Getting to know you!
We’re a curious bunch here at Dejan SEO. We wanted to know more about the experiences of the brains at the helm of digital marketing in some of Australia’s biggest brands; so we asked them.
Whilst we get to work with big brands on a daily basis, there’s rarely the time to stop and ask about their personal experiences in the job. Well, that’s about to change. In our new series on managing big digital brands, we’re getting in touch with the crème de la crème of Australia digital marketing to find out about their experiences, achievements, challenges and predictions for the future.
This week we’re lucky enough to get the insight of Stuart Myerscough, Head of International Marketing at AirAsia.
Interview with Stuart Myerscough
Tell our readers a bit more about you, your experience in online marketing and your current position
I’ve been working with AirAsia for about 4 years now, across both Australian and International Marketing roles, currently Head of International Marketing, managing the Marketing Teams across Australia, Taiwan, Japan, Korea and China. I’ve also spent a number of years working in marketing and consumer insights with Virgin Blue and spent time working with key brands across a variety of other industries including Telecommunications, Energy, Media, Gaming and Entertainment. Working in Airlines though, particularly Low Cost Airlines, has given me great experience working within the digital arena. With the majority of seat sales made through direct online channels, low-cost airline websites are some of the largest e-commerce sites in the market and there is a constant focus on driving increased traffic to these sites and for the continued optimisation of our digital investments.
What is your favorite online marketing channel and why?
Social Media is definitely the space where we have the most fun, more deeply engaging customers in a disarming way while demonstrating the brand’s true personality.
I wouldn’t say I have a ‘favourite’ per se… they all have their unique attributes and can play some very different roles. SEO is simply a mandatory these days, it’s always on and we have a team monitoring and optimising continually. Affiliate Marketing is great for stretching budgets by working collaboratively with partners to meet common objectives, though it’s important to identify who is taking the lead with communications so as to maintain control of brand messaging and tonality. Email marketing is great for developing more meaningful relationships with customers over a longer period, but Social Media is definitely the space where we have the most fun, more deeply engaging customers in a disarming way while demonstrating the brand’s true personality.
What tools do you consider essential for your work?
A great team who are really switched on and highly engaged with the brand, to the extent that they can comfortably speak on its behalf, from the heart with genuine personality. This goes for both our internal team as well as our extended agency team who are just as much an integral part of our brand family.
Tell us about one of your top achievements in digital marketing. Something you’re proud of.
There’s plenty of work we’re really proud of, but one that really sticks out is our AirAsia Friendsy campaign. Great engagement, a great demonstration of our brand personality, tremendous return, and a Facebook Studio Award to boot… it was a great campaign to be a part of and a real highlight for all of us.
What are your biggest challenges at the moment?
Life’s less rewarding without challenges though, and we’re never short of them, so it’s just business as usual for us.
Our biggest challenges are really more in line with the highly volatile and extremely competitive nature of our industry, more so than the digital arena itself. Life’s less rewarding without challenges though, and we’re never short of them, so it’s just business as usual for us.
Give us one prediction for next year. What do you see as an emerging trend / issue in the online space?
I’ll be interested to watch the further developments in social commerce and the impact on traditional retailing as mobile payment channels continue to develop and integrate further to create an increasingly easy and intuitive user experience.
Now it’s your turn!
What questions would you ask the top digital marketing managers at some of Australia’s biggest brands? Do you work for one of those big brands and want to share you experiences. Let us know and we can look at featuring you / your questions in the next post. Talk to us on Google Plus
Dan Petrovic, the managing director of DEJAN, is Australia’s best-known name in the field of search engine optimisation. Dan is a web author, innovator and a highly regarded search industry event speaker.
ORCID iD: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6886-3211