SEA sees 256% surge in demand for audience data: Eyeota

After an anticipated slow first quarter, global audience data usage increased 62 percent in Q2 from Q1, and Asia-Pacific grew 81 percent, according to the audience data provider.

In SEA, report revealed that the significant growth in Southeast Asia was partly driven by the finance sector, which topped both the Growth Index and the Sector Spend Index. The finance sector growth was three times the overall growth.

Spend from Q4 bounced back after a dip in Q1 due to the reactivation of banking campaigns seeking more financial-intent users.

Kevin Tan, chief executive at Eyeota, said Southeast Asia audience data usage swelled an astonishing 256 percent in Q2, after a 56 percent rise in Q1.

“The digital media and programmatic advertising market in SEA is still in its infancy and as a result, we see dramatic shifts in audience data usage from quarter to quarter," he added. "Advertisers are experimenting with their campaign delivery tactics and strategies as well as the right mix of audience data segments in order to best reach their targeted consumers."

The second quarter of the year also saw a notable continued deviation in Southeast Asia away from global trends in segments used.

While audience data usage did increase, whereas 52 percent of data purchased worldwide was sociodemographic and 19 percent was purchase Intent, in Southeast Asia 45 percent of data purchased was B2B segments and 25 percent was sociodemographic.

The region also experienced significant quarterly swings in preferred segments. Interest segments were 42 percent in Q1, but dropped dramatically to 11 percent in Q2; similarly, sociodemographic segments increased from 4 percent to 25 percent from Q1 to Q2.

The Price Index, which tracks the weighted average price of data purchased by each advertiser sector, ranked electronics & computers, multimedia, and finance as the top sectors that placed a premium on more granular and niche data segments.

Within the electronics & computers sector, enterprise software companies placed a premium on reaching niche small business professionals. The multimedia sector saw magazines placing a premium on sociodemographic and professional B2B industry profiles.

Tan said that with the release of the third quarterly Eyeota Index, patterns of audience data usage and seasonal consumer behavior trends are beginning to emerge.

“The Asia-Pacific region continues to be diverse and fragmented,” he added. “We are seeing that programmatic is more than the automation of the media buying process, but rather it allows brands to react and adapt to fluctuating consumer needs in real time and audience data is at the heart of this relationship. In the long term, this means that we will be able to empower brands to anticipate their consumers’ needs and not just react to them.”

Here, direct from Eyeota, are additional highlights of global trends:

Eyeota Growth Index: Which advertiser sectors grew the most in Q2 in comparison to overall growth of all sectors?

#1: The Multi-Media sector grew 6.7 times more than overall growth
#2: The Medical sector grew 2.7 times more than overall growth
#3: The Electronics & Computers sector tied with the Finance sector for third place; both grew at 2.3 times more than overall growth

• The Multi-Media sector experienced the most growth globally. Online video streaming companies aggressively pushing into local markets contributed to this growth.

Eyeota Price Index: Which sectors placed a premium on targeting data in Q2?

#1: Multi-Media
#2: Charitable Organizations
#3: Electronics & Computers

• The Multi-Media sector placed a premium to reach niche audiences such as the upper class, educated students, and young professionals.  

Sector Spend Index: Which advertiser sectors spent the most on data and which segments did they purchase in Q2?

#1: Finance
#2: Electronics & Computers
#3: Automotive

• Globally, advertisers were most interested in sociodemographic (52 percent) and purchase intent (19 percent) segments, which remains unchanged from Q1.
• The Finance sector regained its dominance as the biggest audience data spender after being overtaken by the Travel & Leisure in Q1.
• Finance advertisers spent nearly double what the following two biggest spenders – Electronics & Computers and Automotive sectors – spent, favoring Sociodemographic and Purchase Intent segments.
• The Electronics & Computers sector was heavily dominated by demand for B2B data segments to promote enterprise software and business license agreements.

The Eyeota Index tracks thousands of campaigns executed by hundreds of agencies across 60 countries. Advertisers were categorized into relevant advertiser sectors, with actual brand names kept anonymous.

The company supplies third-party audience data to all major global and regional ad buying platforms, trading desks, DSPs, DMPs and ad networks. It boasts over 1.5 billion unique profiles from publishers across Asia-Pacific, Australia, Europe and the Americas.