ADMS Interview with Pete McKeon, Managing Director of QT Digital

Please introduce yourself and your work in the digital marketing realm.

My name is Pete McKeon and I am the Managing Director at Sydney based digital agency, QT Digital. I established QT in 2012 after previously heading the digital department at one of Sydney’s leading agencies. With an expert team of digital marketing strategists, web developers, graphic designers and social media marketers onboard, QT has expanded rapidly winning a number of international contracts in the Asia Pacific and Middle Eastern regions. We plan on extending operations into Asia by opening a Singapore office within the next 12 months.

In your opinion, what are some of the most significant digital marketing tools or technology for digital marketers today?

Digital marketers should be leveraging the power of retargeting technology and image-driven social platforms.

As retargeting technology continues to improve, marketers are given greater scope in audience segmentation enabling them to deliver highly-targeted messaging only to those who are most likely to convert into a lead or sale. Any service-based business or eCommerce retailer should be incorporating retargeting campaigns into their digital strategy sooner rather than later, as these campaigns have proven success in greatly increasing conversion rates and boosting overall ROI.

Image-driven social media channels such as Instagram are great tools for digital marketers. Many marketers live by the mantra that “content is king” but you cannot forget that an “image speaks a thousand words”. Advancements in mobile technology have seen us become even more of a fast-paced, on-the-go society and consumers no longer have the time or the patience to trawl through a long, drawn-out sales pitch. Instead, brand messaging needs to be delivered as effectively as possible through visual story-telling. Don’t tell consumers how great your product is, show them.

Do you think the current amount of digital marketing investment from brands is justified as digital marketing technologies in Asia Pacific region continue to develop at a rapid pace? What do you think are some of the factors that contribute to this level of investment?

I don’t feel that brands in the Asia Pacific region spend enough in the digital space. As you said, digital marketing technologies continue to develop at a rapid pace but we still see a lot of brands who are hesitant to trial digital campaigns, preferring to stick with traditional offline marketing avenues.

Technology has come such a long way over the past decade but I feel many brands in the Asia Pacific region have been hesitant to embrace it. The fear of the unknown is what prevents some brands from allocating a substantial budget to digital and this has an adverse effect on overall digital spend in the region.

It has been reported that more than 943 million active social media users in the Asia Pacific region access their social networks via mobile devices, however many large brands have failed to capitalise on this. Brands in the hospitality sector in particular, including large hotel chains, should be using the power of image-driven social media such as Instagram to promote their offerings. The market and the following is there, brands just aren’t cashing in on it.

What do you think would help further drive spending from brand advertisers in digital?

Brand advertisers need to be educated on the tools and technology available to them. Their marketing strategy needs to embrace technological change if they are to stay ahead of the competition and remain a relevant force in their field. Educating brand advertisers on the digital avenues available for large scale business growth would help drive digital spend throughout the Asia Pacific region.