Backchannelmedia

Bangkok Post

By Pitsinee Jitpleecheep, Bangkok Post, Thailand

Aug. 24--Twenty media-buying agencies are banding together to form the Media Agency Association (MAA) to upgrade professionalism and expand business opportunities.

MAA, which upgrades from the Media Agency Club (MAC), will share knowledge among members, check TV ratings, and encourage advertising agencies to do conduct more research to give their clients more choices.

Currently, Nielsen Media Research is the leader among the few media-research firms available in Thailand.

"Amid declining media spending and changing consumer lifestyles, promoting products through conventional media like TV and print can no longer build brand awareness among consumers," said Wannee Ruttanaphon, the chairwoman of Initiative Co.

Mrs Wannee, also a member of the MAC, said media buyers needed to keep abreast of the latest trends, market situation, products and consumer behaviour.

The association will act as an independent organisation to deal with media agencies and related media bodies both at home and overseas.

Paichit Thienthong, acting president of MAC and executive consultant of Carat Thailand, said MAC would set up a technical research committee to monitor how well the researchers had done their job. If the process was right, MAC would guarantee the results.

Media agencies and clients can use the guaranteed research work as a guideline for their media planning. The MAC has already guaranteed the Media Adlast research conducted by Synovate.

Currently, the MAC has 20 advertising agency members. They include Carat, MindShare, Initiative Co, Media Universal, OMD, Media Age and Brand Connection.

Under normal circumstances, Mrs Paichit said media spending in the second and fourth quarters grew by about 10-15 percent on average. But this year it fell 5 percent in the second quarter even as media prices rose by 5-7 percent.

Although the producers of some products will resume spending on media in the second half, the total value of the advertising business will be on par with a growth rate of 5 percent last year.

Wisarn Sirijantanon, a member of the MAC working committee and executive business director of Carat Thailand, said in the fourth quarter of this year, some product categories would lean more toward event marketing and new media formats, particularly online media, in the belief that they connected directly to customers.

"In the past, clients spent 90-95 percent of their ad budgets on mass media, but now the share has declined to 80-85 percent" said Mr Wisarn.

According to Nielsen Media Research, communication, non-alcoholic drinks, property, cleansing products and VCDs were the main categories that had reduced their spending on mass media in the first half of this year.

"Even though the political problems will ease in the second half of this year, we still worry about uncontrolled factors like natural disasters and the appreciation of the baht, which reduces exporters' earnings," Mr Wisarn said.

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