Regional content marketing association ACMA launches

Content creation companies and marketing communications agencies in Asia have united to form the Asia Content Marketing Association (ACMA), a new non-profit trade association seeking to drive greater awareness, discussion, debate and sharing of best practices and industry standards around content marketing investments in the region.Don Anderson, association chair and managing director of board member We Are Social, said: “Content marketing is fast evolving in the region, and there is a lot of misunderstanding of what it actually entails – or even means. By bringing together some of the region’s leading content planners, strategists and creators, we aim to provide solutions for marketers as they contemplate their brand’s investments today and into the future. These solutions cross five specific pillars for content marketing – ideation, creation, distribution, amplification and optimisation.”While the origins of the association date back to June 2013, it recently established an official charter and an extended board that includes 11 organisations: AKA, Black Marketing, Brand New Media, Carat, CATLYST/TV, Click2View, Contented, Editor Group, King Content, Novus Asia, and We Are Social. The association aims to represent a regional industry that offers world-class expertise and marketing, with the ambition of content marketing claiming 10 per cent of all marketing expenditure by 2020. Membership in the association is free.One of the first initiatives that the association is undertaking is the launch of an industry-wide survey to study marketers’ interest in and behaviours around content marketing. The results will be published later in the year to help drive increased clarity about this growing area.Tom Radford, content director for Click2View and ACMA board member, said: “By carrying out this study, ACMA hopes create an industry benchmark against which all brands and marketers in Southeast Asia can measure their content spend and behaviour. Digital spend is the biggest growth area for brands and content marketing is a big part of that. Providing a ‘State of the Region’ barometer will hopefully bring clarity and give brands new confidence and insight into their own content strategies, thus strengthening the content marketing industry as a whole.”The association also recently launched a website, www.asiacontentmarketing.net, as a destination for marketers to access the latest updates on content marketing events and activities in the region, along with educated perspectives of brands, agencies and production companies.Nick Fawbert, managing director Asia for Brand New Media and ACMA board member, said: “The ACMA online platform is a unique asset for the industry. It plays a critical role in aggregating expertise, insights and best practice, offering a unified perspective on content marketing in the region. For launch, we've gathered together a wide range of resources from across our membership base, including dedicated regional research and local case studies. We're looking to welcome a whole host of new member contributions over the next few months, so if you've got something worth sharing, we can't wait to hear from you.”The association will host a casual gathering this Thursday, June 25 at Club Meatballs in Singapore starting at 6:30 pm as part of its official launch.