Taipei Times: You have been in the advertising industry in Asia for several decades. Where is the Asian industry going?
Ian Batey: Compared with Western countries and Japan, most Asian countries' [brands] are very small. As for Taiwan, it does a huge amount of manufacturing for other international brands and it makes the country's industry invaluable. But why shouldn't Taiwanese manufacturers go to China or India? Taiwan should develop its own brands. The brand owner is the king; the brand owner is the one with the strongest hands. Not only [in] Taiwan but [in] other parts of Asia, we are going to stress this issue and encourage companies to develop powerful global brands.
Thus, I think the mission of the advertising industry for next 20 years is to have at least 20 powerful Asian brands in the world's top 50 by the year 2020.
TT: Describe Taiwan's industry and market transformation over the past 50 years?
Batey: I would like to describe Taiwan as having gone from poorhouse to powerhouse. It means from nowhere -- no one knew of it during World War II -- to becoming one of the world's largest trading economies, ranked between 15th and 18th.
Clearly in the computer and semiconductor areas Taiwan is doing very well. Everyone knows you are having a tough time at the moment, but don't think in the short term. We have to think five, 10, 20 years ahead.
Acer is a brand that already has some equity in the world market but let me ask: in the semiconductor area, what strong brands do you have? Nothing. In addition, in the textile and food and beverage industries, Taiwan has no branding at all. Take, for example, the Won Won Group (
TT: Given the economic slowdown, how can a company handle the branding job efficiently?
Batey: It is a matter of your vision and what you want to be. If you say, "I want to be in the top three brands in the world in a certain category" and that will be your mission in life, that might take you 15 or 20 years. You need to set up some milestones about what you want to achieve along the way. You have to set your strategy, your route map -- and it might take you a year or even two years to map it out. It's like an architectural drawing.
You will encounter some difficulties like the current slump, and maybe six months or maybe two years later you will come out from it. But with your mission, you will be at the top 20 years later. So, you shouldn't let the short-term situation blur your vision. If you look at the biggest brands in the world, they think much more in terms of mid-term to long-term plans. If you believe in yourself and your mission, you will find ways of handling these problems.
Confidence is a big thing and I think it's the most important word, especially in the Asian marketing industry in the coming decades.
TT: As Taiwan enters the WTO, what should local brands do to get involved in the global market?
Batey: The world has been in some degree stimulated by the force of globalization, and the WTO is opening up the door to free trade. This means Taiwan can get into China or the US more easily.
But actually, those guys from the West are savvier in marketing and they are going to swamp you, if you let them. If you want, just sit back and let them come in and take over. If you get involved in globalization and free trade, that's the game. It is all there by brands. You have to start accepting the challenge, so that when you say it's a bad time now, you don't have more bad times, because you might be out of business within five years.
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