BUSINESSES have continued to spend money on advertising despite undergoing a bleak period caused by the pandemic as they want to remain in the eyes of the customers, said industry players. 

They added that while there have been certain businesses that had to forgo advertising to prioritise on survival, others meanwhile have found it an opportune time to take advantage over their competitors. 

Advertisers have also seen a change of landscape as the demand for self-serving and personal customisation increases. 

Therine Goh, the chief operating officer and co-founder of AdEasy, said that the 2020 ad-spend in Malaysia decreased by only 14% compared with 2019. 

Malaysia’s overall advertising expenditure dipped from RM13.5 billion to RM11.5 billion last year, according to AIMS Research.

“This illustrates how resilient the ad industry is. Businesses are still advertising to drive growth,” she told The Malaysian Insight. 

“This is actually an opportune time to advertise while competitors are pulling back on their advertising activities.” 

She quoted the saying “out of sight, out of mind” and said it was strategic for businesses to have a solid advertising plan so as to remain top-of-mind with customers. 

Malaysian Advertisers Association vice president Claudian Navin Stanislaus said this was certainly the time for challenger brands to rise and get noticed. 

“The risk in these times is of becoming commoditised, which is possibly the antithesis of branding. 

“Every factor of differentiation and value built over time and the relationships built with consumers would be devalued if things become commoditised,” he said. 

However, Stanislaus, who is also head of communications and consumer marketing at Baba Products (M) Sdn Bhd, added that brands have to be vigilant too. 

“Brands do need to be sensitive to their consumers too. To focus on big brand initiatives may seem sensitive at a time when their customers are making life choices for survival.” 

Stanislaus added that legacy casualties have happened due to this pandemic and may yet see more. 

“The advertising industry, which is a strong contributor to the economy in good times, must be supported in some way as it has been overlooked. 

“There has been an industry-wide plea to the government for relief, but these have not been specifically addressed as yet,” he said. 

At this time, Stanislaus said the industry’s strategies were anyone’s guess. 

But he was also optimistic that as of any past calamities in history, it would be followed by revolutions of growth.

No ads from hospitality sector

Goh from AdEasy said radio and television consumptions have gone up during the lockdowns, with the requirement to stay at home. 

“Therefore, businesses who are still advertising would opt to run ads in these two media types as the reach would be high.” 

She added that advertisers who can meet the demand for automation, flexible and efficient solutions to empower advertisers to self-serve and make their own ad bookings would ride out this tough period. 

“AdEasy has been user-centric since day one, and we are working to be at the forefront of digitising the current advertising process in Malaysia.” 

It hopes to bring together all media types on one platform for ease of browsing and booking, she said about her adtech start-up that started in 2017. 

“AdEasy PLUS is Malaysia’s first media subscription plan that enables subscribers to advertise on RM50,000 worth of ad spaces at only RM4,299 a month. 

“It is meant for advertisers to have the flexibility to try out different ad spaces from various media types at an affordable price and track which ad spaces work best for them. 

“This is so they can optimise their future campaigns with confidence, maximise their budgets and at the same time, build greater visibility by advertising monthly.” 

She said AdEasy has also launched a “book now, pay later” feature in collaboration with peer-to-peer financing platform Funding Societies based on a pain point shared by many of their users. 

“We understand that maintaining a positive cash flow is important for businesses, especially now. But they still need to advertise to drive recovery and growth. 

“Acknowledging this, we partnered with Funding Societies to offer a credit line of up to RM30,000 for businesses to book ad spaces on AdEasy instantly, and enjoy a 90-day repayment term.” 

Goh also added that segments such as logistics, healthcare, finance, education and e-commerce were observed engaging with the AdEasy platform. 

On the other hand, those in the hospitality industry, such as travel and hotels, have paused their plans as they have been badly hit during the lockdowns. – July 13, 2021.