DIGITAL SKILLS GAP IN ASIA: HOW TO CLOSE THE GAP?

JOHN SINKE

3RD JULY 2013

THE VIEWS EXPRESSED ARE MINE AND NOT NECESSARILY THOSE OF RESORTS WORLD AT SENTOSA PTE LTD

Is there really a Digital Skills Gap in Asia?

Are companies really investing in Digital Talent?

But research points at a Digital Skills Gap…

Source: State of Digital Marketing in Asia 2013 (preliminary results)

5%

26%

45%

19%

5%

1%

25%

48%

21%

5%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

Excellent Good Okay Poor Very poor

How would you describe the level of digital knowledge within your organisations / clients' organisations?

Client-side Supply-side

Senior Managers are still getting to grips….

Source: State of Digital Marketing in Asia 2013 (preliminary results)

6%

30%

48%

8% 8%

4%

25%

48%

15%

7%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

Excellent Good Okay Poor Very poor

How would you describe the understanding of your (or your clients’) senior managers about the potential of digital channels (email, search, social media, etc.) to

help grow your/their business?

Client-side Supply-side

Clients’ Challenges: Digital Marketing Silver Bullet

• Difficult to maintain all-round knowledge of digital

• Large reliance on traditional offline channels

• Fragmented nature of digital maturity

• Lack of knowledge of marketing/business purposes

• Looking for “Silver Bullet” to internal problems around Digital Marketing

Source: State of Digital Marketing in Asia 2012

• Lack of client understanding (complexity)

• Rushing into marketplace with poor strategy

• Bottom up: leadership is failing to understand digital

• Shortage of digital employees who understand strategy and channel

• Offline marketers in digital using traditional strategies

Agencies’ Challenges: senior clients don’t get it?

Observations from a Digital Marketer…. (Part 1)

• Brand Marketers with limited knowledge of digital

• In Display, Email Marketing and Paid Search

“Even the younger generation of marketers – although heavy users

of digital and social media in their private lives – have a very limited

understanding of digital marketing.”

Observations from a Digital Marketer…. (Part 2)

Senior Managers/Decision Makers with limited digital

marketing knowledge and a lack of understanding of how digital

should be integrated into the mix

Cartoon by SocMedSean.com

Observations from a Digital Marketer…. (Part 3)

• Digital marketers with good digital knowledge/skills

• But with poor understanding of:

– Offline channels

– Bigger marketing picture

– Bigger business picture: the bottom line!

• Look down upon those “poor bastards” in Offline Marketing…

• “The younger digital marketers at the same time have a very good understanding of digital marketing but they sit in their own little silos, entirely convinced that "digital" can solve any marketing problem.”

• Including world peace…

Why is Digital Excellence important?

“Digirati” are 26% more profitable…

Digital Excellence creates competitive advantage

Digital Marketing Benefits: • 93%: creates competitive advantage • 52%: crucial in forming customer-centric/responsive organisation • 51%: boosts effectiveness/efficiency of overall marketing programme

Source: APAC Digital Marketing Performance Dashboard 2012, Adobe

Solutions on the client-side?

External Training

In-house Training

Outsource to Agency

Poach from Agency

Internships/ Graduates University

Programmes Poach from Competition

Hire from abroad

Hiring more Digital Specialists is not the solution

You will never be able to hire enough, good & experienced Digital Marketers…

Solution is to strive for

“Digital Excellence”!

What is Digital Excellence?

Digital Excellence

Marketing leadership in the strategic deployment of digital channels and

business processes

It is not about making everyone in the company a digital guru.

It's about giving everyone a degree of

digital literacy.

Digital Marketing is Digital Business

Business that does digital

Digital Business

Six Hotels

Adventure

Cove

Waterpark

S.E.A.

Aquarium

Meetings &

Events

Shows &

Concerts

ESPA Luxury Spa

50 F&B

Outlets

Luxury

Retail

Weddings

Casino

First phase: educational approach…

• Growing Digital Marketing & e-Commerce Team

• Educating the Marketing Team in Digital Marketing

• Fast Track Digital Marketing

• Display 101, Paid Search 101, Email Marketing 101 etc.

• Pulling in Sales and Communications Teams

• Digital Emersion Programme for Senior Management

Second phase: moving to a Digital Business….

• Digital Marketing to Digital Business

• e-Tickets

• m-Tickets

• Self-service Kiosk

• Google Indoor

Disney Wristbands

Moving to an Integrated Approach

Educating and training all Offline Marketers

(and Senior Managers) in Digital Marketing....

Educating Digital Marketers in Offline Marketing....

Marketing Silos Integrated Marketing

Turning your Marketing Department

into a high-performing

INTEGRATED MARKETING COMMUNICATIONS

Team...

Citibank: eliminate the Digital Marketing Dept!

State of Digital Marketing in Asia

in association with Campaign Asia-Pacific

Yes, there is a Digital Skills Gap in Asia

Training & Development alone

is not going to close the gap…

Outsourcing to agencies

is not a structural solution.

Don’t eliminate the

Digital Marketing Department (yet)…

Digital Marketing needs to be

fully integrated into Brand Marketing

Every Marketer needs to be digitally savvy

Oh, and your boss too!

Conclusions

@johnsinke

linkedin.com/in/johnsinke

john.sinke@yahoo.com

slideshare.net/jpsinke