Your Window to Singapore: Five insights to help extend your campaigns to Asia’s innovation nation

Singapore has earned the title of one of the most innovative nations on earth, ranking sixth in the World Innovation Index and with one of the world’s most entrepreneurial business environments according to the World Bank. Even in challenging economic times, it’s a dynamic environment that represents a powerful opportunity for businesses looking to extend into new markets, not least because of Singapore shoppers’ enduring appetite for international brands.?

For Singapore, shopping is online – and discovered through search

Singapore is home to some of the world’s most enthusiastic online shoppers, with 60% of the population buying online at least once a month[1]. Their online shopping experiences start with search engines, the most popular channel through which consumers find online purchases – and a channel through which 58% of them discover international brands[2]. Advertisers can use In-Market Audiences, made up of those who’ve demonstrated active interest in your product category, to reach this wide range of online shoppers in the moments when they’re ready to buy.

Overseas websites are the leading online shopping destination

Singapore’s enthusiasm for online shopping extends to buying across borders to a degree that no other consumers in Asia Pacific can match. In all, 73% of online shoppers in Singapore have bought from overseas merchants[3]. Cross-border purchases represent 35% of the country’s overall eCommerce market, giving Singapore the highest proportion of international online purchases in Asia Pacific[3].

An appetite for international brands and overseas merchants creates an obvious opportunity for advertisers looking to extend search campaigns into the Singapore market. Dynamic Search Ads provide a valuable tool for leveraging that opportunity. Dynamic Search Ads match your ads to users’ queries that don’t feature your keywords – but which have other strong signals of relevance. This gives them a key role when exploring demand in new markets, revealing routes to buyers that you’re not yet aware of.

Environmental purpose shapes responses to products and services

Singapore’s consumers are some of the most motivated on earth when it comes to actively managing the environmental impact of what they buy. In fact, 89% agree that, “If I learned that the products or services I use are damaging the environment, I would stop using those products or services.”[4]

Signalling the sustainability of products through search, display and native ads can play a key role in standing out for online shoppers – and driving both clicks and conversions. Microsoft has created a Marketing with Purpose Learning Path consisting of six episodes and a total duration of two hours, which includes valuable tips and tactics for demonstrating your sustainability credentials.

Price, promotions and peer reviews capture attention

Data from GWI reveals the key influences steering Singapore shoppers’ buying decisions. Offers of free delivery, coupons and discounts, and customer reviews rank as the top three factors deciding which ads on a Search Engine Results Page (SERP) they choose to click on[5].?

Microsoft Shopping Campaigns include a range of features that help ads to stand out and align with these buyer priorities. Flyers act as visual ads within SERPs that provide crucial additional information – and added incentives to click and convert.?

Auto-bids act as a crucial guide in a land of religious diversity

According to research by the Pew Research Center, Singapore has the highest religious diversity in the world[6], creating peaks in shopping demand across varied celebrations such as Lunar New Year, Hari Raya Puasa, Diwali and Christmas. This is in addition to more secular commercial moments such as the Great Singapore Sale and the pan-Asian Single’s Day.?

A wide range of overlapping retail peaks can quickly become overwhelming when marketers are working out how much to bid based on likely volumes of traffic and competition. Automated bidding strategies?from Microsoft Advertising act as a crucial guide, enabling campaigns to adjust to changing buying behavior while delivering target performance on the metrics that matter most. Advertisers can choose from a range of auto-bid types, including Enhanced CPC, Maximize Clicks and Target ROAS.

If you’re ready to start scaling your campaigns into Singapore, reach out to your account team, or sign up to Microsoft Advertising to get started with the platform.

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Sources:

[1] PwC. (2016). Total Retail 2016 - Southeast Asia & Singapore [Data set]. PwC. Retrieved from https://pwc.com?

[2] PayPal. (2022). Borderless Commerce Report [Data set]. PayPal. Retrieved from https://paypalobjects.com?

[3] JP Morgan. (2020). 2020 E-commerce Payments Trends Report: Singapore [Data set]. JP Morgan. Retrieved from https://jpmorgan.com?2020 E-commerce Payments Trends Report: Singapore Country Insights (jpmorgan.com)

[4] Dentsu and Microsoft. (2022). The Rise of Sustainable Media [Data set]. Microsoft. Retrieved from https://about.ads.microsoft.com/?

[5] GWI. (2020). Market Snapshot: Singapore [Data set]. GWI. Retrieved from https://globalwebindex.com?

[6] Pew Research Center. (2014). The Global Religious Landscape [Data set]. Pew Research Center. Retrieved from https://pewresearch.org?