Javince Chan, manager, platforms and data advisory at Eyeota, a Dun & Bradstreet company, examines targeting in APAC ahead of ATS Singapore 2025. He expands on regional uniformity and local precision, as well as the opportunity in diversity.

For brands operating in diverse geographies, nuance in targeting is a necessity. Nowhere is that truer than in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) market, where everything from consumer behaviours to regulatory landscapes varies drastically from one country to the next. As programmatic maturity deepens and digital spend increases, marketers operating in APAC are rethinking their strategies to be more precise, localised, and insight-driven.

Gone are the days when a single regional playbook could be rolled out across markets. Instead, brands and agencies are reorganising their resources to reflect local realities. While more complex, this move unlocks better performance, stronger customer relationships, and a clearer return on investment.

From regional uniformity to local precision

For marketers, success in APAC begins with acknowledging that no two countries in the region are alike. Cultural attitudes, data availability, channel preferences, and purchasing behaviours differ wildly between, say, Singapore and Vietnam, let alone between Australia and India. These differences are central to how strategies must be designed and executed.

That’s why many leading advertisers are adopting a market-by-market planning approach. Instead of treating APAC as a monolith, they’re developing hyper-relevant campaigns that reflect each market’s unique consumer expectations and regulatory context.

So, what does it take to build effective modern targeting strategies in APAC? Here’s where to start. 

Start with market-by-market planning: Resist the urge to centralise your APAC strategy too aggressively. Localisation doesn’t just mean translating creative assets. It means aligning your media planning and audience segmentation with each market’s cultural, technological, and legal frameworks.

Choose data providers with local depth: Your data partners should offer more than just broad reach. They should deliver granular, market-specific insights. Whether it’s understanding shopping habits during Ramadan in Indonesia or back-to-school trends in South Korea, rich local data makes all the difference in targeting precision.

Personalise messaging by vertical and market: APAC consumers respond to messaging that resonates with their daily lives and local priorities. A successful CPG campaign in Malaysia might lean into value and family, while a similar campaign in Japan could centre around convenience and innovation. Vertical-specific insights, from automotive to apparel, further sharpen your approach.

Enrich first-party data to avoid fragmentation: Many brands are investing in first-party data strategies. But in APAC, fragmentation can still creep in without the right enrichment. Supplemental data can fill in the blanks, helping unify disparate data points and build more holistic audience profiles.

Measure and adapt in real time: Agile measurement and optimisation loops are critical. Consumer behaviour in APAC shifts quickly and can be influenced by local happenings, shifting economic indicators, and even changing weather patterns. A “set-it-and-forget-it” mindset simply doesn’t cut it.

Scale your localisation: The biggest challenge with localised targeting is scalability. Marketers need tools and partners that help them scale personalisation efficiently, especially when managing campaigns across a dozen different APAC markets. Automation, modular creative frameworks, and robust audience platforms can all help.

The opportunity in diversity

APAC’s complexity can be daunting, but it’s also its greatest opportunity. Brands that invest in local understanding and nuanced targeting stand to gain a major competitive advantage. As consumer expectations continue to rise, and as data signal deprecation and privacy regulations reshape the playing field, the ability to deliver relevant, respectful, and regionally attuned experiences will define the next generation of marketing success in Asia. With the right data infrastructure and strategic partners in place, marketers can unlock smarter targeting, deeper customer engagement, and stronger results across this vibrant, varied region.

If you'd like to join us at ATS Singapore this year at Sands Expo & Convention Centre on 2nd July, final tickets are available here.