Trapper Media Group's Ang Shao Ting steps down as GM of digital

Trapper Media Group's Ang Shao Ting (pictured) has stepped down from his role as GM - digital after more than three years, during which he oversaw the digital media, ad operation, content and creative divisions.

According to his LinkedIn, Ang assisted in starting up Trapper Media Group's digital team in 2012. In his role as GM - digital, he led a team of 15 individuals and led new businses acquisition and pipeline, overall agency planning, operation and development, client management, and built relationships with media owners and publishers.

Before this role, Ang was digital account director at Trapper Interactive, one of the brands under Trapper Media Group, for about four years, according to his LinkedIn.?He also worked at Media Contacts Malaysia, Seal Incorporated, and JobsDB.?A+M has reached out to Trapper Media Group for comment.

In a statement to A+M, Ang said he is currently taking a break "to rethink what exactly agencies are solving within the ecosystem". He added that it?has been a great experience with Trapper Media Group, and both group CEO Sivanathan?Krishnan and group GM Christopher Phang have been life changing mentors to him.

"I am extremely honoured that I was tasked to be fully accountable for a new digital division start-up at the age of 27. We grow more than 10 times in revenue and four times in headcount, acquiring more than 40 new clients within a span of seven years," he said.

Ang added that there was also great work-life balance within the agency and defined it as "gradual growth with happiness in mind".?"It was a very lean structure where we cut down all unnecessary layers, and everything was down to efficiency not at the expense of happiness index," he explained.

According to Ang, among the list of aspects that has impact independent agencies due to the evolution of the digital scene over the years, is the shift in focus from upper funnel to being performance-centric. This is coupled with the shift from fundamental digital media deliverables to online to offline attributions. Ang said that the agency's job scope has also changed, moving from a clear-defined digital scope of work to providing end-to-end digital journey agency solutions.

"Digital strategy has had a drastic change due to the above, for the better. I believe today?s digital agencies are functioning more like a full digital marketing department for brands. For instance from an eCommerce or social commerce setup to even store level CRM integration," Ang explained. He also cited the rise of the duopoly as beneficial to independent agencies from a competency aspect.

As for the younger generation looking to join the industry, Ang said: "The days of segmenting digital scopes to different agencies are coming to an end. Now, you need to think like a client, execute like an agency."