Bright ad ideas lost in multimedia gaps
While crossover of various channels is the way to go for HK advertisers, insufficient infrastructure will hamper the integration of these platforms
The crossover of mobile, internet and traditional outdoor media is the way ahead for Hong Kong's multimillion-dollar advertising business, but insufficient mobile network capacity and a lack of integration between these channels and back-end logistics support mean some brilliant ideas have not taken shape in an otherwise tech-savvy city.
Commercials placed on interactive media and mobile phones only comprise a tenth of the HK$40 billion ad market, according to media monitoring firm admanGo, but the sector is a major growth driver.
Spending on mobile ads, for example, nearly quadrupled to HK$141 million in the third quarter of this year from HK$31 million a year ago.
But Ray Wong, a committee member of the Association of Accredited Advertising Agencies of Hong Kong, said the city lagged economies like Japan and South Korea in the infrastructure needed to allow better integration of such channels.
"I came across this idea from a Korean supermarket," he said. "It put up a QR code [a machine-readable label] in an outdoor area near a business district, where the sun shines through every day between 1pm and 2pm. A passer-by can capture the code's reflection with their smartphone and get delivery of discounted meals to their office."
Wong, also the chief executive of advertising agency PHD, said he had urged a local supermarket chain to adopt the same strategy but it failed to materialise.
"They don't have the system to connect the matrix barcode to their supply chain, which means they would have to create a programme in order to implement the idea, which would be costly and not worth it because many places in Hong Kong are highly accessible," he said.
Two years ago, his agency pitched an idea to the Standard Chartered marathon that would have allowed runners to receive timely greetings, advice or even promotions from friends, retailers and the organiser along the route through a device that tracked their location, but it also failed to come to fruition because it required the participation of a mobile operator and few had the extra capacity to support a network that could allow real-time communication to tens of thousands of people.
While the combination of digital, mobile, social media network and outdoor ads greatly enhanced the impact on consumers, it was the well-known brands and cash-rich corporations, rather than the small and start-up brands in need of exposure, that exploited the new opportunities the most because a lasting, major digital ad campaign could cost up to HK$3 million.
Although budget-sensitive buyers could use social media and internet platforms like Facebook, Yahoo and Google, Wong said that, without the correct approach, these channels were hardly more effective than traditional print ads.
"Many people think they can just create a Facebook account and publicise their products or services at very low costs, but without proper data-mining work to find out more about the target audience, many of these noises are actually wasted," he said. "Besides, online ads are not necessarily cheap."
The flash ads that pop up on the homepage of Yahoo or Google, for example, could cost up to HK$700,000 a day.
In the course of consolidation among various advertising media, MTR has become a major winner with its captive environment, high traffic and good mobile connections. While its growth in advertising revenue has slowed gradually over the past three years, it remains advertisers' favourite media, seeing 15 per cent growth in ad spending during the first half of this year - higher than other media including the internet, newspapers and television - according to admanGo's figures.
