Customer Acquisition Strategy: How to acquire more customers from Asia

With a population of over 650 million, an estimated gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate of +3.1% in 2021 and a positive incline up to +5.0% for 2022, Southeast Asia is a sub-region not to be missed – and that’s according to data presented by the Asian Development Bank.

But we all know that, even without the data, Southeast Asia is an extremely lucrative customer base and any business would be remiss to not take advantage of that – or even include it as part of their target audience.
Of course, “cracking” Southeast Asia isn’t a walk in the park and takes quite a robust customer acquisition strategy, which is what we’ll be getting into shortly.

How you can acquire more customers from Asia

Generating a regular stream of new customers is not an easy task, and these days, getting new customers is not enough anymore.

Modern businesses must learn to think and go beyond that in order to grow. One way of doing this is to adopt a customer acquisition strategy that will not only generate sales and attract new customers, but also be able to retain those customers and build a loyal customer base.

Here are the top five customer acquisition techniques that you need to integrate into your strategy to do just that and win customers in the Southeast Asia region.

1. Get hyperlocal and inclusive

Local nuances and cultural tendencies heavily impact perceptions of your business. Understanding the local landscape is beyond just language and cultural barriers.

Speaker and designer Jay Demetillo shared his granular process in inclusive design for the Asian markets in this article, which details the need for you and your business to research and understand several important factors.

This includes internet connectivity accessibility and lifestyle interests of the target audience in order for you to effectively determine and tailor messaging attractive to your customers. In other words, spend time to figure out what makes your Southeast Asian customer base tick and what unites them as a collective nation.

2. Social media is king

While social media platform Hootsuite’s report highlighted Asia as the leading region in terms of social media usage, several countries in SEA have actually topped the list for the highest times spent on social channels daily:

i. Indonesia – 3 hours and 14 minutes, ranked 9th
ii. Malaysia – 3 hours and 1 minute, ranked 13th
iii. Thailand – 2 hours and 48 minutes, ranked 16th

From this alone, it’s a clear signal that you should definitely leverage social media to build meaningful relationships with your target audience base. Research what people are talking about and craft out a customer acquisition strategy that prioritises social media advertising to manage your customer acquisition cost (CAC) effectively.

3. Embrace affiliate marketing

People like to buy from other people, this much we know. After all, this customer acquisition technique is not new. In this digital era where advertisers face fierce competition to stand out and cut through the noise, businesses leverage partnerships with community figures or influencers.

One success story is Decathlon Singapore whose affiliate programme drove 50% of its customer acquisition in eight months – a mighty feat indeed!

So, if your business has the resources for it, be sure to embrace influencer relations and start approaching local engaging figures who can help you sell your products better.

4. Videos create views

According to European media platform and marketing website The Drum, while video content and ads have always been at the centre of any marketing plan, post-pandemic trends have seen video ads driving click-through rates (CTR) to a skyrocketing 179% as compared to other in-app formats.

It’s more crucial now than ever for you to have a well- video content strategy; from the orientation to the message that’s going out in the first (and very important) 20 seconds, this is not the place to skimp on the spend. Another important point to remember is that having the right visual quality is just as important to keep your audience engaged in the call to action point.

5. Face-to-face marketing

In a time where everything is digital-led, face-to-face marketing can dramatically boost your brand’s memorability. Face-to-face marketing creates the setting to foster meaningful brand-positive interactions through client meetings, sales events, product demos, in-store visits, and event attendance.

A classic customer acquisition technique, face-to-face marketing works because it puts a face and person behind the product or service that your business is selling. It also allows you to build a more interpersonal relationship with your prospective customer and understand how you can be the solution to what they’re looking for, rather than a blanket approach.

Partner with SalesWorks as you expand into Asia

SalesWorks is Asia’s leading face-to-face marketing and customer acquisition expert, with a broad network and footprint across eight countries. By partnering with us, you free up time to focus on what matters: launching a great brand in a promising market as our team reinvests in helping you succeed.

Find out more about how we can help, contact us today!