#MarketingExcellenceAwards spills: Wacom pens down factors that constitute great marketing

Wacom is a technology company in the pen display and tablet market for creative users. Injecting digital elements into the realm of stationeries, the company is said to provide cutting-edge digital ink solutions for a wide range of partners using and producing smartphones, tablets and digital stationery.

Having a substantial presence in the creative industry, Wacom pivoted to target non-creative users such as educators, office workers and service-oriented staff in 2020. Its campaign, done in collaboration with its agency REBL, impressed the judges at the Marketing Excellence Awards 2020. Wacom and REBL took home the gold award for the category Excellence in social media marketing, as well as the silver award for Excellence in digital marketing.

We speak to Adriel Chan (pictured), manager, geo marketing Southeast Asia, Wacom to find out what goes on behind-the-scenes of the technology company, and its focus for 2021. 

What are some of the expectations your consumers now have for your brand?

Chan: Wacom has always been behind the creative scene, supporting many creative users. Our technology is constantly evolving to meet the demands and needs of our consumers. They have always placed their trust in Wacom as the most preferred brand of creative tablets. The "I CREATE" campaign really took the brand to the next level and increased our brand and product exposure. Customers will always expect precision when they create their art works, and Wacom delivers that precision through our technology.

How has your marketing plans shifted this year?

With the arrival of COVID-19, we started to work on communications to target non-creative segments. Because Wacom is already quite well known in the creative industry, we are now focusing on reaching out to non-creative users such as educators, office workers, service-oriented staff, etc.

What are some of the trends you see carrying on post-pandemic, and how are you readying your workforce to be ready with these trends?

Chan: Everyone is readying to head back to our pre-pandemic, normal lifestyle. However, we still need to educate people on digital transformation, how to work smarter and more efficiently with the right tools. Wacom will be focusing on this to educate and to equip users to be always ready, wherever they choose to work from.

What do you think makes for great marketing these days?

Chan: I think it is really a mix of everything:

1. To understand what the objective is and not to stray away from it.
2. To provide a concise brief and;
3. Trusting our partners / agencies to develop the idea and take this further
4. Adding in the right media element, which is fundamental in marketing.

Proof of this lies in how we placed our complete trust in our agencies REBL and TJT Creative Lab (both under the Beatnk micro network) to develop on our brief, and they stepped up brilliantly to conceptualise and execute our successful I CREATE campaign, which won a gold and silver award at the Marketing Excellence Awards, as well as a gold and a shortlist at the MARKies 2020. REBL’s award-winning paid and social media strategies have also done wonders for our online sales this year, in spite of the pandemic.

How are you planning for 2021?

Chan: The focus would be strengthening our eCommerce business across Southeast Asia, and enhancing the customer experience online. We are also looking to develop strong case studies which we want to use to inspire customers during this pandemic (or post-pandemic) reality.