Commercial attachés to help expand markets for Thai exports
The Department of International Trade Promotion is ramping up efforts to help Thai exporters by introducing a new policy under which directors of Thai trade offices in various countries, as well as their assistants and officials, are being asked to become key opinion leaders (KOLs).
The department’s director general Phusit Ratanakbul Sereroengrit, says these KOLs should be credible figures in different fields, capable of recommending and generating interest in specific subjects, adding that Commercial Attachés, in particular, have knowledge and expertise in marketing, product trends and consumer preferences in their respective countries. Introducing Thai products to consumers through social media, he said, is another means to expand the market for Thai products internationally.
"Social media is a powerful tool to rapidly and extensively reach consumers. People value individuals who influence opinions (influencers) or KOLs. The department is thus assigning Commercial Attachés to act as KOLs, and some offices have begun implementing this, such as posting content about product trends, consumer preferences and entry points for Thai products in various countries. The department plans to establish KPIs to measure the offices’ success," Phusit said.
Furthermore, the promotion of Thailand's digital content industry, which brings in increasing revenue each year, focuses on two dimensions: services, such as high-quality post-production services like editing and visual effects, and products that position Thailand as a regional intellectual property leader, including films, series, non-moving cartoon characters, and animations. There are plans to execute 17 more projects before the end of 2023, targeting aggressive market penetration for animation, characters/games, films, and series, especially in Taiwan and Japan, Phusit added.
Upcoming activities include visits by representatives of animation and character businesses to Taiwan from September 24-28 to expand business opportunities and networks, as well as promote Muay Thai, the Songkran Festival and collaborations in production and outsourcing, and to Japan on September 26-27 for pop-up exhibitions of Thai cartoons.
Additionally, participation is planned in the Kreatif Malaysia Digital Content Festival from September 27-October 1, GamesComAsia in Singapore from October 19-22, as well as the Asia TV Forum & Market in Singapore in early December.
“The activities that the department will carry out in the latter half of this year are expected to generate revenue of more than 2.5 billion baht, bringing the total for 2023 to 9.2 billion baht,” Phusit said.
