The last time I was here was about 15 years ago. I vividly recall opening the curtains in my hotel room and seeing a sea of people dressed in black on bicycles with the occasional Mercedes Benz rolling by.
How things have changed. Amazing to think that in 1985 there was only one skyscraper in all of Shanghai- now there are over 300. Also amazing to realize that there are 23 million Internet subscribers and 790 million mobile users (www.internetstats.com) in a country of 1.3B people.
AdTech Shanghai was an enlightening experience- viewing how online marketing companies in the east execute campaigns. With the excitement around Alibaba’s action of turning Yahoo! China solely into search- there is, needless to say, a definite amount of attention on search marketing. It was interesting to note that while Chinese ad companies seemed to be in the amateur stages of online marketing (some not quite grasping the whole CPA model in its entirety), other companies seemed to be very well advanced. Take for example, Henbang.com, (which means “totally awesome” in Chinese). Henbang is exploring the IPTV platform as a viable marketing medium- its first client- being the People’s Republic of China government. The TV audience in China is 1.1 Billion-, which is why Henbang is innovating the notion of e-commerce on TV. Clients utilizing the IPTV platform get paid on a rev share basis. Not only does Henbang focus on this, they can synchronize the delivery of ads on IPTV Desktop and mobile devices. How is that for targeting the consumer from all angles?
I wanted to mention a couple interesting facts that I learned while at Adtech and in Shanghai as a whole:
1. The most popular and profitable mobile marketing offer to users in China is oral hygiene/toothpaste ads. Advertising spend doubled for this vertical from 2004-2005.
2. Male cosmetic spending increased by 60%, male fashion by 80%-having mobile marketing companies create and deliver more male cosmetic/fashion ads to capitalize on this trend.
3. Internet cafes are so packed here with males aged 18-34 that they even offer showers and bunkbeds. Some stay on the Internet, playing online games for days at a time. With the cost of using the Internet per hour being what is equivalent to 25 cents in the US- who wouldn’t?
4. Automotive advertising via mobile marketing platform is the newest and fastest growing vertical.
5. 4 is considered to be an unlucky number in China- symbolizing death. When I checked into my hotel room- I was in 444. Omen?
6. The Chinese believe to be descendants of dragons.
Joining companies from Europe, America, and Asia at this event to discuss the future of online marketing from a worldwide perspective is what makes online globalization so exciting. Perhaps my best global fusion moment was when I found myself on Nanjing Road in downtown Shanghai at a Brazilian/Chinese steakhouse, with a Nigerian waiter, listening to a live Cuban band, drinking a pina colada, eating a steak with chopsticks.
Elizabeth M. Lloyd is Chief Marketing Officer of DMO Global, Inc. a leading affiliate network solely dedicated to serving international and multicultural markets. Lloyd’s work on international online marketing has been highlighted in numerous publications as well as in academic curricula for MBA programs worldwide. DMO Global is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Dragon Media Online, Inc., an international media and technology company.
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