10 Biggest Digital Marketing Trends in the Philippines for 2022

With over 76 million Internet users, the Philippines stands among the frontline digital economies in Southeast Asia. Surveys show that the digital marketing industry in the country is likely to grow exponentially in the coming years.

One factor for such a thriving digital industry is the growing reliance of Filipinos on technology to conduct day-to-day transactions. Logically, this is due to the convenience and efficiency that technology brings. Add the fact that the COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the use of technological devices and social media platforms across sectors.

As a business owner, this offers promising opportunities for you to expand your customer base and increase your company’s brand awareness. But for you to compete better in the market, it’s important that you’re updated with the latest trends and developments in the industry. This allows you to fine-tune your marketing strategies to adapt to the current demand.

In this article, we will look into some of the biggest digital marketing trends in the Philippines this 2022. Read on to get in the know!

The Digital Marketing Landscape in the Philippines

Digital marketing in the Philippines is a flourishing industry. According to a survey, ad spending in the country is continually increasing at an annual growth rate of 9.7%. By 2025, the nation’s e-commerce sector is expected to be worth $10 billion.  

These numbers are fueled by the growing number of Filipinos shopping and selling online. Based on a survey, one in four Filipinos browse through live selling on social media. The number of online businesses involved in retail trade likewise increased from 70% to 80.2%.

Data also show that search volumes on merchant and seller-related queries continue to spike up to 18 times higher than in the previous years. This is supported by further surveys revealing that,  on average, 65% of Filipinos use their smartphones to shop.

10 Biggest Digital Marketing Trends in the Philippines for 2022

Your company’s ability to keep up with marketing trends allows you to improve your customer engagement and stay ahead of the competition. Here are a few leading trends you can take note of to help you get started.

1. More Filipinos are shopping on social media platforms

As of January 2022, there are 92.05 million social media users in the Philippines, or 82.4 percent of the total population. The majority of these users devote a portion of their time shopping online. In 2021 alone, 62.5% of Filipinos have purchased a product or service online.

Taking advantage of social media and other digital marketing channels will give you better leverage in increasing your brand awareness. It is a strategic way to increase your market reach as you maximize the different features that social media has to offer.

2. Influencer marketing continues to make an impact on Filipino shoppers

Majority of Filipino shoppers are swayed by influencer recommendations when buying products. In a survey analyzing the impact of influencer marketing on the purchasing decisions of Filipino consumers, the results showed that around 70% of the respondents have purchased a product because it was endorsed by an influencer. More than half of the respondents stated that they were convinced by the influencer’s testimonial.

Partnering with an influencer can help you build customer trust and effectively reach your target market. It also allows you to tap into their audiences, enabling you to expand your customer base.  

3. Greater emphasis on data privacy

There has been a growing concern about data privacy, especially in the realm of social media where personal information is often required from users and frequently shared. Over the past few years, the Philippines has been keeping a close eye on the implementation of the Data Privacy Act to ensure that sensitive information is safeguarded and kept confidential in transactions requiring the processing of personal data.

In response to the calls for better data privacy protection online, you’ll have to re-evaluate how equipped you are in protecting consumer data. You also need to re-assess how transparent you are with the measures that are in place. Remember, a customer who trusts your company will most likely come back for a second – and potentially third – purchase.

4. Increased preference for short-form content

Social media users are exposed to a gazillion content every day. As such, it is critical to deliver and highlight your brand value as quickly as possible. Ideally, your videos shouldn’t go over 60 seconds in length. For blog posts and emails, they should be fewer than 1,200 words in length.

While there is no universal rule when it comes to the “best length” of content, short-form content is the way to go if you want to instantly capture your audience’s attention. Data show that shorter content is better at keeping viewers engaged. The longer the content, the fewer people finish it and the earlier they let go.

5. Growing consumer demand for audio content

Filipinos are big on audio content. With around 31 million podcast listeners, the Philippines ranks as the sixth fastest-growing podcast market in the world. It also has the biggest podcast audience in Asia.

According to a survey, consumption of podcasts in the Philippines has doubled from March 2020 to March 2021. Gen Z Filipinos, in particular, significantly increased the time they spent listening to podcasts between the first quarter of 2020 and the first quarter of 2021, registering the largest percentage increase yet at 534%.

Whether you’re looking to start your branded podcast or sponsoring an episode, make sure your objectives align with your company values to ensure a consistent brand image across channels. Close brand-creator collaboration will also play a key role in achieving your desired results.

6. Greater focus on local SEO

The phrase “Filipinos do not go online, they live online” was coined for a reason. With Internet penetration at 68% at the start of 2022 from 48% in 2016, Filipinos are adapting to digital technology faster than ever.

The height of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 saw the most Google visits in the country at 1.05 billion a month, of which 53.8 million are unique visitors. As we enter the post-pandemic era, these numbers are expected to increase.

As a business owner, you know that it can be challenging to attract customers from far away. Consumers would rather buy from businesses that are closely and conveniently located in the vicinity. While this poses a challenge, there are strategies you can implement to address the problem, such as integrating local search engine optimization (SEO) into your marketing efforts.

Incorporating local SEO into your marketing plan can help you reach out to more customers and prospects, increase your brand visibility, and drive traffic to your site. By using locally relevant content and keywords, you can improve your Google business profile and local citations, helping you rank higher in local search results.

7. Increased use of mobile apps

Filipinos are among the most active mobile Internet users in the Asia Pacific region. According to a survey, Filipinos spend about 354 minutes per day engaging in online activities such as shopping, processing digital banking transactions, playing games, listening to music streaming services, and watching videos.

Social networking applications consistently dominate the mobile app market in the country, with Facebook taking the lead. Despite the slow Internet speed, mobile application usage in the country is still continuously increasing. To facilitate payment transactions, the Philippine government has been promoting the use of apps in processing financial transactions in the country through the National Payment Systems Act.

Buyers are always seeking ways to cut the steps to a transaction, and so should you. Given the convenience and flexibility that mobile apps bring, we can only expect them to become more popular, especially among Filipinos who are doing basically everything on their phones – from paying bills and shopping to connecting with friends and loved ones and listening to podcasts.

8. Integration of social media into e-commerce

The Philippines ranks among the top 15 countries in Southeast Asia with the most number of social commerce users.

Over the past few years, the country’s e-commerce market has been registering steady growth. In 2020, the e-commerce transaction in the Philippines was valued at Php 229.8 billion or US$4.3 billion. By the end of 2022, experts project that the market volume will amount to over Php 74 billion or US$1,412 billion.

Likewise, the number of social commerce platform users is expected to reach 55.8 million users by 2025. User penetration is also seen to hit 42% towards the end of 2022 and increase to 47.8% by 2025.

E-commerce provides consumers with the ease of purchasing products and even availing services. This is one reason it has become a primary platform for companies in the country to reach out to potential customers.

Taking advantage of this trend can help you market more directly to your customers and reach more prospects. Social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram now include features that enhance users’ shopping experience, helping you improve your customer service.

9. Increased use of UGC to drive customer engagement

The pandemic brought out the content creators in social media users around the world, and Filipinos are no exception. As of early 2022, there are 35.96 million TikTok users in the Philippines, 18.65 million Instagram users, and 56.50 million YouTube users.

By creating and publishing videos, images, reviews, and other forms of digital content on social media, these netizens contribute to the increasing user-generated content (UGC) statistics in the country.

UGC offers a unique opportunity for your business to collaborate with your customers. Consider reaching out to those who tagged your products or services in posts and ask permission to share their content on your brand page. This is a great way to access new content as you encourage your customers to engage more with your brand.

10. Growing demand for hybrid experiences

The hybrid experience combines elements of both in-person and e-commerce shopping experiences. Given how Filipinos quickly adapt to technology – and their increasing reliance on digital devices – it’s not surprising that Pinoy shoppers seek and demand hybrid experiences when it comes to buying products and using services.

Experts anticipate that the Philippine retail scene will continue to evolve to be a hybrid of online and offline shopping, with physical stores being complemented by online platforms. With this, it would be wise to integrate online efforts into your marketing strategy. Live online interactions, for instance, hold value in expanding market opportunities and sustaining business growth.

Keeping a Digital Outlook for the Future

The Philippines’ budding e-commerce market provides promising opportunities for companies to expand their customer base and increase their brand awareness. In developing strategies to capture the Filipino audience, remember that knowing the latest digital marketing trends and developments in the country will help you stay ahead of the game.

If you’re looking to grow your business, Spiralytics has a pool of digital marketing experts who can help you reach your business goals. Contact us today to learn more about our content marketing services!