Since the pandemic has dusked upon the world, Internet consumption has increased to 87%. Many brands are now realizing that Digital is the way forward in the upcoming times. They are leveraging the power of social media and OTT platforms to gain traction and push sales. They are also investing most of their time in performance-based affiliate marketing to get a hold of the large consumer base.
Gone are the days when word-of-mouth marketing was enough to make a brand popular among youth, now it is all about referral and affiliate marketing where a person recommends your service to their known ones to avail extra benefits. As far as affiliate marketing in the APAC region is concerned, it is still in its growth phase and could draw learnings from its more mature counterparts in the US or Europe. Catering to the APAC region has its challenges and outcomes.
In this blog post, I will be addressing 5 challenges that most businesses face. Let’s start!
Challenge No. 1 – Before entering the APAC region, brands think that they need to cater to every region based on its diversity in languages and currency. In short, they think that they need to have a multilingual and multi-currency approach right from the beginning.
This is a misconception most brands have. Clearing the air, I would want to tell everyone that you need not have such an arrangement right from the start. Nowadays, people are used to shopping online from stores that operate in the English language. So, you can go ahead with the website/store you already have. As far as currency is concerned, today’s banks have made transactions across borders quite easy. People have credit/debit card that allows them to make purchases from international stores.
So, you can start operating in the APAC region with the model you currently have. Start working with the regional connections and establish a strong foothold in the market, and then change your business model as per the region when you gain the right amount of success.
Challenge No. 2 – I have seen many people complaining that publishers resell their products on third-party apps like Amazon, Flipkart, etc., or even in local markets, making them miss out on huge chunks of profits.
In the APAC region, people are in the habit of bulk buying and reselling. It’s a common scenario that happens mostly in the Asia-Pacific region. What brands can do to tackle this challenge is to partner with online third-party apps to monitor their sales themselves. Plus you can also make the policy for your publishers with the reselling and bulk purchase clauses.
My recommendation in this situation would be to not feel terrified of the competition but to continue making sales (because profits are profits at the end of the day). And keep continuing with your marketing strategies to make the world know about you so that they come and directly purchase from your online store.
However, to manage and track the performance of all your running campaigns and affiliate marketers involved, you can rely on Trackier Performance Marketing Software to make your brand shine.
Challenge 3 – It’s important to think regionally when it comes to establishing your name in the APAC region.
Do your market research properly before you are entering into a new market. Understand the preferences of the residents there, so that you can market your products via publishers with the right content strategy. This strategy will be different from region to region. It’s necessary to know about the marketplaces and websites which hold a large market share. Like, for example, Flipkart is India’s one of top E-commerce websites. And you can even collaborate with large couponing websites like Freekamaal, and Khojdeal too to push more sales.
Challenge 4 – It’s necessary to partner with the right affiliate network.
Many affiliate networks work amazingly well in some locations and do not gain traction that well in some places. For example, Awin has a strong foothold in Europe but not in Asia, whereas Rakuten is famous in both American and Asian markets. Asia has a huge list of successful affiliate networks with whom you can collaborate like vCommission, Xapads, AdAppt Media, and Adcounty Media, etc. These platforms are competing on a big scale to rule the APAC region and your affiliation with them will truly help you to get more leads and conversions.
Checkout how Trackier has helped XAPADs to increase their revenue by 20% directly from here.
Challenge 5 – Many brands forget about being mobile-friendly when they start their businesses in a new market.
The craze of mobile shopping is increasing tremendously in the APAC region. Trackier is also coming up with new features to track the leads and conversions via mobile sites and apps, like Advance Targeting, and CR Automation for optimization. You must give more weightage to the sales via mobile when setting up your marketing strategy. This mobile-friendly strategy will differ from region to region but will be quite beneficial in the longer run.
Well, these are some of the challenges I listen to in my everyday life. Would love to hear about your experiences and suggestions in the comments section below. If you are facing some more challenges, I would love to address them too. Hit me up with your queries now! We are always ready to help.
