New global speakers announced for Mumbrella360 Asia plus VR sessions and Liverpool FC player

A number of international speakers have been signed up to speak at Mumbrella360 Asia, the region’s newest media and marketing conference at the Marina Bay Sands on November 7-9.

Global CEO of media agency Initiative, Mat Baxter, will jet in from New York to deliver a presentation titled ‘From reach to relevance: The role of culture in a consumer-centric world’.

He will consider whether the lifecycle of brands is becoming shorter and highlight the importance of personalised consumer experiences, and the role that advertising and communications plays in that. Baxter has worked in a number of high-profile roles both in America and Australia. This session is curated by IPG Mediabrands.

In another session curated by IPG Mediabrands and titled ‘Not another rollercoaster: How VR and other technologies will apply to marketing’, the global president of mobile and technology agency Ansible, Travis Johnson, will look at what VR and other new technologies like self-driving cars, digital assistants and Blockchain are now and what they might become in the future. What will be the killers apps that make these technologies a must for marketers? And why is it taking so long to get there?

Johnson previously led the Australian office of Ansible to become the most-awarded mobile agency in the world – scoring more than 60 local and international awards during a golden 18-month period.

 

On top of that the Singapore CEO of Kantar, Nichola Rastrick, will examine the issue of trust in the digital age with her presentation ‘Who do they trust, how is technology impacting who and hat consumers trust on today’s cynical world?’

Her findings will be based on Connected Life data, the largest piece of global research into ‘connected consumer’ behaviour. Lawrence has worked at Kantar, which is curating this session, since 2012 in a number of senior roles.

Also taking the stage in the session ‘Dynamic brands; Here today, gone tomorrow…?’ will be the APAC CEO of IPG Mediabrands Leigh Terry. He will ponder the phenomenon whereby brands nobody had heard of five years ago are now often worth more than those companies that have been around for decades, thanks to the fast-moving consumer world we live in.

Given the climate of exponential change, existing brand equity measures have become outdated. Using a new breed of metrics, Terry will present the Asia-Pacific Dynamic 100 index, identifying the region’s most leading-edge brands. The research is based on a survey of 10,000 consumers and more than 1,000 brands. The results, in this session curated by IPG Mediabrands, will certainly surprise people.

Meanwhile, Harriet de Swiet – APAC managing director of marketing consultancy Brand Learning who has worked with Singapore Tourism Board to build up its marketing college – will showcase her recommendations for the path to optimising outcomes in her session ‘Unlock the ingenuity of your people: The four practices of performance-multiplying marketing leaders’.

This practical session, curated by Brand Learning, will be full of advice around smart decision-making in order to equip marketing managers to drive forward change within their organisations. For according to new research from Brand Learning, only 29 per cent of middle managers regularly establish an environment of curiosity and creativity, and only 19 per cent regularly role model new ways of working.

Returning to the theme of virtual reality, an expert panel will discuss how immersive films can take marketing into new realms – in a session curated by Octagon. In the session ‘VR is not a good idea, it’s not even an idea’, APAC head of strategy at Octagon Adam Hodge and Milkmoney managing director Matt Taylor will be among the panellists discussing why marketers should change the way they think.

They will also be joined by an as-yet unnamed Liverpool Football Club player. Liverpool FC was involved in the Inside Anfield VR film, which won the Mumbrella Asia Award for ‘Most Engaging 360 Video’ in February of this year.

The final session to be revealed in this tranche is Richard Burrage’s, managing partner of consumer market research firm Cimigo, presentation on ‘Creating TV advertising that sticks’. He will take the audience on a journey of ads in Vietnam to reveal what sticks and what doesn’t – demonstrating how to tap into the hearts, minds and wallets of Vietnamese consumers.

Burrage has evaluated more than 400 TV ads and will explain the bold approach that he believes pays dividends for those brave enough to move away from mediocrity. Burrage founded Cimigo, which will curate this session, back in 2011.

Further content announcements will follow in the coming weeks and months so keep an eye on the website for updates and sign up to our daily newsletter to ensure you are among the first to hear of new speakers and sessions.

For further information on the conference and to take advantage of our early bird ticket offer – a three-day conference pass for just $940 (including a saving of $195 on the normal ticket price) – go to the Mumbrella360 Asia website here.

And for information on the sponsorship and exhibition opportunities at the event, contact the publisher Dean Carroll on dean@mumbrella.asia or the head of sales Kris Chan on kris@mumbrella.asia.