3 Take-outs from Singapore Programmatic Workshop

The objective was to go ‘under-the-bonnet’ and help WFA members understand the nuts and bolts of programmatic media buying as well as discuss the merits of different operational models.Held at the Westin Asia Square and conducted in partnership with global Data Management Platform (DMP) DataXu, the half-day session took a hands-on approach to identifying the best way for brands to approach programmatic buying with confidence.

#1Transparency is top-of-mind

Marketers were asked on arrival to conduct quick ‘Post-It Polls’ to understand their biggest perceived challenges in this area. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the issue of ‘Transparency’ emerged top of the list. Armed with the WFA Guide to Programmatic Media Buying and detailed playbooks from DataXu, members were offered a deep dive into the Programmatic ecosystem, mechanics & money flow as well as the most significant trends across South East Asia by DataXu VP & APAC GM, James Sampson.

#2 Most Brands in Asia opt for either an in-house or agency trading desk model

Priti Ohri, Director of Global Solutions at DataXu, identified what Brands should consider when it comes to implementation and execution. The session covered off strategy development and how to build the case for Programmatic as well as what to consider when hiring talent. She then rallied the room in a group exercise to work through the pros and cons of the brand, agency and hybrid programmatic models. It emerged that most brands currently opt for an in-house or agency trading desk model.

#3 Set your KPI [sic] with clarity & focus

Lianne Mui, Regional Digital Marketing Manager at Kimberly-Clark shared her highs and lows about her “Programmatic journey”. Talking the room through the approach taken by her business, she quipped “it’s not a typo that the slide says KPI and not KPIs – we very deliberately picked one single metric to focus on and not let ourselves be distracted by trying to do too many things at once.”

The first of its kind to be held in Asia, the workshop was also a global first for the WFA on several fronts. The new, half-day format is slightly shorter than full-day FORUMS and complements the breadth of coverage in our FORUMS with a single-topic focus that allows marketers to delve deeper into one specific issue.

The workshop also unites participants from across different work streams, allowing marketing specialists of varied functional skills to engage on the one topic within the signature WFA peer-to-peer exchange model.

The next WFA workshop will be held on Friday August 12^th in Singapore on the topic of Agency Management & Integration. For more information, please contact Ranji David, Marketing Director, Asia at r.david@wfanet.org.