to make the right decisions while reaching out to their target audience. Campaigns that are consistent, connected across screens, and concise are more likely to deliver brand value,” said Rob Valsler, Regional Director for Media and Digital at Millward Brown.
AdReaction 2014 surveyed, via smartphone or tablet, more than 12,000 respondents, aged 16-44 years, multiscreen users across 30 countries. Multiscreen users were defined as people who own, or have access to, a TV and a smartphone and/or a tablet. AdReaction studies have been conducted since 2001. A total of 3,080 respondents from Asia Pacific participated in this study, from Australia, China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Philippines, South Korea, Thailand and Vietnam.
