November 2014 – Thailand’s Digital Marketing trend in 2015 will be on a shift to ‘Social Commerce’ where brand’s online success can be measured with online sales. Winter Egency, one of the leading digital marketing agency in Thailand, plans to design new solutions whereby Social Media expertise and E-Commerce are integrated efficiently in order to prove that Digital marketing be able to create online income for business.   

“When talking about Digital Marketing in past 4-5 years, every business in Thailand was focusing about developing a website, or creating a main social media platform like Facebook page during past 2-3 years, but for the year 2015 the trend will be changed from Social Media to Social Commerce.” Mr. Eakchai Parichatikanon, Managing Director of Winter Egency, an leading digital marketing agency in Thailand, says Social Commerce is the major trend unlocking potential of growth for digital marketing in Thailand where digital marketing’s goal in Thailand is aimed higher – no longer only brand awareness is enough, but also the digital marketing as another channel to generate sales to the business – by applying social media tools in a new way of use supported by greater e-commerce platform available for both buyers and sellers’ convenience.

In 2015, Digital Marketing industry in Thailand will be much expanded from this year when the digital marketing budget was delayed from political effect in first half of 2014.

Nowadays, Thai consumers keep entering in the digital world continuously with number of internet users in Thailand reported at 30 million while total population in Thailand are 67 million. However, the budget for digital marketing is currently about 5% of the marketing budget in business sector, so we believe the proportion for digital in business’s marketing budget cube has a gap to grow and reach 10% in next year.

President of Thailand E-Commerce Association, Mr. Pawoot Pongvitayapanu, says the social commerce trend next year represents that the popularity in social media would help growing ecommerce industry in Thailand. Nowadays, consumer does not believe in advertisement anymore, they prefer to listen to what people say in their social connections, and even making a purchase online.

Pawoot continues there are remarkable numbers of Thai people who using social media as such the senior group of people, more than 50 years old, are now tapping into the online world resulted by the more convenience of 3G and lower price smartphone. That creates the trend of commercial via social media will become the channel to reach all segments of people nationwide.No matter you are a big brand or small business in Thailand, online world has completely changed your targets’ behaviors and it is crucial to start building your online identity, online positioning, and also considering ecommerce to serve the customer needs.

Mr. Eakchai mentions that for Thailand, social media becomes the irresistible trend for business sector since the role of online in website format is no longer enough, website is considered as the responsive base of information for consumer, but using social media is the active digital marketing just like having the sale representatives in the online world.

Nonetheless, for Winter Egency, active digital marketing must imply to the way of presentation that is closed to what targeted consumer want to see, to hear and to be engaged because we realized that social media is also consumer’s private zone. Only the respectfully social media strategy could win the chance of online sales for businesses.

“Foreseeing the upcoming trend in 2015, Winter Egency will focus on working deeper in digital marketing  strategy for clients in order to re-position that social is not just be able to create viral marketing, social media can be considered as new channel of sales as well as brand awareness. That’s our way to focus and we do project to have more than 100% growth in billing for Winter Egency next year.”

Mr. Eakchai says besides providing domestic digital marketing service, Winter Egency has started to provide Social Commerce service for partners in international markets including Singapore and Malaysia, with an aim to do business’s direct expansion into neighbor countries like Malaysia, Singapore or Vietnam within next three years.