Market Watch
- Zero New COVID-19 Cases Sparks Marketing War; Family Mart, Milkshop, 7-Eleven Battle It Out
- Starbucks Suffers Billions in Losses from Pandemic; Could Shutter 400 Cafes
- Optimism for Property Market in Q3; 46% See H2 as Good Time to Buy
- Taiwan Dollar the Strongest Currency
- A New Earphone Wave! Podcasts on the Rise in Taiwan
- What Is Event Marketing? Why Do Brands Put on Events When They Do Not Make Money?
- Behind the Mayday, Rene Liu Online Concerts – Believing in Music
Tourism Industry Update
- Taiwan Outbound Departure Statistics, January-May 2020
- DGBAS Latest Economic Indicators for May
- Domestic Travel Surge another Disaster? Why Taiwan’s ‘Godfather of Tourism’ Is Worried
- New International Luxury Resort in Taitung! Six Senses Brand Resort to Open in 2021
- Guam Postpones Opening of Doors to Taiwanese Travelers
- Egypt to Reopen Some Tourist Destinations on July 1
- Taiwan, Stanford University Testing Quarantines, Paving Way for Future Travel Model
- Expedia Launches New ‘Travel from Home’ Virtual Tours
- Starlux to Resume Taipei-Penang Route on June 18
- Emirates Resumes Taipei-Dubai Passenger Services
Media Watch
- NT$45.84 Billion Spent on Digital Ads in Taiwan in 2019; Videos, KOLs booming; public agencies, e-commerce, gaming companies biggest advertisers
- Digital Ad Alarm! What Marketers Need to Know to Cope without Cookies
- The Post-cookies World – Contextual Targeting to Replace Cookies among Advertisers?
- Using Google Analytics to Set Annual KPI; the Indicators Marketers Need to Know
Case Study
CheeseAd An Integrated Communications Team
Market Watch
Zero New COVID-19 Cases Sparks Marketing War; Family Mart, Milkshop, 7-Eleven Battle It Out
“Zero Infection Marketing” was the most popular source of discussion on social media from April 16 to May 6, according to big data key engine Keypo. Marketing campaigns, centered around Taiwan reporting no new COVID-19 cases for two days, began in earnest on April 16. But a cluster infection on a naval ship reported on April 18 dimmed their popularity until April 26, when six straight days of no new cases rekindled the marketing campaigns’ momentum. Their impact was strongest on social networks, and to May 6, FamilyMart was more successful at attracting interest in its brand through its campaign on Facebook than Milkshop or 7-Eleven, Keypo data showed.
Source: Daily View
Starbucks Suffers Billions in Losses from Pandemic; Could Shutter 400 Cafes
Starbucks announced on June 10 that it expected to lose US$3.2 billion in the April to June quarter due to the coronavirus pandemic and that it would move up its timeline to open company-owned pick-up stores similar to the McDonald’s drive-thru concept. It said it planned to first focus on adding curbside pick-up and drive thru lanes for cafes in less densely populated suburban areas.
But the new initiative did not portend an increase in Starbucks’ network as it plans to close as many as 400 company-owned stories over the next 18 months, and it estimated same-store sales in the United States and China, its two most important markets, to fall by 10% to 20% in 2020 as a whole.
Source: TechOrange, CNBC
Optimism for Property Market in Q3; 46% See H2 as Good Time to Buy
The COVID-19 threat has eased in Taiwan, and the housing market seems to be regaining steam. A survey by Yungching Realty in mid-June has found that 45% of respondents were pessimistic about the outlook for Q3, but that was 20 percentage points lower than in Q2. Some 45% also felt real estate was the best form of hedging, and 46% felt the second half of 2020 would be the best time to buy property. But with a vaccine likely needed to bring the coronavirus under control, and public health experts warning of a second COVID-19 wave in the fall, Yungching still expected 2020 as a whole to be a down year.
Source: CardU.com
Taiwan Dollar the Strongest Currency
A huge inflow of foreign funds sent Taiwan’s stock and forex markets soaring on June 16. The stock market rose by 205 points, or nearly 2%, restoring the 5-day moving average, while the Taiwan dollar was up NT$0.185 against the U.S. dollar at one point before closing NT$0.066 higher at NT$29.704, a two-year high. The TWD has appreciated 1.35% against the greenback year-to-date, beating out the Japanese yen as the world’s strongest currency.
Source: China Times
A New Earphone Wave! Podcasts on the Rise in Taiwan
Podcasts have been thriving in Taiwan in the past six months, resonating with listeners, content creators and advertisers. What is behind this surge? Some industry insiders attribute it to renewed efforts to grab listeners’ attention while they are busy doing something else, whether jogging, exercising, or driving.
Source: Business Next
What Is Event Marketing? Why Do Brands Put on Events When They Do Not Make Money?
Holding an event is a way to market a brand. Events are marketing tools, and their costs are marketing expenses. The key is not how much revenue an event generates directly or whether it breaks even, but rather whether it achieves marketing goals, such as meeting traffic, exposure, brand image or other objectives. Event marketing uses events as tools or activities to build a brand, stack content, or manage social communities, hoping ultimately to meet such marketing goals as grabbing share of mind, gaining direct traffic, lowering customer acquisition costs and increasing customer lifetime value.
Source: Marketersgo
Behind the Mayday, Rene Liu Online Concerts – Believing in Music
Taiwanese rock band Mayday held an hour-long “Live in the Sky” concert online on May 31, and by the next day the video had been viewed 42.44 million times around the world, soaring to the top of YouTube’s trending videos. The number of views has continued to climb since.
Most events and concerts have been canceled or postponed during the COVID-19 outbreak, and several Taiwanese and overseas performers have used live streaming, whether from their homes or a studio, to stay in the public eye. Rene Liu started the trend in Taiwan on April 17 when she was the first to livestream a concert, and as of mid-May, the “Rene for You 2020 Online Concert” had garnered nearly 150 million views worldwide.
Source: Manager Today
Tourism Industry Update
Taiwan Outbound Departure Statistics, January-May 2020
1. Taiwanese went abroad 2,145,427 times in the first five months of 2020, down 69.54% from the first five months of 2019.
2. The top destination for outbound travelers from January to May 2020 was Japan, followed by China, Hong Kong, South Korea, Thailand and Vietnam, but departures to all of those destinations were down from the same period of 2019 because of the COVID-19 pandemic, falling by as much as 81.21% to Hong Kong. Most departures in May were to China (11,497), followed by Hong Kong (2,815) and the United States (1,360).
Source: Tourism Bureau Monthly Statistics
DGBAS Latest Economic Indicators for May (Some figures for April)
1. Taiwan’s GDP year-on-year growth was 1.59% in 2020 Q1, according to a DGBAS preliminary estimate, 0.05 percentage points higher than the advance estimate of 1.54% made in April 2020.
2. GDP is expected to grow 1.67% for 2020 as a whole, down 0.70 percentage points from the 2.37% growth forecast in February 2020. The DGBAS has forecast per capita GDP of US$27,131 for 2020 and expects the consumer price index to fall 0.32% this year.
1. Unemployment rate: 4.07% in May, up 0.04 percentage points from April; seasonally adjusted rate 4.16%, up 0.06 percentage points from a month earlier; a total of 486,000 people were unemployed.
2. Average regular wages for workers in the industrial and service sectors: The average regular wage in April was NT$42,309, down 0.41%, or NT$177, from the previous month.
Source: DGBAS Latest Indicators
Domestic Travel Surge another Disaster? Why Taiwan’s ‘Godfather of Tourism’ Is Worried
Taiwanese travel agents and hotel operators are gearing up to take advantage of the Tourism Bureau’s domestic travel subsidy plan that begins on July 1. Their campaigns and Taiwan residents’ huge pent-up demand for travel could lead to “national travel fever” in the second half of 2020. Many see it as a great opportunity for the domestic tourism sector, but former Landis Group President Stanley Yen, known as Taiwan’s “godfather of tourism,” is worried. For the past three years, Yen has not done any media interviews and rarely appeared in public. But he is speaking now because he sees the coronavirus as an opportunity but also a potential disaster for Taiwan’s tourism industry. “I’m afraid that if Taiwan misses this chance, the industry will again follow the wrong path,” he said.
Source: Business Weekly
New International Luxury Resort in Taitung! Six Senses Brand Resort to Open in 2021
Taiwan’s “backyard” in the eastern Hualien and Taitung counties offers amazing natural vistas and is usually among the top choices of city dwellers for a getaway. Seeing Taitung’s potential, the prestigious luxury resort brand Six Senses has decided to open the Six Senses Wuma in the hot spring resort town of Zhiben. Designed by Japanese architect Kengo Kuma, the resort will be located on a 20-hectare site situated at the base of Medicine Mountain and feature a unique tiered landscape. It is scheduled to open in 2021.
Source: ELLE
Guam Postpones Opening of Doors to Taiwanese Travelers
Guam Governor Lou Leon Guerrero had announced at the end of May that visitors from Taiwan, South Korea and Japan would be allowed to visit the island without the need to be quarantined for 14 days, starting July 1. On June 26, however, the Guam Visitors Bureau said the reopening of travel for those three countries “has been postponed until further notice.” The governor said the move was made due to the recent spike in local COVID-19 cases, and she extended the island’s health emergency for another 30 days through July. Tourism accounts for 60% of Guam’s economy and a third of its private jobs, according to Leon Guerrero.
Egypt to Reopen Some Tourist Destinations on July 1
Egypt is planning to gradually resume international flights and allow entry to overseas visitors starting July 1 for visits to resort areas less affected by the coronavirus outbreak. According to a statement issued by Egypt’s government, the areas to be reopened to tourists include the southern part of the Sinai Peninsula, home to the beach destinations of Sharm el-Sheikh and Dahab, and the Red Sea destinations of Hurghada and Marsa Alam.
Source: Radio Taiwan International
Taiwan, Stanford University Testing Quarantines, Paving Way for Future Travel Model
Taiwan and Stanford University are collaborating on a project to test whether international travel quarantines amid COVID-19 can be safely shortened. Some 1,000 volunteers are being recruited to fly from San Francisco to Taipei and undergo planned testing and quarantine protocols to see if a new, safe model for international travel can be devised. In the post-coronavirus world, before a vaccine is available, flying overseas will involve more than just booking tickets and getting visas. Travelers will likely also have to present a certificate showing they do not have the disease. Some countries are mulling setting up “travel bubbles,” “air bridges,” or “travel corridors” to enable states that have brought the coronavirus under control to resume travel exchanges.
Expedia Launches New ‘Travel from Home’ Virtual Tours
As the coronavirus outbreak has eased and restrictions are gradually lifted, people are gravitating to new lifestyles. International one-stop online travel agency Expedia has rolled out a series of “Travel from Home” virtual activities to fulfill people’s wanderlust. The series enables people at home to relive the beauty and diversity of the world, while giving inspiration to travelers to release their inner travel soul and maintain their thirst for new experiences without having to worry about international travel restrictions.
Starlux to Resume Taipei-Penang Route on June 18
Starlux Airlines has announced it has received the go-ahead from Malaysia’s government to resume service between Taipei and Penang on June 18 and June 25. The airline had suspended service because of the restrictions to air travel triggered by the coronavirus outbreak. To comply with Malaysian quarantine procedures, Starlux has changed its flight times, with JX721 departing from Taipei at 8:30 a.m. and arriving in Penang at 1 p.m. and return flight JX722 leaving Penang at 2 p.m. and arriving in Taipei at 6:50 p.m.
Emirates Resumes Taipei-Dubai Passenger Services
Emirates formally resumed flights between Dubai and Taipei on June 17. The airline will fly from Dubai to Taipei every Wednesday, Friday and Saturday, and return from Taipei to Dubai the same night, using a Boeing 777-300ER on the route. Flight EK366 from Dubai will depart at 9 a.m. and arrive in Taipei at 21:35 p.m., and return flight EK367 will leave Taiwan at 11:35 p.m. and arrive in Dubai at 4:15 a.m. the next day. With the United Arab Emirates lifting its ban on transit passengers, travelers can now go through Dubai to get connections to 40 Emirates destinations in the Gulf area, Europe, the Americas and Asia-Pacific.
Media Watch
NT$45.84 Billion Spent on Digital Ads in Taiwan in 2019Videos, KOLs booming; public agencies, e-commerce, gaming companies biggest advertisers
- 2019 Taiwan Digital Advertising Report
(1) Total spending on digital advertising in Taiwan in 2019 was NT$45.84 billion, up 17.6% from the NT$38.97 billion spent in 2018
(2) The strongest growth among ad categories was in video ads, with total spending up 37.2% in 2019 to NT$11.11 billion.
(3) Within the buzz and content marketing category (embedded content/key opinion leader/buzz), key opinion leader/internet celebrity (KOL) spending accounted for 48.2% of the total.
(4) E-commerce enterprises were still the biggest digital advertising sector, spending NT$6.36 billion on digital ads in 2019. Its 37% y-o-y growth rate was the second highest of any sector.
(5) 2019 was a big year for election campaigns (heading into the Jan. 11, 2020 presidential/legislative elections), driving heavy spending in digital marketing by public agencies. The public sector had the highest growth in digital ad spending of any sector at 64%.
(6) Digital advertising’s share of total advertising rose from 54.6% in 2018 to 60.2% in 2019. The main forces behind that rising share came from the e-commerce, gaming and app sectors, which put a priority on the ability of ads to convert viewers into customers.
Source: Taiwan Digital Marketing Association
Digital Ad Alarm! What Marketers Need to Know to Cope without Cookies
At the beginning of 2020, Google announced that it would be phasing out third-party cookies in its Chrome web browser within two years. Without cookies, can ad tracking survive?
- Three Major Effects of a World without Cookies
(1) Can no longer use embedded code to track and collect customer data, potentially hurting the effectiveness of ad placements
(2) Reduces number of channels serving as sources of user data, which could lead to misjudgments and affect ad placement strategies
(3) Cross-platform integration becomes more difficult, making it harder to gauge the effectiveness of ad placements
- Alternatives to third-party cookies
(1) Use first-party data: Use Google Analytics (GA) or data management platform (DMP) analytics or consumer data platform (CDP) to connect to website
(2) Use media to support social networking platforms: Use social media platforms such as LINE accounts, YouTube, Facebook, or Instagram to input data into corresponding ad systems through concatenation (linking together things in a chain or series) to engage in remarketing at deeper levels
(3) Use customer relationship management data: take lists based on information provided by customers and give them to media platforms to process
Source: Carat Media Weekly Newsletter
The Post-cookies World – Contextual Targeting to Replace Cookies among Advertisers?
- A digital advertising world without cookies
Google released a study in August 2019 showing that removing cookies reduced publisher revenue by an average of 52%. To advertisers, losing third-party cookies means they lose a weapon in tracking and analyzing their audiences, dealing a heavy blow to the effectiveness of digital advertising.
- Eliminating third-party cookies could mean a resurgence in contextual targeting
As cookies are phased out, contextual targeting may be the successor to cookies’ ad targeting role. In fact, contextual targeting as an ad technology has been around for a long time. It uses web crawlers to categorize URLs based on their content and collect the website’s keywords. When a user engages with the website, the keywords are matched to corresponding ad content using ad placement technology. The process steers clear of privacy issues because it rarely uses browsing behavior data collected by cookies.
Source: TenMax
Using Google Analytics to Set Annual KPI; the Indicators Marketers Need to Know
The ABC’s of Google Analytics (GA) involve three layers of data that display “customer acquisition,” “behavior,” and “conversion.” From these indicators, we highlight how two of them can be used to set annual KPI.
- A. Acquisition: From where does a website obtain traffic and visitors?
The goals of managing a website include optimizing content and attracting potential customers. The “session” represents a key indicator. A session can be any interaction between a user and a web page or a click on the web page within a preset time of 30 minutes. Using the “session” as a KPI prevents overestimates of data affecting business decisions.
- B. Behavior: What do visitors do after going on the website?
The “bounce rate” shows the percentage of users who after opening a link and viewing a particular page navigate away from the site. What is the average bounce rate for different types of websites? In 2019, HubSpot surveyed the bounce rate by sector, and found that content websites and blogs had higher bounce rates than for other types of websites. As for “exit rate,” it measures the percentage of visitors who exit the site from a particular page after having visited any number of pages. The “exit rate” puts more emphasis on the business goals of the website and seeing how many orders are being lost..
Categories: Content websites, lead generation pages, blogs, retail sites, service sites, landing pages
Source: Manager Today
Case Study
New Taiwan Website for Philippines Tourism Bureau
Campaign Description
The internet habits of consumers have evolved, with the mobile phone supplanting the desktop computer as the main tool used to search for information. That shift has led to a change in thinking on website design and the need to make it more smartphone-oriented. The Taiwan branch of the Philippine Department of Tourism decided to refresh its website to account for changing consumer habits and make it more intuitive and user-friendly to browse.
We undertook the new design based on mobile phone webpage principles:
1. Simplified and positioned important information on the home page, enabling users to get a beat on the main attractions and activities in the Philippines at a glance.
2. Single page/single column page format: Mobile phone screens are far narrower than desktop screens, and users are accustomed to scrolling to look for information. Thus, websites for desktop screens with multiple columns needed to be redesigned into a single column so that users can easily scroll down to find information of interest.
3. Font sizes were made bigger and less text was shown on the home page, reducing bounce rates caused by users finding it hard to read the text shown.
4. To encourage users to stay longer on the website, we added a special “Follow Your Interests” section at the bottom of the “Destinations” webpage that users could click on and browse to get additional information.The Philippines is known as the “country of a thousand islands,” and each region has its own distinctive features or foods. We made it a point to add a “Must See/Must Try/Must Buy” section for every destination page to help users get a quick feel for each area’s best places to visit, the local food specialties, and where to shop.
5. The Philippines is internationally renowned for its many diving destinations and beaches. To make sure users could conveniently identify where each destination is located, we added Google maps to the “Diving” and “Beach” activities webpages.
Source: CheeseAd
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